One Revolver

[CharlesHarris]

[Midnitemo]

model 10 four inch 38spl....would be my one revolver...anybody in my family could use it with the minimum of training , sturdy/understressed and reliable...cheap and easy to reload /cast your own lead , uses hardly any powder , make em on a hand press....this would be my one revolver if we were allowed one here in the uk.

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1 lb of propellant could make upto a thousand rounds of .38spl,a thousand pistol primers take up no space at all and 100 quality cases ,set of dies a hand press and a 158grn lrn mould and you could be in business a very long time...and to make me even happier a 20 inch trailsend in .38/.357 as an accompanying peice....i'd be a very happy bunny indeed.

[CharlesHarris]

Having a rifle and revolver which use the same ammunition makes sense. If I understand your UK firearms law correctly, you are allowed to possess more ammunition for a rifle than is allowed for a revolver. Having both firearms in the same caliber then legally permits somewhat more flexibility.

I find the Marlin 1894C lever action useful for small game and varmints. The rifle’s better accuracy, lower noise, longer range, greater magazine capacity and rapidity of fire are advantages. When used with .38 Special ammunition the .357 lever action has very low recoil and a mild report very little louder than firing a .22LR with high velocity ammunition. Standard velocity .38 Special lead ammunition fired in the carbine is about 150 fps faster than the same ammunition when fired a 4-inch revolver.

Accuracy attainable firing the rifle with iron sights at 50 metres approximates what you can expect firing a fixed sight revolver at 15-20 metres. Using .357 ammunition the Marlin is adequate for average American whitetail deer of 50-70 kg within 100 metres. When fitted with peep sights the lever rifle is more accurate than your average AK, but has a less threatening appearance, which, at least in the US, it is less likely to "scare the natives" than an "Evil Black Rifle" which costs twice as much.

[Mortblanc]

You may find the .38 no louder than a .22lr in your rifle but I find it considerably louder in mine!

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My chronograph also tells that the 150 grain lead bullets are nearly 400fps faster out of a 20" barrel than out of the 4"revolver.

[CharlesHarris]

My decibel meter shows that .38 Special 148-gr. wadcutter from the 24" Marlin Cowboy at 895 fps has a peak pressure decibel reading of 89dB measured at 1 metre from the muzzle. The same as Eley Standard at 1065 fps fired from my RUger 10/.22 rifle.

[Timelord]

Good bit of data!

[Mortblanc]

Sorry, I do not have a decibel meter, but I do know a rifle from a carbine.

You are shooting a low velocity .38 target wad-cutter (the least powerful 38 available) that only clocks 725fps from a barrel 6" longer than the 10/22.

Talk about stacking the deck!

Did you run out into the yard and make that test in the 25 minutes between my post and your reply?

[Timelord]

Which is the carbine?? If a standard Ruger 10/22 rifle has a barrel length of 20 inches and the Marlin has a barrel length of 24 inches, I fail to see the point about one being a carbine or rifle or is it the other way round? The point is not clear.
The 38special is a larger calibre round being fired from a longer barrelled gun than the .22 rimfire. Now would this make it louder or not? I suspect possibly louder due to the larger calibre, even though the fps quoted might be less than the Ruger.
A similar scenario is raised with the small .410 shotgun. while the gun itself and the calibre are considerably smaller than a 12 gauge shotgun, the internal barrel pressure generated is higher than that of a 12gauge due to the smaller bore. This does not make it louder than a 12 gauge. In fact it is definitely less loud than a 12 gauge - short or long barrel it does not matter. Usually the shorter the barrel the louder the rapport with any given like for like calibre and ammunition, so that is another factor to be taken into account.

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I suppose that if going supersonic with the Ruger, then it will make quite a difference and obviously be louder. I take it the lower fps readings of the Marlin are subsonic? TL

[CharlesHarris]

The increase in noise of the 18-1/2" Marlin vs. the 24" is about 10dB, depending upon the ammunition. Standard velocity 158-grain lead which gets about 800 fps in a revolver does about 950 fps with 95dB in the 18" barrel and approaches 1000 fps from the 24" barrel with no significant increase in noise. Generally a longer barrel is quieter because its increased expansion ratio reduces muzzle exit pressure.

Subsonic. 22LR ammunition in a rifle with properly designed moderator will be less than 80dB.1 You are lucky in UK that moderators are not as heavily regulated qas in the US. We can have them, but the procedure is cumbersome, similar to registering a machinegun.

[Midnitemo]

Never put a sound meter on my Sako finfire with eley subs and an old maxim type moderator but the loudest noise in the firing sequence was the firing pin hitting the rim...it was eerily quiet...oh and the thwack when the bullet hit the rabbit....and the loudest report i have ever heard was a .25acp was stood a little to close jeez the muzzle flash and the bang were epic....must have been a home load gone awol.