Do the Marlin Lever Actions still have problems?

[splithoof]

Tom, I'm gonna need some glass! if I'm gonna shoot like elk hunter, there. I can't bring the front sight into as clear a focus as I want to, and the rear semi buckhorn was a dark blob.

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In spite of that, this thing put 15 of 15 rounds onto a 15" gong @ 100 yards (sitting, both elbows on the bench). Nice way to break me in to .45-70.

Loads were commercial Remington, 405 gr sjsp, safe for Trapdoor rifles. From a 24" barrel, they're claimed to clock 1330 with a 100-yard zero. Figure they're travelling 1250 from the muzzle of my 18.5" Marlin. Easy on the shoulder, but good grief, that momentum.

I'm hooked.

Apples, that's a nice looking Boar Buster there, and would make a fine rig for some of those bears up in Alaska I'm sure. I hear ya about the eyes getting older. Mine are going in the same direction.
I would entertain a single-shot .45-70 with a 16" barrel; there is something about that caliber that is just kool!

[bergmen]

I have four "pre-Remington" Marlin lever actions. My oldest, a 1936, I inherited from my Dad. It is naturally slicked up due to decades of deer hunting. No issues here except the firing pin is fragile and can break if accidently dry fired (known issue).

My 336CS I bought new in 1994 was perfect right out of the box. It still is.

I bought a new 39A in 1977 that was pretty rough. I actually had to go through 3 rifles at the dealer before selecting one I could deal with. After several work-overs, it is finally smooth as glass and dead-on accurate.

In 2009 I bought a JM 1894 in .45 Colt. It would jam on the lever up-stroke and I had to bevel the front edge on the carrier so it wouldn't hang up on the next cartridge in line. There are some other minor internal issues I haven't worked out yet but it doesn't keep me from enjoying the rifle.

So, JM Marlins are not automatically better. The 39A was largely hand fitted so quality would vary from one rifle to another. Easily corrected (at least in my case) but I would check quality before purchase (even a nice used one). The 336 series is a modern design that relies on precision machining for fit and finish and it shows.

I just wish (and have always wished) that the 336 design would be scaled down to 39A proportions and finally retire the 39A for good. It would be the finest .22 lever action available if they did that.

Dan

[elk hunter]

[QUOTE=200Apples;23624448]Holy Toledo, Ohio. Is that a .45-70 Cowboy w/ an octagonal barrel and full-length mag tube?

Yes it is the short barrel version.

[elk hunter]

^^^ Bingo. I got a new Big Boy 44 a few years ago. Half the time, it wouldn't feed or eject & the sights were so far off, they couldn't be adjusted or drifted. I sent it back & when it came back, it was worse than before.
Henry sent me a replacement rifle but I didn't want to risk more frustration; when it arrived at my dealer, I let him keep it & got something else.

Everyone makes problem things from time to time, it's just part of it. How the company deals with it is what separates them.

[elk hunter]

Something nice, a Mod. 94 in 38-55. Up grade wood and skinner sights.

[elk hunter]

Marlin CB 45-70 cast 405 gr. 15 gr. Unique at 50 yd. Top right bullet is a experiment, yep it did make a difference. Actually there are 2 experiments/tests in this group, a hot barrel group and the shot out to the right high 4 ring is seated to deep. Pretty clear this Marlin does not like to change the seating depth much.

[pennstater]

Something nice, a Mod. 94 in 38-55. Up grade wood and skinner sights.

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Whao, that is a NICE looking rifle! Great cartridge to boot. That is slick elk hunter.

MLC

[elk hunter]

That's one of the new Maurko 94's, I wish I had bought a Big Boer 94 in .375 but I had some of those dumb moments right about that time.

[200Apples]

Dang. Nice wood.

Another tidy grouping, too.


I have in hand a bag (250 pcs) of 405 gr LFP from Brazos Bullets, coated with Missouri Bullets' Hi-Tek powdercoat.

I'm gonna assemble me some of these 405 gr LFPs with that 15 grs Unique (I have seen this recipe elsewhere, too), and another, according to IMR/Hodgden consisting of 45.5 grs (starting load, good for 1600 fps but with little pressure, 17,300 CUP) IMR 3031. They list that as a "Trapdoor" load! with 'lever' rifle, and then 'modern' rifle loads even faster.

