How to get the most out of new 336?
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accurizing a 336
Check out McPherson's website......levergun.com
He has some very interesting ideas on accurizing lever action Marlins
Check out McPherson's website......levergun.com
He has some very interesting ideas on accurizing lever action Marlins
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7,854 Posts
Welcome to the forum and congrats on getting that nice new Marlin! To simply go along with what the couple other posts have said, I'd recommend trying two things right off the bat. If accuracy is tops on your list, then having a quality scope on top is pretty much needed. Lots of nice scopes out there and I'd say something in a 1-4, 2.5, 4 or 2-7 magnification would more than likely work well. Unless all you're going to shoot is paper at 100+ yards, I'd personally see very little use for a larger power scope than one of those. As in many things, buy the best you can afford to. There are 2-7x32 Nikon Prostaffs out there now for a $100 bill and that's a darn good value IMHO.
Handloading may well get you a very accurate load, but I'd suggest you also buy a box of the LE ammo and give it a whirl as well. These loads were designed and tailored to the exact rifle you've purchased and some of the new 30-30s show superior accuracy due to Hornady and Marlin's cooperation in making them. It would also be very tough to exceed the downrange performance found in them as well. For shooting to 100-150 yards, many loads should work great for you, of course.
Good Luck
Handloading may well get you a very accurate load, but I'd suggest you also buy a box of the LE ammo and give it a whirl as well. These loads were designed and tailored to the exact rifle you've purchased and some of the new 30-30s show superior accuracy due to Hornady and Marlin's cooperation in making them. It would also be very tough to exceed the downrange performance found in them as well. For shooting to 100-150 yards, many loads should work great for you, of course.
Good Luck
Thanks for the good replies. I will be mounting a 3-9 Leupold when the base arrives.
I have used Hornady's LE ammo in the past and use the 160gr FTX bullets in my handloads.
Has anyone here had any success lightening the trigger on their 336?
I have used Hornady's LE ammo in the past and use the 160gr FTX bullets in my handloads.
Has anyone here had any success lightening the trigger on their 336?
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Welcome to the forum.
On top of the tips already given, the forearm and forearm band can often play a major role in the accuracy of a lever. With the groups you've shown, I think you are almost dialed in. you might consider slugging the barrel to get the actual bore diameter, and firelapping the bore to get it to it's polished best.
good luck.
On top of the tips already given, the forearm and forearm band can often play a major role in the accuracy of a lever. With the groups you've shown, I think you are almost dialed in. you might consider slugging the barrel to get the actual bore diameter, and firelapping the bore to get it to it's polished best.
good luck.
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483 Posts
By far the easiest, though fairly expensive, way to get a great trigger on a Marlin 336 is to install a Wild West "Trigger Happy" kit, available from Wild West Guns directly, or from Brownells or Midway.
Swany, over on the Marlin Owners forum, has some good advice on do-it-yourself trigger jobs on these rifles -- but you should have an understanding of triggers and sears before you start working on them. The Happy Trigger is pretty much foolproof.
The Old Guy
As a handloader, I fully understand the satisfactions of finding just the right load. But I have to say that before I'd start loading for that new rifle I would try as many factory loads as I could lay hands on.
Why? Well, the simple fact is that the factories have loaded the .30-30 for a long, long time, and if there is one round that they have come darned close to perfecting it is the .30-30. It's almost guaranteed that one factory load or another will give spectacular results in your rifle. It's not that hard to find a handload that will equal the best factory load for your rifle -- but it is pretty near impossible to find one that will beat it!
Why? Well, the simple fact is that the factories have loaded the .30-30 for a long, long time, and if there is one round that they have come darned close to perfecting it is the .30-30. It's almost guaranteed that one factory load or another will give spectacular results in your rifle. It's not that hard to find a handload that will equal the best factory load for your rifle -- but it is pretty near impossible to find one that will beat it!
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For all of the crying about Remington acquiring Marlin, I suspect your rifle will be reasonably accurate without any extra work at all.
Handloading is one route, but I have yet to actually top the accuracy of $15/bx Winchester PP's in mine, though I keep trying.
Trigger work definately helps, and spring kits for trigger tension are low cost, and easily installed. If you decide to "clean up" the surfaces, make sure you understand where things happen, or you can have an unsafe 336.
I'd be interested to hear about the bore quality myself. Many Marlins have a rough or tight spot, or two. I'm not comfortable with "fire lapping", but a few sessions with an abraisive cleaner, I use Remington 40X because it's very mild, will take care of any spots I have encountered so far.
Leverolution stuff may or may not shoot well in your rifle looking through some responses, like anything else. Not a big problem. The .30-30 won't turn into a 300yd deer rifle no matter what you feed it, and the stuff people have been feeding theirs for the last century has proven more than adequate. And still is.
