Which .357 Lever Action brand is good?

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The original title of the thread was .357 caliber...in that regard, I've had a Marlin 1894 for a decade that's truly accurate...2" @ 100 yds with a Skinner Peep mounted, and using Hornady 158 FP XTP's in my handloads. That kind of accuracy makes it a viable deer rifle out to 75-100 yds in my book. BTW, it's equally good with my cast bullet load: Lyman's 358156 gc backed by 13.5 grains of 2400.

But if you were looking for a better deer gun, then I'd suggest the same Marlin 1894 in .44 Magnum (Not Remington built Marlin). It'll give you an add'l 25 yds beyond what the .357 will do....and with certainty that you'll have a DRT or at least a good/great blood trail. My Marlin 336, a Texan in .44 Mag (yes, grasshopper, they did make them), has been a great, easy carrying rifle for two decades now with a half dozen KY whitetails to its credit.

Given the choice for a one-gun for fun or serious hunting, it'd be the .44 Mag. for its better hunting caliber, but the .357's a much better plinker.

Here are four of mine...from the top: A Marlin 336 Texan in .30-30, then a Marlin 1894 in .41 Magnum, a Marlin 336 in .44 Magnum is the 3rd one down & the bottom one is the Marlin 1894 .357. Two are scoped with 2.5x 7/8" Leupold Alaskans, while the top gun carries a vintage Weaver K2.5x. The .357 wears a Skinner peep. All are good deer guns, but my personal favorite is that .41...plenty of smack, with an exotic cartridge, but it's truly a handloading-only proposition. Lever guns were meant for open or peep sights to keep the balance right and the weight down, but 75 year old eyes are slowly forcing me into scope use..... YMMv, Rod

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I had a Marlin 1894 way back in the day.
It was fun, but it really did not need the 3-9x I had on it--probably would have been better with a "big tube" 4x fixed.
Zero wrong with that Marlin, and it was a joy to clean.
Levers did not float my boat at the time, so it moved on.
But I do miss that fine old Marlin.
 
Agree with most of what's been said. I have a Marlin 1894C (pre-Remlin), an 1895 in 45-70 (a Remlin) and a Henry in 30-30. They are all great guns, even the Remlin 1895 from 2015. Wouldn't get rid of any of them. Have also heard good things about the Rossi. Let us know what you decide!
 
I have an early 1980's vintage Marlin 1894C and a current Winchester (Miroku) 1873 chambered in 357 Magnum. Both shoot and function well although I'll admit I only have a few hundred rounds through the Winchester at this time.
 
I have all in 45 Colt. Why, because they don’t make a 46. Calibers aside, I have a Rossi, Marlin, Winchester 1873, And Henry. The Winchester 1873 is my favorite. The Henry the least. Don’t get me wrong, fit and finish is excellent. Accuracy very good. Without history for me it’s just a Marlin clone. No, I won’t sell it. Just because I said least doesn’t meant I don’t like it. The Rossi is light and not as accurate. I had the polished finish changed to satin. It won’t eject at below zero. Trigger was polished, stupid safety removed, and a ghost ring sight installed. Lastly the Malin. Had my friend who did QA for Marlin look it over. Don’t blame him for QA at the arms. He was always being overruled on holding back Marlins from shipping. It is nice, HATE the stupid bar code on the receiver. What jerk thought of that. It shoots well. The stock actually has better metal fit to wood than my 1895G that I got in 2003 when I got back from Iraqi Freedom. An 1894 is on my list next. The Rossi is my most likely to take out rifle.
 
In addition to my Post #29, I have an 1890 vintage Winchester 1873 chambered in 32-20 as well as the current generation Miroku Winchester 1873 chambered in 357 Magnum. The Miroku Winchester has a much smoother action than the original. This may be due to the age of the 1890 vintage rifle, but the Miroku Winchester is a nice rifle.

I do have a tube magazine Henry 327 Fed Magnum lever action that is well made but it is difficult to compare to the newer side gate versions in terms of operation.

