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Winchester vs Henry

72K views 70 replies 33 participants last post by  Tractor 
#1 ·
I have too many centerfire leverguns ( yea right ) any who, my next couple of purchases will most likely be a 22LR and a 22WMR lever action rifle. My question is a follows: does anyone have first hand knowledge of the differences in quality and overall dependability between the 9422 series and the Henry series or 22's.
There is a faily big price difference, but a piece of junk is a piece of junk no matter the cost. I have seen & handled a couple Henry Rifles but not shot any. From what I have seen they seem to be too small for the average adult ( not the youth model ) and alot of aluminum or "pot metal" parts.
I don't mean to be a snob, but my arthritis says I work hard for my money.
 
#2 ·
9422 or henry

Not to step on Henry fans But thw winchester to me is a far better rifle reciever is solid steel and feels better in your hands. I have 2 9422 one 22lr and 1 22mag Legacy. the Leagcy is the better one My hands are mid-to large- and the pistol-grip lever fits better and I also like the longer 22 1/2 in barrel. As for the henery the one i've seen and handled are very much like the old ITHICA leve rifle made by ERMA back in the 70's but you can get two henerys for one winchester
 
#3 ·
I recently purchased the Winchester 9422 Magnum and have only hefted and handled a few of the Henry's. The Henry's have a reputation for good accuracy and are nearly a pound lighter than the Winchester if weight is a factor. IMHO the Winchester wins the overall quality battle by a wide margin. I am told the Henry's use a zinc alloy receiver. This may be OK in practice but is a turn off for many prospective buyers. I haven't been able to get out and shoot my Winchester so I can't offer you any accuracy results.
Good luck whichever route you choose.
 
#4 ·
I have a 22 mag Henry and I love it. It shoots darn accurate too. Half inch groups at 50 yards are easy with the ammo it likes which fortunately is several brands. Yea the Winchesters are good rifles I guess but I cannot see paying more for their 22 mag than what their center fires cost. I have talked to guys who have the older Erma and Itica guns have been shooting them since the late 60's early 70's and have had no problems with them. I get a kick out of some guys who badmouth the alloy reciever and then in a other post say how great their Ruger 10/22 is which is made out of a alloy also. :confused: :confused: :confused: I guess it is all about choice but the guys who have the Henry's like them from what I have seen on the web. Yea there are a few that don't but I bet that 90% or more that buy them like them. I think you cannot go wrong with either gun its your choice. I just get tired of hearing the same old story from the guys who have the Winchester and never even shot a Henry but proclaim the Winchester the better gun I beg to differ they both have their likes and dislikes and I think either one will suffice. I do prefer the Henry for the cost and the accuracy and the smoothness of the action. If I had to make my choice again between the 2 I would still pick the Henry. I have let 2 different guys shoot my gun at the range both showed up with Henrys after wards they just are nice guns in my opinion. Jim
 
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#6 ·
Brass plated injection molded alloy...something zinc based. The .44 is Brass (of what alloy I'm not sure...are some very strong brass-bronze alloys).

The design of the Henry is a pretty one good...taking one to pieces isn't a fun job, but is should have to be done at all. Very good advice would be to never take it apart at all...if something breaks, let Henry fix it...if cleaning it, can take the butt stock off and "soak.brush.blow.clean".
 
#7 ·
MikeG said:
Are the Henry rifle a brass frame? Or is that their .44 mag rifle?
They have the brass colored ones that is I think different from the standard ones as far as alloys go and the 44 ones I suppose are stronger yet than the 22 versions. . I have a standard one that is not a brass finish but I can see no faults with the design or function. Jim
 
#8 ·
I've yet to have my Henry apart. However, I HAVE had apart a 10/22, Remignton 597, and 795 series Marlins. ALL of them also have alloy receivers, and make use of many stamped sheet-metal, plastic and cast parts. A .22 is a .22, for the most part, afterall, and the Henry is basically near enough their price points to be in the same class. My point is, why does everyone rag on HRAC for alloy receivers when the rest of today's most popular models get a PASS in that regard? Six of one, 1/2 dozen of the other, IMHO.

