The Henry Rifle

[TC]

Thanks for posting the pics XL... a great range report.

I agree with Timmy. That group is outstanding indeed.

However, my eyes got fixed to the Navy Colt



TC

[Vikram]

XL,

That Hawken and the .36 revolver were cool. I did not expect such a group from the Henry rifle. It shoots bloody good.Enjoyed looking at the photos.

Best-
Vikram

[xl_target]

Tim,
I will take a look at that new Weaver scope. I'm looking for something really small, preferably a fixed 4X.

Thanks TC and Vikram,
TC,
Here's your video:

[youtube][/youtube]

As you can see, I had a problem with short stroking the lever a couple of times. With a little practice, I'm sure an even faster rate of fire could be achieved.
To what purpose, I'm really not sure but it is fun. The shorts are so quiet out of that 18.25" barrel that no hearing protection is needed.

[timmy]

XL, That looks like fun, and it sounds very slick. I feel so sorry for your 10/22!

Here is the scope I got:

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/366052 ... icle-matte

I got it from Amazon, and I think it was about $121 or something. It seems like there's been a price hike lately.

It is a nice piece, I think, but you will be able to find a more compact scope, I'm sure. This one is only a little shorter than my Leupold 4x, and the eyepiece and bell are about the same size. In other words, it's a lot like a full sized rifle scope. As I researched this Weaver (I'm sorry for being a luddite, but I'm still not so keen on variables), there were a lot of positive reviews of it, and it is adjusted for 50 yard parallax. Personally, I'm quite keen on Leupolds and if you want, I understand you can send one into them and they will adjust the parallax for a .22 free of charge, but the price of a Leupold is a bit steep these days.

Anyway, when you decide what you are going to get, please let us know, as the ongoing project here is interesting to me and to most others here, I'm sure!

[TC]

XL,
Thank you so much for posting the video. And a special thanks to Mr Guo Liang.
I must say this will be a learning aid to those who are not accustomed to lever actions... especially the .22s that take shorts and long in the tube.
I have had my gala time with a Merlin lever action till a few years ago. But it had a pistol grip, something I hated for not conforming to the "Wild West" look

Your rifle shoots great .... seems the Ruger will feel a little morose for the next few months

Have a great time and shoot a few beer cans and pumpkins for me



TC

[ckkalyan]

Good show xl_target! Great to see you having fun with the quick cycling lever action - my favourite piece of action! Thanks

Brings back fond memories of the extremely natural and grip friendly waist on the stock of my Winchester Replicas!

Hope your fingers didn't get squished against the trigger while cycling?

From your (loading part of the) video - I think the loading tubes or quick loaders would be a real time saver between mags; though reviews give me to understand that the system could use a few improvements...

...nice grouping on the target! The walnut stock looks really rich - very nice indeed; the sound of the shots as you say, are really, very quiet, air rifle like pops.

Plinking a row of cans on a fence would sure be something to see as TC puts it

[TC]

Good show xl_target! Great to see you having fun with the quick cycling lever action - my favourite piece of action! Thanks

+ 1 Dada

TC

[Vikram]

Cool video,XL. What a fun little rifle!

[timmy]

Good show xl_target! Great to see you having fun with the quick cycling lever action - my favourite piece of action! Thanks

Brings back fond memories of the extremely natural and grip friendly waist on the stock of my Winchester Replicas!

Hope your fingers didn't get squished against the trigger while cycling?

From your (loading part of the) video - I think the loading tubes or quick loaders would be a real time saver between mags; though reviews give me to understand that the system could use a few improvements...

...nice grouping on the target! The walnut stock looks really rich - very nice indeed; the sound of the shots as you say, are really, very quiet, air rifle like pops.

Plinking a row of cans on a fence would sure be something to see as TC puts it

I wonder why 22 tube magazines don't work like the original 1860 Henry, where there is a little tab that sticks out of the bottom, with a port in the tube. Then the whole thing would be self-contained and one wouldn't have to feel like one was using a ramrod on a muzzleloader every time the magazine needed charging.

[TC]

Good show xl_target! Great to see you having fun with the quick cycling lever action - my favourite piece of action! Thanks

Brings back fond memories of the extremely natural and grip friendly waist on the stock of my Winchester Replicas!

Hope your fingers didn't get squished against the trigger while cycling?

From your (loading part of the) video - I think the loading tubes or quick loaders would be a real time saver between mags; though reviews give me to understand that the system could use a few improvements...

...nice grouping on the target! The walnut stock looks really rich - very nice indeed; the sound of the shots as you say, are really, very quiet, air rifle like pops.

Plinking a row of cans on a fence would sure be something to see as TC puts it

I wonder why 22 tube magazines don't work like the original 1860 Henry, where there is a little tab that sticks out of the bottom, with a port in the tube. Then the whole thing would be self-contained and one wouldn't have to feel like one was using a ramrod on a muzzleloader every time the magazine needed charging.

I agree with you Timmy. The original 1860 Henry with the spring and tab system is far less cumbersome than the stick in tube affair. But I guess in a .22 rifle the makers wanted a system that would do away with the exposed magazine tube that lets in dust and dirt and may lead to fouling - factors that cannot be neglected in a rifle that takes shorts, longs and LRs. Moreover, I feel it would cost more to reproduce the 1860 tab and tube design for a .22 where the rounds are so tiny and require precision feeding.

