Marlin Lever Rifles

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I will concede that maybe more folks still-hunt from the ground at a slow pace than I know of. And furthermore, if I were to hunt in this manner, I would opt for my 30-30 with the peep sight. But, to ascertain that all lever guns should be without glass is pure falsehood. That is where I draw my line in the dirt, as they say.
 
I swapped out the Buckhorns on my 336 for a Williams Peep Sight (not a FP, but the economy version) and liked it a lot. Put a 3-9x40 scope on because I wanted to work up an accurate load and couldn't see well enough w/ the peeps.

Scope has found a new home on my new Savage 14 in 7mm-08, and I now have a FP (with the fire eye front sight) on the Marlin.

It is soooooo nice to have the scope off the Marlin... didn't realize what a heavy clunker it had become untill I took the scope off it.

And the FP is a great sight.

If you have an older Marlin with the tapped holes on the side of the receiver, make sure you get the side mount version as it keep s the whole package a milimeter or two lower than the top mount.
 
Fair enough...I draw that same line at the XLR series of lever actions.
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It is good then. We have come to an agreement. The 336XLR comes in both 30-30 & 35...both fine scope rounds.
 
It is good then. We have come to an agreement. The 336XLR comes in both 30-30 & 35...both fine scope rounds.
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Yes...on the XLR rifles scopes are right in line with the intended purpose...which is extended range.

I should have made that distinction in my previous post...but I'm not used to the idea of medium range, long barreled lever actions just yet.

On the original models though...they are intended for and well suited to close range work, thats why I say scopes don't belong there.

As I said a few posts back...it all depends on how the rifle is to be used...that is the real question the OP needs to ask himself I think.
 
I don't have any doubts at all about the short barrels being just as accurate...I'm sure they are, possibly even more so.

But when you cut them you lose the only advantage of the extra barrel length...velocity.

The idea behind the XLR's is a tipped bullet with its higher BC fired from a longer barrel with its higher velocity will (and does) equal flatter trajectory...you cut the improvement down considerably when you fire the tipped bullets from a 20 inch barrel.

Its a combo...that works quite well (with the exception of the 45-70, but thats another story)


What I'm saying is...with the XLR and its longer barrel, its not about accuracy or sight acquisition...its about higher velocity.
 
I have found that the 336 models with 20" barrels shoot
every bit as accurate as the ones with longer barrels.
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Abel, does that apply to Hornady Leverevoluton, also?

I'm reading mixed opinions about that, especially at distances near and beyond 200.
 
But when you cut them you lose the only advantage of the extra barrel length...velocity.
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I wouldn't be interested in any so called advantage of anything but a modern scope & the carbine length 20" barrel with standard cheap ammo. The 308MX & 338MX have to use high dollar Hornady ammo because no one else makes the stuff. Regular 30-30 & 35 has been killing deer out to 200 yards for 100+ years anyway.
 
Abel, does that apply to Hornady Leverevoluton, also?
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I'm only talking about 30-30 & 35 here. I would only use these rounds out to 200 yards with any type of ammo. If I am hunting past that, I need my 308....as in 308 Winchester not the, in my opinion, soon to be obsolete 308MX/338MX.
 
Ridgerunner665

Maybe on a 338 Marlin Express...but not on a 45-70, 30-30, or 35 Remington.

It takes the speed out of the sight acquisition...for those close encounters in the brush,
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IF folks would leave the 3x9x40mm scopes for the rem700 and opt for lower magnification optics 2x or down on the lowest setting for leverguns they'd NEVER notice a difference in speed of sight acquisition. In fact since I shoot scopes with both eyes open I feel as though I'm faster with the single focal point of a scope vs the two with peep sights or worse yet three on bbl mounted irons. For this hillbilly looking through a low magnification scope is just looking at the world with a set of crosshairs.

There's a reason militaries are trending to optics, they're faster and more precise than the irons used previously

To the OP: You mention hunting whitetail and hogs and inexpensive ammo in the same sentence. For this 30-30 is good BUT 357/38 in an 1894 is even better. You give up very little killing ability for probably less than HALF the cost per shot for practice or plinking ammo depending on loadings.

