Red dot/reflex sight on Marlin 1894

[brewster29]

I am thinking of trying a red dot or reflex sight on my Marlin 44 mag. Getting too old for irons, peeps better but not great.
My main criteria are low mounting and rugged. Yes, I know they are ugly!

Anyone using one? Need some feedback please.

[jungleboy]

I used to have a bushnell trs 25 on a Marlin 4570 guide gun. It worked well and I shot it a lot without issues. My only complaint was that even on the lowest setting the red dot light could obscure your target in low light conditions such as last 1/2 hr of legal shooting time.

The TRS25 was about the least intrusive for budget red dots and pretty tough .

[Dean2]

I am NOT a Vortex scope fan but their Red Dots are a good deal as they are the only reasonably priced electronic site with a lifetime warranty. I have a SPARC on a 22/20 gauge. Works great. They go on sale at Cabelas for 199 bucks pretty regularly.

[jpohlic]

My eyes can't do open sights any more and these red dot sights keep me shooting. I had a Marlin 30-30 with a Vortex Sparc on it and hunted with it. I also have a Bushnell First Strike on a .50 cal muzzleloader which is great up to 100 yards, but the dot is slightly larger than the Sparc.

[fordtruckin]

There were 3 of us who just bought the new ruger made Marlin 1895sbl last month. So far 2 of the guys have put trijicon RMRs on them. I’m waiting to put one on mine as I had some unexpected bills pop up. Very small footprint and a quality optic. Have a buddy who is the project manager for the rmr at trijicon and he (well biased) said the 3.25moa dot would be fantastic for a lever gun. Believe it’s an RM06.

[Sundog57]

Pretty hard to beat a Bushnell TRS 25 or 26.
Very robust and not too expensive
Definitely not Swaro quality optics, but it's going on a lever gun for bush shooting
I have an RMR style Aimpoint on one of my bunny guns.
I love it in good weather, however it catches snow when you're pushing through the thick stuff. Not what you want when you jump the buck of a lifetime pushing the bush.

[fps plus]

I as well as tossing the idea of a red dot system. I came across an original Savage 1899 250-3000 all original. My eyes are sneaking up on 62 seasons and the rear sight is a challenge . I would either have to make a base that fits into the rear sight ( on the barrel) or make a base that fits where the rang sight would fit.

[Groundhogger]

Until recently, I'd never owned, or shot with a half-decent red dot sight, and thought the ones I'd tried seemed junky/cheap. Reticle always seemed fuzzy, but I later learned that could be because of an astigmatism in my right eye.

Unlike rifle scopes, I can shoot with a red dot wearing my regular eyeglasses, so all good!

When I bought this one recently, I chose it because I thought the reticle provided a natural aiming point, the BDC-style dots below are of no interest. They're made by Holosun, have incredible battery life, a "shake awake" switch (powers on when you move the gun, will power itself off after the gun has stopped moving for a short while) I did also look through one of these right beside a Bushnell TRS-25, and the superior quality of the Holosun is very obvious. Sight comes with a tall/AR-height mount attached, but also includes a very LOW mount, and the tool to change it. I'm using the low on my rifle. (not a lever gun)

https://ctcsupplies.ca/holosun-prima...-acss-reticle/

**btw, I'm in no way suggesting this sight is better than a Trijicon, but they have a reputation of being "Aimpoint" quality at a fraction of the price. I wouldn't personally know.

[jeprli]

I've used sig sauer romeo 3, small package, good quality and at reasonable price. 2 moa dot and 1.25x magnification, you can shoot with both eyes open. Auto on off.

I've used burris fastfire3 as well, much prefer romeo3.

While i dont have an 1894, they serve me well with 336 in 3030 and 35 rem.

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by fps plus

I as well as tossing the idea of a red dot system. I came across an original Savage 1899 250-3000 all original. My eyes are sneaking up on 62 seasons and the rear sight is a challenge . I would either have to make a base that fits into the rear sight ( on the barrel) or make a base that fits where the rang sight would fit.

If you are planning to mount a reflex site on that the best option would be a Doctor reflex on a magnetic mount. Leaves the gun pristine, holds tight as heck and works great. [IMG]opplanet-noblex-docter-optics-sight-ii-plus-red-dot-sight-illuminated-7-moa-dot-black-55711-main.jpg[/IMG]