Henry’s New Gun Is the Most Unique Lever-Action on the Market

A free-floated barrel promotes accuracy in a platform not identified for producing tack drivers. The adjustable set off provides extra flexibility than nearly all different lever actions, and the threaded barrel permits for suppressors and different units. Even the iron sights are revolutionary. Henry developed their very own trapezoidal rear sight, which when mated with the entrance blade provides extra precision than most iron sight techniques.

Is the Lever Motion Supreme excellent? No. I’ve just a few gripes in regards to the design, and the $1,300 MSRP will put it out of attain for a lot of hunters. However Henry is pushing the boundaries of the lever-action platform, and for that the Supreme deserves a severe look.

Caliber: .223 Rem/5.56 NATO

Barrel Sort: Free-Floated Spherical Blued Metal

Receiver End: Laborious Anodized Black

Rear Sight: Absolutely Adj. Trapezoidal

Scopeability: Drilled & Tapped

Scope Mount Sort: Weaver 63B

Inventory Materials: Real American Walnut

Buttplate/Pad: Rubber Recoil Pad

Security: Tang Security Change

Elaborations/Extras: Sling Swivel Studs, Threaded Barrel (1/2×28), Match-Grade Adjustable Set off, Sight and Set off Adjustment Device Included

Different Chamberings: 300 Blackout (16.5-inch barrel)

Till you pop open the hood, the Lever Motion Supreme doesn’t look a lot completely different than every other lever gun–apart from one factor. A well-recognized wanting journal extends from the underside of the rifle, one which additionally feeds the most well-liked lengthy gun in America, the AR-15.

As somebody who’s had various ranges of disposable earnings over time (let’s say), I’m an enormous fan of weapons that use magazines I have already got. Fairly than make prospects purchase costly, proprietary magazines for the Lever Motion Supreme, Henry constructed a gun round cheap, frequent magazines most individuals already personal. Springfield did one thing related by permitting their Mannequin 2020 Rimfire to just accept Ruger 10/22 mags, and I hope different gun corporations proceed this pattern.

Virtually talking, this enables customers to decide on a magazine measurement that matches their wants. The gun comes with a ten-round journal, which is nice for plinking on the vary or a profitable evening of coyote looking. If you wish to reload even much less usually, you possibly can run a 20- or 30-round magazine to deal with a herd of feral hogs or make the Supreme your new residence protection firearm.

After all, because the outdated saying goes, “reside by the removable magazine, die by the removable magazine” (I’m paraphrasing). AR-15 magazines are low cost and straightforward to search out, however should you depart it at residence on a day on the vary or, heaven forbid, a looking journey, you’ll be caught finagling single cartridges into the chamber. There additionally isn’t a flush-fitting choice. Since an AR-15 journal effectively extends far under the Supreme’s, even a five-round journal will protrude under the receiver.

The magazine launch is positioned simply ahead of the set off guard, and the paddle is ambidextrous. Working this paddle was one of many solely unfavorable experiences I had in the course of the course of my testing. It takes a good quantity of pressure to depress, and the situation is awkward, particularly with the lever down (i.e., with the bolt open).

Nonetheless, I do respect that the Henry engineers prevented including an unpleasant button to the aspect of the firearm. The placement of the magazine launch won’t be essentially the most handy, but it surely permits the gun to take care of the appear and feel of a standard lever-action. I additionally preferred that the mechanism ejects the magazine with pressure, whether or not you’re utilizing a polymer or steel magazine.

The one different management on the rifle in addition to the magazine launch is a rear security that retains the set off from being pulled however permits the motion to cycle.

The journal isn’t the one factor that may remind you of an AR-15. The rifle is well disassembled by punching out the 2 retaining pins within the receiver, which lets customers view (and clear) the gun’s interior workings.

Amongst these interior workings is a bolt that is a carbon copy of the bolt utilized in an AR, minus the gasoline rings. Like that platform, the bolt rotates to lock and unlock, and the plunger ejector and M-16 extractor do an awesome job grabbing spent brass and tossing it to the aspect.

Henry might have copied the AR bolt design, however in any other case, they constructed this rifle from the underside up. They didn’t base the motion mechanism on any of their earlier rifles, which might usually give me pause. New rifles usually undergo some rising pains as customers trigger failures and engineers work out the kinks. However Henry has greater than a bit of expertise designing lever weapons, and on this case I feel they nailed it.

The linkage system is easy. Insanely easy. You won’t discover (I admit, I didn’t) till you evaluate it to different lever actions. However if you do, it’s apparent. The bolt provider strikes forwards and backwards like butter, and I didn’t run into any feeding or extraction malfunctions. Quick pictures are simpler with a easy motion, and in that class I’d put the Supreme up towards any centerfire lever gun available on the market.

The motion is exclusive, and so are the irons. In a world of purple dots and high-powered scopes, I don’t know of many hunters who have been clamoring for a brand new type of iron sight. However when Henry says they redesigned every little thing about this rifle from the bottom up, they imply every little thing.

The iron sights are adjustable for windage and elevation, which is good however not groundbreaking. However the rear sight is noteworthy as a result of it makes use of a form you’ve by no means seen on a lever gun: a trapezoid.

A trapezoid, for many who skipped or failed geometry (slowly raises hand), is a geometrical form that has at the very least one pair of parallel sides. The rear sight makes this form whereas the entrance sight resembles a triangle. For causes past my energy of clarification, these shapes match collectively completely. When the sights are aligned, the highest of the triangle is parallel with the highest of the rear sight whereas the horizontal line on the entrance sight is aligned with the underside of the trapezoid.

