Marlin 444 - thoughts?
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- Start date
I love mine, an original model with the 24-inch barrel, bought from a friend who was the original owner. He was from Montana, and worked as a engineer in the big woods of Alaska for a while. It was a bear rifle.
Recoil is not harsh, as many expect. Shoots well, easy to reload.
Go search the threads here ... lots of discussion.
Recoil is not harsh, as many expect. Shoots well, easy to reload.
Go search the threads here ... lots of discussion.
enfieldspares
Well-Known Member
Isn't there some sort of microgroove vs standard profile rifling merit? That one shoots lead bullets badly? The old microgroove guns hsving twenty-four (!) narrow and shallow grooves?
I know our better informed members from US will know. It's all memory of old Guns & Ammo articles that I paid no heed to! But I know there is some merit and de-merit vis-a-vis.
I know our better informed members from US will know. It's all memory of old Guns & Ammo articles that I paid no heed to! But I know there is some merit and de-merit vis-a-vis.
reiver
Well-Known Member
I have a micro groove .444 which shoots inch grips at 100 m with 265 interlocks .My 444 is my go to rifle for driven boar. recoil is far better than its biger and younger brother in 45/70 and in my opinion quicker to shoot and reload with out the kicking!!!
My '444 will shoot boolits with out any problems even with copper still on the bore.
I put about 300 cast through my .444 a year at least just to practice for shooting driven boar.
The marlin will be my last rifle that I will sell unless I get the chance of a xlr .444
My '444 will shoot boolits with out any problems even with copper still on the bore.
I put about 300 cast through my .444 a year at least just to practice for shooting driven boar.
The marlin will be my last rifle that I will sell unless I get the chance of a xlr .444
6pt-sika
Well-Known Member
I have three at the moment !
Ones a circa 1967 rifle with the barrel bands monte carlo stock and the stock 24" barrel . Guns been reblued twice since I got it and the woods been refinished as well with Tung Oil applied at the end of eash season . Also have a circa 1966 that started life the same as the 67 rifle except now this one has the barrel bobbed to 19" . I had it cut three or four years ago , I've also reblued this one three times and redone the stock with Tung Oil as well . Both these guns are 1-38" Micro Groove and both of them will shoot cast bullets up to and including 375 grains .
The third one I have at the moment is circa 2001 and is Ballard rifled 1-20" and the barrels 22" . I restocked this one with some rather decent wood from Macon Gunstocks . This rifle is for cast bullets as well but I stick with 390-450 grainers .
Over the course of time I've had close to thirty lever action Marlin's that were chambered for the 444 cartridge as well as an H&R Handi Rifle . Can't say I ever had one that shot bad .
My first 444 was a Marlin 444P that's the one with the English straight grip stock and a 18 3/4" ported barrel . Actually over time I owned a pair of them . The first I used almost exclusively the now defunct Nosler 250 grain Partition Gold bullet in my handloads and it killed well . Also used the Hornady rubber tipped stuff in a 444XLR I had for awhile as well as the Hornady 265 handloaded . Had another standard 22" Ballard rifled gun that was partial to the .270 grain Gold Dot .
And FWIW I was never a big fan of the 444 until I started shooting home cast bullets . The number of DEAD RIGHT THERE deer and or bear increased dramatically , not that the jacketed stuff didn't do the job effectively . But the cast just seemed to hammer a good bit better .
To date I've killed I think 40-50 whitetail deer and a pair of black bear with cast bullets in variouse 444's as well as another dozen or so deer with jacketed bullets . And to date I have no qualms with the cartridge as long as it's used within the area it was made for IE 150-200 yards or LESS . I suspect the average for all the 444 deer I've killed is a skoosh less then 45 yards . But then that has a lot to do with the places I usually hunt
Ones a circa 1967 rifle with the barrel bands monte carlo stock and the stock 24" barrel . Guns been reblued twice since I got it and the woods been refinished as well with Tung Oil applied at the end of eash season . Also have a circa 1966 that started life the same as the 67 rifle except now this one has the barrel bobbed to 19" . I had it cut three or four years ago , I've also reblued this one three times and redone the stock with Tung Oil as well . Both these guns are 1-38" Micro Groove and both of them will shoot cast bullets up to and including 375 grains .
The third one I have at the moment is circa 2001 and is Ballard rifled 1-20" and the barrels 22" . I restocked this one with some rather decent wood from Macon Gunstocks . This rifle is for cast bullets as well but I stick with 390-450 grainers .
Over the course of time I've had close to thirty lever action Marlin's that were chambered for the 444 cartridge as well as an H&R Handi Rifle . Can't say I ever had one that shot bad .
My first 444 was a Marlin 444P that's the one with the English straight grip stock and a 18 3/4" ported barrel . Actually over time I owned a pair of them . The first I used almost exclusively the now defunct Nosler 250 grain Partition Gold bullet in my handloads and it killed well . Also used the Hornady rubber tipped stuff in a 444XLR I had for awhile as well as the Hornady 265 handloaded . Had another standard 22" Ballard rifled gun that was partial to the .270 grain Gold Dot .
And FWIW I was never a big fan of the 444 until I started shooting home cast bullets . The number of DEAD RIGHT THERE deer and or bear increased dramatically , not that the jacketed stuff didn't do the job effectively . But the cast just seemed to hammer a good bit better .
To date I've killed I think 40-50 whitetail deer and a pair of black bear with cast bullets in variouse 444's as well as another dozen or so deer with jacketed bullets . And to date I have no qualms with the cartridge as long as it's used within the area it was made for IE 150-200 yards or LESS . I suspect the average for all the 444 deer I've killed is a skoosh less then 45 yards . But then that has a lot to do with the places I usually hunt
