Once upon a time I had a dream of the perfect all around deer and medium game rifle. I wanted a Savage 99 with the tang safety (I'm a southpaw) in .284 Winchester. I wanted a mechanically sound rifle with a dinged up stock cheap. My intentions were to stock and checker it with some decent wood. Even 40 years ago they were rare, today no such animal exists. I have never owned a '99 but always liked them. Removable magazines don't bother me a bit, so long as I have a few spares. Its a pity that Savage quit making them. The best of all the lever actions in my book.
My only lever action centerfire is a Marlin Guide Gun in 45/70. It is a SS 18" bbl. rifle without the porting one of the last "JM" guns. When I bought it I went through it, cleaned up bedding, magazine tube mounting, deburring, radiused the cam and generally smoothed things up. I paid particular attention to the loading port and gate. Loading and unloading through the gate was like trying to give a bobcat a bath. One would think the factory would at least break the edges in there. I like the Marlin, easy to carry and handle, points well for me. With 300gr. HP's at 1880fps the recoil isn't bad at all and it drops deer like Thor's Hammer. 385gr. cast at 1800 are beginning to get unpleasant and at 2000fps downright painful. It is a great rifle for poking around the thick woods of Michigan's UP. Perfect for bear over bait too.