More and more lever-action rifle hunters are turning to red dot sights from Burris, Vortex, Docter and others. For those of us relying on their favorite lever action rifles and carbines, installing our no-drill dovetail Picatinny rail mount to secure your red dot sight couldn’t be easier.
When my home state’s slug restriction went away, my first thought wasn’t which rifle should I buy. It was which one actually makes sense for the stand, and is any of them going to give me any advantage over my slug gun? That sent me down a rabbit hole on lever action accuracy that turned out to be more interesting than I expected. Here’s what I found out.
Long before it became a movie star, the Winchester Model 1892 was a practical working tool. It rode horseback across ranch country, rested behind wagon seats, hung in cabins, and followed hunters through thick timber where quick handling mattered more than magnification and where shots were measured in feet and yards rather than football fields.
Whether you’re toting a vintage Winchester 1894 or a modern Marlin 336 deep into the backcountry, proper care ensures your rifle performs when it counts—and lasts for generations.
The side-by-side (SXS) shotgun embodies elegance and a level of craftsmanship from a bygone era of American gunmaking. Revered for their balance, reliability, and aesthetic appeal, these firearms have made their mark on the history of shooting sports and hunting.
If you’re considering hunting with a lever-action rifle, the question is, what caliber do you choose? For your consideration, here are my top three choices for lever-action calibers for hunting.
For the past 40 years Turnbull Restoration has been dedicated to the values of conservation and restoration. We take our firearms seriously, and we take our wetlands and wildlands seriously, too.
I’ve been a gun collector for many years but I have one special gun I’d like to tell you about. The rifle is a Winchester Model 1886 chambered in .40-82 WCF and it was made in 1894. It has a 26-inch round barrel and is in decent shape, but shows wear from many years of use. The only thing unusual about it is that the case-hardened receiver is engraved “Arapahoe County”.
My love for Winchesters came about because of my grandfather. He is an unbelievable shot and had me shooting his Model 1894 from the age of four. It was an instant addiction to all things Winchester. The first time I saw a ‘95 was on the famous “The Kind That Gets Them” poster as a teenager. From then on I knew I would endeavor to own one of these majestic rifles.
With lever-action rifles regaining popularity in the field, hunters of all ages are looking for alternatives to “as-issued” open sights. They’re adopting red dot sights as a pragmatic solution that even us purists can get behind.