Lever action .22's

Git r Done · #1 03-08-2010, 06:49 PM

What is your thoughts and recommendations of lever action .22?

cannonc · #2 03-08-2010, 06:55 PM

I have a Browning,Henry,and a Ruger I like all 3.The Browning gets babied it is a little nicer to handle. I also have a lever 22mag and 17hmr.

Darcy3 · #3 03-08-2010, 06:57 PM

I have a browning bl-22 stainless laminate and love it really accurate and doesnt seem to be fusy about what kind of ammo i use in it.

Wrongside · #4 03-08-2010, 07:54 PM

The granddaddy of them all, Marlin 39. I read somewhere that it's the longest continuosly produced rifle in North America.

shooter55 · #5 03-08-2010, 08:08 PM

the browning BL22 is the queen of my leavers - I don't think you can do much work on the triggers on the lever...compared to my other 22's savage, anschutz and CZ, the trigger is a bit on the mean side...

Matt L. · #6 03-08-2010, 11:39 PM

The Marlin 39 is my pick. A very nice little rifle.

maxpower2506 · #7 03-09-2010, 07:44 AM

Gave my 9422 to my son on his 14th birthday,my old man gave it to me NEW on my 16th birthday, many moons have passed since then, but it is one nice little shooter, wish they were still around! Bought the second son a Browning for his 14th, great little shooter too!!!

tracker · #8 03-09-2010, 03:23 PM

I've heard many bad things about the Marlins but have no personal experience with them. My Henry is a great little rifle and the best value for a lever. It's a tad small for my 6' 7" frame but handles well and weighs next to nothing. I have found the small size to be advantageous when hiking through thick willow looking for rabbit. Front sight harkens back to the old days that Henry likes to emulate. Its a bit chunky for my liking but doesn't interfere with my ability to plink successfully. Never had any issue with any kind of ammo going through it. The types I've used all load and eject nicely and hit their mark.
Finish on the stock is much more than I expected from a rifle of this price. Very nice wood and shine. I've heard that some interior parts are plastic of some sort. Not sure if this is a bad thing. Henry seems to be a company with a solid reputation so not sure if this will become an issue in the future. Action on this one is probably the smoothest I've felt on any gun. The receiver is powder-coated. Not sure if thats bad or not either. While I like this lever a lot over all, it was a substitute for the Browning lever I couldn't justify spending the extra couple hundred bucks for at the time. If price isn't a concern and you want to pay for the extra quality, buy the Browning. The Henry is definitely a good buy in my opinion however.

Huntnut · #9 03-09-2010, 04:54 PM

Have a Erma Werke and a 9422 both in 22 mag. I actually prefer the erma.

Matt L. · #10 03-09-2010, 09:10 PM

I don't know what you've heard tracker, but the one I've used is a darn good rifle.

super7mag · #11 03-10-2010, 07:21 AM

Another vote for the Marlin 39A, I got mine for X-mas in the 80's, has never let me down, It has actually had enough use I had to replace the screw the lever pivots on because of wear. Also 18 lr in the tube is nice, my buddys with 5-8 shot clips are always whining, about me shootin all the gophers while there reloading. ha ha.

Huntsman · #12 03-10-2010, 07:44 AM

I just picked up a Henry Frontier .22 when I was home on a little R&R.
Its got the octagonal bbl, metal front sight (not the crappy plastic mold/bbl band ones on the std lever.) and really nice walnut wood stock. I only had time to go the range with her once and she operated nice & smooth and quite accurate. I`ll definately put her to the test on gophers when I get home in May. I would`ve bought a Marlin 39A but IMO a bit pricey.

tracker · #13 03-10-2010, 09:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Matt L.

I don't know what you've heard tracker, but the one I've used is a darn good rifle.

I've heard that some variations can have very bad loading/ejecting issues. A problem apparently related to a poor feed tube. Again, I have no experience myself & I'm only going off of reviews. I've also heard from folks like yourself who are very happy with the Marlin. A couple things I like about the 39 are the takedown feature and hammer block safety. The Henry only uses a half-cock safety which I'm not crazy about.

skywrench · #14 03-10-2010, 12:27 PM

I've been using a Marlin 39M for about 35 years with great success. The feeding problems I encountered resulted from thousands of rounds being fired without proper cleaning (my bad). Once cleaned it operated like a trooper. I have no idea how many rounds I've unloaded with my Marlin but I know it has been well in excess of 7,500 and the gophers and squirrels still don't like it. I also have a good deal of experience with the Erma, BL22 and 9422 and all functioned well but my 39M was unquestionably the most accurate.

Cheers

Horn Stretcher · #15 03-10-2010, 12:41 PM

I bought a Marlin in 1979 hasn"t missed a beat. Very accurate at both short and long range. The action is much tighter than others I have tried. In my opinion best 22 I have seen.

