Hi,
We shoot SB Silhouette and now want to also shoot Lever Action Small bore. I'm looking for the best small bore lever action rifle to buy. Suggestions?
Which model. Where to get one? Sights/Scope?

Well, scopes are not legal, so that is easy.

As for the best .22 lever gun, that is almost as easy and noncontroversial. It's an older Marlin 39a. Hands down.

Find them on Gunbroker or wherever used rifles are sold. They are not particularly hard to find, but they are also not cheap.

I’ve seen a lot of mighty fine scores shot with the Henry Frontier with a 24” barrel and target sights. I do shoot a 39A but I would not rule out the Henry.

I don't claim it's the best but the Henry Frontier Long Barrel immediately helped move me into the next higher classification. The remarkable differences from my previous Henry carbine are 30" sight radius with the Marble Arms Tang sight, heavy 24" octagon barrel, balance and 14" length of pull. It has a lifetime warranty.

Henry responded to requests by silhouette shooters for a 24" barrel gun with their new Frontier Long Barrel H001TLB. It can be found as low as $350 online. They make a very good product and their customer service is tops.

As far as "best" silhouette gun goes, the 9422 Legacy with 22.5" barrel and pistol grip is best, imo. A new one in the box will set you back 3x a new Henry, but it won't buy you higher scores.

The most common sight setup around here is a William's FP-TK rear sight and Lyman 17A front sight.

Another vote for Henry.
Heard this this comment at the Regional Match, "Man, Henry is taking over from Marlin."

Sold my Marlin, now shoot Henry - confidence much higher.

Michael

A little trigger work (very simple or should be inexpensive for a gunsmith) you can get a reasonable sub-2# trigger, everyone I have seen shoots with SK standard, CCI SV or Aguilla SV very accurately. 17A and Williams FPTK (or if your like my wife nice buckhorns) and you are the only limit. It's about a pound lighter then a 39A but feeds SO much smoother.... I shoot a Uberti but that is because I like the weight.

Less then $600 you have a rifle completely capable of master scores.

Another vote for the Henry Frontier with the 24" barrel. I bought mine because of the 24 inch barrel, thus a longer sight radius. It is way more accurate than I am. When I do miss a target, I can not blame the rifle. I know it is me and not the rifle that missed. I liked it enough that I bought a Henry Big Boy Classic in .357 magnum for pistol cartridge and the big bore matches.

As long as its not a new Marlin 39a its going to work.

Older Marlin 39a (before they had a safe on them). Williams rear site and a Lyman front is a hard combination to beat.

Another Dang 9 wrote: ↑Mon Oct 01, 2018 10:01 pm As long as its not a new Marlin 39a its going to work.

Is there a serial number or year to distinguish an older model Marlin 39a?

Ken Green wrote: ↑Mon Oct 01, 2018 8:07 pm Another vote for the Henry Frontier with the 24" barrel. I bought mine because of the 24 inch barrel, thus a longer sight radius. It is way more accurate than I am. When I do miss a target, I can not blame the rifle. I know it is me and not the rifle that missed. I liked it enough that I bought a Henry Big Boy Classic in .357 magnum for pistol cartridge and the big bore matches.

Thanks Ken, great explanation about the importance of sight radius.

Whats the Length of pull on the Henry? Also need a rifle for my 12 year old son. He just won the AZ State Metal Silhouette SB, B-Class Hunter and Standard and Aggregate with a CZ455 Cub. His LOP is about 12".

shootmore wrote: ↑Tue Oct 02, 2018 5:22 am
Thanks Ken, great explanation about the importance of sight radius.

Whats the Length of pull on the Henry? Also need a rifle for my son. He just won the AZ State Metal Silhouette SB, B-Class Hunter and Standard and Aggregate with a CZ455 Cub. His LOP is about 12".

The youth model henry stock is 13". I believe it will interchange with the frontier long barrel stock.

shootmore wrote: ↑Tue Oct 02, 2018 5:22 am
Thanks Ken, great explanation about the importance of sight radius.

Whats the Length of pull on the Henry? Also need a rifle for my son. He just won the AZ State Metal Silhouette SB, B-Class Hunter and Standard and Aggregate with a CZ455 Cub. His LOP is about 12".

As I mentioned earlier, the LOP is 14" for the Henry Frontier Long Barrel. You'll get a 30" sight radius with a Tang sight.

FWIW, my 39a has a 24" barrel, a 28.5" sight radius, and weighs 6lbs 14 oz. Length of pull is only 13" so recoil can be pretty bruising....

It is of 1951 vintage and I slimmed the forearm significantly.

All the late 40's early 50's Marlins that I know of are extremely accurate.