This is just too much fun and I'm not even shooting today!

[elk hunter]

Let us know how your loads work out, I would caution you on the heavier 45-70 loads if you have never shot any in a light rifle. They can be quiet eye opening to say the least. The 15 gr load of unique in my rifle is just down right fun to shoot and at roughly 1,400 fps it should hunt. Good luck.

[Win231]

Everyone makes problem things from time to time, it's just part of it. How the company deals with it is what separates them.

Exactly. And a manufacturer should know that a customer is already disappointed when a new gun doesn't work, so they should make damn sure it's repaired before shipping it back to the customer....which Henry didn't. Especially when the manual says, "Before your gun was shipped, it was inspected & test fired." (self flattering B.S.) If it was test fired, they would have known it didn't function.

[golfish]

Exactly. And a manufacturer should know that a customer is already disappointed when a new gun doesn't work, so they should make damn sure it's repaired before shipping it back to the customer....which Henry didn't.

This isn't the first time that I've read about this.

I do have a solution that worked for me. I wasn't that impressed with Henry's customer service so I sent the President of the company an email.

He sent me new furniture for my H001 that was damaged by me along with a hat and a coffee mug.

When Henry comes out with a side loading 44, I'll be first in line

[Hamsterbear]

Eventually, I'm still thinking of buying some Skinner Sights.
.

Highly recommend Skinner sights

[golfish]

Highly recommend Skinner sights

Your so right, I wish my old eyes could adjust to them. I'm saving them in hopes that my son and grandson will be able to put them to us
.
I really like the "Black and Gold" sights that they make for the Marlin.

[W.R.Buchanan]

I always love to hear how all the new Marlins are junk and not even suitable as Fence Posts.

Guys there are 4 different levels of Marlin Rifles. There's the $3-500 guns, and they don't get a whole lot of love at the factory. They are made to that price point and are generally suitable as "Truck Guns" which is exactly what they were designed for. They are made for people who don't have a lot of money but need a gun that goes bang.

Next comes the $7-800 guns and they are much better and generally need little TLC to work really well. Still not all that in the finish department, but much nicer than the cheap guns.

Next is the $1300 guns and they are nice, and that is because they get much more hand work put into them at the factory and get much nicer wood. I have seen a bunch of these go thru my LGS and nobody has whined about them, they are nice!

Then there is the Custom Shop Guns. They start at $3000 and are hand built in the Dakota Arms/Remington Custom Shop in Sturgis SD.

The whining and simple problems that were mentioned in the first part of this thread can be easily fixed in one of two ways.

1. Look at the gun before you buy it. If it sucks don't buy it. Nobody is holding a gun to your head even if you special ordered it. Make the dealer send it back and get another. You don't get to whine and bash the company if you chose to buy a turd. Go look in the mirror and repeat "I am an Idiot" 100 times every morning.

2. go to www.Leverguns.com and read the simple instructions on how to slick these guns up. If you can operate a screwdriver, a file and sandpaper you can do everything needed to make even a turd in to a polished performer.

The difference between all the different levels of these guns is the amount of "hand work" that goes into the assembly of the gun and the quality of the finish IE: metal and wood.

The truck guns get 2x4's for wood and it looks like Black Oxide or cerakote paint for the bluing. And they will eventually smooth out after much cycling if you are too dense to do some simple internal work.

The better guns get nicer wood and get finished to a higher level.

I have not seen one $1300 Marlin that wasn't perfect in everyway and absolutely beautiful. These guns are on par with the Winchester Rifles made by Miroku which also cost @$1300.

Thinking you are going to get quality and perfection at bargain basement prices is kind of naive. But that doesn't mean you can't make the gun nice by putting a little elbow grease into it. Refinishing the wood is not that hard and very rewarding when done. I've done it to many guns and it is fun. See Pics below .

I can do an "Action Job" on a 1894 1895 or 336 in less than 2 hours and after doing a couple you can too.

It ain't that hard! The guns in the pics were both $500 guns. 1895 CB .45-70 on top and 1894 CB .44 Special/ Magnum bottom. Both guns were so plain jane it was pathetic look what a simple wood refinish will do. Both will cycle rounds as fast as you can run the lever, and are accurate too boot.

Randy