Marlin 1894 .44 and .45 Colt questions

[awp101]

Did Marlin ever make a non-Cowboy, 20" barrel in .45 Colt?

I'm thinking about either a .44 or .45 1894 to go with my .357 but it seems like all I see are the CB version.

Thanks!

[Griff]

I believe so... but don't quote me on that.

[Chuck 100 yd]

You mean like a round barrel carbine or rifle? Not that I know of.

[J Miller]

Yes they did. I had one I bought new back in 1990. The model number was 1894 G.
Standard 20" round carbine barrel with a full magazine and pregnant forearm.

Joe

[trapper45]

Still have the one I got new from Shooting Systems in Fenton, Mo., in '89 or '90. Model 1894-S; straight stock, round 20" Micro-Groove barrel; square bolt--looks like a bigger brother of my 39M. Very solid, and accurate with anything put through it, cast or jacketed. Somewhere around $320-330 back then, if memory serves.

[awp101]

Thanks Joe and trapper, that gives me some model numbers to search with.

Chuck, that's perzactly what I'm looking for, a 20" round barrel.

I've had one or two 24" (IIRC) CBs and am not opposed to another (especially if the round barrels are unobtainium/stupid money) but they always felt nose heavy to me. Maybe the shorter barrel wouldn't have that feel?

[AJMD429]

I wanted one for a very long time, and couldn't find one, but I DID have an 'extra' pre-safety 1894 in 44 Magnum, and for I think $99 from Numrich or Brownells, I got a factory 20" round 45 Colt barrel.

Some folks will knowingly tell you how the bolt-face and all are different, and you need to replace lots of internals, BUT if you check Marlin's website and manuals, you find the part numbers for 44 Mag and 45 Colt internals are exactly the same. A call to the factory confirmed that, so with a couple bolts and old oak floor-boards for an 'action wrench', and an aluminum AR-15 barrel-wrench, I swapped out the barrels in juat a few minutes.

Headspacing was not even an issue, as the coarse-threaded barrels have a design that pretty much stops the twisting-in process at exactly the right point. (I did double-check with a headspace gauge though - probably a waste of time/money there...)

The only mistake was I let the action close during installation of the new barrel (you leave the bolt in to keep the receiver from collapsing, but it has to NOT be fully forward). I neatly sheared off my ejector with the last twist of the new barrel. Fortunately had a spare already.

Anyway, since the factory made a 20" round barrel, (and more importantly, since Joe Miller SAYS so ) I know they must have made non-cowboy 45 Colts.

If you can't find one, look for the barrel like I did - mine was in perfect ("factory new") condition, blued, and ready to go. Not bad for $99 or whatever.

[awp101]

Doc, that may be a solution and it might be THE solution as I could swap calibers as I saw fit (or according to ammo availability). And I already have an action wrench I made for Martini Cadets. Which happen to be close in size to the Marlin and have very straight sides as well...

[AJMD429]

I don't find any barrels listed now (when I bought mine six months ago there were two in inventory and I think it was Numrich or Brownells).

Here's a video I found of a factory one at the range...(tell Joe not to watch - there is a Carry Handle on it)... - http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pl ... 9w8E4HEeyQ

[Griff]

And they also made the "Cowboy" with a 20" barrel.

And Doc, that was probably Numrich.

[J Miller]

AWP101,

I have a 20" 1894 Cowboy now that balances about as perfect as a levergun can. The octagon barrel around that big .45 caliber bore is, to me anyway, a perfect match.

Some time a couple years back Marlin released a second run of the plain round barrel 1894s in .45 Colt. The later ones had hard wood rather than walnut stocks on them.
I've never seen one in the flesh, only pics and comments on this forum I believe.

Should I ever see another one at the same time I have some cash I'll grab it.

AJMD,
OK, I won't watch that video. Not cos of the carry handle, but cos of my slooooow dial up.

Joe

[awp101]

Yes, Numrich has the 20" round .45 Colt barrels in stock for $111.

I changed the topic title to reflect a .44M 1894 question. Several, including myself, have commented on the recoil of the .44M out of these carbines. The one I had a few years ago wasn't an obnoxious recoiler but it was uncomfortable bordering on unpleasant. At least it was for me and that was while wearing a PAST recoil pad as I recall.

Has anyone swapped the stock out for a different design to see if that made a difference? Maybe added a rubber recoil pad? The biggest reason I'm thinking .45 Colt is because of my dislike with the way the .44M recoils in the 1894. And this is from someone who enjoys shooting .500S&W out of a Handi-Rifle and got a kick (no pun intended) running full house BP .45-120 loads from a Sharps...

