Henry .44

[doulos]

I totally forgot there was Henry forum here on Graybeard and originally posted this in "Lever actions"
Ive had a hankering for a while for a lever action rifle.  Living and hunting in an area that is required to use shotguns for hunting deer I never really got into rifles except for blackpowder rifles which is what I hunt with.  I started searching  to see what i would like and the pistol cartridges seemed like a good pick.  Light enough to plink with but powerful enough to hunt with if I go to the counties that allow rifles.  I decided .44 mag or .45 colt was the right choice. (not saying a .357 in a lever gun isn't a deer rifle).
I also wanted something that wasn't going to punish you from a bench.

Well after deliberating I ordered a Henry Repeating Arms Big Boy in .44 mag. I handled one at Gander Mountain and was impressed with the fit and quality of the wood and liked the octagon. It pointed and fit me well. The gun looks much better than the pictures Ive seen on their website.  Those pictures make the gun look very clunky.  Well its not sleek as a 1892 or or a 1894 but it is beefy. Even though its a bit heavy I'll probably do most of my shooting at the range not carrying it hunting any way.  My only concern was if I did hunt was the shiny brass colored receiver was game spooking for sure.  But I figured camo tape for the little I will hunt with it will take care of that pronto.  As far as weight for hunting I regularly hunt with Hawkens that weigh more than this. I picked the gun up about 140 bucks less than Gander Mountain wanted at a friend of mines gun shop.

Probably wont get it until middle of next week.  Anybody out there got one?  How does it shoot?
What loads does yours like?

[Old Grizz]

Doulos,
You will enjoy your knew "Big Boy" as I do. A lot of my buddies tried to talk me out of spending that much on a rifle. They all said they are too heavy, too shinny and not made in real great calibers. I bought it anyway and I love it. It's not to shinny that the deer run the other way, they are a little heavy especially when they aren't equipped for a sling(but I took care of that). I killed my first black bear 45 years ago with a .44 mag. and that's why I selected that caliber over the .357. The action is as smooth as butter and because of the heavy octagon barrel, it's a real shooter. I shoot the Hornady LE ammo through it and get terrific groups with open sights. The only change I made was I got rid of the OEM buckhorn sight and replaced it with a Tim Skinner peep sight with a .096 apature in it. These old eyes ain't quite as sharp as they used to be. Good luck with your new Henry.

Griz

[doulos]

I have a sling very similar to that that I use on my Hawkens when hunting.  As far as expensive it was actually 40 bucks less than a Marlin Cowboy in .44 mag.

[Old Grizz]

That sling was made by Chance at http://www.levergunleather.com/ This is kinda his own model but does resemble a lot of BP sling setups. I had to buy my Henry at Gander Mt. which is and will be my only firearm I ever buy from them. They seem to take pleasure in shoving it up your you know what. I do very little business with them. Now if I need something I drive another 50 miles to BPS.