Handloading is one route, but I have yet to actually top the accuracy of $15/bx Winchester PP's in mine, though I keep trying.
Trigger work definately helps, and spring kits for trigger tension are low cost, and easily installed. If you decide to "clean up" the surfaces, make sure you understand where things happen, or you can have an unsafe 336.
I'd be interested to hear about the bore quality myself. Many Marlins have a rough or tight spot, or two. I'm not comfortable with "fire lapping", but a few sessions with an abraisive cleaner, I use Remington 40X because it's very mild, will take care of any spots I have encountered so far.
Leverolution stuff may or may not shoot well in your rifle looking through some responses, like anything else. Not a big problem. The .30-30 won't turn into a 300yd deer rifle no matter what you feed it, and the stuff people have been feeding theirs for the last century has proven more than adequate. And still is.
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Someday
There's just something about shooting an abraisive coated bullet down the tube that holds me back.
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20 rounds will do it a world of good. Load about 2.2 or 2.3 grains of Bullseye in the case, then stuff it as full of polyester pillow stuffing as you can get under the bullet. 2.5 grains would be about the top end load.
Laps and cleans the bore at the same time!
Laps and cleans the bore at the same time!
Like cryo-treatment, barrel break-in procedures, and many other faddish practices, bore lapping may have some utility, but only in certain specific and usually rare situations. It is not something that needs to be, or should be, done to every or even most guns.
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I should amend my remarks to say that it will do a Marlin a world of good if you are going to shoot cast bullets in it. Jacketed may or may not have much effect. A .30-30 is not exactly a screaming banshee of a round.
Having slugged a lot of Marlin barrels, I sometimes wonder how the bullets get down them at all. It is a bumpy ride. They definitely have more than their share of constrictions! The models with barrel bands have fewer dovetails, but the barrel bands bring up their own issues.
Anyway have fun. I do have lots of guns (bolt guns) that haven't been lapped, and probably never will be lapped (or broken in, for that matter).
Having slugged a lot of Marlin barrels, I sometimes wonder how the bullets get down them at all. It is a bumpy ride. They definitely have more than their share of constrictions! The models with barrel bands have fewer dovetails, but the barrel bands bring up their own issues.
Anyway have fun. I do have lots of guns (bolt guns) that haven't been lapped, and probably never will be lapped (or broken in, for that matter).
Beartooth firelapping kit and 173´grain boolits
I used the BTB firelapping kit and loaded the 173 grain wfngc with 30 grains of IMR 3031 per the owners recommendation. the results were astounding to say the least. The first 2 shots were touching and the third was half an inch higher. This was at 100 yards with my redfield scope.
I guess I don´t have enough posts to post a pic a yet, but I´ll work on that.
I used the BTB firelapping kit and loaded the 173 grain wfngc with 30 grains of IMR 3031 per the owners recommendation. the results were astounding to say the least. The first 2 shots were touching and the third was half an inch higher. This was at 100 yards with my redfield scope.
I guess I don´t have enough posts to post a pic a yet, but I´ll work on that.
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Take a look at this auction and contact the seller.
CUSTOM Marlin 336, 35RemDELUXE100% better then new : Lever Action at GunBroker.com
This rifle was bought by one of the guys on Marlinowners.com and he started a post where some others there chimed in about buying rifles from this guy and they had nothing but good to say about the seller. One guy said he talked to him by phone and he was VERY helpful.
I don't know the seller but have drooled over some of his previous sales. I'm told that he will email you a price list of things he will do to your own rifle.
Just thought it might help. The accuracy he's getting is better than most bolt rifles. The rifle in the link above was a 35 Remington and it put 3 shots into about 5/16" at 100 yards with the leverevolution ammo. He offers a guarantee and will refund your money if not satisfied after you shoot it. I could live with that!!! If you compare prices to some of the new Remlins like the XLR series, I think this guys are a better deal.
CUSTOM Marlin 336, 35RemDELUXE100% better then new : Lever Action at GunBroker.com
This rifle was bought by one of the guys on Marlinowners.com and he started a post where some others there chimed in about buying rifles from this guy and they had nothing but good to say about the seller. One guy said he talked to him by phone and he was VERY helpful.
I don't know the seller but have drooled over some of his previous sales. I'm told that he will email you a price list of things he will do to your own rifle.
Just thought it might help. The accuracy he's getting is better than most bolt rifles. The rifle in the link above was a 35 Remington and it put 3 shots into about 5/16" at 100 yards with the leverevolution ammo. He offers a guarantee and will refund your money if not satisfied after you shoot it. I could live with that!!! If you compare prices to some of the new Remlins like the XLR series, I think this guys are a better deal.
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