AusVarmint

Hi everyone, just recently got my 2 x .223rem and have been looking at lever actions as a backup/scrub gun. I've had a look at a Marlin 336 in 30-30, but was thinking more like a .357 or .44. Don't think I'll need to go up to a 45-70. Was wondering if anyone can shed some light on any other brands etc that would fit the bill? Obviously budget plays a big part but any info at all is useful.

Cheers,
Aaron

kmsajb wrote:Hi everyone, just recently got my 2 x .223rem and have been looking at lever actions as a backup/scrub gun. I've had a look at a Marlin 336 in 30-30, but was thinking more like a .357 or .44. Don't think I'll need to go up to a 45-70. Was wondering if anyone can shed some light on any other brands etc that would fit the bill? Obviously budget plays a big part but any info at all is useful.

Cheers,
Aaron

I bought the wife a Marlin 336 XLR and she (ok so do I) loves it.
I particularly like the 24"barrel - can get projectiles travelling a bit faster to hit harder.
Flattens out the trajectory a bit.

It all depends on what you will be hunting and at what ranges, I personally am not a huge fan of "pistol cartridges"in rifles for hunting.
(Will put on armour plated pants now )

I have a Marlin 1895. It is a remlin and needed some fix up work by my smith to make it good (easier than going through warranty ) but now it is great. I looked at Rossi's and a couple of other cheaper ones and was disappointed. I have a couple of mates with winchester 94's and have found these vary from great to rattley and loose.

The one 94 I really liked is owned by my gunsmith and is chambered in 32-40. He uses it In black powder metallic cartridge competitions. But this gun is well over 80 years old and he has restored it into a piece of art.

If I was on a budget and looking at 30-30 I would go a marlin 336 or derivative of the same.

I gazed longingly at that 454 Casull Rossi on usedguns interesting cartridge and something that you don't see every day. No good for ammo as I think its a bit hard to come by.

44mag in any of the win 92 lever guns or its copies would pack plenty of punch, 44/40 not too far behind, 357mag wouldn't be too bad as you could stoke the factory loads up from their pistol rated pressures. The old 30/30 wouldn't be too bad either.
Probably if I was going to get any lever gun in the future I would try and find an older model Marlin in 357 or 44mag.

I bought the wife a Marlin 336 XLR and she (ok so do I) loves it.
I particularly like the 24"barrel - can get projectiles travelling a bit faster to hit harder.
Flattens out the trajectory a bit.

It all depends on what you will be hunting and at what ranges, I personally am not a huge fan of "pistol cartridges"in rifles for hunting.
(Will put on armour plated pants now )[/quote]

Yeah, I liked the feel of the Marlin. Basically, I will be with the better half and family going after most of the ferals up here in Central Qld on friends properties. So Dingos, roos, cats, wild dogs, pigs etc... Mainly would like it for a backup or close country gun in case the .223 didn't stop whatever I was after (moreso for the bigger ferals)...

Camel wrote:I gazed longingly at that 454 Casull Rossi on usedguns interesting cartridge and something that you don't see every day. No good for ammo as I think its a bit hard to come by.

That's what reloading presses are for

I seen that one also, and thought do i need two of these while its available.

I'm a marlin convert, have a 1894, 1895 & 336.
Easy to mount a scope on easy to clean from the breach and bloody accurate.
My 30/30 is a genuine moa rifle for 3 shot groups with reloads it likes, 357 and 45/70 aren't far behind both will consistently put 5 shots under 2" @ 100y.
357 is marginal on medium game but having said that I have shot a heap of medium game with it and would choose it over something in the 222/223 class every day for under 100y.
45/70 can be loaded to just about any power level you want from 44mag levels up. With light loads its very pleasant to shoot and still has enough power for medium game.
30/30 is probably the pick if you want to stretch the range 200y isn't even trying if you have a scope fitted and 300y isn't out of the question with an accurate rifle.