Now, is the Winchester WORTH the extra hundy and change to buy? Yes, IMO, it is. It won't be any smoother than the Henry, nor will it have a better trigger, and maybe won't have any edge in accuracy. However, it will have a blued-steel outer receiver that common sense dictates would tend to withstand harder use(though how many of us would EVER test that?). It will also be nicer finished, overall, without any external plastic parts(mag follower), and it is take-down.
 
#11 ·
Henry .22

I bought a Standard Henry and it had a 4 stage trigger pull and still had to yank it to shoot. It wasn't a safe rifle. They sent it back to the factory but I got tired of waiting and decided not to take a change on more troubles, so I got a refund. I can't say how accurate it was because I couldn't keep it on my aiming point.

Even a rifle in the $200 range ought to be better than that unfortunitly most aren't.
 
#12 ·
Join the trigger club :( I bet you can take most any gun off the rack these days and they do not have good triggers? When folks complain about triggers my first thought is did you not try it before you bought it??? I mean most new guns do not have the greatest triggers these days but from what you describe I would have not bought it no matter what the brand and looked at a different gun! My Henry has a good trigger and the more I shoot it the better it gets it just needed some wearing in and it was not all that bad when new. I think you did not give Henry a chance to make right either as any gun factory can ship out a gun that may not satisfy their new owners I have had several ruger pistols I should have sent back but traded them in instead. I now realize I should have sent them back and had them fixed at the factory instead of taking a loss on them. THeir problems were more drastic than just triggers. Henry has a great service dept and I bet that they would have sent your gun back with a trigger that is better than one off the rack to make you happy. Too bad you did not give them a chance. Instead you will tell every one how bad a gun it was when you really do not know as you did not give them a chance to make it right for you. Other wise you should have tried the trigger before you bought it and if you did not like it should have bought or tried a other. Jim
 
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#16 ·
Henry putdown?

Jim,

Everyone is entitled to their opinion on how to handle a bad product. If it was a radar range would you send it in to get it fixed or get something else? It's to bad it's such a hassle to take firearms back.

Anyhow I don't mean to judge all of their rifles but this one shouldn't have made it to the shelf in the first place. I'm just telling others about my experience. They don't make it easy to check triggers anymore either. Some of them won't let you take the trigger lock out. And you say: Go somewhere else.

Like I said before, most $200 rifles aren't too good. My last Marlin bolt action was lousy and there wasn't much you can do about them either.

Now they have trigger kits out, so why not do it right in the first place? Why? Cause if they go bang most people don't care.

If we don't complain how will it get better?
 
#17 · (Edited)
Again, ALL .22s in that price-point seem to have triggers which leave a LOT to be desired. However, the Henrys seem to be an EXCEPTION in that regard. Mine, and several others I've handled over the years, all have a trigger equal to, or better than the Win. or Marlin I had. Couple that with a much smoother lever/pump action OTB.

I'm not about to assert it's a better gun, so don't jump down my throat. I just wish you guys had the intellectual honesty(buzz-word alert!) to admit they have some nice qualities, and are a decent value-for-the-dollar.

I've been able to try the trigger at any store where they know me. They know I won't drop the hammer in a true, dry-fire manner. I interpose my thumb, a finger, or a folded-up business card between the face of hammer and the receiver to absorb the impact. Yes, I know you can't do this on bolt-guns, so they can be more of a crap-shoot. Outside of the Marts, you should carry an empty with you and ask if it's OK to insert it for the purpose of dry-firing.
 
#19 ·
I was out in the woods today practicing off hand with my 9422 LR when a guy with a Henry Golden Boy came by (I was shooting beside a logging road) and we had a chance to compare weapons.

The Henry leaves a very nice first impression aesthetically. The polished brass, octagonal barrel, brass butt plate, etc. sure look pretty. On closer inspection, though, a plastic barrel band and 'thick' wood finish give it a "cheap" feel. This is weird: five feet away, the gun looks very classy; one foot away it looks a bit "cheap."

