I'm working up a load using a 340 grain (Lee mold) flat nose bullet for my Marlin lever 1895. This bullet seems to shoot well in my particular rifle no matter how I load it... Until now, it's just been a "Sunday Afternoon" fun shooter. However, I am going to depart from my usual .30-06 wild boar load (see my webpage for pictures) and take the lever gun boar hunting. I've been using IMR 3031, and 2400 with wads over powder with good off hand accuracy out to 50 yards. Just curious if anyone has any favorite loads within comfortable limits for the 1895 lever action??? Thanks in advance... Dave
Dave I've been having good results using RL-7 behind a 350 grain Saeco, in my Winchester 1886. This load generates nearly 2000 fps, minimal recoil, accuracy and what seems to me, a fair amount of thump at the other end. Jim
Posts: 6173 | Location: Richmond, Virginia | Registered: 17 September 2000
My Guide Gun shoots a 300 Nosler Partition (protected point) in one inch at 100 yards and a velocity of 2100 fps. I use 62.5 grains of Benchmark, winchester brass and Federal 210M primers. Great load.
Posts: 434 | Location: Pennsylvania, USA | Registered: 22 November 2002
Some of the older 1895's had Marlin's "micro-groove" rifling. MIne does, could never get it to shoot well with cast bullets since the rifling is very shallow and the cast bullets aren't hard enough to grab the rifling. Check your bore, the micro groove rifling is many lands and very shallow.
Posts: 1679 | Location: Colorado, USA | Registered: 11 November 2002
i purchased 1 of these for my father right now we are shooting barns out of it and getting great accuracy we tried cast bullets and got fair results but nothing special
Posts: 2095 | Location: B.C | Registered: 31 January 2002
I have the LEE 340 grain mold and my load for it is a mild 31 grains of IMR 4227 ignited with a Winchester large pistol primer. My guestimate is it's going around 1500 fps and this is plenty for the under 100 yard hog hunting I do. This load is very acurate and clean burning.