[Anachronism]

This rifle has been mentioned a couple of times in this section as well a popping up in a couple of other sections so I figured I'd go ahead and post some pics of the one I got last fall. My own "customizations" include the addition of sling swivels, removal of the stock rear sight and filling the dovetail with a Lyman blank filler, and installation of a Skinner Lo-Pro peep. I wrapped the lever to make sure it doesn't bite me when shucking rounds quick (and because it looks good too ). The short 550 cord wrap on the underside of the lever is because of the Winchester-type lever-squeeze trigger block - the wrap keeps me from pinching the the meaty parts of my middle two fingers between the lever and stock when I squeeze the lever to un-block the trigger.

I've been pretty impressed with this little rifle. The action is pretty darn smooth and has cycled everything I've fed it so far. I haven't shot for groups since I put the Skinner on but it shot pretty good with the factory irons at 50 yards when I got it. It has a nice compact feel in the hand (kinda like a Winchester 94 - as you'd expect) and enough heft to feel substantial without being heavy. The metal finish is really good, bluing is even and deep and everything is nicely polished and fit together, and you really have to look to find any machining marks. The wood-to-metal fit is probably the only thing I might quibble about, up front its well fitted but stock-to-receiver fit isn't quite perfect (the wood is a little fatter than the receiver on the right side), but its acceptable and you really don't notice unless you're looking for that sort of thing. The wood itself is decent without being remarkable either way.

My only gripe with this rifle is the tang safety. It fits on a bolt gun or maybe a shotgun but it just seems kinda out of place on a lever gun. Its really a cosmetic complaint though, as it works fine and my thumb finds it very naturally. Still, it just feels weird to have a modern-type safety on an otherwise old time feeling rifle. I get used to it quick though so its really a minor thing to me.

Anyway, enough commentary from me - here's the pictures.

 

[Anachronism]

Wonder what the wood looks like under that mossshield finish? How is it for mounting a scope? How does the tang safety work compared to the Marlin cross bolt safety? JD

The wood is good, but not highly figured or anything. I've heard rumors that they only used walnut on both this and the pistol-gripped stock - I dunno, kinda looks like birch to me - but its pretty plain-jane on this model. I'm happy enough with it as is so I probably won't do anything with the wood until the original finish gets damaged or begins to deteriorate.

Its great for scope mounting because it has the strap at the back and is factory drilled and tapped. Mossberg says to just use the same Weaver mount on the back that you use on the front (the standard Win 94 front mount - Weaver 403). I did find another manufacturer (Warne, I think) that makes a set of mounts specifically for this rifle. I checked with XS sights about using the lever scout mount for the Win 94 but they told me that the front scope mount holes were in a slightly different place than a Win 94 so the mount it wouldn't work.

The safety is a hammer block type that uses a sliding block at the side of the hammer (under the top tang) to catch it before it strikes the firing pin. You can actually see the block move in and out of place when you move the safety switch. You can see in the rear-angle shot how the hammer is notched in and thins under the spur and looks a little off-center in the tang recess - that is for the safety. It widens back out under the tang and that is the part that the hammer-block catches. (I hope that makes sense) I know it works because more than once I've pulled the trigger and only got the click because I forgot to put it on fire. It just takes some getting used to for me. Another thing, it has a rebounding hammer and about the same trigger as a Winchester with the rebounding hammer. Its kinda heavy (certainly heavier than my Marlins) but it breaks clean with only the smallest amount of creep and no overtravel. Again, not a big deal but just takes some adjustment to get used to after shooting a Marlin.

 

[Anachronism]

Its a rebounding hammer, no half cock. The hole through the hammer is threaded and the included hammer extension goes there (if you use it). Its very much like a Winchester (drop-out floor plate, internal lever pivot, rebounding hammer, angle eject, internal function) except with some Marlin-type features (round bolt, better scope mounting). They have their issues (at least in my book - tang safety) but they're worth at least checking out if you get the chance.

 

[Anachronism]

Yeah, I'd love to see a 35 Remington or 32 Win. Special version. Heck, if it came in .357 Mag I'd probably have another one already. A while back Mossberg had a poll up on their site asking what other calibers folks would like to see these made in so they're at least thinking about it.