The 9422 is a new one and not as polished as earlier examples. The receiver is beautifully polished but the barrel, magazine tube, rear sight spring, and lever really should have been smoothed better before bluing. The walnut is nicer than the Henry's, darker, better grained, and the finish is better, though I don't really care for spray lacquer finishes on anything--wish they'd sell me an unfinished stock and let me put my multi-coat linseed/turpentine hand rubbed job on it.

I liked the Henry's heft; it felt a little bit heavier than the 9422, but it seemed to be slightly off balance forward. I didn't care for the buckhorn rear sight but I liked the dovetailed front sight.

The 9422 comes up and aims easier for me and seems better balanced. YMMV. I liked the semi-buckhorn rear sight better but don't like the smaller front bead on a screwed on ramp as much as Henry's dovetailed, taller bead.

The actions on both guns were smooth.

Shooting at a 1-1/2 inch spinner off hand at 25 yards, both of us shot better with the 9422. I suspect that the Henry was not sighted in very well, but this is only a guess. I know my 9422 was sighted in carefully because I had done it myself two weekends ago.

After putting a lot of rounds through both guns today, I'm glad I bought the 9422. The finish is a bit rougher than on earlier examples, but everything is steel and walnut, the balance and come-up-to-aim works better for me, and I shoot better with it.

I'm glad I got this chance. I see now how valuable it would have been to do this before purchasing anything.

Someone else might fit the Henry better. If at all possible, shoot both guns before deciding.
 
#20 ·
I own a henry 22 lr golden boy and a Winchester 9422. They are both good rifles and just because the henry is not steel in the receiver area doesn't mean its not a great gun. I've had the henry apart and it looks very sturdy in the action department. I've yet to hear anyone say that they wore one out. That being the case,tells me its on par with the 9422 as far as function and relibility. And Hi Jim we meet again....lol...
 
#58 ·
I agree ^^^^ if anyone does wear out a Henry and a Winchester and sends them to their respected manufacturer, who do you think will send you a Brand new rifle free of charge, an apology letter and a hat and who do you think will send you a Bill for repairs?

HINT: new rifle starts with a H and ends with a Y.
 
#21 ·
I've yet to hear anyone say that they wore one out. That being the case,tells me its on par with the 9422 as far as function and relibility.
That is something only time will tell, 9422s have been around a lot longer than the current Henry Repeating Arms Co. 22s. Not to be confused with original Henry Repeating Arms Co. of 1865.
 
#22 · (Edited)
DLS that is true only time will tell but I have talked to guys that have had the same gun in the guise of a Erma or a Ithica not to be confused with the single shot Ithica and they have had them and shot them for almost 30 years now with no problems. One thing every one is over looking and that is the Winchester is not a 94 it was first made in 1972 and it has different internal parts than the centerfires do so it is only a couple of years older than the Henry so I guess us Henry fans can say the same about the winchesters only time will tell :) Hi back at ya VMaxx :) Jim
 
#23 ·
I don't believe anyone has forgotten the 9422 is not the Model 94 and I don't believe the other guns mentioned contained the plastic the Henry's do either. So the same cannot be said about the Henry.
 
#24 ·
DLS said:
I don't believe anyone has forgotten the 9422 is not the Model 94 and I don't believe the other guns mentioned contained the plastic the Henry's do either. So the same cannot be said about the Henry.
For all intents and purposes the Henry, Ithica, Erma, and Iver Johnson are the same gun. The new Henrys have plastic bands and front sights something these older guns may not have had but the internal parts are the same and have lasted according to the guys that I have talked too. The barrel and bolt are both steel and they are the parts that take the most abuse. The other parts just hold every thing together. Just as a alloy 10/22 receiver holds the steel parts together in that gun. Jim
 
#25 ·
The Erma and Ithaca and the Iver Johnson may be of similar design but, that in no way equates as to being the same gun. Unless of course, you know the material composition of the alloys and steels they used.
 
#26 ·
DLS said:
The Erma and Ithaca and the Iver Johnson may be of similar design but, that in no way equates as to being the same gun. Unless of course, you know the material composition of the alloys and steels they used.
Ok with that arguement you can say the same about any gun made!!!! A 94 winchester is not the same from 1930 as is today. Same with any gun made say in the 70's compared to today and yes that means the 9422 also. You are going for apples and oranges here. Jim
 
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