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Should I buy a Marlin?

14K views 49 replies 38 participants last post by  HarryS 
#1 ·
So I'm looking at buying my first rifle! I've owned shotguns, but never a rifle. I'd like something to hunt deer. I was thinking about getting a Marlin 1894. I really like lever action guns. I'd like something that is a good brush gun that I can take on long backpacking trips.

I've read too many bad things about Marlin after they were bought out by Remington. Should I buy a Marlin? Any suggestions on a good hunting/brush gun?

Thanks!
 
#2 · (Edited)
Welcome CJ, from New Mexico!

I own an 1894 in 44 mag, I've had it since about 1980 I suppose. It's a great gun for plinking or hunting.

If you can handle and inspect the 1894 that you're going to buy, you'll be fine. Most of the problems that I've read about have been gritty actions (no big deal), poor wood to metal fit especially in the tang, and canted sights. So, if you had the oppurtunity to handle a couple of three of them at a Cabelas or Dicks or Sportsman's Warehouse, you'd be ok. There have been many "good" reports of guys getting very nice Rmeington/Marlins, and I have seen and handled one of those good ones at our firing range. They're out there.

Another good, fast handling rifle that I like a tad more than my 1894 is a Marlin 336 in 35 Remington.

For either of those cartridges, get into reloading if you can. That's where you'll get best performance and have ready access to ammo.
 
#3 · (Edited)
Welcome to the forum, CJFugate ! Stretch is correct in saying that there have been some very good Marlins come out of the factory since Rem bought them. Having said that though, there's definitely been some bad one's and some were really bad. Just a couple or a few years ago they were having major problems with their safety's but I think that was on bolt action rifles and not sure it spilled over into the lever action ones. What caliber are you thinking about ? Also what will the area be/look like that you are hunting, is it heavy timber where all shots will be inside 75 yards or do you have area's that can leave you a 200-300 yard shot ? I would take a look at the Brownings as well if you want a lever action, they have all of the older type chamberings as well as some newer ones and also some of the most popular calibers that have ever existed. All 4 of the WSM chamberings, 243 Win, 308 Win, and 7mm-08 Rem to name a few. Blued chrome moly or stainless steel, laminate, walnut, camo,pistol grip or straight grip, etc.
Here's a link for you:

Browning Firearms Finder
 
#4 ·
I thought Marlin was really onto something with their 308 Marlin Express, and especially with the 338 Marlin Express! Unfortunately, the future of both of those rounds seems to be up in the air, with the smart money betting on their total demise. That's too bad because they were great lever-gun cartridges.
 
#7 ·
I own several Marlin lever guns from .22 L.R. up to .44 magnum and IMHO the older Marlins are smoother and have fewer issues in general than the ones coming out of the New York factory. These firearms are getting better but with the plentiful supply of older guns why wait?
 
#9 ·
As said look at the proof mark on the barrel!, if it's an "REP" inspect it CLOSELY!, many more than a few had some serious issues after the "CERBERUS" acquisition of Marlin and the move to the Remington plant in New York!, the very recent production ones seem to be of acceptable quality?

The older ones are out there, I only have four 1894's in my safe, a 25-20, 357, 44Mag and a 45 Colt.
 
#10 ·
I have around 14 lever action rifles, and probably about 4 of them are 1894, three are 1895's, also some Winchesters. For deer hunting I would recommend an 1894 in 44 magnum caliber, or a 30-30 or 35 Remington in a model 336. Many of my friends use an 1894 in 357 caliber and shoot 38 special ammo through them while participating in Cowboy Action Shooting events. You can pick up a used gun where I live for about $400.
 
#12 ·
Welcome to the forum. As a Marlin fan I own several, old and new. Of the new models I have recently purchased five were excellent quality, one was broken out of the box. The bad 1894 357 had to be sent back to the factory where they replaced the butt stock, shell elevator arm, magazine follower and front sight. This one must have fallen off the truck on the way to final inspection. Marlin made the repairs and had a good gun back to me in two weeks. I think most of the questionable Marlins were made during the first production runs after the Remington merger. Just check any gun for proper operation and appearance prior to purchase.
 
