Flaco Joe Posted April 12, 2021 Share Posted April 12, 2021 I have a Marlin ‘94 in .45 Colt with a 24” barrel. It has a bulge in the barrel 5” from the muzzle, likely caused by someone running it fast and having a squib round at some point. I don’t know if I caused it or if it was caused by the previous owner and I bought it that way. The bulge is not readily noticeable by visual inspection, but it can be felt when running your fingers down the barrel. Caveat emptor, right? But I run my guns fast so maybe I caused it unawares. The gun still hits to point of aim. I have shot it many times with the bulge, because I didn’t realize it was there for who knows how long. It seems fine, but I just don’t like it and am considering having the barrel shortened to cut the bulge off. If I take six inches off the barrel, I’d remove the bulge and still have an 18” gun. My question is, will an 18” tube hold ten rounds of .45 Colt? I laid ten rounds alongside the tube and it seems like it will work, but has anyone had experience with an 18” barreled .45 Colt Marlin? Was an 18” version ever offered? The OAL of my CAS loads is about 1.57”. If I cut the barrel to 18”, will it hold ten rounds and will there be enough spring in the tube to make the gun function reliably? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Original Lumpy Gritz Posted April 12, 2021 Share Posted April 12, 2021 How many rnds will it hold now? What mods have you done to the mag spring or follower? 18" bbl is iffy for 10 rnd count. OLG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Boy Posted April 12, 2021 Share Posted April 12, 2021 Joe, a quick math exercise ... 45 Colt SAAMI COAL is 1.60" x 10 = 16" Two inches to play with ... plug and spring Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warden Callaway Posted April 12, 2021 Share Posted April 12, 2021 It would easily hold 10 45 Schofield. Even more Cowboy 45 Special. If you reload, you can select a bullet that seats to a shorter over all length. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZigMar Posted April 12, 2021 Share Posted April 12, 2021 12 minutes ago, Warden Callaway said: It would easily hold 10 45 Schofield. Even more Cowboy 45 Special. If you reload, you can select a bullet that seats to a shorter over all length. Yes, but would the gun feed .45 Schofield or .45 Special? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Widder, SASS #59054 Posted April 12, 2021 Share Posted April 12, 2021 19 minutes ago, ZigMar said: Yes, but would the gun feed .45 Schofield or .45 Special? If the carrier and the timing is set correctly for the OAL of the cartridge, it can. I have heard of some .45 Marlin's that will handle the Schofield cartridge with no modifications. But, I haven't actually handled one that would reliably feed Schofield or C45S (Cowboy 45 Special) without being modified for them. When shortening the barrel to 18", there are a couple easy mods to help get 10 rounds in your tube: 1. shorten your OAL of your ammo 2. cut out (or dish out) your end cap to allow some of the end of the bullet to fit. 3. shorten your follower 4. cut the spring. You only need enough spring tension to feed ONE round. If the spring has enough tension to feed your LAST round, then it will feed all previous rounds. I hope Warden Calloway chimes in because he has done some previous mods and is familiar with doing some of this work. ..........Widder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cusz M. Dutch SASS Life 55326 Posted April 12, 2021 Share Posted April 12, 2021 Will have to ask you if it isn't broke.... If the accuracy is still there and you can barely see it, why not shoot it and forget it? Does not seem to be a safety issue at this point in time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshall Matt Dillon Posted April 12, 2021 Share Posted April 12, 2021 I have 2 marlin 94 rifles in 45 colt. One of them feeds schofields like it was born to it, perfectly smooth and fast as you can work the lever. The other one does not. It catches the front of the shell and stops or i can feel it catch, then it chambers. Doesnt cost anything to try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warden Callaway Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 I'd probably reline the barrel to 44WCF. Or better yet, 38WCF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Griff Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 I have a Uberti 1873 with a 18-½" bbl, and it barely holds 10 45 Colts... and mine are loaded to 1.577" See what Widder sez above for ways to accommodate the shorter barrel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flaco Joe Posted April 13, 2021 Author Share Posted April 13, 2021 Thanks for your suggestions everyone. Lumpy, it only holds 10 rounds! I’d never had a reason to load more, so I never tried. But I did just now and it only holds ten! I could not get an 11th round in. Thanks John Boy. That only leaves me 2” for the compressed spring unless I use much shorter rounds. Warden, I never thought of trying Schofield rounds to see how they feed. I’ll do that. Thanks for the suggestion. I think re-chambering it would cost as much or more than just trimming the barrel. Widder, those are all good suggestions. Thank you. Dutch, it does shoot fine, so I guess I’m okay leaving it as is. I wonder though if I ever get going too fast if it might happen again, now my barrel has a weak spot. I’m considering cutting it for safety. Dillon, good to know. I’ll check my rifle to see how if feeds Schofield rounds. Griff, that is good news! It gets me closer to holding 10. My cowboy load uses a flat-nose bullet and the OAL is 1.57, so maybe with those bullets and some of Widder’s modifications I could make it work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abilene, SASS # 27489 Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 1 hour ago, Griff said: I have a Uberti 1873 with a 18-½" bbl, and it barely holds 10 45 Colts... and mine are loaded to 1.577" See what Widder sez above for ways to accommodate