If you think lever-action rifles should only have walnut stocks and a blued-metal finish, then the new Marlin Dark series with its polymer buttstock and aluminum AR-esque handguard probably won’t be your thing. That’s a shame, because this recent offering in Marlin’s line of modernized, capable lever-action rifles has a lot going for it in terms of performance, functionality and fun. When it comes to guns, we’re still allowed to have fun, right?
Lever actions have experienced a resurgence in popularity. This is due in part to the introduction of dramatically modernized models such as the 1895 SBL and the original versions of the Dark Series that were produced while Marlin was under Remington’s ownership. Ruger’s purchase of Marlin in 2020, and their subsequent resumption of production of excellent-quality lever actions has also fueled the increase in demand. The Ruger-era Marlin Dark rifles are a reintroduction, sort of. Original Dark rifles had black-painted wood stocks; new Dark rifles have a polymer buttstock and an aluminum fore-end.
The Marlin 1895 Dark is a lever-action, tube-magazine fed, hammer-fired .45-70 rifle with both a half-cock and cross-bolt safety. Marlin receivers are a slab-sided affair with a solid top, a side loading gate and side ejection. It’s the solid top receiver and side ejection that make it much easier to mount optics on Marlins than other lever actions. This is a significant advantage over top-ejecting lever-action rifles. The receiver is drilled and tapped for scope mounts and comes with a factory installed scout-rifle style Picatinny rail. The rail runs from the rear of the receiver to about halfway down the length of the barrel. This allows for mounting about any optic you can think of including traditional riflescopes, scout scopes, red dots and even night vision or thermal optics. An adjustable ghost-ring rear sight is embedded into the rear of the rail, and it works great with the fiber-optic front sight that also has a tritium insert for visibility in the dark. The rifle’s defining lever is what Marlin calls a mid-loop design. It’s smaller than the large loop on the SBL series, but larger than the lever on the 336 Classic. It’s functional, making it quick and easy to get a hand into, it accommodates the use of gloves and it looks great. A 16.17-inch, cold hammer-forged barrel with a radial muzzle brake rounds out the look and desired handling qualities of this rifle.
Two elements that dramatically set the Dark apart from other Marlins are its polymer buttstock and aluminum fore-end that is akin to an AR-15 handguard. The polymer buttstock is well thought out, reduces the overall weight, includes M-LOK slots for mounting accessories like cartridge holders and has a socket for push-button QD sling swivels. It also comes with a removable cheek riser, which is fantastic because after mounting a riflescope high enough to clear the ghost ring rear sight, the necessary cheek weld is much higher than what is needed for the open sights. The fore-end runs almost the full length of the barrel, is made from aluminum, anodized matte black, and includes M-LOK slots along the sides and bottom and holes for a push-button QD sling. The rifle does not come with “Fudd studs,” aka traditional sling swivel studs.
The receiver, barrel and five-round magazine tube are made from alloy steel with a Graphite Black Cerakote finish, while the bolt and lever have a black nitride finish. Being as they are using a black coating for the finish, I would have liked to see Marlin use stainless steel instead of alloy steel; it would have made the rifle all but corrosion-proof. Regardless, the combination of the black finish, black buttstock and matte-black aluminum fore-end and short barrel with a large diameter hole in the end make the Marlin Dark a striking, pugnacious looking rifle. If Bobba Fett were to carry a lever gun, this would be it. Does the handling, cycling and accuracy live up to its looks? Oh yeah.
With its ghost ring rear sight and easy-to-see fiber-optic front blade sight, the Dark is good-to-go right out of the box. The open sights are easy to see and easy to adjust. It was no problem dead-centering steel pig targets out to 150 yards with the 350-grain Hornady LEVERevolution ammunition. For more methodical accuracy testing I mounted a Leupold VX-6HD 1-6x24mm in Warne QD Rings directly onto the factory rail. I shot ammunition from Hornady, Barnes and Winchester. Normally I use a scope with greater magnification for accuracy testing, but this is likely the kind of scope that will be used on a rifle like this, so it seemed like a good idea. Given its tactical look and feel, I also mounted a SureFire weapon light on the fore-end to see how it felt and handled. I also attached an Armageddon Gear rifle sling to use the push-button QD attachment points. Sans accessories, our sample weighed 6 pounds, 15 ounces with a trigger pull weight of 5 pounds, .09 ounces.
Groups at 100 yards ranged from just over .6 inch to 2.9 inches, averaging about 1.45 inches. Given the realistic range of the .45-70 Govt. cartridge, this is fantastic accuracy. I lost about 50 fps from the Dark’s 16.17-inch barrel when compared to the 19-inch barrel on my 1895 SBL. A Silencer Central Banish 46 suppressor on the barrel maintained accuracy and made the rifle much more civilized to shoot.
The Dark handles well, much better than I anticipated. The cheek riser dramatically helps get the proper eye alignment behind the high-mounted scope. If you’re using quick-detach rings and decide to go back to using the iron sights, the cheek riser is easy enough to pop off and then your comb height is all set. The aluminum fore-end is ergonomic and easy to handle. While it’s not uncomfortable, it’s certainly not as pleasant or warm as a wood fore-end. That said, it is slim enough and configured to make it easy to grip to help control and drive the rifle. It’s likely to be a bit unpleasant to grip in cold, wet weather without gloves.
The 1895 Dark is quick handling, quick shooting, accurate, is set up to accessorize ’til your heart’s content and is a lot of fun. Out-of-the-box readiness combined with tactical versatility make this an appealing option for a deep woods rifle or a nighttime predator and hog gun, and then some. Ruger continues to do right by the Marlin name and rifles, to everyone’s benefit.
Marlin 1895 Dark Specifications
- Type: lever-action, centerfire rifle
- Caliber: .45-70 Govt.
- Magazine: tubular; 5-rnd. capacity
- Barrel: 16.17"; alloy steel; cold hammer-forged; 1:20" RH twist; threaded 11/16"-24 TPI muzzle w/radial muzzle brake
- Trigger: single-stage; 5 lbs. pull weight
- Sights: adjustable ghost ring rear, fiber-optic/tritium insert front; scout-length Picatinny rail for optics
- Safety: cross-bolt
- Stock: straight comb w/removable cheek riser; nylon-reinforced polymer; black; 13.5" LOP; anodized aluminum handguard w/M-LOK attachment slots; flush QD sling attachments
- Metal Finish: Graphite Black Cerakote on barrel, receiver and handguard, black nitride on bolt and lever
- Overall Length: 35.5"
- Weight: 7 lbs.
- marlinfirearms.com
- MSRP: $1,429
