I was looking at a rem 673 giude rifle in 350 rem. mag. I think factory ammo only comes in rem corelocked. I guese i would have to reload if get this cal. Thats wat is turning me towards a big bore lever gun. How good is this cal & rifle compare to a lever rifle in 444, 450,&45/70.spqr

You have mentioned no cartridges that qualify for the big bore forum. We need to sic a moderator on you.

Welcome to AR.

comparing a bolt action 350 Rem Mag to a lever action 45 caliber is like comparing a blonde to Einstein.

The question is ...just what do you want this rifle to do for you?

I want a rifle cal with enough energy to kill a animal quick and humanly. I want a rifle built to handle the thughf situations that may happen in hunting bear. I know shot placement means everything.I'm new to bear hunting and the web site. I'v only killed one bear, about 20 yrs ago . I used a 3006 bolt, 180 grn corelocked rem. I want to get back into bear hunting, so you info will be appresiated.
spqr

Well this is kind of a bleak subject. What kind of bear are we talking about? We've got the blacks, grizzlies, browns, polar and coastal browns. I have personally taken 2 Kodiak bears and 2 black bears.
In my opinion, if you're going after black bears and animals around or smaller than so, the .350 Remmy will do just fine. As you've stated, cartridges are a little harder to get than most. This cartridge is basically a short-action .35 Whelen, recoil isn't too tough and in the Remington you're looking at, it's a fine brush gun. I would be hesitant to take this combination into Kodiak/Coastal brown country however, growing up in Kodiak has giving me a bit of a bias to carry a rifle under a .375 H&H for so.
As for the .444, .450 Marlin and the 45-70, all of these rounds are spectacular for the application you are seeking. All are in the 150-200 yard firearms pretty much. I don't have much experience with the .444 so I'm not going to discuss this cartrige, however the .450 Marlin and 45-70 are quite powerful cartriges and are adequate for any game animal in North America, dangerous or not. The recoil of these rounds are a bit stout, but managable.
Hopefully this helps out a bit and good luck!

Metalsmith.
Thank you all, I think i'm going to go with a marlin in 450 or 45/70. As far as recoil goe's . do you think either cal would kick more or less ,with different stocks; marlin 1895 giude gun has a straith english style grip.
while the 1895 20bbl has a pistol grip style .
I was thinking the straiter the stock the more
recoil kick.
spqr

My hunting buddies did some nice work with their M700 Classic 350 Rem Mags in Africa. They used handloaded 225 gr Partitions @ ~2600 fps. In my estimation the Guide Rifle is both needlessly heavy and unattractive due to that nasty steel ventilated rib. I'm told it can be removed but I'm sure that would leave blemishes. With the right ammo the levergun rounds will hit harder at close range but the 350 will be easier to hit with as the range lengthens. Me, I chose a 45/70 Guide Gun...but I half plan to rebore my Remington 30S to 35 Whelen with a 1:12 twist so I can give the 310 gr Woodleighs a try.

spqr:

Nothing much has changed since you used an '06, 180 gr. on a bear. For blacks it is more than enough. (I shot several with a 7mm,154 gr.and they never went even 30 feet) When I was a young man (back when dinosaurs walked the earth) a big argument in the gun magazines was whether the 30-06 or the 270 Win. was a better cartridge on Alaskan brown bears. I kid you not! It's not for me to say which was better -because I never shot at a brown bear - but it all comes back, I suspect, to repeating that old, old, truism - It's where you place the bullet.

I think as far as a bolt action for black bear and up it would be hard to beat a ruger all weather M 77 hawkeye in 30/06 andif your looking for more power in a bolt action then the same rifle in . 338 winchester magnum is the way to go.

gerrys375
Didn't you know that since the advent of those super magnum cartridges that all big game animals are now armor plated and to use a little '06 will get you killed!!!

quote:

Originally posted by spqr:
Metalsmith.
Thank you all, I think i'm going to go with a marlin in 450 or 45/70. As far as recoil goe's . do you think either cal would kick more or less ,with different stocks; marlin 1895 giude gun has a straith english style grip.
while the 1895 20bbl has a pistol grip style .
I was thinking the straiter the stock the more
recoil kick.
spqr

as for "kick"? that depends on if you handload or stick to Remfedchester factory ammo...

If you are comparing the 450Marlin to the 45-70
with the Remfedchester ammo the 450 kicks harder and does more on target.

If OTOH you handload the 45-70 has a slight edge in power and you can "tune" it to suit your needs.

OR there is a third option for the 45-70...
Buffalo Bore Ammo or some other custom loader.

Buffalo Bore 45-70 ammo is slightly stouter than the results of even some of the more bold handloaders.

My thoughts (purely theoretical) on Grizz is that too much power or too big a hole isn't possible.

For me it isn't a choice, I already have a 45-70
AND I handload so running out to get a 450 Marlin isn't in my future.

a 444MArlin? with 265gr Hornady's or 250gr Barnes it's good black bear medicine
or even useful on Moose or Elk inside of 200yds, but it isn't a grizz cartridge.