Anyone shot the Henry 30/30's?

[Blackhawk]

Any reviews on the Henry 30/30 models? How do they compare to the Marlins and Winchesters?

Johnny

[TedH]

I shot a friends at the range once a while back. To me it was heavy, clunky, poor trigger, and not very pleasing to the eye. It seemed to be accurate enough. They are definately not my cup of tea, and in my opinion do not compare at all to an older Marlin or Winchester. I do love my Henry 22, but none of their centerfires have caught my eye yet.

[Tycer]

YES!!!!

http://www.levergunscommunity.com/viewt ... 1&start=20

[tman]

Much too heavy and ackward. I like their .22's and have one. But, if I wanted a 30-30, I'm going with a Winchester94 or the new mossberg.

[RKrodle]

They have trimmed a lot of weight off of the latest redenstion of the Henry 30/30. It's a much nicer rifle now then when it first came out a few years ago in my opinion. The brass receiver model with the octagon barrel is heavier.

[Panzercat]

NO. SIDE. LOAD GATE.

[Griff]

NO. SIDE. LOAD GATE.

E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G is a compromise.

[Buck Elliott]

NO. SIDE. LOAD GATE.

E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G is a compromise.

Not really...
Some things are just W R O N G ! ! !

[Griff]

NO. SIDE. LOAD GATE.

E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G is a compromise.

Not really...
Some things are just W R O N G ! ! !

I ain't saying I liked it... but with the explanation I got, I understand the "why".

[Bridger]

No side loading gate would be enough to turn me off of a rifle. It works fine on my BL-22, but I think it would be a pain on most any centerfire lever.

[FWiedner]

The H009 and H009B are very good rifles.

They are well constructed and good looking rifles, they handle easily and shoot straight, and the price is reasonable.

The loading tube would seem at first to be an inconvenience, but when one considers that the majority of lever action malfunctions are caused by loading gate and feed problems, the new Henrys are designed to alleviate those problems and make a more reliable levergun.

Not a fan of tube-loaders myself, but the design makes sense.

I wouldn't hesitate to buy one if I were shopping for a new .30-30.

[Blackhawk]

I did some research last night and found that there are problems with the lever closing and not firing. The video is on youtube but I don't have the link right now.

Johnny

[86er]

If anyone wants to borrow now of mine I will send it to your FFL. These negative reviews ate all of the first release that lasted only 6 months. Henry responded to their customers and completely revised them. This is said to be a hunting rifle, not a self defense or cowboy action rifle. If you need more than6 shots for that something is wrong. The "dreaded jam" and loading gate issues are eliminated with the mag tube system. Less wear on brass and fingers and safer to unload. No ridiculous safety on these. The weight is a few ounces more than a '94 with same specs and same as a 336 with same specs. It is unfair of you to pass judgement if you have not seen, handled and fired one in person. BTW, both of these shoot 1.5" @ 100 yds off bench. Find a new Remlin or old Win that does that and you'd be very lucky. The H009 round barrel is better balanced than a Marlin or Win with ample room for hand placement in one hand carry. All of our test shooters liked the balance and one-hand carry comfort.

[86er]

Oh, and if you have a question or issue you talk to a real person that will actually fix the issue including r/t shipping, if necessary.


Look at the post "frustration with new Win Miroku". There are so many parts and complications to the loading gate/lifter system that Henry used a different design in their 30-30's and 45-70's to eliminate these issues. I know it's apples to oranges with the models and calibers on each side but it does illustrate the point of how many problems can arise from the loading gate/lifter system. I head '94's break the cartridge block on the link, broken cartridge stop, case over-rode cartridge guides, etc. there are at least 3 current posts about function issues involving loading gate/cartridge stop systems. They can be fixed,and a have some that are shot often with never a problem. But the point is I. A hunting rifle why put up with it at all. That is Henry's concept with the mag tube system and it works.

[COSteve]

Done

[olyinaz]

I shot a friends at the range once a while back. To me it was heavy, clunky, poor trigger, and not very pleasing to the eye. It seemed to be accurate enough. They are definitely not my cup of tea, and in my opinion do not compare at all to an older Marlin or Winchester. I do love my Henry 22, but none of their centerfires have caught my eye yet.

I agree completely. The fact that they don't have a side loading gate, you load them like a 22, and that they are at least 2lbs heavier than a Rossi 92 overwhelms their smooth action and well finished look in my book. The 357mag version I shot was accurate and had virtually no recoil because of it's heavy weight so the only advantage I can see is that in 44mag, the felt recoil must be lower, however, carrying around that heavy thing wouldn't be my cup of tea.

Guys, when discussing the Henry 30-30 can we please NOT bring into the discussion the heavy/clunky nature of the Henry Big Boy? They are two different beasts! The current Henry 30-30 is no more or less "clunky" or heavy than a Winchester 94 or Marlin 336. Joe has made the case for the removal of the side loading gate and the engineer in me says "makes sense - I get it". I don't like it, but I get it. And honestly I don't like the looks of the new Henry so I'm not getting one, but I'm not going to run the rifle down on things that are not accurate or factual re. the new version.