I have no experience with the Rossi lever action rifles but it sounds like most folks have positive experiences with them.

I have plans to add some more Miroku Winchesters to my collection as availabilities of rifles relax a bit from the current panic levels.
 
Also depends on the years of manufacture. My Marlins are all pre-cross bolt safety, pre-Remington. Cheapskate that I am, I only buy used. The older Marlins had their Micro-Groove rifling which requires some work to get lead bullets to shoot well, then they switched to Ballard rifling at the request of the CAS/SASS shooters.
 
I have two Henry's; .357/38spl and .45 Colt, both with 20" barrels. Both are as accurate as I can shoot them. If you have components, the .357 will be a bit less expensive to handload.
My preference is the .45 Colt, but, both are a gas to shoot. I'm not being chased by marauding Indian's, so, the tube is fine for me. Easier to unload also.
 
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Absolutely adore my Henry big boy classic carbine and I strongly recommend getting in the car being shorter length which is about 16 in as it actually has better ballistics than the 20 inch barrel and it looks just as good super accurate with the iron sights
 
If you actually want to hunt with a lever action then I would recommend the big boy x version cuz it's not so pretty you won't want to scratch it and actually I would recommend you get that in 44 Magnum I have it and adore it as well
 
My Henry Mare's Leg has functioned well but I'm not good with the stockless mare's leg setup.

I purchased a Big Boy stock direct from Henry US (who were very good to deal with) and made what you folks would call a SBR. No such restrictions in Canada except in BC where you can't hunt with a sub 12" barrel. My carbine is fine for hunting.

VRaI0BLl.jpg

I replaced the OM sights with some higher visibilty TruGlo sights.

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I have always had a soft spot for 92’s so my personal 357 lever is a Rossi that I slicked up so it as smooth and reliable as a well worn Winchester original. The 73’s are smooth but heavy and not especially well balanced to me. If you do buy a Marlin 94, read up on the cartridge lifter modification and you will have years of trouble free operation.
 
I love my new Henry it’s a 22lr but it works every stinking time. Hasn’t chocked on any ammo. With that said it’s my first lever action. Shoot a few but never bought one until a few weeks ago.
 
IMG_20210518_193828897.jpg Okay so I know this is not a 357 but since I mentioned my Henry big boy classic carbine which is one sharp looking lever action and deadly accurate
I would feel terrible not to mention my passion for the gorgeous and deadly machine that is the Marlin 1895 SBL 45 70 G.
This gun has no flaws and is simply an all-weather badass to carry anywhere anytime gnarly critters are around.

Got to give a shout out to my Henry big boy x44 Magnum as well with a threaded barrel and a suppressor coming for it that's going to make a hell of a hunting rifle in a nice little package.
Even my 10-year-old son can shoot it without the suppressor
but his go-to for deers 243 and even I am shifting down to 243 from originally started w 300 Win Mag then going down to 308 I find that my kids kill deer DRT dead right there on a regular basis with the 243
 
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A lever action rifle in a pistol caliber is a lot of fun. A .357 rifle is very versatile especially if it will feed .38 Special. A rifle shooting mild .38 Special loads has little recoil and usually a mild report-great for introducing new shooters to repeating rifles.

The top rifle in cowboy action shooting is a Uberti 1873 with 38 Special ammo. The mechanically simple “toggle link” action can be made to run very light and fast.

The Marlin 1894 and Winchester 1892 have stronger receivers. The ‘92 receiver is very compact as well. The Marlin is easy to disassemble which is a plus if you shoot black powder ammunition.

Henry Repeating Arms has done a great job marketing. The Big Boy “Steel” is, in my opinion, a better handling and better looking rifle than the original version. Kudos to HRA for offering the Big Boy in .41 Magnum which is a great cartridge.
 
I have a Rossi and it feeds anything from hollow points to semi wadcutters in either 38 or 357.
 
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