At the gun show yesterday one guy had a new Marlin 1894 .44 that had the ugliest wood I've ever seen on a Ruger owned product. So, the walnut runs from butt ugly to gorgeous. For the most part the wood is far above average. Anyway, one guy said a vendor had the new 1894 in .357 and told me where.
It was a private individual and he asked me if I wanted to see it. Sure! He said I was the first to handle it because he sees how gun show jerks bang guns around. The wood was really nice! Not much figure, but it had the gorgeous reddish look of the old classics. A pic wouldn't have done it justice. $1,300 OTD. I passed hoping to find one like the .44 I recently bought. This really did look very nice, though. I did take a pic of the end label.
On the way home I stopped by Adventure Outdoors in Smyrna, GA where I bought my 1894 .44. The salesman said no .357's, but they were expected to start coming in next spring or summer. Say what? I then saw the salesman who sold me my 1894. He said they had one on the rack and 11 more in the back
I looked at two and neither one met my wood standards, but they still looked very nice! They were priced lower than the .44 @ $999. This place is massive and will not bring 11 rifles out to have me choose the best one. Not going to happen, so I didn't even ask.
Anyway, the .357 barrel is 18.5" as opposed to the .44 at 20.25" so it weighs a tad less even with the smaller bore. I looked at several other .357 offerings and the Marlin seemed to me to be the best buy. It also has the best sights by far over the others, at least for my eyes. So, if you're looking for the new Marlin in .357, they're out there now.
Just FYI: This pic is from Marlin's website. You don't have to settle for walnut this ugly because even their average walnut looks far better than this.
It was a private individual and he asked me if I wanted to see it. Sure! He said I was the first to handle it because he sees how gun show jerks bang guns around. The wood was really nice! Not much figure, but it had the gorgeous reddish look of the old classics. A pic wouldn't have done it justice. $1,300 OTD. I passed hoping to find one like the .44 I recently bought. This really did look very nice, though. I did take a pic of the end label.
On the way home I stopped by Adventure Outdoors in Smyrna, GA where I bought my 1894 .44. The salesman said no .357's, but they were expected to start coming in next spring or summer. Say what? I then saw the salesman who sold me my 1894. He said they had one on the rack and 11 more in the back
I looked at two and neither one met my wood standards, but they still looked very nice! They were priced lower than the .44 @ $999. This place is massive and will not bring 11 rifles out to have me choose the best one. Not going to happen, so I didn't even ask.
Anyway, the .357 barrel is 18.5" as opposed to the .44 at 20.25" so it weighs a tad less even with the smaller bore. I looked at several other .357 offerings and the Marlin seemed to me to be the best buy. It also has the best sights by far over the others, at least for my eyes. So, if you're looking for the new Marlin in .357, they're out there now.
Just FYI: This pic is from Marlin's website. You don't have to settle for walnut this ugly because even their average walnut looks far better than this.