If you're a collector then collect the vintage Winchesters and Marlins - Lord knows they're out there in droves. If you're looking for a new, accurate, well functioning, light and handy deer or pig rifle, then the new Henry 30-30 is a fine option. Right? Prove me wrong based on the stats of the NEW, round barrel version. If you want to talk about the fat Big Boy then let's start that thread and do it right.

Hey, opinions are like elbows right? But when people can't keep from making apples-to-oranges comparisons and/or bring outdated issues and completely different models into a discussion, I'm reminded of the other part! But that's just me...sorry, haven't had my morning coffee yet and I've already had to put out six fires with the workmen jobbing on my property...drives me nuts and makes me cranky...

[3leggedturtle]

Oly; You are right about the Bigboys. Handled the "brass" octagon version of one 45 Colt. Felt about like the Uberti '76 . Too bad you weren't here, you could shovel snow out of the driveway to cool down. At least until we served you a cup of Instant coffee . How are they starting fires?

[COSteve]

Done

[damienph]

Oly; You are right about the Bigboys. Handled the "brass" octagon version of one 45 Colt. Felt about like the Uberti '76 .

I have never seen or handled either of the new .30-30 models but I have shot both .357 amd .44 magnum Big Boys. They are decent shooters but just do not appeal to me; size, weight, don't like the brass frame and bands. The brass framed octagonal barreled .30-30 looks like it is based on the Big Boy design.

However, the round barreled model looks pretty good. Its frame design is reminiscent of the Marlin frames and I like that. I really do not like the looks of the combo front ramp sight/barrel band but that wouldn't necessarily stop me from getting one. I currently have 8 centerfire lever action rifles, three Winchesters, four Marlins, and one old Mossberg 472. Personally, I am not the least bit offended that this new Henry doesn't have a loading gate. In over 40 years of hunting with centerfire leveraction rifles, I have never had to top up the magazine in the field.

3leggedturtle, if you think Oly is cranky now, serve him a cup of instant coffee to start off his day and watch what happens!

[Dave James]

My brother in law owns the 2nd generation in 30-30 as well as the 44mag model, to me they feel fine in the hands come to POA well, and have no trouble working the lever, my only concern is the ability to find a peep sight for it. No trouble with the mag tube feed, kind of reminds me of the original Henry's.

Years ago belongeded to a forum,when they where just getting going on the web, the owners of Henry, would pop in often and discuss their firearms with us, alwayimpresseded me and they where quick to address any concerns, would love to see their talked about 45-70 version

[olyinaz]

Oly; You are right about the Bigboys. Handled the "brass" octagon version of one 45 Colt. Felt about like the Uberti '76 . Too bad you weren't here, you could shovel snow out of the driveway to cool down. At least until we served you a cup of instant coffee . How are they starting fires?

You know you're right about 76s - I've always had a hard time warming up to them as well because they're so large and heavy. Snow shovel? Hmm, I suppose you could use one for that.

I'm having some landscaping done, a fireplace built in the house, and my reloading shed finished out. (Finally!) It's always something small, but it's always something when it comes to workmen doing jobs at the house. "Did you consider drainage? Where do you expect the water from that scupper to go? Into my garage is not acceptable." That sort of thing. I learned never to have something done when I'm not around - I'd come home to all manner of "what the heck" scenarios...

And there are two kinds of instant coffee I've loved! One type came in C-Rations and then MREs, but I suspect the scenario involving its consumption tended to color my opinion. The other is this silly Starbucks Via business! I really hate to admit it, but the stuff is pretty dang tasty:

http://www.starbucksstore.com/coffee/st ... -Evergreen

Don't get hooked on it or those Keurig K Cups - your coffee bill will quadruple.

Oh and back to topic, I'm told that all coffee tasts better when it's consumed whilst shooting Henry rifles with Leverguns Forum members.

[Griff]

What 86'er said. Here's the rifle that I believe most of the levergunners gathered prefered:


As Joe said, it carried and balanced about like a mdl 94 carbine, a vast improvement over the rather barrel heavy octagon, brass receiver version. As I said, although I don't care for the tube loading, if I was down to buying a new .30-30, I'd buy one of these before the lawyered up, expensive (relatively) Miroku/Winchester 94 or a Remlin 336 with its spotty QC of late.

Review: Henry Repeating Arms 30-30 H009 and H009B, was a gathering of a number of Levergunner forum members and we kinda worked over these two rifles. We all had a chance to carry them back and forth between our two shooting positions, and were able to shoot them at 50 & 100 yards with factory ammo... and so if you think for an instant that for the price of a polypropylene knit cap I sold my soul to tell ya that that round barrelled, matte black receiver version's way better than any of the previous Henrys I've handled, you're entitled to your opinion, however erroneous that would be!

[Panzercat]

NO. SIDE. LOAD GATE.

E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G is a compromise.

Funny how nobody else has had to compromise that, but hey

[t.r.]

I bought this Henry 30-30 with high hopes of purchasing a superior firearm. But it was one disappointment after another. It was returned to the factory twice for the same problem related to the lever not locking into place properly. Finally, I asked their Customer Service for a full refund and rec'd it, too.

This rifle is heavy and poorly engineered but nicely crafted. Henry Customer Service is TOPS!

This red stag was taken in Maine. 170 grain Winchester Power Point ammo did the job nicely for me. I had a great time!

TR