[Jeff Higgins]

I'm pretty excited. I love the .45-70, and I have not had an '86 for way, way too long. The last one I had was a standard rifle with a full length magazine tube and a crescent but plate. The darn thing weighed over ten pounds and just never shot all that well. Plenty good for hunting at iron sight, .45-70 ranges, but I got tired of lugging it around and always fussing around to find a "better" load for it. Finally sold it and bought a standard Marlin 1895 half magazine, pistol grip, 22" round barreled full sized rifle. The Guide Gun had not yet come out, nor had the Cowboy, so this was all Marlin had. Great rifle. I still have it and still occasionally hunt with it.

This 1886 Extra Light is almost exactly the same size. It feels a bit lighter than the Marlin, but not enough to make any difference. The cool thing about the '86 is that it is a real, full length action meant for the .45-70. It's actually long enough for the .45-90 as well. The Marlin is not - the new "1895" is really a revamped 336, meant for the .30-30, .35 Remington, and stuff like that. As such, it's too short for original length .45-70 ammo.

Funny, though, its popularity has spawned a whole new "standard" for the .45-70, with everyone now making ammo short enough to cycle through it. Bullet molds are now made with the cannelure place to accommodate the Marlin, jacketed bullets have had their cannelures placed to support the Marlin, and stuff like that.

With the '86, I can shoot full length ammo normally reserved for my Sharps and Ballard single shots. That opens it up for 500 grain bullets, something the Marlin is too short to cycle. Might be kind of "interesting" in such a relatively light rifle...