the shorter barrel. But remember that on a toggle link gun the last round loaded is on the carrier, not in the mag tube. My 18" '73 will hold not quite eleven .357's, but the mag spring is very strong, I could probably trim it and get 11 in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watab kid Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 shorten the barrel and leave the magazine tube long - it will be unique Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Widder, SASS #59054 Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 Joe, if your 24" inch barrel .45 Marlin ONLY holds 10 rounds, its probably got a LONG (approx 5-6 inch) plastic rod inside your mag tube. Originally, when Marlin started making the 24" 'Cowboy' rifles, they put those rod inside the mag tubes to limit the rounds to only 10. Take off the end cap and you may find that rod, which actually fits inside the spring. Remove it and you'll probably get 12-13 rounds of normally OAL ammo. If there isn't a rod inside, then your mag tube spring is drastically too long. Remember, your spring only needs to be about 2 or 3 cartridge lengths longer than the tube, which should be about 4 inches longer than the tube. If your Tube is 24", your spring should only need to be approx 30". If your tube is 18", your spring should only need to be approx 22". If ya got any questions, feel free to call me at 865/696-1996. I'm retired, so call about anytime during the day. EDIT: realistically, on the Marlin 1894, when you load 10 rounds in the tube, ONLY 9 of those rounds are actually in the mag tube. The round you can see at the loading gate is mostly in the receiver and portal area, not in the tube. 1.57 x 9 = a little over 14". Just thought I would share that info, which may make you feel a little better about your proposed mod. ..........Widder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jabez Cowboy,SASS # 50129 Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 Leave the Barrel as Is , I had a Marlin 94 in my shop that belonged to an Older shooter in .44-40 it had 5 Bulges ( Rings in the Barrel ) starting at 17 inches from the breach .. It shot fine and He continued shooting it till dementia took his mind and he had to stop shooting , a couple of years ago. Now he has just gone on to the big range in the sky where he will no longer feel the aches and pains of his 90 plus years , rest in peace Pard ... Jabez Cowboy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshall Matt Dillon Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 8 hours ago, Flaco Joe said: Warden, I never thought of trying Schofield rounds to see how they feed. I’ll do that. Thanks for the suggestion. I think re-chambering it would cost as much or more than just trimming the barrel. No need to rechamber. Load schofield and fire away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goody, SASS #26190 Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 5 hours ago, Widder, SASS #59054 said: Take off the end cap and you may find that rod, which actually fits inside the spring. Remove it and you'll probably get 12-13 rounds of normally OAL ammo. As long as he has had the gun and never cleaned the mag tube? I hate to think what is growing in there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flaco Joe Posted April 13, 2021 Author Share Posted April 13, 2021 Goody, it hasn’t been that long! But I’ll be pulling it apart to check on it tonight for sure. Widder, thanks again for the excellent advice. I’ll pull the spring tonight and see about that rod. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Original Lumpy Gritz Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 13 hours ago, Flaco Joe said: Thanks for your suggestions everyone. Lumpy, it only holds 10 rounds! I’d never had a reason to load more, so I never tried. But I did just now and it only holds ten! I could not get an 11th round in. Thanks John Boy. That only leaves me 2” for the compressed spring unless I use much shorter rounds. Warden, I never thought of trying Schofield rounds to see how they feed. I’ll do that. Thanks for the suggestion. I think re-chambering it would cost as much or more than just trimming the barrel. Widder, those are all good suggestions. Thank you. Dutch, it does shoot fine, so I guess I’m okay leaving it as is. I wonder though if I ever get going too fast if it might happen again, now my barrel has a weak spot. I’m considering cutting it for safety. Dillon, good to know. I’ll check my rifle to see how if feeds Schofield rounds. Griff, that is good news! It gets me closer to holding 10. My cowboy load uses a flat-nose bullet and the OAL is 1.57, so maybe with those bullets and some of Widder’s modifications I could make it work. Bet there's a limiter in the mag tube. My 24" bbl Cowboy in .44 mag came with one. OLG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Widder, SASS #59054 Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 8 minutes ago, The Original Lumpy Gritz said: Bet there's a limiter in the mag tube. My 24" bbl Cowboy in .44 mag came with one. OLG Hey Lumpy. YEP. I've owned a couple of 24" in .45 Colt. Both had a polyurathyene type material for the 'limiter'. one was whitish and the other was black. Somewhere in their manufacturing, Marlin decided to stop using them. I've got an 1894 in .45 Colt with a factory 16.25 barrel. It will hold 8 Colt rounds at 1.600 or 11 Cowboy 45 Specials. I don't remember the OAL of the C45S. ..........Widder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rattlesnake Slim Posted April 13, 2021 Share Posted April 13, 2021 Listen to what Jabez Cowboy says. I bought a Browning 92 (.357) from a former National Champion that had 3 distinct bulges just forward of the rear sight. That area sees higher pressures than the muzzle end. I shot that rifle monthly for the next seven years without a problem, then sold it to another cowboy who is still shooting it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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