[Jeff Higgins]

If you want a loading gate on the side of the action and side ejection, I believe that limits you to the Model 1894 Marlin. Not that that is any kind of a "limitation" - IMHO, the best pistol caliber lever gun ever made.

And yes, rifling twist rate can be an issue. Back when this idea was still new (1870's), these rounds fired very light for caliber bullets that were very short in length. Darn near round balls, really. The .44-40, for example, fired a 200 grain bullet, which is exceedingly light for a .44 caliber projectile. And it was very soft, pure lead. So the idea was that we really did not have to spin it very fast to stabilize it, and we were likewise afraid of "stripping" the rifling, or skipping right over it because the soft bullet failed to grip that rifling. So twist rates were on the order of one turn in 38 inches. Think about that for a moment - modern AR 15's meant to shoot heavy for caliber bullets routinely go with one in 7 inch twists. The longer the bullet, the faster we must spin it to stabilize it.

So, essentially, this 1:38" twist is pretty much "obsolete" in today's terms. If we want to shoot heavier bullets, we need a much faster twist. Today's "standard" for .44 magnum is 240 grains. .45 Colt has always been about 255 grains. And, unfortunately, traditions die hard in this firearms world. So even though there is really no "traditional" twist rate for .45 Colt lever guns (since we did not have them until late in the 20th century), for whatever reason, manufacturers have held to the traditional 1:38" rate held over from the .44-40.

Until now... Miroku, the Japanese licensee manufacturing Winchester lever guns, has corrected this problem and has gone with a 1:22" twist. But, unfortunately, only in the .44 (and .357) magnum. Their .45 Colt Model 92's still have the slower twist. Which isn't the end of the world, really - they still shoot standard bullet weights in the .45 Colt quite well. They may not stabilize the 300 grain and heavier stuff but, well, that won't be an issue for you and your Vaquero.

You see, your "New Model" Vaquero is about the same size, and strength, as the old Colt Peacemaker. It is much smaller than, and not as strong as, the Blackhawk and Super Blackhawk. The first gen Vaqueros were built on those larger frames, and the Coboy Action crowd hated them, soon convincing Ruger to "downsize" it to its present size. As a result, you don't get to shoot those monster 300 grain and heavier loads out of your Vaquero anyway. So if you want ammo commonality, and you want to shoot the same loads out of the lever gun that your revolver can shoot, you need to stick with "Colt safe" loads anyway. In both. Which, like I said, is just fine anyway. A "standard" .45 Colt load is all we really need for anything a sixgun should ever be asked to do, and it only gets better in a rifle.

So, don't worry about the "strength" of either firearm, don't worry about the twist rate - just shoot standard velocity, standard weight .45 Colt loads in both and live happily ever after. Both firearms will serve you quite well.