Yep 38 or larger.. Really wanted to go with a Sharps 45-70, but could cough up the cash..

My dad bought the synthetic stock handi rifle in 45-70 so far all he has shot out of it is the Hornady LEVERevolution. He sees no reason to shoot anything else. At 100 yds 2 shots touching and third shot maybe 1/4" away. I'm not sure if they make a load for the 444 but if so you should really give it a shot. Just my opinion.
I tried them in my Marlin 336w and had nearly the same result

Yeah they started making the 444 marlin in the Leverlution this year.. It is the best bullet out there for this caliber..

I'd stick with the rimmed cartridges in this gun as there has been a few problems noted with the .243 version in reguards to the ejector slipping off of the rimless shells and causing a jam.I'd like a 45-70................Harold [.303 Brit would be nice with an interchangable .410 pipe]

For cheap rifle, the NEF's are fine, but on the one that I had, the trigger sucked. Both my son's started deer hunting with a NEF 223, and it was acceptably accurate and served its purpose.

On the other hand, I completely disagree with getting rid of the 742 for a NEF(you do mean Remington 742, right?). You will getting rid of alot more rifle than you are getting and will probably regret it in the not to distant future (been there done that), but to each his own...

I have a H& R rifle in 45/70- it was marked down at walmart(167.00+ tax )i think it was anumber ofyrs back - its a wood stocked deer commertive model( got a emblem in the stock)

And a Nef handi rifle syntic stocked modelin .223 i payed a lil bit over 200.00 forthat one - i like im both( tho the triggers are a bit weird)& think there a real good value for the price i payed.

ive got the .20 ultra slug, and the .270. both are fun to shoot. ive worked the triggers on both of them and they shoot real nice

Heres my NEF Handi-Rifle in .243, shot my first deer with it
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I had a Handi-Rifle in .243 that I hunted with for years. I put a lot of meat in the freezer with that gun. Only had a small issue with it. I spent hours and gobs of money when I first bought ittrying to find the right ammo for it. That thing didnt like any ammo besides Winchester Supreme. Anything else shot through it would be all over the paper.

I have a NEF .223 Bull Barrel. Funnest $250 I've ever spent. That thing will shoot 4 shot groups @ 100 yards that you can cover with a quarter. All the new Handi-Rifles have extractors instead of ejectors now. Great guns for the money.