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With a 100 yard zero, the 170 grain Winchester Silvertip is 8.6" low at 200 yards and still carrying 1045 foot-pounds. A 180 grain 30-06 Silvertip with a 100 yard zero is minus 15.3" at 300 yards but with 1666 foot-pounds of energy still left. A deer will reliably die if its hit with at least 1000 ft-lbs. through its vitals. So, 200 yards is really the max for the little 30-30. As per always, every rifle has a favorite load that it shoots better than others. Find out what that ammo is and keep your hunting within your rifle's range.
 
Get both. Love the two equally.

Model 336W .30-30 (the scope came with the rifle)
aMarlinModel336W30-30.jpg
Model 1895G Guide Gun .45-70
aMarlinModel1895GGuideGun45-70SN010.gif

Jackie
 
I think that owning two 336 carbines, one scoped, one without, is the best way to resolve this seeming roadblock. That way, you can grab the right tool for the job. And it gives you a real reason to own two woods rifles.
 
My lever actions all have Lyman peep sights installed because I want a woods rifle to be light and fast handling.

If I feel that I need a scope, then I have several bolt action rifles to choose from.

I guess if you just had a 30-30 as your only center-fire rifle, an argument could be made for trying to make it fill all roles. If, like many of us here, you have several different rifles for specialized purposes, then that argument looses it's luster.
 
I'd recommend that your first Marlin be a 336 30-30. I shot my first deer with such in 1962. These are a few of the Marlins that I have. I also carry a Marlin 30-30 in my truck. A Marlin 39A also makes a great .22lr rifle.
Marlins.jpg
 
My lever actions all have Lyman peep sights installed because I want a woods rifle to be light and fast handling.

If I feel that I need a scope, then I have several bolt action rifles to choose from.

I guess if you just had a 30-30 as your only center-fire rifle, an argument could be made for trying to make it fill all roles. If, like many of us here, you have several different rifles for specialized purposes, then that argument looses it's luster.
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Having a scoped & non-scoped lever gun gives you two woods gun options. That's even more specialized than most hunters. Some folks, for some reason, just have it in their mind that lever guns use irons, and that's it. Believe it or not, some hunters just prefer a 94 or 336 to a bolt gun because it carries better, with or without a scope. Its still a light & fast handling woods rifle, scope or no. Your argument is from a traditionalist/purist point of view, and I respect that....but there's more than one way to skin a deer.
 
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Believe it or not, some hunters just prefer a 94 or 336 to a bolt gun because it carries better, with or without a scope. Its still a light & fast handling woods rifle, scope or no.
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When I'm not handgunnin, I'm totin my 35 Marlin...
 
Your argument is from a traditionalist/purist point of view, and I respect that....but there's more than one way to skin a deer.
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You are absolutely correct. My Grandfather used a .22 short to kill deer during the depression. He said it made lees noise, and he snuck up close enough to make head shots.

Use any combination to hunt with, whatever works for you is fine with me. I was sharing my views because I am a traditionalist/purist. :D
 
Personally I prefer the .444 as my primary carry for hunting, I have one with an optical enhancer (scope for modern speak), one with aperature sights, and one with factory semi-buckhorn sight. I'll only carry the scoped one when no one is looking, can't take the ribbing, as scopes don't really belong on a lever gun. That being said, if this is your first lever, get a .30-30 as there is an unwritten law around here anyway, everyone has to have at least one .30-30 in their compliment of hunting arsenal.

And learn to shoot with open sights, you will be surprised how accurate you can be. Most people can hit a pie plate from 50 to 200 yards, good 'nuff for hunting.
 
I have three "traditional", lever-action rifles (a Marlin Model 39, a Winchester Model 94 and a Winchester Model 1886) that wear Williams receiver sights and one lever-action rifle (a Savage Model 99) with a scope on it. Imo, nothing detracts more from the innate, delightful handling qualities of a petite, lever-action carbine (ala, the 94 or the equivalent Marlin 336) in the woods of a Pennsylvania timber stand or a Michigan cedar swamp than does a top-heavy scope. If most of my hunting is relegated to sitting on a stand (and much of it is), a scope poses no significant drawbacks and does afford an indisputable optic advantage, especially in dimly-lit environs when most game animals are up and about. But if I'm hunting the way I like best-prowling the woods and brush in a still-hunting mode-nothing beats the good-handling properties and quick-target acquisition of a peep-sighted, lever-action carbine.
 
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