Are Lever Guns The New AR-15?
Gunmakers riding the crest of an exciting trend
As politicians intensify demands to ban or restrict civilian access to AR-15-style rifles, the public is pivoting to the venerable lever-action rifle.
Driving the shift, manufacturers are modernizing a platform recently considered a relic with tactical trim and accouterments to accommodate the same accessories shooters use with their modern sporting rifles.
Instead of the log cabin look of American walnut, blued steel and buckhorn sights, modern versions have a “zombie apocalypse” vibe highlighted by synthetic black stocks and factory-equipped Picatinny rails to hang lights, forearm grips, slings and bipods. Factory-threaded barrels accept suppressors and flash hiders.
Traditional lever guns are renowned for their target acquisition speed through iron sights. It’s why they are still so effective when hunting deer and pigs in forests. Tactical versions equipped with electronic red dot sights are even faster. Levers also bear a lot more firepower than an AR-15 and with a lot more chamberings.
Adaptability Finds Favor
It seems preposterous a repeating platform nearly two centuries old competes with a modern semiautomatic one that has dominated the shooting industry for decades — but it’s not as implausible as it seems. The lever-action rifle has a storied history as a battle rifle. Its high-capacity tubular magazine gives it formidable firepower.
Some models, like Browning’s BLR and Henry’s Long Ranger, have tubular magazines to accommodate bottleneck cartridges with Spitzer tips. This level of adaptability finds favor with modern shooters who fear the modern sporting rifle will be legislated or litigated out of the marketplace.
Jeb Burnett, owner of ARMTAC Suppressors of Natural Steps, Ark., believes this fear is misplaced. The AR-15 platform is here to stay. Too many people of all political persuasions own and like them, Burnett said, and any serious effort to ban AR-15s would face too many legal and legislative hurdles.
However, Burnett acknowledges the lever gun is increasingly popular among a younger demographic.
“It was the AR-15 before the AR-15,” he stated. “It was fairly ubiquitous in law enforcement. It was the truck gun of choice for a lot of people. It was the carbine everybody went to before the modern sporting rifle.”
The lever gun’s adaptability and its potential for customization drives its popularity, Burnett added.
“Gun people are weird,” he quipped. “We love new, cool [expletive]. We like innovation. We like to buy things that are unique and neat. I think this is driving it more than any gun control aspect of it. Maybe in California or Massachusetts or New York, yeah, but everywhere else, no.”
With nearly 24.5 million modern sporting rifles in private circulation, the AR-15 market is probably glutted. Modernized lever guns have all the attributes rifle enthusiasts like, so it’s pathfinding its own frontier.
“With the lever-action platform, you’re looking at the biggest renaissance and innovation in the firearm industry,” Burnett proposed. “You are seeing a lot more innovation on the lever-action platform with rails, stocks and threaded barrels.”
Burnett installed suppressors on three lever-action rifles this September alone. Two were chambered for .45-70 Government and one was .38-55 Winchester.
“A lot of what you’re seeing, especially in states that don’t allow it [AR-15s], is a high demand for lever guns with threaded barrels,” he explained. “You have a lock breech gun that doesn’t have the ancillary noise of a semiautomatic action cycling the gun. It’s quieter. Its advantage over a bolt-action platform is the follow-up shot is faster. You have the advantage of a repeater but with the fixed breech or lock breech capability of a bolt gun that really shines when used with suppressors.”
Straight-Wall Appeal
Adding to its appeal is the fact some states that restricted metallic centerfire cartridges for deer hunting now allow straight-wall centerfire cartridges. Starting in 2024, for example, Arkansas allows straight-wall centerfire cartridges during the dates of its traditional muzzleloader season in mid-October. This sparked an avalanche of sales in Arkansas for lever guns chambered in .357 Rem. Magnum, .44 Rem. Magnum and .45 Colt — and especially .350 Legend and .360 Buckhammer.
“The Picatinny rail, forends with rail sections and adjustable stocks — all that stuff is a carryover from AR-style platform rifles,” Burnett quantified. “A significant amount of redesign was done for any of that stuff to work on those platforms. Taking the modern aspect of the AR and putting it on a platform dating back to 1860s is cool and people dig it.”
