Shooting BP in a Marlin 94?

[BobinIL]

Is anyone shooting BP subs in a Marlin 94?  Specifically using the strait walled 44 special/Mag?  Any issues with blowback or gun malfunctions? 

[Coffinmaker]

unfortunately, your question can't be answered specifically.  With a caveat.  Straight Wall pistol cartridges in rifles LEAK.  Some lead less than others.  It will depend on your specific chamber dimensions and your load.  You will experience "some" blow-by."  Generous chamber equals lots of blow-by.  Much of that blow-by, in a Marlin, will come back past the bolt assembly to your face.  With a tighter chamber of course, less blow-by.  In all honesty, it's a crap shoot.  You may or may not get lucky.

Coffinmaker

[Dick Dastardly]

Howdy Bobin,

Experiment with this.  Try loading some 44 Magnum loads in brass fired in that chamber.  Don't re-size it.  Simply prime, bell, charge, seat and crimp bullet.  Hopefully, you are shooting Mav Dutchman Big Lube®LLC bullets lube sized to .429".

DD-MDA

[HolliferADollar]

We have a Marlin 94 in 45 Colt that we use with black powder (Goex).  It gets as dirty as my 73 in 45C, but it is easier to disassemble so it doesn't take long to clean.  Cleanup is part of the fun of black powder...or so I tell myself after every match.

Holler

[Count Sandor]

Not a direct answer, but related, since I shoot straight-walled .45 Colt in Marlin 94's.

You specifically asked about subs - I shot APP for 6 years. Never had any sort of problems with powder related extraction or cycling. The residue from APP is soft (claim is that it provides it's own lubrication) and my Marlins (all 4) will run as well after 6 stages as they do for the first stage. I attended one 8-stage-in-a-day match with no opportunity to clean, and the rifle only started feeling a bit "notchy" toward the end of the string on Stage 8, but not disruptive. Full case, tight crimp, big (250 gr.) bullet, no problem. You are much more likely to run into extraction problems from a split case than from APP residue.

FWIW, although not part of your question, since converting to Holy Black two years ago, I have experienced more in the nature of hard extraction and sticky cycling. Cured this by swabbing chamber with a piece of wet-wipe every other stage and putting a drop of Ballistol on the end of the lever where it enters the bolt and on the tip of the ejector. Real black powder makes for a bit more work, but sounds and looks much better, and is a whole lot more fun!

CS

[mehavey]

Is anyone shooting BP subs in a Marlin 94?

No problem at all... if you anneal the case mouths (stomp, stomp).  

If if/when you do anneal, do it Right:
Get 750° Tempilaq for painting inside the neck



Do NOT muck around with the old wives' tale/Grand Dad's methods of annealing.
Get the Tempilaq, and USE it.

[Flatbush]

I shoot .38 special with BP subs in my '94 Marlin. It's not .44, but it's also a straight walled case and I get very little fouling in the action and the gun always runs smooth. Fortunately the gun comes apart so easily it's not a hassle to pull the bolt and lever to wipe off any fouling that got in there.