I have terrible eyes, always have, but its getting worse with age. I have always been against optics on my leverguns, for no other reason than tradition, I suppose. I think, after taking a nice little buck with my boltgun that I dont think I could have made with my leverguns that I prefer to carry, that it is time to accept it.

I would like a small, cost effective low power variable for my 1894C in .357. I was looking at the Weaver 1-3, but not real sure of the quality, or what else is out there in that range. I am going to make the 1894 my guinea pig, and if I like it, the same with my .444.

What are your recommendations for optic, and a nice low mount that works well?

I'd go with a VX-II 1-4x20 or an FX-2 4x33 (or older m8) or even a 2.5x20. I have had the Weaver 1-3 on a couple rifles, and it did nothing for me. I keep my head pretty far back on the stock, as I like to bring up my hunting rifles like they are a shotgun (guess it was the years of deer hunting in NH that did it), so I am a fan of longer eye relief and generous eye boxes. I also had a Nikon 1.5-4.5 or some such, and it looked right on the rifle, but man, the eye relief and eye box were just terrible. Always seemed like when I brought the rifle up the scope wasn't right.

I also don't like the balance of the 20" carbine Marlins with a scope on them. Just doesn't hang right for me. On the 22" and 24" barreled models though, they handle like a dream. I had a .444 Marlin that I trimmed the weaver base on, and had it setup so I could have a Loopie 2.5x20 on it and a Williams FP at the same time. If the weather was nasty, I could unscrew the 2 thumb screws on the scope, pop it off, and then had a receiver sight with a firesight front. That was a sweet rig, but heavier than I wanted with the scope on it and the magazine loaded. That rig must have weighed 8.5 lbs with the mag stoked and scope on top, and that is more than I want to carry all day when there are lighter options available. Just my opinion though, so take it for what it's worth.

Weaver V3 1-3x20 - it will serve you well.

you came to the right place.My M444 has had almost every conceiveable scope on it.Weaver 2.5X20,Tasco AccuDot,Leupold 1-4X20,Leupold 2X IER(Scout mount)even had a 3-9X40 at one time.Now it wears a Leupold VXII 2-7X33.The 20mm looks nice but beware,low light they don't like.The red dot worked ok but at 100yrds the dot was about 5MOA,they are great for fast target acquisition.Now your as confused as I am.
Get the VXII(or better)2-7 with small(not 20)objective.
Good luck

Thanks for the advice. What about mounts? Every time I have messed with a scoped Marlin, the optic sits way high. Is there a combo that keeps the glass nice and low?

NH sharpshooter,I know what you mean.I have the M444 with 24" barrel.I lugged that around for years.One day for S&G I weighed it,ALMOST 10 POUNDS,EMPTY.It's no wonder I fell in love with my Finnlight.

My Marlins all have Weaver K-2.5's mounted on Weaver bases with super low Burris Zee rings. The Weaver K-2.5's are unbeatable for clarity/brightness and the ability to be mounted low without [bleep] up the balance/compactness of a Marlin carbine. They compare very well with most mid-priced 2-7 and 3-9x40's for clarity/brightness and BLOW THE DOORS OFF the POS 1-4X20 Leupold vx-1 which I ordered and subsequently sent back because it absolutely sucked in comparison to my K-2.5's.

The lowest setup I know of is the Warne one piece base with Weaver low rings. I have tried just about all of them and don't think you can get one lower. When you mount a Leupold 2.5x in this setup it does not ruin the balance of your levergun and gives you much better shooting precision than open sights.

It is not that the optics are high, it is the comb that is low, unfortunately. I am in the same boat. Eyes getting worse. I am using a 2.5-8x Vari-x 3 on Talley low rings. I used to have a 1.5-5x that I think would have been even better.

I am either going to decide to live with the lack of cheek weld or get a custom made butt.

I agree.

2.5x Leupold, Weaver base, low rings on my .30-30 Glenfield. Had a similar setup on my .45/70 Marlin, using the Leupold one-piece mount it too was nice and low, and would accept a 4x scope if desired.



I like the low powered fixed Leupold scopes for lever action rifles. Fast on target and the light weight of the scope, only 8 ounces, doesn't affect the handling much at all.

Regards, Guy

what about out a Weaver K4. Small, light weight, nice and bright and forgiving. Set it and forget it. Inexpensive and excellent tracking for about $125. It was my first pick when dad asked about a scoper for his Marlin.