[trapper45]

My .45LC 1894-S came brand-new with a 1/2" thick rubber pad as a buttplate, complete with the Marlin horseman logo. Not super-soft, but it's not metal or plastic, either. Satisfactory for whatever loads I use.

I've since stepped down from rifle-only loads to those from the +P Ruger/Contender sections of the various manuals, and don't have many of those, preferring to use the classic load of 8.5gr Unique under a 250-255gr lead projectile (worked in 1873 from a pistol; works in 2013 from rifle or pistol). Haven't used XTPs, just the older Hornady 250- or the Speer 260-gr jacketed soft-point hollow points when I've loaded jacketed warheads.

[1886]

Yes they did. I have only seen one in person and I bought it. 1886.

[EdinCT]

Cabelas had the 20 inch round barrels a year or so ago, you might check with them to see if they still do.

[AJMD429]

OK, I won't watch that video. Not cos of the carry handle, but cos of my slooooow dial up.

Well I don't have a picture of me shooting mine, let alone a video, but here's a picture of the gun...


Marlin 1894 circa 1976 production, formerly 44 Mag now 45 Colt. Forend slimmed when receiver parkerized and rear stock replaced (gun rusted despite careful storage while I was away in college, and mice chewed tang of rear stock off that was stored separately). And yes, the forend cap is not installed, as I'd not finished re-fitting it yet (the new 45 Colt barrel's hanger slot was of course just a tiny bit different in location than the 44 Mag barrel's one was). The magazine tube has a steel scope-mount rail shaped to fit it and sweated on, then a CeramaCote finish, so the gun has numerous finishes since the new barrel is blued. Someday I'll maybe finish the whole gun in CeramaCote or something, but for now, I just shoot it. The rail is nice in that I can quickly clip a light on it if I tote it out at night to check on the livestock. (I took the XS rail off and put on a regular 'Weaver' one that just covers the top of the receiver, and with the little Burris Fastfire-II & LaserMax pistol laser up top, and light on the rail, I can ring the 8" gong consistently in total darkness.)

[J Miller]

AJ,

Just looked at your rifle again. My opinion .... ditch the barrel band and put a rifle type front magazine hanger on it. It will look much better that way.

Joe

[Ranch Dog]

The Marlin 1894S was also offered as a 45 Colt. This is a straight stocked carbine. I have one but it was a special run, Guide Gun, with a 16 1/4" ported barrel. The standard S looks the same except with near 4" more of barrel.



The felt recoil of this rifle with heavy cast bullets loaded to 35.0K PSI is brutal. This model, the S, was also chambered in 41 Mag and is a rare find and more desirable than the pistol gripped FG. If you do battle to acquire one on the auction sites, you will probably spend over $1200!

[lonedog]

Decade and a half ago I bought 94C carbines in 357 and 45 Colt at Big 5 at about $350 per. They had cheap wood and dull finishes and were very rough. World champ CAS shooter and gunsmith Long Hunter slicked them up and they have performed flawlessly since. The 45 is my main WBAS rifle. Big 5 probably sold many many thousands of those pre-Remington JM marked carbines. At the time I bought mine they were a tremendous bargain.

[AJMD429]

My opinion .... ditch the barrel band and put a rifle type front magazine hanger on it. It will look much better that way.

Wouldn't that mean cutting another dovetail in the barrel, and/or replacing the forearm wood...or is there a way to do it without that...? I'd be mildly interested in exploring the options, though I'll probably leave it as-is.

[Hobie]

The felt recoil of this rifle with heavy cast bullets loaded to 35.0K PSI is brutal.

Brutal?

[Ranch Dog]

The felt recoil of this rifle with heavy cast bullets loaded to 35.0K PSI is brutal.

Brutal?

Yeap, that curved metal cap on the butt stock will punish you good!

[J Miller]

My opinion .... ditch the barrel band and put a rifle type front magazine hanger on it. It will look much better that way.

Wouldn't that mean cutting another dovetail in the barrel, and/or replacing the forearm wood...or is there a way to do it without that...? I'd be mildly interested in exploring the options, though I'll probably leave it as-is.

AJMD,

OK, I tried to answer you yesterday but the forum would not let me post. This nonsense has gotten old.

Yes, you'd need to cut one dovetail just back from the muzzle on the bottom of the barrel. Put the little thing that the magazine cap screw goes into there. You'd have the same affect as my 1894 Cowboy, a short rifle with a round barrel.
No need to remove the forearm and cap.
It would look like this, only with a round barrel:

To me anyway, that would be a much nicer appearance than the rifle style forearm and cap and a carbine barrel band.

Joe