Lever Action Carbines

[Fail-Safe]

Dr Roberts, I'm glad you're invovled in this topic as I have a couple of questions.

Since a lot of people seem to like them, what are some of the issues with the Remington 7615?

I saw your tacked thread pertaining to various .44mag loads, and I was curious if you ever tried the Winchester Platinum Tip(aka Hunting Ranger Talon)?

As for 30-30, I have purchased some of the 160gr Hornady LeverEvolution, put I'm hesitant to use them for 2 reason: 1. I havent read any independant testing, 2. Hornady's others plastic nosed projectiles had issues(albeit they are pistol rounds).
Are you planning on testing the LeverEvolution stuff anytime soon?

[Gutshot John]

30-30 has killed a lot of deer and is likely to be everywhere. I'd advise against getting an exotic caliber.

As Doc said .357/.38 .44/.45 is nice if you want to carry a revolver in the same caliber. Lever actions get the most out of a revolver cartridge, but it's still somehwat limited relative to 30-30.

However they're not as light as one might think. They're definitely heavier than a fully-loaded AR and maybe an AK.

What do you think of an M1 carbine?

[DocGKR]

We have not tested Winchester Platinum Tip or Hornady LeverEvolution--if we get a chance I'll see what we can do, but it is not a priority given the other projects currently needing action.

A large agency nearby tried the Rem 7615's with numerous functional problems; while Remington markets them stating agencies can easily transition due to a similar action as the ubiquitous Rem 870, the 7615's did not prove to be as robust or foolproof as 870's...

M1 carbines are great: https://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=19956

[Disciple]

How about a Puma 92 in .454 Casull/.45LC for the application?

[sproc]

I am not a fan of .357 Mag carbines

Why is that?
Thanks

[PA PATRIOT]

Why is that?
Thanks

I was thinking that the .357mag 125gr S/P or another 125gr bonded bullet out of a 16" barrel would be coming close to the M1 with the 110gr S/P ballistics wise. Terminal performance maybe a whole other story so DocGKR could you give a quick post on the short comings of the .357mag carbine.

[DocGKR]

If I am going to be using a pistol caliber round in a carbine, I want the biggest, fastest bullet possible to maximize permanent crush cavity, as well as get some stretch effects from the larger temporary cavities possible with these loads. Since I am shooting it out of a shoulder fired weapon, recoil is much less of a concern than with a handgun. Most of the big bore pistol cartridges can make good lever action carbine loads if good projectile selection is followed--I prefer .44 Mag because it offers very good terminal performance, is readily available, and reasonably priced. If for some strange reason all I could get was a .357 Mag lever action carbine, I'd use Win 180 gr Partition Gold.

[sproc]

Doc, for those of us who already have a .357Mag lever carbine, would you recommend the same list of defense ammo you do for handguns?

And am I the only one who finds .44Mag carbines to have more recoil than a 12ga?

[DocGKR]

As noted above:

"If for some strange reason all I could get was a .357 Mag lever action carbine, I'd use Win 180 gr Partition Gold."

I have honestly never noticed any significant recoil on my 16" Marlin 1894 shooting Hornady 300 gr XTP's...

[LonghunterCO]

I shoot a Win 73' .45Colt during cowboy matches. Although I love the 73' I am not sure of a steady diet of hot .45s. I just got a lightly used 30-30 Marlin 336CS for a heck a price and with my exp with the 73' I would have no issues with using it as a truck gun.



-could use a XS peep sight or a red dot though