TC

[timmy]

All true, TC. It would be nice if they would offer a premium option like this. Reloading can become so tiresome at times!

[TC]

All true, TC. It would be nice if they would offer a premium option like this. Reloading can become so tiresome at times!

Completely agree Timmy. Maybe I would never be able to get one into India but would still love to see a lever action in .22 in the 1860 design or, even better, a side loading gate just like the centre fires After all, the tab and spring system does have one little bothering factor - the user has to keep looking at the tab as it approaches the forehand, pushing one cartridge after another towards the chamber with every cycle of the lever. The user has to shift his fore grip and let the tab pass. I guess that's the main reason why the Winchester, with a proper wooden foregrip, left the Henry behind in popularity. Wouldn't you agree ?

TC

[xl_target]

All true, TC. It would be nice if they would offer a premium option like this. Reloading can become so tiresome at times!

Completely agree Timmy. Maybe I would never be able to get one into India but would still love to see a lever action in .22 in the 1860 design or, even better, a side loading gate just like the centre fires After all, the tab and spring system does have one little bothering factor - the user has to keep looking at the tab as it approaches the forehand, pushing one cartridge after another towards the chamber with every cycle of the lever. The user has to shift his fore grip and let the tab pass. I guess that's the main reason why the Winchester, with a proper wooden foregrip, left the Henry behind in popularity. Wouldn't you agree ?

TC

TC, almost all rimfire lever, pump and some auto's that have tube magazines, use the same design.
I think that you are correct in that the open bottomed tube would let dirt into the magazine tube. However, there is also the issue of manufacturing as the .22LR round is so small. The Henry's barrel and mag tube is made as one piece. You would have to work with much tighter tolerances compared to a larger cartridge. There is also the added complexity and expense of manufacturing the rotating barrel cover and the front of the mag tube.

Take a look at the loading mechanism in the video below. It is unnecessarily complex. Hickock45 does a good job showing the action and the loading mechanism.
The system that Henry used on my .22 has been used by many manufacturers over the years and while it works, it is also much much cheaper to manufacture. Cost is a big factor,especially in a .22 LR rifle.
He also points out a possible flaw in Jeff's (Gunblast) loading method. We have to keep in mind that we are dealing with rimfires here.

[youtube][/youtube]

[TC]

Very true XL,
These are the exact points I had in mind when I wrote the post before the last one that you quoted, especially the aspect of cost of manufacturing and reliably feeding the tiny .22s. I handled a Henry once - it was a 44-40 and belonged to a Royal family but I could not fire it because there was no ammo to spare. However I had the good fortune of examining the action thoroughly. You will possibly be surprised to know that there are quite a few Winchester lever actions in Kolkata even now - most of them more than 100 years old and still in working order. But there is no source of ammo to enjoy them

Did you know that Kolkata based R B Rodda and Co (now closed) used to regularly import Winchester lever actions in 32-30 and 44-40 cal from the US during the days of the Raj ? The British gentry here loved the rifles.

Hickock45 is one great guy and I never miss any of his videos. Thanks for posting.



TC

PS: It seems taking a trip to the US is slowly becoming a necessity for the soul and the itchy fingers

[xl_target]

Regarding the loading of the Henry rifle, I was discussing this with CK and he found a valuable reference in one Louis L' Amours books. While this is about the Spencer rifle, I'm sure something like this could have been used to quickly load the magazine tube of a Henry rifle:

Hi,
Here is the text that I was referring to when we spoke last.
It is from a novel The Shadow Riders by Louis Lamour:

When the horses were rested they mounted up and followed a muddy lane back to the main trail. Mac looked both ways and took off his coat and tied it behind the saddle. With his coat off Dal saw the tube slung from Mac’s right shoulder and buckled to his belt so it wouldn’t move around when he rode.
“What’s that?” Dal wondered aloud.
“A Blakeslee Quick-Loader for my Spencer rifle. The Spencer carries seven shots, eight if you have one in the chamber. This Quick-Loader has tubes in it of seven cartridges each. They come in different sizes — seven, ten, and thirteen. I hear they made some that carried six tubes, too, but I never saw one. This one of mine has thirteen tubes.”
"I’ll be damned! When your rifle’s empty you just shove in another tube?”
“That’s right. We were trained to load ‘em so we could maintain a fire of fourteen to fifteen shots a minute.”

Blakeslee Quick Loader from HERE

He also found this link on another forum that has photo and a discussion on the Blakeslee Quick Loader:
http://www.cascity.com/forumhall/index. ... 788.0.html

Here is how the Blakeslee Quick loader was used:
http://www.cascity.com/forumhall/index. ... 378.0.html

Today's counterpart of the Blakeslee quick loader is the Spee-D-Loader. This is available for .22 rimfires and will handle .22 shorts, Longs and Long Rifle cartridges.

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Spee-D-Loader/740381.uts

There is also the Blitz Quick Stik Speed Loader:

http://www.ammoland.com/2013/06/blitz-o ... z31EGcpM00



13 tube Blakeslee Box


Ten tube Blakeslee Box


Re-enactors with their Spencer rifles and their Blakeslee Boxes.

Above three images from HERE