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The thread on the 45 ACP (etc) leverguns had a link to the manufacturer's site, but there was another gun they feature that gave me pause... "COMING SOON! The RPP .44 RipSaw, a 44 caliber wildcat, designed to emulate 444 Marlin performance in the lighter and handier 1894 platform. "
"As to pressure, it would be hard to say with any certainty how much developed in my test loads. Knowing what we do about the Marlin action, for instance, that the .444 runs at significantly higher pressures than the .44, without benefit of thicker chamber walls (and most assuredly has a wide margin of safety beyond) I felt safe doing what I was doing. I would think that the .327 Federal would pose no danger to the Marlin platform, but this is opinion only, and not based on any testing."
Some of the above is a bit scary in terms of what I've read on this forum about action strengths and limitations...
Last edited by AJMD429 on Mon May 18, 2015 9:42 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Doctors for Sensible Gun Laws "first do no harm" - gun control LAWS lead to far more deaths than 'easy access' ever could.
I've owned a 94 AE in 444 Marlin for several years. I have a scope on it but have not hunted with it yet.
Should be powerful enough to take down just about anything. Often referred to as a 44 Mag on steroids.
AJMD429 wrote:The thread on the 45 ACP (etc) leverguns had a link to the manufacturer's site, but there was another gun they feature that gave me pause... "COMING SOON! The RPP .44 RipSaw, a 44 caliber wildcat, designed to emulate 444 Marlin performance in the lighter and handier 1894 platform. "
"As to pressure, it would be hard to say with any certainty how much developed in my test loads. Knowing what we do about the Marlin action, for instance, that the .444 runs at significantly higher pressures than the .44, without benefit of thicker chamber walls (and most assuredly has a wide margin of safety beyond) I felt safe doing what I was doing. I would think that the .327 Federal would pose no danger to the Marlin platform, but this is opinion only, and not based on any testing."
Some of the above is a bit scary in terms of what I've read on this forum about action strengths and limitations...
I bought a Marlin 1895 that had been rechambered to 450 Alaskan a few years back . I kept it awhile and never fired the thing and finally sold it . I never was 100% comfortable with the idea of shooting that thing .
I was all in for one of the WWG 1895's that was rebarreled rebored to 50 AK but I never did go thru with that .
There was a time I liked all that (for lack of a better term) over the top stuff . But I'm past it now , heavy bullets in the 444 is about all the outta the norm I need anymore . Well and maybe a 26 Nosler !
Parkers , Mannlicher Schoenauer’s , 6.5mm's and my family in the Philippines !
BlaineG wrote:YOU can shoot it.....i won't. .....stiff .44Mag loads just about max out an 1894...
A big plus one from me.
"Yes, we did produce a near-perfect republic. But will they keep it? Or will they, in the enjoyment of plenty, lose the memory of freedom? Material abundance without character is the path of destruction." - Thomas Jefferson
If I want "power" I will go for my regular 444 Marlin instead of trying to make a 44 Mag become one, just like I'd use a 45-70 instead of trying to make a 45 Colt into one.
It CAN be done - a 454 Casull is 'close to 45-70 performance' in a short case, and out of a short action levergun, so presumably someone could do the same in the 44 caliber - BUT a Rossi 92 is stronger than a Marlin 1894, and the 454 Casull is a thoroughly-checked-out, SAAMI-spec'd cartridge. I'll wait until someone else blows up a few guns and figures out the kinks before going there...!
...plus my Big Horn Armory levergun in 500 S&W isn't that much bigger than my 1894 Marlin in 44 Mag, though it IS a pound or two heavier (of which I'm glad, when I shoot a warm load from it...
Doctors for Sensible Gun Laws "first do no harm" - gun control LAWS lead to far more deaths than 'easy access' ever could.
AJMD429 wrote:If I want "power" I will go for my regular 444 Marlin instead of trying to make a 44 Mag become one, just like I'd use a 45-70 instead of trying to make a 45 Colt into one.
It CAN be done - a 454 Casull is 'close to 45-70 performance' in a short case, and out of a short action levergun, so presumably someone could do the same in the 44 caliber - BUT a Rossi 92 is stronger than a Marlin 1894, and the 454 Casull is a thoroughly-checked-out, SAAMI-spec'd cartridge. I'll wait until someone else blows up a few guns and figures out the kinks before going there...!
...plus my Big Horn Armory levergun in 500 S&W isn't that much bigger than my 1894 Marlin in 44 Mag, though it IS a pound or two heavier (of which I'm glad, when I shoot a warm load from it...
