Henry lever action lovers/haters/critics/fans ASSEMBLE!

[seanie!]

I have lever action fever. I've wanted one for a while but it's always taken a back seat to something else that I have my eye one. I've gone back and forth on what chambering that I want, and I don't own a .22 yet, so I figure I might as well kill two birds with one stone. Lately, I've also come to realize that out of all the guns I own, not one of them is made in the USA. Let's call this predicament bird number three. As a brief aside, I currently own:
- a converted .223 Saiga
- a 91/30 Mosin Nagant
- a 12ga Benelli SuperNova
- a Bersa Thunder .380
- a Taurus PT24/7Pro 9mm

As you can see, I have a lot of my bases covered, but not all. I need a that I can devote a full day of shooting to without breaking the bank, or my shoulder*cough*Mosin*Cough*. Also, the only thing I'm going to be using this for is target shooting. I'm most likely never going to hunt with it, and I'm not going to try to hold down the fort with it either.

I was originally going to hold out until I bought a revolver, and then pick up a lever action chambered in that caliber, but that day is most likely far, far away. This brings me to the topic at hand. Today, at my local BPS, I somehow just so happened to make my way over to the gun counter. I spotted a Mossberg 30-30 and checked it out. I liked the overall feel of the rifle, and the price wasn't all that bad. Then I noticed a Henry H001 a rifle down from it. The first thing that I noticed was the excellent fit and finish of the gun. The blueing was great, and the wood looked really nice. It shouldered comfortably, even though it was a touch short. Everything felt absolutely solid on this gun. The only problem I had with it, is the iron sights. After handling the Mossberg, which has the diamond/dot sights, the plain notch/post rifle sights seemed inferior, and I don't the the hooded from sight. The guy behind the counter seemed quite knowledgeable about lever actions, and told me the hood on the front sight can be popped on and off at my liking. He also pointed of the groove for an optic. The rifle also just so happened to be on sale for $269, which after a quick internet browsing, seems rather okay. Alas, this sale ends tomorrow.

The Good
Fit and finish
Made in the USA
Ready for an optic
Price

The Okay
The overall length

The Bad
Those sights

The Questions
What kind of aftermarket sights are we looking at here? While comparing prices, I noticed that there are some Lyman peep sights around.

Does the hood over the front sight indeed come off without a hassle?

Does the rifle cycle alright with cheapo ammo? The reason I even want a .22 in the first place is so I can buy bricks and bricks of Federal Bulk without worrying about jamming. The last thing I want is to pick up a finicky .22 that only shoots reliably with "the good stuff".

That's all I've got for now, and I'll go ahead and thank everyone ahead of time. Also, feel free to recommend another .22 lever action. My heart isn't 100% sold on this little guy yet, so I'm all ears for everyone's opinion.

 

[Avenger29]

Good- they've got good customer service. Affordable. Seem to be a decent gun for the money you pay. I wouldn't buy one of their more expensive rifles, their centerfire rifles, and I sure wouldn't buy their AR-7. For the price of something like the Goldenboy, you can easily get a BL-22 or Marlin 39. Also good is the smooth action.

I've been mentoring a friend who purchased a Golden Boy as a first rifle. It seems to have no problem cycling cheap bulk ammo, i.e, we have NOT had to apply the pocketknife treatment yet.

Agree on the craptastic sights, but compared to other .22s (besides CZ), you're getting run of the mill.

Also keep in mind what you think is the reciever is just a cover plate.

 

[Speedo66]

I don't know anything about the gun personally, but how can you go wrong with a rifle made in that well known gun producing city of Brooklyn?

Seriously though, the family that owns that company has been in the gun selling business in NY for several generations.

 

[Offfhand]

The family that owns the company are very good, decent and honest people.

 

[ChefJeff1]

I have the h000T or whatever model. The one with the octagon barrel. I think it has better sights, Marbles. I love it! It is so fun to shoot, looks good, feels good, abd functions perfectly with the cheapest .22 ammo I can find, all bulk box. Get one and never look back, you can scope it if you want too. Jeff

 

[panrobercik]

The beauty of tube fed lever action is that it will shoot short, long, long rifle, cb cap, Aguila colibri, you name it...
The round is grabbed from the magazine by the rim so the length of the bullet is not critical.
Henry lever was on my wish list for a while, but I came across Winchester 9422 and got this one. I agree , the sights on Henry suck, but you can mount an inexpensive scope to upgrade. I've heard only positive opinions about this rifle and for under $300 at local shop you can't beat this.

 

[Wishoot]

I have the entry level .22. The cheap plastic sight has been replaced.

It's simple, easy, reliable, accurate and very fun. Can't ask for much more than that. It was well with the $200 I paid.

 

[TomADC]

just ordered one last week, I'm now in the 10 day CA waiting period. Looking forward to shooting it. I bought the base model H001
Check here good info. http://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=67

 

[bobmcd]

The hood on the front sight comes off all too easily; I have no idea where mine went. I was hoping it fell off in the case, but apparently it came off somewhere else. Seriously, it just fits into a pair of groove in the base of the front sight and will slide right off with no trouble at all. Far too little trouble, IMHO...

 

[billsnogo]

My wife likes ours, and then took it over when I put a red dot on it. Know most will laugh at it, but she (and me) really enjoy it. We have the entry level basic model and could not be happier

 

[Publius1688]

A Henry is on my list.....I figure I can always replace the sights later. For the money and fun factor, you can't go wrong.

 

[mstirton]

H001T sights aren't bad (kinda hard to pick up in low light). I usually just plink at steel and clays on the 40-60m berms. The rifle is great and I haven't gone to the range without it since getting it over a year ago. Get the octagon barrel upgrade - feels and looks better.

 

[GRAYRID3R]

I just bought a new Marlin .308MXLR and have owned a Henry Big Boy .44 mag for about a year. I very much prefer the action on the Henry and the tube loading/unloading. If Henry made a .308 I would have bought that instead of the Marlin. I gave my 12 year old Grandson a golden boy for his birthday, and we both love it. For the price the shop is asking, I'd grab it.

 

[Daizee]

The basic Henry .22 is a fabulous gun for the money.
The receiver is not blued, it's a finish over an alloy (non-steel) receiver.
Yeah, the sights could be better, but sights are easily replaceable if you hate them. I've shot some very nice offhand groups with one of those. It handles VERY well. Never had a feeding problem at all, and ejection was consistent enough that I'd try to pop the empties over my shoulder into the brass bucket behind me at the indoor range.

If you double the price you can get a Win. 9422, but in the $300 range you'd be hard pressed to do better than that Henry.

I have a Golden Boy in .22WMR which doesn't get shot much because of the expense. That's also a lovely rifle, but the basic model handles even more naturally.

-Daizee

 

[conhntr]

i havethe plain 22lr model. crazy accurate (mounted scope just to see 1.5" at 50yards i useirons for hunting though). small, light fun.

downside is the painted aluminum reciever. ifyou actually hunt with one of these it will scratch and get dinged. a blued metal reciever looks ok with wear; but these look horrible like a ruger s/a on the aluminum parts.

 

[scotjute]

Have the Henry lever-action in .22 mag. The gun is accurate and the action cycles smoothly. Very good gun.