Henry’s Pivot
Andy Wickstrom, president of Henry Repeating Arms, said the trend to tactical-style lever guns compelled Anthony Imperato, the company’s founder, to expand his vision for the company’s future. Henry’s tactical X Series runs point in this strategy.
“It wasn’t that long ago Henry was mostly known for its brass guns,” he recalled. “Our X Series has been our most popular type classification for a couple of years.”
The challenge for Henry Repeating Arms, according to Wickstrom, is producing a modern lever gun that maintains a traditional look and feel. Because of its prominence in retro pop culture, the lever gun does not incite the same passion as a modern sporting rifle.
Wickstrom contends there is value in maintaining the lever gun’s nostalgic identity while keeping it relevant with contemporary shooters.
“I own ARs and occasionally my kids take them to range, but it’s not something I’ll carry around and go hunting with,” he noted. “People want something fun they can be proud of and isn’t divisive in nature.”
At the same time, Wickstrom conveyed that Henry also recognizes the need to provide an option for gun buyers who want a tactical-style lever gun to serve diverse applications.
“When I see a light on a lever, I think of home defense,” Wickstrom remarked. “There are different accessories you can use in the hunting field, too. Our marketing strategy presents our guns not from an offensive standpoint but to protect our homesteader from bedpost to fencepost.”
Wickstrom is astonished by how effective modern electronic sights are on a lever gun for hunting.
“I have a .45-70 I use most of the time hunting deer here in Wisconsin at 100 yards or less,” he said. “I’ve always used a Leupold DeltaPoint. When my kids started hunting, they both wanted 45-70s, too. We sell the mounts for many different varieties of red dots and HALO sights. Our guns are very conducive to that. They’re all the same pattern, so they are compatible along different models.”
Wickstrom echoes Jeb Burnett when he says lever guns are ideal for suppressors. The devices work well with low-pressure handgun cartridges for which many lever guns are chambered.
“Right now, the X Gun is our most popular centerfire,” Wickstrom confirmed. “The H012MX, our .357 Magnum X gun, has synthetic furniture and a threaded muzzle so you can put a suppressor on it. If you’re running .38 subsonic, running the lever is louder than the shot. It’s an amazing thing.”
Wickstrom acknowledges synthetic stocks have replaced walnut as the standard. Consequently, Henry uses high-quality materials, which need no upgrade.
“My kids believe wood is a downgrade from synthetic,” he shared. “That isn’t tactical, it’s just normal. I think there will always be a place for nice American walnut. However, for anybody who has had a wood stock crack, it doesn’t happen with a synthetic stock.”
He continued, “We don’t make ketchup-bottle stocks and forearms. We use glass-filled material that is very, very striking to the eye. It’s not light. It’s heavier than wood, it’s more durable and, of course, it holds accessories.”
Marlin’s “Dark” Resurgence
The tactical market inspired a resurgence in all other lever-action brands, including Marlin, which is now a Ruger brand.
“The Dark Series opened up a new market I don’t know we were aware existed,” admitted Eric Lundgren, Marlin’s longtime product manager. “Ruger’s ‘Dark’ gun is exactly the gun new consumers of lever guns are looking for.”
Marlin’s “Dark” stocks are black polymer. The metal is matte black, including an anodized aluminum handguard under the barrel with slots for mounting accessories. The polymer buttstock also has accessory slots. A factory muzzle brake threaded onto a stubby barrel can be quickly replaced with a suppressor. An optic front sight and a tritium ring allow for low light target acquisition, but you can also mount an optic on a factory rail.
Currently, Marlin’s Dark Series consists of a Model 1895 and Model 336 (1894 variants are coming soon).
Vast Potential
Smith & Wesson’s “new” 1854 model is chambered in .44 Rem. Mag. and .45 Colt. The standard version has a black synthetic stock and bead-finished stainless steel barrel. It also has slots for attaching a bipod, tripod or shooting sticks. Atop the 1854’s receiver is a Picatinny rail for mounting a telescopic sight or an electronic sight. The crown is threaded.
These adaptations demonstrate how far ahead of its time the lever gun was from its beginning. The tactical lever gun is new and fun and its potential is vast. Since they are available in so many different chamberings, they carry a high potential for repeat customers.