READERS WRITE
Another First For Mr. Browning The articles “Mr. Browning’s Gun” (October 2017, p. 64) and “Readers Write” (December 2017, p. 24) sparked my memory of my time in the 187th Airborne Battle Group of the 101st Airborne Division in 1960. Back then, Sp4 George Rosh and I were chosen to test an air-cooled Browning from a Bell HU-1A helicopter. We did the live test fire—for the first time—from the helicopter with some success. This should help prove Mr. Browning’s genius was unsurpassed. People interested in Mr. Browning’s legacy may also enjoy the attached photo. TOM TORRANCE, NEW YORK
Good And Useful On Levers
LEVER-ACTION
Traditional lever guns are often dismissed for being less accurate than bolt-actions. With the right loads and a few simple tips, however, they are more than up to the task of putting meat on the table. BY JOHN HAVILAND
ost hunters consider traditional lever-action rifles to be less accurate than bolt-action rifles, and let it go at that. Altogether, there is no way the lever-action, with its rear locking lugs, two-piece stock and a tubular magazine tied to its barrel, can compete with the boltaction’s rigid lockup and one-piece stock. But even though the bolt-action may have the accuracy edge, lever-actions are still plenty precise for many hunting applications. To confirm that I wasn’t just trying to convince myself of that, I talked with Eric Lundgren, the product manager for Remington and Marlin rifles. He shot his first deer many years ago with a lever-action Marlin Model 336 chambered in .30-30 Win. “I’ve been a 336 junky ever since,” he said. “In fact, I killed my first 10 deer with the 336, and still occasionally hunt with the rifle.” Lundgren said Marlin engineers have managed to produce great accuracy when testing Marlin lever-actions. It all depends, however, on a couple of important factors. One of those factors is the bullets fired through those firearms. Often, the big, round-nose, flat-base bullets commonly shot in lever-actions do not possess quite the accuracy potential of the sleek, boattail designs commonly fired in bolt-action rifles. Another factor is sights. “The open sights on lever-actions are rugged,” Lundgren said. “But I’m 51, and can’t see them as well as someone who is 21.” Marlin tests its Model 1894 lever-action chambered in .44 Mag. for accuracy at 50 yds., aiming with the carbine’s open sights. “We expect the guns to shoot 2" groups at that distance,” he said. Conversely, Marlin tests the accuracy of its Model 336 and 1895 rifles at 100 yds. and mounts scopes on them to remove eyesight issues from the accuracy equation. “Our new Model 1895GSBL .45-70 shoots groups between 1½" and 2" at 100 yds.,” he said. “Bolt-action rifles may be a bit more accurate, but not all that much.” When Marlin’s New Haven, Conn., plant closed in 2010, the company moved, lock, stock and barrel, to Remington’s factory in Ilion, N.Y. Not only were there some missteps moving machines from New Haven to the Remington facility at Ilion, most of the New Haven employees did not make the move, and so their rifle-making knowledge and talent was lost in the shuffle. Some of the re-installed equipment was 60 years old and produced poor-quality parts when it was finally running at the Ilion plant. To add to the misfortunes, no three-dimensional drawings of Marlin rifle parts had ever been made. Longtime fans of Marlin rifles lamented.
Thanks for the very good and useful article “Get A Grip On Lever-Action Accuracy” by John Haviland (February 2018, p. 60). I have owned a Marlin Model 336 in .30-30 Win. and a GET A GRIP ON LEVER-ACTION ACCURACY Model 1894 in .357 Mag. Both were capable of 1" groups, the .30-30 at 100 yds. and the .357 at 75 yds. I currently have a Model 92 SRC Rossi in .357 Mag. capable of 1" groups at 50 yds. with the iron sights. As stated in the article, a major factor in lever-action accuracy is quality ammunition. I reload to the exact weight powder charges each time using a powder dribbler for finishing the weight. Speed is nothing if the bullet misses. Almost all rifles have preferred loads, and a little care in finding the right brand or bullet weight/style will pay big dividends in accuracy. My current .30-30 is a Savage Model 340C that shoots 1" and tighter groups with Remington 150-gr. bullets. It will do the same with 130-gr. Hornady spire-point handloads. I tried some 150-gr. spire points in the .30-30 and got even tighter groups, but the cartridges would not fit in the magazine with seating at the cannelure. I have yet to try Hornady’s FTX bullets, but they are up next. Thanks again for the excellent article. Hope to see more like it on hunting-type guns. TIM KIRKLAND, VIA EMAIL 60 60
Built On A Solid Foundation
FEBRUARY 2018
AMERICAN RIFLEMAN
AMERICANRIFLEMAN.ORG
Photos by author
61
FEBRUARY 2018
SPRINGFIELD XD-E: ANY WAY, EVERY DAY December 2017
I was very pleased with Editor In Chief Mark Keefe’s article “Making The Grade: The Return Of The Fox” (December 2017, p. 44) on the Savage Arms re-entry into the side-by-side shotgun market and especially the reference to the association with Connecticut Shotgun Mfg. (CSM). About five years ago, I looked into adding a 20-ga. shotgun to my collection of hunting firearms, and I was looking for something that didn’t look like the standard over-and-under. I decided that I wanted a side-by-side with a straight stock, splinter SIG Gambles Big And Wins fore-end and double triggers to get that classic look. I had just received CSM’s catalog and was delighted to see the company was a source for an American-made firearm that fit my criteria. Shortly thereafter I purchased an RBL (Round Box Lock) Launch Edition from inventory. It looks very much like the Fox A Grade, and it was about the same price before custom fitting. I have been extremely pleased with the CSM RBL, and it has supplanted my Beretta 12-ga. 686 for most of my upland game hunts. Based on my experience, I expect that the Fox A Grade with the enhancements specified by Savage will provide a very satisfying hunting firearm at a relatively affordable price for the American upland hunter. JAMES HEIMER, TEXAS The World’s Oldest And Largest Firearm Authority
Fox
The Return of the
Official Journal of the National Rifle Association
AMERICANRIFLEMAN.ORG
R1712_COVER 2.indd 1
“Readers Write” affords members an opportunity to comment on material published in American Rifleman. Single-topic letters are preferred and may be edited for brevity. Send letters to: Readers Write, NRA Publications, 11250 Waples Mill Road, Fairfax, VA 22030-9400 or e-mail us at publications@nrahq.org.
22
APRIL 2018
AMERICAN RIFLEMAN
10/16/17 10:16 AM
