Marlin 1892

Length Overall	Barrel Length	Weight	Caliber	Action Type	Magazine Capacity
37 .75"	20"	6 pounds	.44 Magnum	Lever	10

    I love carbines, and I love lever action rifles, so the Marlin 1892 .44 carbine is a natural for me. It has all of the virtues of the lever action rifle and greatly improves the ballistics of the popular .44 magnum cartridge. Out of a pistol, the 180 grain cartridge generates 1035 ft/lbs., the same cartridge out of the rifle produces 1630 ft/lbs. The longer sighting radius of the 20" barrel also greatly improves accuracy. The gun will shoot four inch groups with the standard iron sights at 100 yards. At 50 feet the gun will shoot into less than an inch, which produces one ragged hole. At the same range, my Ruger Redhawk .44 mag will shoot into two or three inches. The gun is well finished, and fun to shoot. It has the Marlin micro groove rifling which is supposed to provide a better gas seal than standard rifling. Like all marlin lever actions, this one features side ejection, and has a solid top for mounting a scope. Mounting a scope on this type of rifle would be obscene, but it is an available option for those who feel the need. The rifle is only two years older than the similar, top ejecting classic Winchester. The original chambering for this gun was the 44-40, which was also a popular handgun cartridge in it's day. The big .44 magnum is a vast improvement over the old 44-40, but it carries on the very commendable practice of the rifle-carbine combo. An added bonus for reloaders is that the .44 mag can be reloaded very inexpensively; I spend about six to eight cents per cartridge.