32-20 Marlins

[Whit Spurzon]

A friend of mine keeps introducing me to old calibers I didn't know I needed. Anyway, now I have two of em.:violin:

The first is 1894 Cowboy Carbine. My understanding is they only made 501 of em. Great little shooter. Likes the Lyman 311008 with 4.5 grains of Unique under it. Gets 1397 with that load and we've had a good time shooting targets, knocking over silhouettes and ringing the 500 yard dinger with it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUGeOJ8evpY

The other is a 1905 vintage 1894. I love the aesthetic of this rifle.
http://www.myhostedpics.com/images/Pathfinder/189432201905.jpg

Unfortunately its bore is as ugly as any I've seen. There is some rifling but it looks like its been shooting rocks. One of the previous owners probably used an a piece of rebar for a cleaning rod, that is if he ever bothered to clean it.

It shoots a little better than I expected after seeing the bore but it is erratic at best. I can get a 2" group at 50 with 6 of ten shots but the other four might be 3 inches away and one of them will have hit the paper sideways...

I'm considering getting the barrel relined. Anyone done that? How did it turn out? Anyone you'd recommend?

Thanks in advance.

[jlchucker]

I defer to others with expertise with the 32-20 in response to your questions about that 1905 vintage rifle. I'd like to say, though--WOW! That's one nice looking ol' rifle. I wish Marlin still made them just like that one. Somewhere, over the passage of time, Marlin obviously came up with a way to make beautiful rifles like that one look ugly with an overabundance of forearm wood and tacky checkering.

[oscarflytyer]

Before messing with the barrel, you might check the crown. Could be that dings in the crown are throwing the errant bullets. A crown job is very inexpensive and simple compared to a barrel.

Might also suggest going over to the Marlin Owner's forum. LOTS of good Marlin info there.

[northmn]

Track fo the Wolf sells liners specifically for the 32-20 at $5.09 per foot. I enjoy my 32-20 enough such that I would think it worth the price to renovate an original. My little Marlin shoots well with a slightly large 312 bullet but one with a rough bore might benefit from an oversize fit.

DP

[NHlever]

That barrel might surprise you. I once got a Remington .257 Roberts that had been a Game Warden's gun for over 30 years, and that bore sure looked like he had spent a lot of time outside with it, and on snowmobiles, etc., and it shot like it looked. I brought the thing home, and thinking I had nothing to lose, I wrapped some 0000 steel wool into a cleaning brush, and had at it with a good bore cleaner. Surprisingly, the bore cleaned up very well, and shot even better. I ended up selling it to a friend who had known the Warden who had carried it. Much older barrels are softer though so you may have to revise the cleaning technique a bit. Maybe try an Outer's foul out on it, or someting.

[herbert buckland]

I would also try fire laping as well as a slite crown polish,I have rifles that responded very well to this treatment that were just terible before,if that does not work relining all most always works,but some think it devalues old rifles(not me,I will pay more for a relined antique than one with a shot out or rusted bore)

[9.3X62AL]

That video was a HOOT. I've run my Marlin 25-20 and 32-20 leverguns on my local range at 300 yards on steel coyote and deer targets, and thought at the time that I was over-reaching just a bit. Not so, it seems. :)

I would make haste slowly with that older barrel. Deep cleaning first......then maybe a crown clean-up. See what improves. If it still acts like a shotgun after all that, a reline might be in order.

[Whit Spurzon]

Thanks guys.

I think I have it cleaned down to bare sewer pipe. The rifling is hard to see especially at the muzzle end.

I'm leaning toward a reline. I've had quite a passel of Marlins over the years and they all shot very well. My expectations are pretty high. Need to find a good reline outfit that isn't 6 months out.

[johnly]

I have a 1902 vintage 1894 in 32-20 that someone tried to "cowboy" by grinding on the loading gate spring. The price was right, no extra holes, and the bore was spotless brite wonderful.:D

Haven't yet replaced the loading gate spring, but it's a wonderful shooter.

John

[Frank46]

That video is a hoot. To think that a 357 magnum and a 32-20 can it targets at 500yds is simply amazing. Thanks for sharing it with us. Frank

[shawnsmc]

I would highly recommend doing a relining. I did it on a couple of rifles one was a winchester 1890 22WRF that had a terrible bore that would keyhole at 25 yards. Now it shoots ragged one hole groups a 25 yards. The other was a 1889 marlin in 32-20 that had a bore just like yours and now that rifle shoots just as accurately as any new rifle should. I used "Redmans Rifling and Reboring" http://www.redmansrifling.com he is a little pricey and a little slow on turnaround but well worth it. I can hardly even see any evidence that it was relined. I hope this helps,
Shawn

[Whit Spurzon]

shawnsmc: MANY thanks for the recommendation. He's actually only about 30 minutes from my place, but 6 months away from being able to look at my rifle. There is a another feller on the other side of the hill, John Taylor, who also comes highly recommended. He's about the same price and only 3 months out...

Deciding how long I can wait is the hard part.

[9.3X62AL]

If a gunsmith is 3-6 months behind......it's likely because they do really good work, and their services are in high demand. The wait is likely worth the time spent.

[Whit Spurzon]

If a gunsmith is 3-6 months behind......it's likely because they do really good work, and their services are in high demand. The wait is likely worth the time spent.

Agreed. I've had long waits in the past for Marlin Cowboy Conversions. VERY happy with the results. Even knowing that, it don't make it any easier.:wink:

[9.3X62AL]

Oh, no doubt about it! I WANT IT NOW! :)

A big "thank you" for all those Youtube postings, BTW. VERY enjoyable to watch.

[Swampman]

I spent a barrel of money getting one just like that relined. I never could it to feed properly.