Marlin 1895 sbl 45-70.

[jmortimer]

Weaver K-4

[tahunua001]

In terms of getting a good cheek weld when using a scope, there's few things I detest more than "see-thru" rings. In my experience, they make an already unwieldy scope even more unwieldy, not to mention the neck-craning needed to get a good sight picture. I'd recommend a pivot mount (like those made by Weaver) instead of see-thru rings if one ever feels it necessary to access open sights in lieu of the scope in the event the scope becomes unusable for whatever reason.

I have not suffered this problem with his 1895 nor has he or anyone else that has shot it complained of such, rather he insists upon ghost rings on all of his more recent firearms purchases. I find the cheek weld on his is quite similar to just about any other scope rifle I've used. I do have to adjust my cheek weld to use the peeps however it is not an uncomfortable nor inconvenient setup. pivot mounts are very expensive compared to standard ghost rings and many of the more affordable brands can cause serious changes in point of impact. everyone is different however based on what I've seen from his rifles I would not hesitate to use a similar setup.

also from the claims that long eye relief optics are necessary I could not disagree more. I have fired a number of 45/70s and had the "intriguing" experience of firing a thompson center contender in 45/70 with a short eye relief scope....that was er...fun to put it mildly. the 1895 SBL is a kitty cat in comparison and offers similar recoil to a standard weighted 30-06, there is no reason that any shooter should be unable to cope with the recoil of such to the extent that they are "dummy ringed".

[JackPotts]

I have a Leupold Ultimate Slam 65475 scope on mine. 2-7x33mm and it is set so the center X reticle is 100 yards and the first aiming dot below that is 200 yards. Those two aiming points will place a 300 grain Federal or Remington round inside of a one inch target respectively. I do have the Hornady ammo, but am satisfied as-is, so I have not tried that brand much. I fired two rounds to see how they compared to the other brands I mentioned. I'd need to make some scope adjustments for Hornady, but I am good for now since I have plenty of the others.

[EMN89]

I now have the rifle, I don't have the money for a scope just yet but I will probably get some form of leupold. I got one box of remington 405 gr softpoints because the local shop was sold out of everything else and I wanted to use it on the last day of rifle season. The rifle is very accurate with this load. The fit and finnish could be a little better but all and all I am very happy with the rifle.

[hornetguy]

I wanted a compact 4X scope on my 1895 SS, but didn't want to spend a huge amount on it... I had heard some good things about Tru-Glo scopes, so I thought I'd give one a whirl. I put a 4X32 Compact on mine. It has a diamond shaped reticle that I was not terribly enthusiastic about when considering buying it, but I figured that it would be ok for quick acquisition type shooting, such as would llikely happen when hunting hogs.
I've really enjoyed this scope. I am pleased with the clarity of it, and the apparent toughness of it. Granted, I haven't done any torture testing of it yet... I've only put about 150-200 rounds through it, at moderate velocities, but it's performed flawlessly. I can consistently get 1 1/4" groups at 100yds with it, off sandbags, of course. At 50yds it's almost one-hole.
The diamond reticle pretty much frames the bull of the target at 100yds, so it works out ok. Not great for precision target work, but more than adequate for any type of hunting for which this rifle is suited.

The scope is nice, clear, and pretty rugged.. all for way less than a hundred bucks.

[m&p45acp10+1]

I would like to know how well they handle cast lead. I am seriously considering buying one if I can not find a .357 Mag lever action on Friday.

[hornetguy]

I don't know what model the SBL is, but my SS handles cast bullets very well. The vast majority of what I shoot is cast, with most of those being the Lee 405gr hollow base bullet.
I load fairly mildly, using 15.0gr of Unique, which gives around 1100-1200 fps, if I remember correctly. As I stated earlier, these are almost one-hole accurate at 50yds, and easily 1.5" at 100yds. This is a very inexpensive load to shoot, and is easy on the shoulder. I imagine it would drop any deer that walked, out to maybe 200yds or better, if you could dope the trajectory.
I am hoping to get to try that load on deer and hogs this year, but time is beginning to run out on the deer part of it.

I also cast the Ranch Dog 360gr gas-checked bullet, but haven't done a lot of load development with it yet.

