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Hello everyone, I'm new to the sport of CAS.  Like brand new need to buy everything new.  Now although I think i understand the requirements of firearms I have a question about the use of the Henry.  Now from everything I've seen on YouTube and on TV I didn't see many Henry's being used.  To my understand it's due to the lack of side loading gate.  To my understanding, you only need 10 rounds per rifle anyhow.  I own a few Henry's just not in the calibers that are required for CAS per the rules.  So I am very partial to them.  So my question is, are they allowed in CAS? If so, what are the pro's and con's in using them???  Any information will help greatly.  Thanks in advance. 

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The lack of loading gate is not an issue.  There are pistol-caliber rifles like my wife's Marlin 1894 in .32 H&R mag that lack a loading but are SASS-legal for main matches.  What calibers are your Henrys?  Perhaps we can provide more information.

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While your rifles are not legal for SASS main matches, they are legal for some side matches often held at larger matches.  I too have a .22 Henry that I use in speed .22 rifle matches.  They can also be used in lollipop shooting contests.  The 30-30 would work for long-range, lever action rifle side matches.  Keep them and have fun.  Unless you plan to shoot Classic Cowboy, .357 is a better choice than .45 Colt (less recoil and cheaper to reload).  Start looking at 1873 Winchesters, 1894 Marlins and Winchester 1892s (in that order).  We had a new shooter show up with Henry rifle two weeks ago.  It jammed most every stage and he went home very frustrated.  Don't repeat his experience and instead buy a rifle that thousands of others shoot in CAS and works for this sport.  BTW, a local club might let you shoot your .22 rifle while you shop for a legal rifle.  We let children shoot standard velocity, unplated lead .22s and they are quite safe.

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Well I have to ask, what was causing his rifle to jam???? My Henry's have never jammed.  Granted, I clean them thoroughly after every use.  So it's possible he just had a dirty rifle, or he was using bad ammo, or was he not fully using the action. I guess my main question is, if I get a Henry BB or YB in 357 can I use it?  Or is there rules against it? Would I be at a severe disadvantage having a 10 round tube loader???? Also, I'm just trying to have fun.  Not necessarily go on the professional circuit. Also, Marlin isn't making the lever guns in 357 anymore from what I've been told.  So it would be a little hard to get my hands on one of those. 

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6 minutes ago, anthonypaul1980@gmail.com said:

Well I have to ask, what was causing his rifle to jam???? My Henry's have never jammed.  Granted, I clean them thoroughly after every use.  So it's possible he just had a dirty rifle, or he was using bad ammo, or was he not fully using the action. I guess my main question is, if I get a Henry BB or YB in 357 can I use it?  Or is there rules against it? Would I be at a severe disadvantage having a 10 round tube loader???? Also, I'm just trying to have fun.  Not necessarily go on the professional circuit. Also, Marlin isn't making the lever guns in 357 anymore from what I've been told.  So it would be a little hard to get my hands on one of those. 

 

First of all, welcome to the best game there is.

 

 

A Henry BB or YB are perfectly legal for most SASS Categories. It sounds like you've made up your mind, so go get a Henry BB/YB and get to shooting.

 

You are misinformed in regards to Marlin not making a .357.

 

I don't like either Henry or Marlin but that's just my personal preference.

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I'm excited to get started.  So thank you for being welcoming and willing to give friendly advice.  

 

Like I said, I am partial to the Henry and I can't really explain why. Love the feel, the history, even though I understand that it's been a bit jumbled more recently.  However as long as its legal...

 

I guess my next question is what is everyone's thoughts on cimarron?? I should have added, I only have about a $2k budget for the firearms.  Maybe a little less. So that has to get me a rifle, 2 revolvers, and a coach gun.  So I've been looking at cimarron revolvers and the stoeger coach.  What is everyone's thoughts on those.  

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Well, I prefer EMF(Pietta) and Taylor's(Uberti) over Cimarron(mostly Uberti). 

