Marlin 1895 Cowboy 45/70

[Anvil Dave]

Howdy to all you pards, and I hope you all having a good Memorial Day weekend. I'm looking at a Marlin 1895 Cowboy 45/70 rifle and I like to know how is it shooting black powder?

[Steel Horse Bailey]

Howdy, Anvil Dave.

My pard Silver Creek Slim has (perhaps had) one and is very happy with it.  I don't remember him ever saying anything negative about it.  Perhaps he'll chime in here and add his $.02 here.  Haven't "seen" much of him 'round here, lately, 'tho.  His wisdom and wit is missed.

[BlaiseNSaddles]

I have one and while I have only put throguh BP substitute loads (and smokeless) it does just fine.  It seems to like the Goex pinnacle a little better than the Triple 7.

I have a friend whose eyes are better than me and could put in 2.5" groupings at 100 yards using the Goex powered 305gr.

[Dick Dastardly]

Howdy Anvil Dave,

It's my understanding that this gun has Ballard, rather than Micro Grove, rifling.  If that's so, it'll be a good shooter with Holy Black.  Lever rifles with tube magazines were the guns that the Big Lube™ DD/PRS 390 grain RNFP bullets were designed for.

DD-DLoS

[Steel Horse Bailey]

Howdy, again!

I'm not raggin' on my pard, DD, 'cause he's prob'ly fer-got MORE 'bout BP than I know, but TECHNICALLY speaking, the Ballard (also known as "deep cut") rifling makes lead  boolits more effective.  Since a whole bunch of BP shooters use only lead boolits, well ... yes - the rifling will be good fer BP use!   

On the other side of the coin, when Marlin began "Micro-Grooving" (tm) their barrels, speculation was that the newer style barrel rifling was primarily for jacketed bullet use and wouldn't be so good with lead pro-jec-tiles.  In fact, that seems NOT to be true - the guns, at normal lever action ranges, seem to shoot jes' fine with lead OR jacketed bullets!  Personally, I look at it like this.  The whole secret to efficient bullet sealing in the barrel is the ability of the bullet, by way of pressure, to :#1) completely engage the rifling and #2) totally seal the bore, so no gas cutting happens - which is a factor in both power/velocity loss and barrel leading.  Are ya with me so far?  OK.  The lead bullets in "deep cut" rifling can easily do that, but it becomes problematic with lower powered, jacketed bullets.  The Micro-Groove rifling, on the other hand, has little trouble doing that with lead OR jacketed projectiles.  If anybody doubts THAT, then why are Marlin 22s (especially the Model 39s) virtually tack drivers?!  They are arguably THE most accurate production rifles: ie: NOT specifically made for competition.  (A side note: NO, I don't work for Marlin; I just admire their quality guns.)  I have 2: one, a model something-or-other - the 60, I think, semi-auto, and my favorite, a 1960s era "Golden 39A Mountie" which I cherish.

I'll climb down from the podium now.   

So, Anvil Dave -  to reiterate, I'll bet you'd be real happy owning a Marlin 1895: I know I would!  (Sorry I repeated me-self!      )