1895 SBL / Guide Gun

[Arisaka99]

Hey guys, I was looking at the Marlin 1895 SBL in 45-70, and was wondering what you guys think of them. I really like the short handiness of them and the thump of the big round. Not to mention, my wife is partial to the 45-70. She shot a fellow board member's Encore and shot cloverleafs with it at 100 yds. A lot better than I was doing.

Anyways, I'd like to hear what y'all think about it.

[starmac]

If I was starting out and going to have one gun and one gun only a lever 45/70 would likely be it. If a guy rolls his own, you can literally go from bunny loads to dangerous game loads. Even if you don't reload, you can buy trap door ammo to some serious shoulder busting ammo.

I am partial to levers, so I might be a bit biased. lol

[ratboy]

i just got one about three weeks ago. i am still waiting for dies so i have not put more than a box of ammo thru it but so far i am happy with it.
action is nice. fit and finish is good. remington got this one right.
not sure how i feel about the large loop lever. this is the first one i have come in contact with.
no accuracy testing yet but it looks nice next to the bfr.

[Jevyod]

I love mine! Just last week I shot it for the first time. Here are the results at 100 yards;
The load was; once fired Remington brass, CCI 200 Primers, 36 grains IMR 4198, and bullets cast from an Accurate 460-415V out of 50/50 COWW/Pure+2% tin. This was its first outing. It shot beautiful, and was pretty easy on the shoulder!

[historicfirearms]

I've owned a guide gun since 1996. My first one was a 444 but I always wanted a 45-70 GG, so I bought a stainless one. I sold that one when I needed to buy the kids new shoes and always felt rifle poor. Last summer I found a nice used 45-70 guide gun in blued steel and now I feel complete again. They are great rifles, very accurate, and gun to reload. Get one, you won't regret it.

[Arisaka99]

A buddy of mine has a 45-70 lever gun, and shooting the 300gn remington rounds is a breeze. He has an eo-tech on it, but it doesn't do that gun justice. The Leverevolution ammo is awesome, but a bit of a thumper.

Are the older ones better than the newer ones?

[starmac]

That question will get you a can of worms. lol Personally I wouldn't pay a cent more for an older one, but would want to put my hands on a new one before I plunked down the money.

[starmac]

One thing to think about if you are going to buy factory ammo, with intentions to reload it, the hornady brass is shorter than standard brass in the 45/70 .

[blackpowder man]

I've had a few and my latest one is a stainless remington built one and aside from the sharp edges all over the action and wood that needs a little better fitting on the forend, I like it. It is short, light, handy, and plenty powerful. It has a smooth barrel and has gone boom every time (except for when that duma@@ safety is on). I haven't shot any incredible groups at 100 yards with it yet. It is going to be my hunting companion on any days I get the ok to go. A little baby will likely greatly limit my hunting days this season.

[swamp]

I have an SBL and like it. The full length mag tube looks good and the sights good. Also with the rail you have a choice of scope mounting. I think I might have an extra set of Lee dies for 45-70. I checked and I do have an estra. Let me know if interested.
swamp

[Lonegun1894]

Love mine. I shoot the RCBS 405 FNGC in it, but am still trying to settle on what the best load is. It has shot just about everything I have fed it well so far, so load selection may take a while.

[Arisaka99]

Is the 45-70 too much gun for whitetails? I know it'll drop a bear well, but I don't want to vaporize the deer I'm trying to eat..

[starmac]

The perfect gun for whitetails, you don't have to run them hot and can eat right up to the hole.

[Lonegun1894]

I agree with Starmac. But like any gun, you have to pick the load and bullet. For example, my 405s out of my SBL don't expand, or even seem to slow down much on hogs. A friend bought a Lyman 457122 HP a few years ago, and tried them on deer at almost 2K fps, and it was a real mess with a lot of lost meat cause it acted like a varmint bullet. I loaded a few out of his batch to 1350fps out of my H&R BC, and liked them well enough that I just bought this mold from a member here so I can cast my own. Good expansion, but no bloodshot meat with that load on deer or hogs. The friend that I got those from years ago sold his mold without telling me it was available, but I just got one of my own. I've cast a few, but haven't taken anything with one from my own mold yet, but hoping to remedy that soon. Anyway, drive a bullet too soft, or like in that case, a HP, too fast, and you will get meat loss just like any other caliber, but use the bullet you choose the way it was intended to be used, and the .45-70 is an excellent deer and hog rifle. For example, just because I can drive my cast 335gr (in my alloy) HPs to 2K fps, doesn't mean I need to or should, especially when they work perfectly at 1200-1400fps, and many people have written of using it at 1600 fps with good results, but I haven't tried that yet, and probably won't. Now if I ever put my .45-70s to use as varmint rifles, the 457122 HP is probably going to get launched at 2K fps or maybe a bit faster.

[DR Owl Creek]

I got one of the Guide Guns in 45-70 when they first came out. I wouldn't want to be without one.

Dave

[TXGunNut]

I have a fairly early (muzzle brake) Guide Gun as well, if I could ever rank my favorite hunting rifles this one would be near the top. Shoots better than most bolt guns on paper, performs better that most modern cartridges on game. Topped with a low-powered Leupold scope it is one of my most reliable rifles. Mine is loaded with what I consider to be pretty stiff loads but they don't destroy meat and are quite tame compared to what this cartridge is capable of. I wouldn't be afraid of a new gun but prefer the older ones, plenty out there if you'll keep an eye out.

[Ole]

I have a guide gun in 450 Marlin and I shoot it pretty often.



It used to have a scope on it but I recently switched to one of those peep sights from Skinner. They are really nice sights if you want to upgrade your irons.

[osteodoc08]

I have an 1895GS and honestly, it is probably the last lever I'd ever part with. It's accurate and can really sling some serious muscle downrange. I've been looking at a few GBLs, but haven't found one that has passed muster. I say get one.

[monge]

Just shot mine today in 45-70 1/2 at 100 yards and its a remlin wild west trigger I did the trigger and a hi lux ext eye relief scope. This is my go to gun if your a caster and hand loader this cal. is very forgivening from 50 to 150yards unmatched knock down power!

[Cornbread]

Mine is a pre-remlin JM stamped barrel one. I have no experience with the non-JM stamped ones but I love mine. Shot the biggest racked buck of my life with it a few years back.