45-70 lever action question

i have a marlin 45-70 lever action, the cowboy model with the octagon barrel. its an 18in barrel. I ended up getting another one in a 26in barrel because I'm thinking it will perform better with more traditionally loaded slower bullets.

I'm thinking though now what do I do with the shorter barreled one? Does anyone have any experience or ideas? How difficult would it be to convert this rifle to 45LC? or 44mag? or is that even possible?

I was going to just sell it. But thought I would at least look into converting it or re-barreling it to another caliber.

Well, your 45-70 shoots .458" bullets, where the 45 LC shoot .451" and .452" bullets, and 44 mag shoots .429" bullets. So, it's a different barrel size. You would have to buy a new barrel all together for it. Also, you would have to change out the bolt face for the smaller 44 and 45 LC case heads. The 44 mag and 45 LC share almost an identical case head in diameter and in rim thickness. It can be done, but might be cheaper to sell and buy a new one with the caliber you want.

Yep, Chad beat me to it. Different barrel and chamber size is different. Getting a gunsmith to rebarrel a lever gun is hard to do. I can't find one that wants to do it. I've been wanting to rebarrel one of my 30-30's to 32-40.

Chop it down as short as you can and get a tax stamp.

Thread it and add another tax stamp

Erich, the best recommendation I can give you is to contact Ranger Point Precision, they are located in Houston and do excellent work on all types of firearms, but love to work on levers.

Give them a call or drop them an email as they love to talk to folks and will give you straight answers on what is possible and what is not.

Ranger Point Precision LLC
11115 Mills Rd, # 122 Cypress, TX 77429
Hours: Tues. - Fri 10am - 5pm; Sat 10 - 3pm
P: 832-429-7044

rangerpointprecision@gmail.com

appreciate the input. I'll have to get some figures on what it would actually cost. I don't need two 45-70's. trying to find a good reason to not get rid of a rifle that I also liked. the 26in barrel one is very nice though. if its really outrageous on the cost then I will just sell it.

I have had the 26" barreled version, and it was the most accurate 45-70 that I have ever owned. For me, it was perfectly suited for shooting off-hand.

You would want the 1894 action for pistol cartridges like 44 magnum. They used to make a CB version of the 1894, with the octagonal barrel. These can still be found.

Agree, better to sell and buy another. Maybe upsize to the 45-90 or 45-100?

It is going to cost more than rebareling a rem 700 or similar. That would probably cost you 5-600 and rebareling the lever will likely run more. Sell it or trade it for what your looking for would be my recommendation.

sounds like too much money and trouble. It was just a fleeting thought. I guess it will go up for sale.

Just sell it to me

I most likely will sell it. I have an uncle who is already sorta interested in it. its not a done deal yet though.

If he ends up not coming thru on it i'll keep you in mind.

Didn't someone recently post a 45/70 lever that they had cut the barrel and added a suppressor? You might consider that as an option.

That was me , I finally get to pick up the suppressor Monday , even though stamp has been there two months all ready

The 45/70 receiver will not feed the shorter 44 or 45 Colt without a lot of work ($$$$)
If you want a 44mag get a Marlin 1894 that is designed for pistol cartridges.
It is a great rifle within its limitations.

M

I'd get rid of the 26" barrel.... Don't know what you mean about improving performance. It's hard to beat a 325 gr Hornady leverevolution coming out of a 18" barrel.

i like the slow traditional bullets. the lever revolution ammo shot fine out of the 18in barrel. its just more muzzle blast and recoil than I wanted, and the lever revolution make a mess out of whatever you're shooting at. the 26in barrel does better with the traditional 405 loadings.

I shot the new 26in barrel this weekend. at about 60yds I was was able to get the factor Remington 405 loads on target and near the bull without having to max out my elevation adjustment. I'm much happier with that.