maintenance in the field

[CharlesHarris]

I have several of the Marlin lever-actions, both made before the Remington takeover a few years ago. They are of machined steel parts, no castings. Wood to metal fit is not in the class of old world craftsmanship, but is good by machine fitted standards. They are rugged, reliable and accurate.

I have no personal experience with the current production Rossi's, but older ones I tried operated roughly and seemed not as well made as my Marlins. My friend Giorgio in Italy is an active Cowboy Action competitor and has six Marlins. He also sold off his Rossi and several Uberti's, but kept one original Winchester 1892 in .44-40, if that is an indication. He fires thousands of rounds yearly, so reliability and durabiliity are important to him.

My .357 and .45 revolvers I use mostly are both Rugers, are also rugged, reliable and accurate, if not the most finely finished.

All are "agricultural-utilitarian" International Harvester, John Deere, Jeep or Ford pickup truck quality rather than BMW, Rolls Royce or Range Rover, but they work well.