 

If you're willing to go .45 caliber there's a set of Ruger Vaqueros at a great price($925) in the Classifieds section here. Those will last you forever.

 

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AP198,

 

The fellow with the jamming Henry was using factory ammo.  We did not diagnose his problem.  If your budget is limited I recommend borrowing guns until you know what you like.  The Stoeger coach shotgun is used by many.  The Henry is not favored.

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If you reload, and you're willing to experiment, and you are persistent, you will be able to make a Henry run at normal speed without jamming. Probably even for a whole match. NOT FAST, but at a normal operating speed. I started with a HBB in .357, and I was a long time reloader, so I was willing to put in the time to find the right overall length (OAL). Eventually I sold mine and bought an already tuned Browning 92 for only about $100 more than I paid for the HBB.

 

It doesn't matter whether you are into competition or just shooting for fun; a malfunctioning firearm is frustrating and takes most of the fun right out of it. Since you don't already own a HBB in an allowable caliber, why buy into frustration and a guaranteed handicap?

 

Marlin, 92, 73? Buy whatever you can currently afford. If you buy a viable rifle now, selling it later to move up will be much easier.

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1 hour ago, anthonypaul1980@gmail.com said:

Well I have to ask, what was causing his rifle to jam???? My Henry's have never jammed.  

The problem with '92s, '94s, and Henry's that try to shoot two cartridge lengths is that they often only are able to handle one of the lengths and sometimes neither well.

For instance, my Marlin would only feed full length .357 magnums.  When I changed the carrier, it would only shoot .38 special, (fine with me, I lucked out!). Others have not been able to feed either but something in-between.  Reloaders find what length the rifle likes and load to that "sweet spot".

The Henry has basically a Marlin action.  For a while nobody was working on them to make them good "competition" guns.  Now there are folks like Boomstick Jay that have figured out the Big Boy and are "slicking them up".

To me, they are too heavy.  But, that's not what you asked and strictly personal preference.

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If your resources are limited to 2K, start with good pistols, borrow a rifle (if you can) and a mediocre shotgun. As your funds increase, next would be good rifle followed by shotgun. Before you buy ANYTHING, go to matches and try different guns out.......you'll see what you like and dislike. Making friends at SASS matches is purty easy.....be friendly, help out and ask questions. Good luck and have fun no matter what you decide on.

 

BTW, pick an alias and change your "on line" name.....way too many scammers/spammers out there to have your Email posted.

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14 hours ago, anthonypaul1980@gmail.com said:

Hello everyone, I'm new to the sport of CAS.  Like brand new need to buy everything new.  Now although I think i understand the requirements of firearms I have a question about the use of the Henry.  Now from everything I've seen on YouTube and on TV I didn't see many Henry's being used.  To my understand it's due to the lack of side loading gate.  To my understanding, you only need 10 rounds per rifle anyhow.  I own a few Henry's just not in the calibers that are required for CAS per the rules.  So I am very partial to them.  So my question is, are they allowed in CAS? If so, what are the pro's and con's in using them???  Any information will help greatly.  Thanks in advance. 

You have it all wrong...The first thing you need is a hat...Go to a cowboy bigger one find a hat...It does have to look just and it should not look brand new...If it looks to new someone might take it off your head throw it on the ground and run over it a few times...If it still does look right then they might send it down range and put some holes in it...By then it should have a good feel for SASS....And you will not look like a rookie...Till you shoot...

 

Hope this helps you out...Welcome to the sport...

 

Texas Lizard

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I bought a brand new blued Rossi 92 20" saddle ring carbine in 45 Colt when I started 3 years ago because it was cheap and reliable, about $400. It served me well for two years, but as I got better and faster, I replaced it with a stainless Rossi 92 saddle ring carbine in 45 Colt... I love my 92's, they are light, well balanced, durable, strong and reliable.

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Welcome, Anthony.  To answer your question the Henry Big Boy Rifle is “legal” as a main match rifle.  There are a couple of very specialized categories in which that rifle is not allowed but it is legal in the open category (“Cowboy”) and in the age based categories.  The lack of a side loading gate is a non-issue.

