Why You Want A Lever-Action Rifle

Above, friend Nandoh Munoz shooting with his Henry lever-action rifle. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Eight or nine years ago, I was on the lookout for a Winchester 94 that was in .30-30 and a pre-1964. 

In April 2019, the opportunity just fell into my lap when I was browsing in Ron Peterson Firearms in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I saw one on a rack. It looked to be in great shape. I verified that it was a pre-64 rifle online with my phone (it was made in 1962). It was priced just under $500. I decided to buy it.

As I was going to fly to Fort Lauderdale the next day for a cruise, I put it on layaway and picked it up upon my return. It is fun to shoot and is my favorite rifle. 

Silencer Central posted an article on why one would want a lever-action rifle.

It begins with:

Lever Action rifles are one of those special kinds of firearms that have timeless roots in society and modern demand. Many people started with hunting using a lever gun. Growing up in Michigan, I was the odd one out because I started hunting with a Winchester Model 70, while all my buddies were using a Marlin .30/30. Interest fell off a little with some company buyouts and closures. But now lever guns are back in their rightful place as one of the coolest firearms you can own. If you don’t own at least one, chances are good that you want one. Why do you want a lever-action rifle? Because they are cool! 

Why you want a lever-action rifle 

While we can all admit they are cool, there are some practical reasons why you want one. They are often compact, making them easy to maneuver when you’re hunting. They are reliable, too. Unlike a semi-auto rifle that can jam, it is rare for a lever-action rifle to hang up and cause an issue. 

One of the other features of the design that makes them popular is that lever-action rifles are fast. Once you get practiced using one, you can make follow-up shots in pretty rapid succession. With some of the accessory options now being offered both direct from the factories and from aftermarket specialists like MAGPUL and WOOX, you can trick one out just the same as an AR-platform rifle. And unlike ARs, there are no legality concerns with a lever action.  

Also, many lever-action rifles now come with threaded barrels, making it a piece of cake to mount a suppressor and tame the sound output.  

To read more, go here.