Save $100 on the Leupold VX-3HD

Lever Action

My first self purchased rifle (kinda) was a JC Penny Marlin 30-30 that I still use for whitetails.
I worked an entire summer for my uncle for it in middle school.
I traded it to my FIL several years ago and, after one season without it, bought it back and swore to never get rid of it again
 
Last season it became clear that my aging eyes need some optical help on cloudy or overcast days. I put the Leupold VX2 1-4 back on my dad's '54 Marlin 336 30-30. The upside is the scope brings out the best in her. The target was only 50 yards, but that's a practical range given where I hunt and the 4X max for that scope. After adjustment the next shot was dead center, so I fired another at 100 which was also dead center. That was a little surprising as I was expecting it to be a bit high. I'll verify in the Fall, of course. I was shooting a new round for this rifle that I have had good results with in other rifles - Federal Non-Typical. Looks like a winner. Still don't care for the looks of a scoped lever action, but.... I will still hunt some with my '49 Waffle Top which will forever wear a peep sight!
 

Attachments

  • 20200630_150848.jpg
    20200630_150848.jpg
    150.1 KB · Views: 18
  • 20200630_151047.jpg
    20200630_151047.jpg
    255.3 KB · Views: 16
shortaction,

You may find that the peep coupled with a +0.5 diopter glasses could be just the ticket for you. It works for me with levers and flintlocks.

Thanks! I'll look into that, but I have worn glasses since I was 10 and have been in bifocals for 15 years or so. I tried Lasik awhile back, but it didn't work out as I had hoped - I actually could use trifocals now. I do the best I can with what I've got.
 
Awesome to see other lever gun enthusiasts. I have always loved lever guns but have always turned to bolt action for hunting. A few years ago I decided to grab a lever gun from the safe and take it out. I soon found hunting and being successful with a lever gun in a world full of technology offers an amazing feeling of accomplishment.

2018 Wyoming general unit Bull. Win 94 44mag
61945458_10214468826495496_4450750089152954368_n.jpg

2019 Wy general unit buck. Big Horn Armory model 89 500 S&W
74680751_10215544109576901_784270142170202112_o.jpg
 
My favorite lever gun is my 88. I have 2 both in the 308. I bought a 94 in the 307 during the 90’s and then I got a couple of Browning’s one is a beautiful little 22 and the other is a 7 mag. I don’t always hunt with them but when we all get together for chase day the 88 usually gets the action
 
The #1 rifle on my wish list is a Henry All-Weather Lever Action. The big debate is 30-30 or 45-70...
I bought one of those when it first came out. Of course the first time I took it out hunting it rained. That gun was so slippery due to lack of checkering. Keep it in mind if you are serious about using it in wet conditions.
 
I bought one of those when it first came out. Of course the first time I took it out hunting it rained. That gun was so slippery due to lack of checkering. Keep it in mind if you are serious about using it in wet conditions.
I appreciate that - it would still be on par relative to my Win 94 but I think that’d be great feedback for Henry. It’d be cool (although maybe sacrilegious for a lever action) to have a fiberglass composite stock...
 
I appreciate that - it would still be on par relative to my Win 94 but I think that’d be great feedback for Henry. It’d be cool (although maybe sacrilegious for a lever action) to have a fiberglass composite stock...
With as much as the Henry Long Ranger weighs, a lightweight stock would be a nice option.
 
My first hunting trip was with a 1906 model 94 25-35 with a 22" heavy octagon barrel. A couple years of packing that I bought my own 94 ranger 30-30. It weighed so much less I could hardly tell I was packing it compared to the 25-35. The recoil on that little gun however purpled my young shoulder for a few years until I got a much more comfortable 30'06. Since then I've replaced the springs in the old 25-35 so its ready for my son and sold the little ranger. I picked up a 336 at an RMEF banquet that shoots well had broken parts out of the box. I bought a 1895CB that had the rear sight dovetail cut crooked and required a bend in the rear sight but it didn't cycke well and I got rid of it after a trip back to Marlin. My last lever was a Marlin 94 45LC that also didn't cycle. It was a gift so I decided to fix it rather than sell it and after a few parts and a little polishing its been a fun little gun.

I have a friend that I've hunted with for years. We get extra tags to hunt deer on the river bottoms once in a while. When we do we pick something new to hunt with. Last time it was 30-30s. This fall it will be the marlin 94s.
 
Caribou Gear

Forum statistics

Threads
110,814
Messages
1,935,401
Members
34,888
Latest member
Jack the bear
Back
Top