Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. now owns the Marlin brand of classic lever action rifles, and are now re-introducing the legendary 1895 Marlin Guide Gun or 1895 Marlin GBL (Guide Big Loop) .45-70 Gov't. lever-action carbine. The 1895 Guide Gun is one of Marlin’s most revered “big bore” lever action designs and is a favorite of those who prefer a powerful but compact backcountry carbine.
“The Guide Gun is our next step in the expansion of the Marlin line,” stated CEO and President, Chris Killoy. “Marlin fans should be encouraged by the growth in product offerings and know that we are going to continuously expand into other models.”
The .45-70 Gov't, cartridge is an old-school, straight-walled cartridge that dates back to the 19th century. Originally it was loaded with a .45-caliber lead slug weighing 405 grains with a charge of 70 grains of black powder. It made its debut after the American Civil War with the single shot Springfield Model 1873 Trapdoor rifles and carbines. Since its inception through today, this cartridge remains a favorite of shooters and hunters and still continues to benefit from modern developments in propellant technology and projectile design.
The new re-introduction model of the Guide Gun has a receiver made of alloy steel with a satin glare-reducing blued classic finish. The flat top receiver is drilled and tapped to facilitate the mounting of optics and like many classic lever guns, the Guide Gun also has adjustable ramp buckhorn semi aperture open sights. The front sight blade has a covered hood to protect it from getting knocked out of alignment as you move around. Along with a 19-inch barrel with a 1:20-inch rifling twist, this new lever action carbine also has a muzzle with 11/16-inch x 24 tpi threads and comes capped out of the box ready to accept common muzzle accessories. This new carbine has a nickel-plated bolt for a smoother feel when the action is cycled. In addition to this, it was designed to easily feed a wide variety of .45-70 Gov’t. cartridges with varying bullet profile shapes.
The new Marlin Model 1895 is now shipping to dealers and carries a retail price of $1,149. For more information on this new lever action carbine, please visit marlinfirearms.com.