If I had that Big Horn, and you had a feather in your shorts.....we'd both be tickled. ...
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Some confusion on the platform here. The OP and the posts on the Marlin forum were referencing a wildcat 44 caliber cartridge on a Marlin 94, a "short action" levergun, not a Winchester Model 94 which is a longer action. If you really want a Marlin 94 to shine, you should do what my best friend is doing and have a Marlin 94 built by McPherson using the FA 500 Wyoming Express. Now that's some horsepower in a short levergun!
Regards,
-Tutt
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CowboyTutt wrote:Some confusion on the platform here. The OP and the posts on the Marlin forum were referencing a wildcat 44 caliber cartridge on a Marlin 94, a "short action" levergun, not a Winchester Model 94 which is a longer action. If you really want a Marlin 94 to shine, you should do what my best friend is doing and have a Marlin 94 built by McPherson using the FA 500 Wyoming Express. Now that's some horsepower in a short levergun!
Regards,
-Tutt
Agreed, but the weight between the 2 isn't all that much, and if you go "trapper"length in the Win, their neck and neck. Not worth the hassle, to me any way, to bridge the gap between the Marlin and the Winchester, if you use the +P loadings in the .44 mag..
If you guys can figure a way to send me one of those 444/94's up here, without me actually having to spend money, I'd be glad to test it for you for a few decades.
In my crazier youth I did a lot of stuff with the '94 that it isn't supposed to be able to do. This was with a 1971, version, just outside of the stamped versions.
The action is springy, but a lot stronger than folks (particularly bolt action type folks) give it credit.
The question for me, is not IF the action will do it, but for how long, and how reloadable are the cases WRT number of firings.
If the .45-70 out of a Marlin Guide Gun or out of a Winchester 86 won't do the job, I would probably just go get a bolt action .375 H&H of some sort. I used a 350 grain lead round nose on a some game one time from my Guide Gun, and it wasn't all that impressive. I put the bullet in a place where anything that would have expanded would have left a good blood trail, and might have killed the animal with the one shot. Hunting in South Africa, I used a .45-70 405 grain +P from Grizzly Cartridge on a wildebeest, and it did a good job. It expanded to about .875 inch and penetrated from the base of the spinal cord to the right shoulder. Approximately 4 feet of tough animal. It took out the wildebeest's right legs, but that critter ran off on its 2 left legs. Ask Ji if the African animals are tough enough to run on 2 legs. He saw one do it at the game ranch in Hondo. We got the wildebeest. I am not sure that any bullet from a .44 Magnum on steroids would have done as well. Again, if the .45-70 cannot do the job, it is time for me to go to a bolt action .375 H&H.
D. Brian Casady
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piller wrote:If the .45-70 out of a Marlin Guide Gun or out of a Winchester 86 won't do the job, I would probably just go get a bolt action .375 H&H of some sort. I used a 350 grain lead round nose on a some game one time from my Guide Gun, and it wasn't all that impressive. I put the bullet in a place where anything that would have expanded would have left a good blood trail, and might have killed the animal with the one shot. Hunting in South Africa, I used a .45-70 405 grain +P from Grizzly Cartridge on a wildebeest, and it did a good job. It expanded to about .875 inch and penetrated from the base of the spinal cord to the right shoulder. Approximately 4 feet of tough animal. It took out the wildebeest's right legs, but that critter ran off on its 2 left legs. Ask Ji if the African animals are tough enough to run on 2 legs. He saw one do it at the game ranch in Hondo. We got the wildebeest. I am not sure that any bullet from a .44 Magnum on steroids would have done as well. Again, if the .45-70 cannot do the job, it is time for me to go to a bolt action .375 H&H.
I wonder if the same shot, using a .375, or a 458WM on that same wildebeest would have produced different results
The little 1894 trapper length carbine I had in 44 magnum kicked like the proverbial mule --- I would not want to handle much more power than stock magnum levels unless I really had the time to dedicate to adjust to the recoil -- but sounds like a fun project nonetheless
Didn't Rossi make some thumpers in the Win92 clone? I believe they discontinued the model. Reports of problems from the repeated heavy recoil.
The little Marlin94 would make quite a thumper too. However the cost for the conversion might not warrant the benefit over the 44 Mag. With some fancy work it could generate lots of punch as is. Of course no where near the cool factor.
I feel obligated to my trusty 444S to mention they make a dandy thumper right out of the box. Got a cool factor too, IMO.
Also cartridges should have a rim, shouldn't they! This seems to be self evident. Rimless cartridges might catch on but why take a chance?
