I did a search but not much came up. Some discussion on this board has got me thinking about a lever action as my next deer rifle. Since I' ve never really considered this action, what can you tell me? Which brand? Is the action reliable? Shortcomings? Can I get one in 7mm-08? What about 45-70- what' s the range on that round? Anything you can tell me would be great. Thanks

I believe Browning' s BLR is available in 7-08.

I' d look to Marlin for a .45-70

Shop the used markets for a Savage 99 in .243, .250-3000, .308, .284, or .358.

All the above will have ranges of at least 250 yards except the .45-70 which is a slower cartridge.

They frequently have shorter barrels which makes it nice in thick stuff. It looks way cooler and is more romantic than a bolt action. It' s great for lefties. Can be worked at least as fast as a bolt.

Vapodog is right about Savage (I got a used .308 99 for free), but I' d probably be tempted by the Marlin 336 in .35 Whelen if money were not an option.

They are very nice firearms. Vapodog covered the gammit of what' s available. If you' re set on the 7mm-08, I agree also that the Browning is the way to go. The Marlin' s are very accurate firearms, some surprisingly so. Just remember to be very careful when cleaning them. They must be cleaned from the muzzle end because of their design, and you DO NOT want to nick the crown of the muzzle with a rod. Accuracy will go out the window if you do.

I agree with Vapodog about looking to Marlin for a good quality .45-70. As for me, I' ll never give up my Marlin Lever .30-.30...that' s my pride and joy!

Browning makes a 7mm-08 very reliable in the BLR and one of my favorites the .450 marlin.

If you go with a marlin look to the .444 and the .450 in the longer versions 1895' s
Hornady has come out with a Heavy Mag ammo for the .444 wich makes this gun very impresive.

Also Vapdog is right no better lever made IMO than the handsome Modle 99 by Savage( I hope one day they reserect the 99) I would look to the .308 or 284 win.(hard to find).
But for now I would go BLR.(They make this gun in alot of different calibers)

The Marlin 336 action isn' t long enough to accept a 35 Whelen cartridge. The closest you could get is to buy one in 35 Rem and then have it converted to 358 Win. There was an article on it floating around the internet but I don' t remember the link off the top of my head.

As for lever guns I would love to have a Savage 99 in 250 Sav, 284 Win or 308 Win.

frizz , don' t you mean to .356 win. ????

Nope, I meant 358 Win. I suppose you could convert to a 356 Win too but the lack of brass would be a problem. They are almost identical cartridges except one is rimmed and one isn' t. The 358 is the 308 necked up while the 356 is the 307 necked up.

yeah , i know but , i thought the tubular magazine wouldn' t handle the bullet tips in the .308 safely , and the .356 and .307' s were loaded to a lower pressure than the .308 and .358' s so that they' de be within the safe pressure limits of the marlin and winchester lever actions , actions ????? or was it just the winchester 94 that they were concerned about ????

the winchester is also the reason both the .307 and .356 are rimmed ???

BTW- if i remember right ( and i don' t always [&:] ) didn' t marlin offer a variant of thier model 336 in both the .307 and .356 cartridges ???

just asking some questions , and trying to start a little discussion


i' de also love to get a .284 , and a .358 but , i' de like one in a winchester 88 , i' ve allready got one in .308 , and i really like her