Edited: Just read Blackhearts post and agree. I chucked a VX-1 for a Weaver K6 and was MUCH happier with it. The 2.5 looks sweet but costs a bit more. I can say we never had any issues getting a sight picture through the K4.

Thanks for the advice. I think something like the 2.5x Leupold is exactly what I am going to go with.

anybody running a 2-7 bushnell 3200?
if so what is the lowest ring/bases setup i can use

I have an as new V-3 with Weaver tip-off's and base I'll sell ya for 160.00 shipped if you're interested.

The scopes never been in the field. I mounted it, sighted it in, and couldn't live with a scope on a lever so off it came. LOL
I did allot of research before buying this outfit, and the Weaver base/ring combo was the lowest I could find.

Here's a thread with a pic of the exact same pieces mounted to give you an idea.
https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthread..._What_Scope_Mounts_Do_You_Us#Post7079475

I personally like the new V series scopes from Weaver, but optics are pretty subjective if ya know what I mean.

I like low power variables. I've had allot of them over the years. I am suprised by the statements that they suck in low light. I am mainly a coyote hunter so have no restrictions on when I hunt as most places you can hunt them 24 hours a day. If there is enough light for me to see a coyote coming to the call with my bare eyes there is more than enough light to see him in my scope.

Here's just a smattering of rigs I use.

For a lever you might try something like this. You will lose the variable power option, but they are handy scopes and fit well on a lever rifle. The Malcolm moungs are find for hunting though a pain to get dialed in. The external knob variant is for target shooting.


http://www.buffaloarms.com/malcom_style_scopes_pr-4100.aspx

[img]http://www.buffaloarms.com/ThumbnailHandler.ashx?MediaID=45154&size=220[/img]

Somewhere in my good junk is a lace on comb riser (military surplus) that solves the low comb problem. The problem that it creates is that it is ugly. If you are a function over appearance kind of person, it works! I have one Marlin with a 3X Weaver (circa '73) mounted in Weaver rings and bases that is super low. It works, but it is not a beautiful mount. jack

Warne base and Weaver low rings is the absolute lowest you can get. Try it, you will see.

I generally like 1.5-5 type variable for my leveractions, but that combo Guy posted is hard to beat as well. I shot a friends 450marlin setup with that 2.5x Leupold and thought it was very nice. Those little scopes look like they were made for Marlin leveractions.

I think an Aimpoint is the way to go on your marlin. I have one on a Remington 760 I bought this year it It a very good sight.

I put a Redfield Revolution 2-7x33mm on my 30TK and if its not perfect, it'll do until perfect shows up.

often overlooked, but they are made just as tough as the regular Weaver K and V series...

the Weaver " Rimfire" series.. they offer a 4 power and a 2 x 7...

they have like a 28 mm objective and are nice and compact..

they have survived just fine on top of a 444, and a 30/06 shooting 220 grain RN loads....

I have 2 of them at the moment, mounted on top of 30/30s...
one on a Marlin, and one on a Model 94 Legacy with a 26 inch barrel...

they are the most well balanced scopes for those lever actions I have ever used...

one of them served for about 200 rounds thru a 338 Win Mag.. and the other thru about 500 rounds on top of a 444...

I ran a Leupold 2-7X RF special on my .357 Marlin lever action. Range for a .357 is pretty similar to a rimfire so the choice of parallax free distances is equally appropriate.

2 piece Warne bases and Burris Zee rings worked well.

On my .45-70 (guide gun) I used several different scopes looking for "just right" and settled on a Leupold 1.75-6x though in hindsight, I had it "more right" when I temporarily had a 2.5-8X on it.

I used a Leupold steel standard base and rings. Somewhat heavy.

You didn't ask, but I didn't really like the balance / feel of the lever action scoped, either. It was slow to find the crosshairs and get them on target. I got rid of the Marlin lever action .357 and replaced it with a Ruger 77/357 bolt action which I like a lot. The drop in the stock is intended for scope use and works better for me.

Tom

Something to try
Using masking tape, attach a new rear sight to your lever gun about five inches forward of the current rear sight....thus dramatically reducing the sighting radius, ( IMO a way over valued commodity for a lever gun) especially, and see if the shorter distance between the sights makes it easier to focus on both at the same time. If this helps sufficiently, and you're still liking the tradition of irons.....maybe you should consider moving the rear sight forward.....but by all means prove it to yourself first!.....