Marlin Hunting

DRS

Old Mossy Horns
I went Marlin(lever) hunting yesterday between appointments. Looking a .308 Marlin Express, if someone knows where one is. I didn't find what I was looking but did find a few oddities you don't see every day.

American Pawn & Jewelry in Rocky Mount, NC had a Remington Pump 14 or 141 in .30 Remington. They also had a Ruger in .44 Remington Mag built on a Mini-14/30 frame, never seen one. I have seen the ones built more like the 10/22.

Silver Bullet in Wilson had a Marlin 1894 Cowboy .44-40.

It was an interesting couple hours, almost glad I didn't find something I really wanted. LOL
 
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MJ74

Old Mossy Horns
I'll keep my eyes open.

The 308 Marlin Express looked like a killer lever gun but for some reason just didn't really take off.
 

DRS

Old Mossy Horns
I'll keep my eyes open.

The 308 Marlin Express looked like a killer lever gun but for some reason just didn't really take off.

Most of them are really accurate. The problem was with the Remington by out of Marlin. Before Marlin was bought the tooling of the receivers was blotched by Marlin employees. The receivers on some for the rifles are not drilled square for the barrels giving them the problem known as "barrel droop". This was due to a broken bit being replaced and the machine not being indexed after installing a new bit. This all gave Remington a bad rap because it all happened about the same time as the buy out. This is the case for a small amount of the .308 Marlin Express rifles, a higher percentage of the .338 Marlin Express rifles are affected. The marketing of the rifles were stopped due to this. Remington claimed they are going to put the rifles back into production and did run a limited amount recently. They are on the schedule. Remlins as some of us call them(all Marlins made since the buy out) seem to be inconsistent in quality some real good some not so, but no barrel droop. That is any with the serial starting with MR.

I have 2 of the .338 Marlin Express rifles. One is the MXLR, stainless steel and 24" barrel. The other the blued model with the 22" barrel, the MX. Both rifles shoot very well. I average 1 1/4" groups @ 100 yards. I have shot less than 0.5" in groups at the distance. The rifles out shot me that's for sure. I average 2 to 4" groups at 250. The ballistics meet Hornady's claims on velocity and trajectory with the 24" barrel and not far behind with the 22". These rifles easily compete with the run of the mill rifles in standard non-magnum cartridges. All out of a tradition lever.

There is demand for these rifles and would likely do well if Remington/Marlin would get it right before putting them back on the market.
 
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DRS

Old Mossy Horns
NC and SC, I just have never seen one of the Deerstalkers. Actually never heard of them.

I would have to own a Marlin 1894 in .44 Mag, before I bought one of the Rugers though.:D

Well for the right price, I might not turn down the 10/22 style .44 Mag. Always thought they were neat, just like the Marlin .45 ACP(semi-auto).
 
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FishHunt

Old Mossy Horns
Unless you just really have your heart set on a .308 Marlin Express the Browning BLR in .308Win is a lot better than the Marlin so is the Savage 99 in .308Win.

If you really have to have one and can't find a local gun check Gunbroker, Guns America and Armslist.

<>< Fish
 

TravisLH

Old Mossy Horns
Ive got a Savage 99 and Win 88 in 308, with Fusion 165gn the 99 gets .76 moa at 100. One of my favorite guns


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

DRS

Old Mossy Horns
Actually, I like my Marlins better. I like the balance an feel better. Just my personal preference.

Due to the the possible quality issues I would prefer to put my hands on one before I make the purchase. I have been watching one from time to time on GB and just can't seem to bring myself to do the deal.

Never thought I would find a 336 ER or a .338 MX local but I did, after I made long distances purchases. Yep, I bought them too! LOL
 

shadycove

Twelve Pointer
DRS, since you seem to like mid-bore guns 32-37 caliber, keep your eyes peeled for a Winchester Model 88 in 358 Winchester caliber and or a Savage 99 in 358 & 375 Winchester calibers.
The Winchester 88 is supposed to be the most accurate lever gun out there according to some magazine articles written about lever guns [my BLR in 358Win would be hard to beat].
 

DRS

Old Mossy Horns
Shadycove, you want me to find some rare ones for sure. I do like mid-bores. I primarily hunted with a Savage 210F slug gun for near 20 years, due to land owner wishes. I did have a few places to hunt with my Rem.700 in Win. 270, which is a dang fine shooting rifle to be a stock ADL. I have shot 5" groups at 500 yards with it. I have killed a bunch of deer with it also. Over the years using that slug gun I leaned how to hunt areas, even open areas to where my shots would be within my range. This is were I learned heavier and slower bullets kill just fine. Now I do like the Speer 130's out of the .30-30 at 2550 fps and would love to try some in the .308MX. I would really like to see what a Serria 125 gr. HP would do to a yote launched out of a .308 MX @ around 3000 fps.

I have seen a few Win. Model 88's I think all were in Win. 308 though.

I like most any firearm and want them all. Money has a way of making me decide which ones though. LOL

Sometimes, I think I just like out shooting the guys, with my the traditional levers or at least try. What I like to do is see who can hit the target free hand at 200? When we go that route it is amazing what some of those open sights levers can do. I have scopes on some rifles , but the rifle seems to move more.:D I do practice free hand shots at full size targets out to and passed 200 yards. Not that I'll shoot that far at game, I just like to know what I'm capable of.

One of the rifles I really like to hunt with in my Marlin Cowboy in .38-55. It wears a Williams receiver sight(peep) and launches a 285gr cast bullet at 1800 fps. It's a fun rifle all the way around.

I just like stuff out of the ordinary.
 
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BuckMark

Spike
DRS, I went on a black Bear hunt in Maine back in the late 90's. One of the gentlemen in camp was sporting a .38-55 Marlin. It was the first time I'd heard of it. Pretty cool round. He too was shooting a 285gr bullet if I recall, made a nice clean kill on a real nice bear with it.
 

DRS

Old Mossy Horns
^Ya, I was shooting a 260 grain hard cast. I got more penetration out of this bullet @ 1850 fps than any other rifle shot into the bullet trap box. It's basically a wood box 2' front to back filled with shredded tires. It has a 1/8" steel plate on the back. Everything up to a 300 WSM has been shot at it. The 260 grain hard cast is the only one to put dents in the steel plate. I now load the 285 grain bullet that only has a BHN of 13, the other was around 22. I haven't shot that into the bullet trap or on game yet. I'm hoping it will give me a little better expansion. I intend to find out.
 
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BAR25-06

Six Pointer
Just as info, the newer (now discontinued) Ruger .44 mag carbine was the "Deerfield" model 99/44. You can tell them at a glance by the black plastic handguard and rotary magazine.
 
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