I just became owner of an unfired Handi Rifle in .444 Marlin. Anybody here have one? Or, any comments on this rifle?

I cannot speak for the chambering, but I have had differing results with the rifle. I own two: one originally was a Hornet and I had it re-chambered to a K. It is almost a one hole rifle at 100 with 55-grain projectiles and 10 grains of AA 2200, which is almost unheard of for a Hornet. They supposedly don't like the heavy bullets, but this one sure does.

I also have one in 22-250. It was a pawn shop purchase, and so far, it doesn't like anything I have fed it. I also had to send it back because the breach opened on every shot. That was fixed, but so was the sweet trigger someone had worked on.

Their triggers are horrid as they came from the factory, but they can be worked by a knowledgable 'smith. And they seem to be plenty strong. Probably the most attractive thing about them is that H&R still offers a replacement barrel program for that rifle. Go to their website and take a look at what is available. The Hornet I mentioned earlier now has barrels in 357 Maximum (a stretched 357 Mag barrel), .30-30, and 44 Mag, effectively giving me four different rifles.

Not much collector value, but I think you got a very nice rifle overall. Get the trigger tweaked and go to work with it!

I had one in .223 and it was a very accurate rifle, well under 1 moa. For the price it can't be beat if you get one that shoots well.
I cannot speak for your caliber. When I owned mine you could send it back for to the company for a better trigger, I did that and it was worth the very small expense and time.

My 12 year old Grandson just killed his first buck with one in .204 Ruger, Tack driver with 3X9 Nikon scope.

I like them. The old single shot with a hammer is a real special thing in the woods. That's a great rifle and calibre.. You probably have noticed that Handi rifles are 4-5 inches shorter than a bolt action. How cool is that!

The Greybeard Outdoor forum has info on them and the web, including you tube, has instructions posted for doing the triggers. It' not hard if you are a bit mechanical. Many of them come with a good trigger weight from the factory.
I think that Boyds have nice, affordable laminated stocks for the Handi rifle.

I have heard that the .444 marlin may have a bit over sized bore. ( I might have this wrong.) This isn't a bad thing. It just means that you might have to tinker with loads and /or bullets a bit for accuracy.

Handy Rifles, in fact single shots in general, are a bit contriversial. They bring strong opinions out if folks. You know, like bugles or bag pipes do. My suggestion is that you don't take the negative opinions on Handi rifles too seriously. If you are a single shot hunter you get to look down on other hunter!

I am looking for a 444 Mag barrel. I think that 444 Marlin is a very under rated cartridge. It has been used successfully on everything from deer to cape buffalo.
I have a Handi rifle 10 gauge, (SB2 Frame, which is the stronger frame. Same asyours. ) rebarrelled and restocked to 577 Nitro Express. 700 gr bullet at 1800 fps. Ed Hubel did the metal work and I did the wood work. It weighs over 14 lbs and is very satisfying to shoot. I will use it on a cape buffalo hunt in April. Yes, the Handi rifle is reliable.

The Handi Rifle has a bit of a cult following. Since production has recently been discontinued by the manufacturer, folks are picking them up like crazy. Usually this happens for a while when production is stopped on a rifle. Then after a while people calm down and some company starts making them again. ( Remember when Winchester gave us all a freight?) Different companies in the world have been making copies of the Handy rifle for over 100 years.
You have a wonderful rifle and cartridge there. If it's not perfect at first don't worry you can coax a "Handi" into performing like a champ with a little tinkering. Enjoy! Brian
PS. Google: D & T custom gun forum, or Davis forum, or Barrel stubbing David. You will see some nice little Handi rifle there.

quote:

Originally posted by Doubless:
I cannot speak for the chambering, but I have had differing results with the rifle. I own two: one originally was a Hornet and I had it re-chambered to a K. It is almost a one hole rifle at 100 with 55-grain projectiles and 10 grains of AA 2200, which is almost unheard of for a Hornet. They supposedly don't like the heavy bullets, but this one sure does.

I also have one in 22-250. It was a pawn shop purchase, and so far, it doesn't like anything I have fed it. I also had to send it back because the breach opened on every shot. That was fixed, but so was the sweet trigger someone had worked on.

Their triggers are horrid as they came from the factory, but they can be worked by a knowledgable 'smith. And they seem to be plenty strong. Probably the most attractive thing about them is that H&R still offers a replacement barrel program for that rifle. Go to their website and take a look at what is available. The Hornet I mentioned earlier now has barrels in 357 Maximum (a stretched 357 Mag barrel), .30-30, and 44 Mag, effectively giving me four different rifles.

Not much collector value, but I think you got a very nice rifle overall. Get the trigger tweaked and go to work with it!

H&R is gone, has been for a while. And so is factory service, including the barrel replacement program. That aside, I have three of them (38-55, 30-30, 357) and have been happy with all of them.

Lots of info on H&R rifles here:

http://www.go2gbo.com/forums/hr-centerfire-rifles/

Here is a complete custom Handi in 257 Roberts. It has a 24" octagon barrel and was rebord from
223 to 257 Rob. Everything was reworked including the stock. The rifle ia one holer with 100gr bullets at
3160 ft/sec. It is light and short and fast handling.
Great on running shots.Killed many deer and Antelope.

http://smg.photobucket.com/use...ia/Hand0001.jpg.html