#13 · (Edited)
I've got a marlin 1894CB .44 mag/sp. With a 24" Barrel. I love it. The .357 would be ok for deer hunting out to 100 yards. Go for the .44mag (IMHO) if you can get one because it has a bit more Umph to it and depending on your load, you are good to about 150-160 yards. Whether you get one marked with a JM or an RP you'll what to inspect it first. Even Marlin had a few bad ones go out on rare occasions before Remington bought them out. And like the .357 being able to shoot .38 sp., you can shoot .44 sp. out of the .44 mag rifles with the advantage of getting a lot of different commercial loads for it if you don't reload your own ammo. I can't say anything about Marlins made by Remington one way or the other. I haven't got any experience with Marlins since Remington bought them out. Mine is a JM marked Marlin and it makes a great brush/woods gun for deer hunting. There is one thing you'll need to know, the largest .44 mag you can shoot is a 300 grain bullet. any thing larger than 300 grains turns it into a single shot rifle because cartridges larger than 300 grains won't feed from the tube well because they are too long, But for deer sized game you definitely won't need anything larger than a 300 grain cartridge anyway.
There is one other thing that they are useful for and that is home defense. as much as I love the AR platform for home defense you won't get the nasty looks from the anti gun crowd with the Marlin Lever action like you would with an AR rifle and with the Western movies being so prevalent, just about every bad guy out there will know the sound of a lever action being cocked. So you have 2 guns in one.
 
#14 ·
For defense, I don’t WANT the intruder to hear the sound of me working the lever (much like the vaunted sound of a pump action shotgun being racked). The 1st sound I want him to hear is the last sound he’ll ever hear. If I use a lever for a bedside gun, it has one in the chamber with the hammer down, so I can thumb-cock it quietly.
 
#18 ·
The only experience I've had with Henry Big Boy's comes from watching some of our Cowboy Shooters try using them. Mostly 44 Mag and 45 Colt caliber's, I know nothing of the 30-30. Most of our Cowboy Shooters have had enough problems to cause them to switch to Marlin or Win 73 clones. Henry is made in the US, thats the good thing about it, the bad think is they don't seem to hold up as well as some of the other guns, and they are expensive for what they are.
 
#21 · (Edited)
I wouldn't argue that it's easier to load a Lever (with tube) while in action from the receiver, but I'd counter that with how simple it is to UNLOAD a rifle with a muzzle/tube loading system. Way easier & safer in this fella's opinion.
 
#25 ·
Just putting in my 2 cents. My first rifle was a 1894ss in 44 mag bought it second hand for $500 as new condition. Was my first of a few rifles but remains my favorite. Never regretted buying it and will never sell it either. The pistol carbines are fun to shoot, available ammo, and not to expensive to shoot
 
#26 · (Edited)
Do remlins deserve the bad press?

For some yes & others no. (I feel) enough bad ones have left the factory to be suspicious AT LEAST. ON another note there are so many older non remlin 35's still out there, for a good price that it kind of surprises me. IDK, maybe people wanted a 30-30, or the 45-70 more & overlooked the great 35 caliber? I bought 2 Marlin 336 SC's, in 35, & I like the short mag tube look, expecting the price of them to soar & it never really did. I got a 1956 waffletop in "less than ideal looking condition that Bubba had tapped thru the waffle pattern to mount a scope, for 250$. How often are you gonna find a black walnut stocked rifle that shoots great for 250$, no tax in a ftf sale? I've been around rifles a while now & have never been as open mouth impressed by a lever action as by a Browning BLR takedown in 308, I just NEVER thought it possible for a lever to shoot groups like that, BUT expect to pay for it. Good condition older non remlins in 35 cal are still out there for app 300-400$. The pistol caliber levers of whatever manufacture are gonna fetch a premium. If I want to shoot a pistol caliber I do, IN ONE OF MY PISTOLS. BUT if anyone wants to get rid of a 45lc lever, I wouldn't mind 1 bit.
 
