Smith Wesson 1854 Stealth Hunter 357 Mag – Superb Lever Gun

Description

The Smith Wesson 1854 Stealth Hunter 357 Mag is the modern hunting version of the Model 1854 chambered in 357 Magnum, with an extended Picatinny rail, an aluminum M-LOK forend, a threaded 16.3 inch barrel and ghost ring sights.

Smith Wesson 1854 Stealth Hunter 357 Mag A Lever Gun Built for Optics

The Stealth Hunter is what happens when someone finally builds a lever gun for people who use modern optics and accessories. An extended Picatinny rail runs along the top of the receiver, which means a scout scope, a red dot or a magnified optic all mount properly rather than being wedged onto a two-slot stub.

The forend is an aluminum M-LOK handguard with 15 slots. On a hunting rifle that is genuinely useful: a light for hogs at night, a bipod for a longer shot, a sling mount where you actually want it. No lever gun before this offered that.

Sights are worth calling out. An XS Sights adjustable ghost ring rear paired with a HIVIZ H3 front gives you a fast, bright sight picture that works in the low light around dawn and dusk when most game moves, and the ghost ring is far quicker than a buckhorn.

Threaded Muzzle and Removable Tube

The barrel is threaded 11/16×24 and comes with a thread protector, so a suppressor or a brake fits without gunsmithing. On a straight-wall cartridge that is a practical option rather than a novelty, because subsonic loads through a can are remarkably quiet.

The magazine tube is removable, which makes unloading safe and simple. Anyone who has cycled eight live rounds through a lever action to empty it in the dark will appreciate why that matters.

A large loop lever gives enough room to cycle the action wearing gloves, and the flat-face trigger promotes consistent finger placement. The black synthetic stock has textured grip panels and will not swell, warp or care about rain the way wood does.

Smith Wesson 1854 Stealth Hunter 357 Mag specifications

• Manufacturer part number: 14194
• Caliber: 357 Magnum (also accepts 38 Special)
• Capacity: 8 rounds, removable magazine tube
• Barrel: 16.3 in., threaded with thread protector
• Optics: extended Picatinny rail
• Handguard: aluminum M-LOK with 15 slots
• Sights: XS Sights adjustable ghost ring rear, HIVIZ H3 front
• Stock: black synthetic with textured grip panels
• Lever: large loop
• Trigger: flat-face
• Weight: 104 oz, roughly 6.5 lbs
• UPC: 022188899870

Why Buyers Choose the Smith Wesson 1854 Stealth Hunter 357 Mag

A lever action with a full-length optics rail and an M-LOK forend is still unusual, and it turns a traditional design into something you can genuinely set up for hunting rather than compromise around.

Ghost ring rear and fiber optic front sights are a serious upgrade over the buckhorn sights most lever guns still ship with, and they work well in the light conditions where game is actually taken.

A threaded muzzle and a removable magazine tube are two practical features that are hard to add after the fact and cost nothing here.

Synthetic furniture handles wet weather and hard carry without the care a walnut stock demands, which suits a rifle bought to be used rather than admired.

Who should buy the Smith Wesson 1854 Stealth Hunter 357 Mag

The Smith Wesson 1854 Stealth Hunter 357 Mag suits hunters and ranchers who want a light, quiet, low-recoiling carbine, 357 revolver owners who would like a rifle sharing the ammunition, and anyone who wants to run an optic or a light on a lever gun. The chamber also takes 38 Special, which makes cheap practice possible.

Learn more from Smith and Wesson, or browse the rest of our firearms selection.

Every firearm we list ships to your chosen FFL and is transferred there after a background check.

Feeding the Smith Wesson 1854 Stealth Hunter 357 Mag

A 357 Magnum out of a 16.3 inch barrel is a different cartridge than a 357 Magnum out of a revolver. The extra barrel gives the powder somewhere to finish burning, and a 158 grain load that leaves a four inch revolver around 1,250 feet per second can pick up several hundred more from a carbine. That is the whole argument for a pistol caliber lever gun, and it is why the Smith Wesson 1854 Stealth Hunter 357 Mag hits harder than the chambering suggests on paper.

• For range work, CCI Blazer Brass 357 Magnum 158 grain FMJ is the cheap, clean way to learn the action and confirm your zero.
• For hunting, Buffalo Bore Heavy 357 Magnum 125 grain XPB uses a solid copper Barnes bullet that holds together at carbine velocity, which cup and core bullets do not always do.
• The rifle will also run 38 Special, which is the quietest and cheapest way to introduce a new shooter to it. Expect to work the lever deliberately, since the shorter case is at the edge of what the action likes.
• Tube magazines and pointed bullets do not mix. Stick to flat or round nose profiles, or hollow points, in any tube fed rifle including this one.
• The Smith Wesson 1854 Stealth Hunter 357 Mag has a threaded muzzle, so it will take a brake or a thread protector. We do not sell NFA items such as suppressors; that route runs through a dealer who handles those transfers and requires ATF approval before you take possession.

Living with the Smith Wesson 1854 Stealth Hunter 357 Mag

Lever guns reward a firm, committed stroke. Short stroking is the one malfunction this action is prone to, and it is a shooter problem rather than a rifle problem. Work the lever all the way forward and all the way back, every time, and the Smith Wesson 1854 Stealth Hunter 357 Mag will run.

The removable magazine tube is the feature owners end up appreciating most. Unloading a traditional tube magazine means cycling every round through the action, which is exactly the situation where people have accidents. Pulling the tube lets you empty the rifle without chambering anything.

• Wipe the bolt and the lifter after a range session. Pistol calibers burn dirty and a lever action has more open surfaces to collect it than a bolt gun does.
• The M-LOK forend takes a light or a bipod directly, with no adapter rail needed underneath.
• The Picatinny top rail means a scout scope, a low power variable or a red dot all mount without a gunsmith.
• Ghost ring irons stay usable with a red dot fitted, so the Smith Wesson 1854 Stealth Hunter 357 Mag does not become unusable when a battery dies.