I had a marlin lever in 45/70 should NEVER had sold it. ( bloody houses weddings and kids to close together ).
You might not need a 45 neither did I but shit it was fun.

3potscreamer wrote: but shit it was fun.

That's why I shoot!

I've got a marlin 1894 in .357 mag with the 18" barrel and with hand loads 1900 fps is about where it sits in my rifle.

Thanks guys for the feedback. I'll be putting another PTA in, in the next month or so. Enough time to get the cash together for a Marlin 336. Will just have to decide which calibre to go for when I go to my LGS. If they have a .44 available one of them, but I'd settle for a 30-30 if all else fails.

Mate, don't just limit yourself for what is available locally, used guns will have a heap of them on there, some really keen prices and some a bit pricey. The 30/30 is available in the 336 action, the 44mag is in the 1894 action, they are two different style of actions, just made by the one company. If you are going to look second hand, try and get something that was produced before the Remington take over, I believe from what I have read that their quality is much better.

kmsajb wrote:Thanks guys for the feedback. I'll be putting another PTA in, in the next month or so. Enough time to get the cash together for a Marlin 336. Will just have to decide which calibre to go for when I go to my LGS. If they have a .44 available one of them, but I'd settle for a 30-30 if all else fails.

If you decide to buy new, have a look at the XLR 30.30. It is a lot of rifle for the money. I have 2 target shooting mates with them now, and they are sweet. It is definitely worth researching them. There are many cheaper rifles, but the build of these is very good, with excellent features.

Second hand 336 are generally fine pre-Rem. If you can find one older than about 1980 it won't have the cross bolt safety. A lot of people reckon that they were better before that safety, but I don't feel the same, as it doesn't bother me, and I have one from before and one after.

To date a later Marlin, take the first 2 digits of the serial number and subtract it from 100. So a rifle with a serial number of 97XXXXXX would be 03, meaning 2003. Serial number 19XXXXXX would be from 1981. Recent numbers since the Rem take over start with M or MR. This is a pain, as Marlin already used letters back in the first half of last century.

Good luck.

curan

kmsajb wrote:Hi everyone, just recently got my 2 x .223rem and have been looking at lever actions as a backup/scrub gun. I've had a look at a Marlin 336 in 30-30, but was thinking more like a .357 or .44. Don't think I'll need to go up to a 45-70. Was wondering if anyone can shed some light on any other brands etc that would fit the bill? Obviously budget plays a big part but any info at all is useful.

Cheers,
Aaron

With the 357 and 44magnum rifles ,mag capacity gets you ten shots up the tube and one up the spout.30/30 traditionally 6 plus one.With both the new Rossi and Marlin rifles quality control hasn't been a priority with them of late. .It's like camel said,used guns has a few of the older models popping up a quite fair prices.Gave the bride a Marlin 357magnum for a wedding present 24years ago (anniversary last Monday).It's probably a carbon copy of her. Lost a bit of her shine, Few scratches n ware marks, not as tight as she used to be,but can still kill. Both still going strong Reloading the 357mag with AR2205 powder.16 grains under a 158g fnsp chronies around 1600 fps .18.5 under. 125grainer whistles out around 1800 fps.From 0-80yards no pig will tell the difference between a 357 mag 158g compared to 30/30 150g.Past 100 yards , the 30/30 will shoot flatter and uses around 10 grains more powder.Looking at 44mag for my 20 year old boy ATM. Be aware that the 44mag rifles using 240 grain projectiles in a light lever gun with the steel butt recoils pretty sharply,180grainers more pleasant to shoot.A good recoil pad can solve the recoil issue. Just my 2 cents worth.Big G

That was well thought out BigG, listen to BigG, I'd only ad that if your not reloading, then the 30.30 is probably the cheapest on the shelf, and most commonly stocked.
I've had a couple of 94 Winchesters and 3x 336 Marlins, the third being the XLR and I love it.