The 45-70 is just a natural with cast bullets..

[Jevyod]

I have a Redfield Revolution on my Marlin 336 in 35 rem. I went with the 2-7 because of the small size and weight. And since i won't be shooting over 200 yards, 7 power will suffice. It fits the gun nicely, and balances and handles beautifully!

[458winshooter]

Because it is a 45-70 and will kick I would recomend a ghost ring or some kind of peepsight.A low power scope like a K-4 weaver will work fine and not cost an arm and a leg.

[mete]

As I mentioned the 300 gr recoil is much lighter than 400 .

The problem with cast bullets was found only with the micro-groove but ONLY because the shooter did not pick bullets that had the right diameter and hardness for the gun !!!

[EMN89]

I have some 405 gr loads from remington, imo they didn't kick hard at all, however that is the loading I have tried so far others may kick harder. I have an old mossberg 500 12 gauge smooth bore slug gun that kicks like a mule, I had a scope that did not have a very long eye relief on it and it did not bother me. I don't necessarily like recoil but I know how to handle it.

[BfloBill]

make sure you have the right follower in your magazine tube!!! That's where the feeding problem rumors started. I have an 1895M in .450 Marlin and the follower is for standard flat tip rounds, when I was first shooting Leverevolution rounds it functioned flawlessly for the first couple shots then jammed on the last round. The last time the jam was so bad I had to take it to a gunsmith to get the round out. Then I found out that you need a different follower for Leverevolution rounds (the correct one has a dimple in it to compensate for the slight difference in cartridge length the ballistic tip has) since switching it I have had zero problems.
I am not sure if they include the new follower in newer guns, but it will save you some trouble if you check before you have the same problem.

[BfloBill]

By the way, I like the Leverevolution rounds (325 grain) and the Hornady 350 grain standard rounds.

[EMN89]

I like hornady ammunition, so I would like to try the leverevolution.

BfloBill
Have you shot any game animals with the leverevolution ammo? If so were you satisfied wither performance?

[NoSecondBest]

EMN89, take a look at the Leupold 2.5-8 power. I think it's the FX series. I have one on my 45-70 Winchester High Wall and couldn't be happier. This is a very light gun and the eye relief is more than enough to keep you from getting hit. I think it's a tad over 4" on the lower power. It is one of the clearest scopes I've ever owned and I've owned a lot of them in my 64 years. FYI: try shooting some 405 grain bullets loaded down to around 12-1300 fps. They are almost pleasant to shoot and will completely pass through a whitetail from stem to stern. I'm getting some unbelievable accuracy out of my reloads. I have or have had four 45-70s and this has become my absolute favorite caliber. I just ordered a Pedersoli 1886/71 in this caliber and it's coming in next Tuesday. I'm getting a safe full of this caliber in different configurations. You're gonna have a lot of fun. Good luck.

[Edward429451]

Calling it the Happy trigger is false advertising, btw. It should have been called the Ecstatic trigger.

[BfloBill]

EMN89- I have taken 3 whitetail deer with the Leverevolution ammo, I had one poorly placed shot which was completely my fault (was able to track and finish deer though) and 2 shots where zero tracking was needed. If you do your part, I have found the round to be devastating.

2 were with a 2.5 power Bushnell, 1 was with a Williams peep sight. I plan on putting the peep sight back on for next year.

[JohnKSa]

Calling it the Happy trigger is false advertising, btw. It should have been called the Ecstatic trigger.

It's pretty impressive. I told my gunsmith about it and he asked to see the rifle. I brought it in and after he measured the pull and felt the trigger, he spent awhile banging the buttstock of the cocked (but unloaded) rifle on the carpeted floor to see if he could get the hammer to fall as a result of the jarring. He couldn't ever get it to drop.

[Edward429451]

I sure like mine. My buddy with a 336CS took my Happy trigger and stoned his factory trigger to near identical dimensions and made his about 85% as good as mine for free. We tried to get his to trip like you did and his would not either.

My very first time to the range with my HT installed, I let the first one go prematurely a little before I was ready. It wasn't really an ND because I was preparing to shoot and had it pointed downrange and all but it did get my attention. I love it, you just think about it going and it does! So if any of you fellahs get a HT, be extra careful until you get used to it.