#29 ·
CJ,

Go handle as many as you want and make the purchase based on your handling and observation! I purchased a Remlin just a few weeks ago and it was as good as my 1989 JM 336CS. The only complaint was the trigger a sloppy 8+ lbs.

I'm having a WW Happy Trigger installed to take care of that issue. The fit and finish was fine along with sight alignment and all screws being clean and tight. The action is smooth and my gunsmith stated I got a great rifle.

Good luck on your purchase and Merry Christmas!
 
#30 ·
Recently purchased Henry Big Boy chambered in 357. Although Henry has a great reputation, I have had nothing but problems out of the box. 2 times at the range, FTF and stuck lever when reloading.
Henry fixed the first time now back for repair. My point is that any rifle from any company can have issues.
I am no looking for a Marlin 1894c or css in 357 although my gun store is telling me to stay away, nothing but problems. All problems can be fixed.

By the way, loading the big boy gets frustrating when I loose grip on the rod and it goes flying down range also embarrassing.
 
#31 · (Edited)
Recently purchased Henry Big Boy chambered in 357. Although Henry has a great reputation, I have had nothing but problems out of the box. 2 times at the range, FTF and stuck lever when reloading.
Henry fixed the first time now back for repair. My point is that any rifle from any company can have issues.
I am no looking for a Marlin 1894c or css in 357 although my gun store is telling me to stay away, nothing but problems. All problems can be fixed.

By the way, loading the big boy gets frustrating when I loose grip on the rod and it goes flying down range also embarrassing.


This is one of the reasons I feel it is a waste of time to give advice about firearms. Everyone has to learn the hard way, from their own experience. I mentioned in post #24 that some of our Cowboy Shooters had nothing but problems with Henry rifles, now you understand what "problems" means. I could never understand a person buying a gun just because it is pretty or looked good, to me it's not much good if it doesn't function. I have several Marlins, I've had trouble with only one of them, one chambered to shoot 38 Special, rather than 357 Magnum. That particular gun was sensitive to bullet length, it didn't like short bullets.
 
#32 ·
I started with a Yellowboy (Navy Arms) and have come to the point where I have several Marlins in different calibers. I do like them, they're stout and will take abuse more than many. If you worried about a problem, as mentioned, go get one in a gun store and make sure you're happy with it before you buy it.

As far as what caliber? Depends on what you want to hunt? Close in and light stuff I use pistol calibers, more serious stuff, I use a bolt rifle.
 
#33 · (Edited)
I own two Marlin lever action rifles. One I bought in 1969 or there about it is the 336 in 30/30 Win. And the other is a 1894 in .41MAG yeah you read it right .41Mag. In fact since I've moved from way west Texas (El Paso) to here in central Missouri the only rifle I deer hunt with is the .41Mag and during the alternative weapons season I hunt with a Dan Wesson S741. But back to your question I don't think you can go wrong with the 1894 in what ever caliber you can get it in. I believe it is relatively available in .357Mag and .44Mag. If you want one in .41Mag that may be a real challenge to find one. :)
 
#34 · (Edited)
Just recently bought a 1894C Marlin in 357. This was dated from 2004 with the JM mark.
It appeared to be shot very light and could have ben in a gun safe for years. Looks like it
just came off the assembly line. Very happy with the purchase...will take it to the range soon
but for now for me a much better purchase than my Henry which has been nothing but problems.
 
#37 ·
JEALOUS! While I have an 1894, mine is in .41 Mag and it is sweet!

My father-in-law had one in .357 too and when he passed I tried to get it but M-i-L sold it before I could get there. My wife shot the head off of a 6 1/2 for rattler with it - - - one shot about 15 yards away.

ENJOY IT! They are great rifles . . . .
 
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