94AE 44 mag Timber Scout?

[Bruce in WV]

I may make a trade for a minty 94AE 44 mag Timber Scout. Little on the net other than old promo pic and dates of production (2005-2006?).
Anybody here have practical experience with this model as a hunting rifle for Eastern woodlands deer?

[3leggedturtle]

No but i bet a 300gr cast RNFP at 1500fps would handle anything you come across. Todd/3leg

[wm]

Run, don't walk, but run away. Terrible idea.

Um … by the way …… what was the number of the guy that had that for sale? I'm asking for a friend....

Wm.

P.S. Sounds like a winner of a general purpose, good for just about anything, sort of rifle. I hope it serves you well.

[AJMD429]

I have read some negative issues about feeding from the 94 when redesigned to take modern pistol cartridges, but I really think that's not a big deal.

As for the functionality of a short barreled lever-action carbine in 44 Magnum for deer, I can't think of anything better. 45 Colt is good too, but I really don't think the deer can tell the difference.

[Pete44ru]

.

JMO - YMMV .

As a deer cartridge, the .44 Mag works well out to about 125yds (+/-); but as a rifle, I'd much rather use a rifle with an action designed for the pistol cartridge length (as opposed to full-length cartridges) - like a Winchester/Rossi Model 1892/92 or a Marlin 1894/94.

As a further consideration, you might want to reflect on when that Timber Scout was made (2005/2006) - while Winchester was in plant-closing mode with attendant labor union issues that often resulted in less than ideal product results.

.

[Bruce in WV]

"As a deer cartridge, the .44 Mag works well out to about 125yds (+/-); but as a rifle, I'd much rather use a rifle with an action designed for the pistol cartridge length (as opposed to full-length cartridges) - like a Winchester/Rossi Model 1892/92 or a Marlin 1894/94.

As a further consideration, you might want to reflect on when that Timber Scout was made (2005/2006) - while Winchester was in plant-closing mode with attendant labor union issues that often resulted in less than ideal product results."

That information about the factory closing is new to me, and very appreciated. I will inspect the gun very carefully!

[J Miller]

I may make a trade for a minty 94AE 44 mag Timber Scout. Little on the net other than old promo pic and dates of production (2005-2006?).
Anybody here have practical experience with this model as a hunting rifle for Eastern woodlands deer?

Bruce.

OK, I do not have any experience with that exact model or woodlands hunting. However there is nothing wrong with the rifle for that purpose. The 44 Mag is a great deer round and at the ranges you'll be hunting would be just about perfect.

The pistol caliber Win 94s are not problematic. They were redesigned to have a slightly shorter lever throw and work very well with the larger cartridges. And they are also much more forgiving when it comes to longer than standard loads. Over All Length is much more critical with the Win 92 and Marlin 1894.

I have a 1985 vintage Trapper in .45 Colt that has never given me any problems. I've put thousands of rounds through it from mild to MG and never hag a gun caused issue.

The last year production does give me cause for concern, but not enough to condemn it without examining it.

.

JMO - YMMV .

As a deer cartridge, the .44 Mag works well out to about 125yds (+/-); but as a rifle, I'd much rather use a rifle with an action designed for the pistol cartridge length (as opposed to full-length cartridges) - like a Winchester/Rossi Model 1892/92 or a Marlin 1894/94.

As a further consideration, you might want to reflect on when that Timber Scout was made (2005/2006) - while Winchester was in plant-closing mode with attendant labor union issues that often resulted in less than ideal product results.

.

FYI: The Win 1892 and Marlin 1894 were designed for rifle cartridges. The 44-40, 38-40, 32-20 etc were and are rifle cartridges. It's just coincidental that the .45 Colt, 44 Mag, 41 Mag, 357 ended up the same length as they were.

I have read some negative issues about feeding from the 94 when redesigned to take modern pistol cartridges, but I really think that's not a big deal.

As for the functionality of a short barreled lever-action carbine in 44 Magnum for deer, I can't think of anything better. 45 Colt is good too, but I really don't think the deer can tell the difference.

You're right, it's not a big deal. Most of the complaints I've read came from folks using them for CAS with the uber whimpy squib loads.
As I mentioned above my Win 94AE has give me the same functioning issues as my Marlin 1894; 0.


Joe

[1894c]

I had one, it was the only Winchester that gave me a lot of issues (jam-o-matic). I'm sure mine was a one-off, but I sold it to a gun shop who knew it had issues and bought a Marlin 1894 and never looked back... :)