Tankman · #16 03-10-2010, 10:30 PM

hi there,
BL 22 everytime,like the guy said it'll shoot every kind of ammo out there. love it.
TM.

kevpack · #17 03-11-2010, 03:38 PM

I don't have any experience with any of the others but my 9422 has been rode hard for 30 years and not one problem ever.

gramps73 · #18 03-11-2010, 05:04 PM

I know with the info here I would have not spent the money on the Henry, buy the Marlin not the Henry

Tankman · #19 03-11-2010, 08:57 PM

no.....buy the browning !
TM

Rantastic · #20 03-11-2010, 10:54 PM

I won a $700 Browning BL 22 in a RMEF raffle 10 yrs ago and I will never buy another 22 as long as i live. Its been ten years and works better every year. (10 000 22 shells through it im sure)

My dad just bought a henry 17HMR and it has serious feeding issues every single bullet catches on the throat when fe eding, and the rifle just feels plasticy and cheap like a Daisy pellet gun.
My gf has a Marlin that seems to work well enough for the half price tag of the browning but those are just my personal experiences. Take from it what you will.

The browning will also shoot every bullet brand, LR Long or shorts and holds 17 LR shells in the mag tube. The 30 degreeaction is amazing. i can shoot almost as fast as a semi auto with it.

Da Jimmer · #21 03-11-2010, 11:04 PM

The Browning Lever 22. I shoot now, well, I can take penny's at 50 yrds easy. between 50 and 100 gophers arent a problem, havent ranged a killed gopher, but they have been past 50. At the range the other day i was using a bunch of old random 22 just to burn lead, and it didnt matter which it was shooting. Before I used this rifle, my dad used it trapping when he was a kid, had to re-finish the stock it was so beat up. Also won him alot of the F&W shooting competitions they used to put on, or who ever set them up, won a lot a KFC chicken buckets though.

Oh, and before my dad used it, my grandpa bought it and used it for a while. I would be scared to think how many 10's of thousands of rounds have gone through that browning and it is still a wicked piece of machinery.
P.s. Buy the Browning.

hoss2 · #22 03-11-2010, 11:41 PM

I bought a Henry Golden Boy last summer, its awsome. well balanced, smooth action. Tack driving, card splitting acurate. Highly recomended.

Matt L. · #23 03-12-2010, 09:31 AM

Does anybody know if straight gripped Marlin 39's surface for sale now and again? Would really like to get my hands on one.

4x4junkie · #24 03-13-2010, 04:20 PM

I've had a Henry for a couple years now no problems & very accuract.

lund_fisher · #25 05-04-2010, 07:35 PM

Hi,
I purchased a Grade 2 Bl22 a few years ago. It's used with some scratches and wear marks. That's okay by me. It shoots amazingly true with the stock iron sights, cycles smoothly with almost any ammo. I love this gun! Even though it was used, I was forced to shell out 375. CAD! It's worth it. I strongly recommend this gun!

Kev · #26 05-04-2010, 07:40 PM

I have a Henry Golden Boy, and a win 9422. Love them both.

bearbuster · #27 05-04-2010, 10:07 PM

I bought an Ithaca lever .22 about 10 years ago and it is a very fun and acurate gun. I do not know how they compare to others

CdnVet0506 · #28 05-06-2010, 02:20 PM

Inherited my dad's Winchester 9422M 10 years ago. Still shoots as sweet as it did when I was a 10 year old (rifle is now 34 years old)

Twisted Canuck · #29 05-06-2010, 03:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shooter55

the browning BL22 is the queen of my leavers - I don't think you can do much work on the triggers on the lever...compared to my other 22's savage, anschutz and CZ, the trigger is a bit on the mean side...

Yours too, huh? I love my BL22, it goes to the shoulder and points more naturally than anything else I have. Unfortunately, by the time you squuuuueeeeze & finally PULLL! that damn trigger, it can be a bit tough hitting the little gopher eyeball! For all that, it is still remarkably accurate, you just have to get used to a hard pull on it...

I took it to Corlane's hoping they might be able to make it less than an 18 lb pull, or whatever it is, but they won't touch them. Official Policy. So I guess if they won't do it, we're stuck....

But it's still a beauty.

Dean2 · #30 05-08-2010, 07:41 AM

If you can find a Marlin 39 built before Remington took them over, about 4 years ago, they are the number one in my books. Some of the old ones had way more than 50,000 rounds when sold and still worked perfect. I bought a new one 2 years ago, it was junk. Jammed, broke and would not shoot under 3" at 50 yards. To their credit, after a LOT of arguing, I got a full refund.

My next favourite, that I have shot but have not owned, is shooter 55s Browninng. After that would be the Wincheter 9422, had one for a while and it shot and worked fine if you can find a used one.

Last choice would the Henry. Smooth cycling and not bad accurracy but I really don't like all the plastic parts in the action. Long life under heavy use doesn't seem likely but I have never run enough ammo through one to know for sure.