Whether or not you want this method is a matter of private desire. The one different broadly accessible trapezoidal sight comes courtesy of Styr handguns, and the critiques on these look like blended. Personally, I prefer it. One thing about the way in which the slim entrance sight suits neatly throughout the rear sight is sensible to my mind, and the tip of the triangle provides a extra exact level of intention than a squared put up.

It’s additionally price noting, whether or not you like or hate or by no means use the irons, they’re tremendous sturdy. The entrance blade is skinny, however not so skinny that it will probably’t survive a drop on the concrete. The rear sight can be compact and well-made, and I had no bother adjusting it with the equipped wrench.

The set off is one other distinctive characteristic of the Henry Lever Motion Supreme. Regardless of Henry’s declare that it’s “match grade,” it gained’t blow your socks off by bolt-action requirements. It undoubtedly has some takeup, and the break is a bit of mushy. However you possibly can inform Henry is actually attempting to provide customers set off, which in my expertise, is fairly unusual for lever weapons.

The set off on the mannequin I obtained got here from the manufacturing unit set at three kilos, however it’s user-adjustable between three and 6 kilos. I’m certain there have to be different lever weapons with adjustable triggers, but it surely’s unusual sufficient that I haven’t heard of it. And very similar to the motion, it is among the finest triggers I’ve ever pulled on a lever-action rifle. It’s gentle at three kilos, and the break is constant if a bit of mushy.

Loading the rifle, working the motion, and pulling the set off are all nice experiences, and people are the issues that matter. However should you look carefully, you’ll discover that the Supreme doesn’t appear to be many different lever-action rifles you’ve seen earlier than. It has the wooden and metal we all know and love, however the define is cumbersome within the receiver, the forend, and the inventory. On the identical time, it makes use of a thinner profile barrel on the .223 Rem. mannequin that makes the rifle look, in some way, a bit of too skinny on that finish.

That is nitpicking, I do know, however I’m on the file as appreciating the aesthetics of the standard lever-action design. There’s one thing engaging about how the tubular journal of many lever weapons balances the profile of the barrel and the handguard, and the receiver is proportional to the remainder of the gun. The Supreme departs from this conventional aesthetic, and these design decisions do have sensible implications–some good, some dangerous.

A slim-profile barrel, as an illustration, helps give the gun an total weight of six kilos, ten ounces with a non-included picatinny optics rail. Including a Sig Sauer WHISKEY6 bumps the burden as much as eight kilos, 5 ounces, which continues to be cheap for any looking rifle.

It’s at all times good to avoid wasting a bit of weight, however a slim barrel additionally heats up shortly, particularly with a comparatively high-pressure cartridge just like the .223 Rem. I allowed the barrel to chill after every three-shot group, so I don’t have any exact information on how a lot a scorching barrel impacts accuracy. However there’s no getting round the truth that warmth could make skinny barrels do unusual issues. It is probably not a difficulty on the rifle you obtain, but it surely’s one thing to remember.

Lever-action rifles aren’t identified for being correct. A few of that’s because of the kinds of cartridges they generally fireplace, however a few of that can be because of the design of the rifle itself.

Gunmakers have identified for a very long time that it’s finest to free-float a barrel–which means, the barrel doesn’t contact the inventory or the rest alongside its size. Most conventional lever motion designs don’t prioritize this accuracy-inducing characteristic. Many have two barrel bands that affix the barrel to the forend at one level and to the tubular journal at one other. This makes for inconsistent barrel harmonics because the barrel contacts the inventory and the journal, which itself vibrates otherwise because it will get heavier and lighter relying on how full it’s.

The Lever Motion Supreme doesn’t want a tubular journal, but it surely additionally manages to free-float the barrel. Fairly than a barrel band, the Supreme affixes the forend to an aluminum extension that protrudes from the receiver. It’s held in place with a screw that may be faraway from the entrance of the forend, so that you don’t have to fret about it coming unfastened. This design ensures that nothing contacts the barrel, which is an enormous cause the rifle achieves glorious accuracy.

The 2-piece inventory design nonetheless introduces some inconsistencies, and the gun isn’t dead-nuts correct with each type of bullet/ammunition. However if you discover one thing it likes, it actually likes it. With this rifle, that was the 77-grain open tip match masses from Sig Sauer. Different reviewers have additionally reported that this gun shoots these heavier bullets exceptionally effectively, which is sweet to know should you get your personal Lever Motion Supreme.

These are the 55-grain varmint bullets.

I shot every sort of ammunition–55-grain Varmint and Predator, 60-grain Stable Copper, and 77-grain Open Tip Match–from 100 yards utilizing an MDT bipod and rear luggage. I shot 5, three-shot teams with every, and you may see the averages and small teams within the desk above.

It didn’t shoot any of the bullets badly, however I used to be actually impressed with these 77-grain drugs. Velocities have been clearly slower than you’d want from a .223 Rem., however nonetheless a lot quick sufficient to take a coyote or different varmint. And the group sizes have been glorious. I used to be testing one other tailored varmint rifle on this identical day on the vary, and it wasn’t in a position to shoot these match bullets in addition to the Henry. For a lever gun, that’s fairly unbelievable.

After all, you don’t purchase a lever-action rifle to shoot paper from a bench. Lever weapons are designed for fast pictures within the subject, and that’s the place the Supreme shines as effectively. With a MeatEater Banish suppressor on the top of the rifle, I had a grand ol’ time taking pictures metal at 200 and 300 yards from varied standing and seated positions. The graceful motion made fast work of fast pictures, and the sunshine set off helped me make hits even because the reticle danced across the targets.

It might not appear to be it from the skin, however the Henry Lever Motion Supreme is essentially the most distinctive lever gun available on the market–and I imply that in a great way. It’s in contrast to every other rifle, and people design components lend themselves to fast, correct taking pictures. It’s about as a lot enjoyable as you possibly can have on the vary, and I can’t wait to take it out into the sector.