Marlin 336

[ROCKET]

I have a Marlin 336 and been toying with the idea of getting a Marlin in 357 mag...

What do you guys think?

[MyFlatline]

Search for an older Marlin, much better quality that the newer Remington made ones. Oh and $700 will be a great deal, they are bringing a premium.

[ROCKET]

They are asking close to 1k in my neck of the woods.... ouch!



Sent from space

[popper]

I gave up on the marlin 357 and went to BO.

[Outer Rondacker]

Buy it. It took me 11 years to get a lever in 357 and over the 11 years the prices just kept going up and up. I got lucky one day on a Rossi 92 large loop trapper. I love it. The longer you wait the more it will cost and the less life you will have to enjoy it.

[MyFlatline]

They are asking close to 1k in my neck of the woods.... ouch!



Sent from space

The Henry Big Boy Steel is a good alternative. I have one of those also.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

Those Henrys are tack drivers - look for a bigboy steel carbine. About $700.
https://www.gunbroker.com/item/765912452

[sghart3578]

What a coincidence. I was shooting my JM Marlin 1894CS in 357 and my 1951 vintage 336 in 30-30 just this morning.

Both are tackdrivers. Both are a blast to shoot.

I have Skinner sights on both and it really helps.

I was holding out hope that Marlin would have some new 357's available this year but my enthusiasm is waning.

I would find a Henry with a 20" barrel in 357. I'm sure that it would be great.

[Lonegun1894]

I don't own a .357 Marlin, but a friend of mine let me shoot his, and they handle and shoot great. I shot it and my Rossi 92 in .357 side by side, and they both did great. I really couldn't figure out which I preffered. If you want a scope though, or even the option of mounting one some day, I'd get the Marlin. I jusy wish they were priced more like their 336s.

[RPRNY]

I cannot understand interest in 357 as a rifle round. 44 Mag and 45Colt are both a better choice in my opinion. And I would be after the 16" Rossi R92 as the value for money proposition.

The 38/357 R92 that I owned would never feed 38 Spl consistently, but others have had success. I sold it with that proviso and the chap that still has it uses only 357 cases and says it's absolutely fine.

I have a 45LC 16" version and it is a fantastic little rifle. It needed work - springs, mag follower, stoning the loading gate, for example. But I can't say that the work was difficult or that I didn't enjoy doing it. It is nowhere near as attractive as my Marlin 1894 Cowboy Ltd II, but I use the Rossi more often and paid less than half of what the Marlin cost me.

[Outer Rondacker]

It needed work - springs, mag follower, stoning the loading gate, for example. But I can't say that the work was difficult or that I didn't enjoy doing it.
I second that I enjoyed working on mine. Mine worked fine from start just needed to make it like butter. We can blast 38s all day long if you wanted to with mine.

[jmort]

I have .357, .45 Colt, .30-30 and.45-70 lever actions. The .357 in a 92 can equal a .30-30. Also, short of a BFR, you get .357 handgun and rifle combo.
Buffalo Bore
.357 Mag
18.5-inch Marlin 1894
a. Item 19A/20-180gr. Hard Cast = 1851 fps
.30-30
2020 fps -- Win. Model 94AE 16-inch Trapper carbine circa 1992
HEAVY 30-30 WINCHESTER AMMO
190 GR. JFN

The .30-30 has much better SD and can reach out farther with more energy
But the meplat on the .357 will do serious damage at short range, Lead Bullets Technology.

So, for me, I like the .357

[sghart3578]

I shoot multiple calibers from 22 all the way to a 45-70 Sharp's.

My Marlin 1894CS is the funnest gun I own. And the fact that it will take the largest game that I will ever hunt (California deer) makes it all the more appealing.

Yes, my 7 mm or 30-06 will probably be better, but a 180 gr WFN bullet at 1700 fps will do any job that I want it to do.

With my loads and my Skinner sights I can put 5 out of 5 in a 3" circle at 65 yards. That may not seem impressive but considering my last two deer were taken at distances under 50 yards I am happy.

[Lonegun1894]

I cannot understand interest in 357 as a rifle round. 44 Mag and 45Colt are both a better choice in my opinion.

I have all three calibers in the Rossi 92, and all get used, but the .357 gets used the most, and is perfectly capable of taking any game around here. The biggest so far has been a 375# hog, and it did just as well and killed it just as quick as a hog a month before that that weighed 325# and was taken with a .45-70. I might see it different if I was having to take 500 yard shots across canyons or hunting bison or elephant or something, but the hogs and deer (along with everything smaller around here), don't need more than my .357. I have plenty of other options, but it's because I WANT them, not because I NEED them.

[mr surveyor]

I watched the gunshow tables and pawn shop racks for several years looking for used (showing "confident carry wear") Marlin revolver caliber lever guns. In my neck of the woods they just weren't available, I finally broke down and bought a NIB 20" Rossi R92 .44 mag in 2013. My old 1973 model 336 30-30 didn't even complain about the brand name, it was happy to have the company. The lever gun attraction increased and I traded a Ruger Super Red Hawk .44 mag for a very lightly used 3-4 year old 16" stainless Rossi R92 in .357 mag in 2015. I still wanted Marlins but found that with a little tender loving care that the Rossi rifles could be made to scratch the itch. In the last 3-4 years those three lever guns have gotten more attention in re-loading, chrono testing and shooting time than all the other combined firearms in the house. An example is that just last week my old Kimber .45 acp (one of the few "bury it with me guns" I own) actually came out of the safe and went to the range for the first time in nearly a year. The lever guns and lead are getting all the attention.

jd

[Jack Stanley]

It sounds like a great idea , it's a good itch if you got the scratch . I had two of them years ago and sold one to a "needy" soul , I'm keeping the last one . People in my neck of the woods want to only pay half of what they sell for them flip them for more cash .

I haven't handled the other similar carbines but I read a lot of guys like them .

Jack

[ulav8r]

It sounds like a great idea , it's a good itch if you got the scratch . I had two of them years ago and sold one to a "needy" soul , I'm keeping the last one . People in my neck of the woods want to only pay half of what they sell for them flip them for more cash .

I haven't handled the other similar carbines but I read a lot of guys like them .

Jack

Saw a 336 rifle in 35 Rem sell at auction yesterday that they won't likely double their money soon, it went for $1100.

[Jack Stanley]

Must have been one handsome rifle ...... or someone really wanted it huh?

Jack

[ulav8r]

I think two guys did not want the other to get it, and one of them gave in.