 

I’d recommend that you attend a local match before buying anything else.  You can find clubs in your area on the main SASS page.

 

 

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@The Original Lumpy Gritz

 

I've been hunting for about 10 years. And I'm an avid recreational shooter.  But just for fun and mostly modern rifles and auto-loaders.  I do not re-load, but it is something I have looked into.  Not to any extent however. 

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3 hours ago, anthonypaul1980@gmail.com said:

I'm excited to get started.  So thank you for being welcoming and willing to give friendly advice.  

 

Like I said, I am partial to the Henry and I can't really explain why. Love the feel, the history, even though I understand that it's been a bit jumbled more recently.  However as long as its legal...

 

Welcome and as other have stated don't buy anything till you have been to some matches. Go observe, ask questions, try some different type arms and see what feels good to you. Most likely someone will ask you to shoot and be willing to loan you firearms and ammo to try this out.  Don't be shy, accept their offer if given and then you will be hooked forever.  

 

Regarding the Henry Big Boy there is nothing historical about them, they are not even close to the original Henry Rifles that do have history.

Scout

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16 hours ago, anthonypaul1980@gmail.com said:

Hello everyone, I'm new to the sport of CAS.  Like brand new need to buy everything new.  Now although I think i understand the requirements of firearms I have a question about the use of the Henry.  Now from everything I've seen on YouTube and on TV I didn't see many Henry's being used.  To my understand it's due to the lack of side loading gate.  To my understanding, you only need 10 rounds per rifle anyhow.  I own a few Henry's just not in the calibers that are required for CAS per the rules.  So I am very partial to them.  So my question is, are they allowed in CAS? If so, what are the pro's and con's in using them???  Any information will help greatly.  Thanks in advance. 

Howdy and welcome!

in pistol calibers (45,38/357,32) your Henry would be legal in the age based categories. While I do not own one (other than 22 version) I have shot them in the past and found them to be well made and very accurate. I also found other rifles better suited to the CAS game. If you are happy running relatively slow by all means go for another gun that you personally like, just know that other types of rifle are more popular for a lot of reasons. To echo OLG go to a few local matches and see what fits you, you may even luck into a good deal before you exhaust your budget on something you may need to change out quickly.

regards

Gateway Kid

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Since you don't reload yet-Look into .38 Special for you SASS caliber in handguns and rifle as it the easiest to find components and pretty cheap to load for. Remember that we use only lead bullets.

Go for 12ga in shotgun.

When you get to a shoot-See I you can find a mentor for reloading.

OLG

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I admit that I am not real familiar with the Henry rifles.  That being said, the ones that I have seen all require removal of a spring along the bottom of the barrel for loading and then reinsertion of the spring.  I have seen several cowboy shooters become frustrated when they accidentally jack out a live round during a match and must either struggle to load another round or take a miss.  There are occasions when stage directions call for loading a round into the rifle while on the clock.  The penalty for not doing so could be a miss, a procedural or even a SOG for not attempting to engage a target.

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23 hours ago, Texas Lizard said:

You have it all wrong...The first thing you need is a hat...Go to a cowboy bigger one find a hat...It does have to look just and it should not look brand new...If it looks to new someone might take it off your head throw it on the ground and run over it a few times...If it still does look right then they might send it down range and put some holes in it...By then it should have a good feel for SASS....And you will not look like a rookie...Till you shoot...

 

Hope this helps you out...Welcome to the sport...

 

Texas Lizard

What he said, go get yourself a good hat. talk to lots of folks at and after matches and dont be in a hurry to spend your budget. Lots of us have safe queens we may be willing to part with to help a new shooter. Your budget is doable if you buy with care. Most of us have not followed that advice when we started and we have had to make multiple gun purchases to get to a rig that works for us , in appropriate categories.

 

welcome, and get a good alias, puns are highly prized by most. 

 

Imis

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