[Roadking Rider]

Good morning.
Just wanted to introduce myself as a new member of the group and a proud owner of a 336 Marlin that was made in 1981. It only had ten rounds down the pipe before yesterday. It's true it's been under a bed in the original box for thirty years. The box is showing it's age but the rifle looks like it was made yesterday afternoon. I wasn't really looking for a 30/30 at the moment but a biker friend of mine who has owned it since new wanted to trade it for my Bersa Thunder .380. Seems he had two 30/30's and the other one was SS and he felt he didn't need two. I on the other hand had this Bersa Thunder .380 Satin Nickle that has about 250 rounds through it and has been flawless and a real fun pistol to shoot. I used it as a carry pistol but stopped doing so when I stumbled across a slightly used Kahr PM9 so it's been sitting in a safe in the dark. So we traded each other. I'm pretty much a pistol guy but when a good deal comes my way I jump on it. The only other rifle I own is a M1 Garand. Which is my pride and joy and althought it does shoot live ammo is mostly used for Military Funerals at the Local National Cemetery where I am one of the Guardians and member of the rifle salute team. Nothing say goodbye or pays honor to a VET like a M1 volley. That's another story though. Like I said only ten rounds fired before yesterday. Another friend wanted to shoot the Garands yesterday so I took my Marlin also along with a couple pistols for a good time. Now I didn't have any 30/30 ammo so I bought some at the range. WOW those Hornady LeveRevolutions are a bit spendy( $24+tax for 20 rounds) but, that's all they had so I shot them. Think I'm gonna need some help in the ammo department guys on what's a good but reasonably priced round. I'm not a hunter but I always wanted a lever action to shoot at the range and for longer range HD, but never really had a good opportunity before to get one. I could use the M1 for HD but she's older than she looks and not as accurate as this 336. I'll be honest the 336 was not at the top of my list, a 1911 45 was and still is but a deal is a deal and to me this was a deal of a lifetime that was not going to come around a second time. I was very happy with the accuracy of the Marlin but we're still getting to know one another. I'm probably going to have a million questions for you guys in the future so please remember if I ask a stupid question that sounds stupid to you it's not to me.
Thanks for having me.. Shoot straight and Ride Safe......Roadking Rider.

 

[pisgah]

When it comes to good .30-30 ammo, your nearest Wal Mart will have Remington, Winchester, Federal (at least one of them, probably all three) in bullet weights of 150 and 170 grains, at prices around $13 or so a box. All three brands are excellent. Likely, your rifle will prefer either 150 or 170 gr. bullets, but won't show much preference as to brand.

 

[jodum]

Welcome to the forum. The 30-30 is one of the best all around rifles made for deer hunting. As pisgah said, factory ammo is hard to beat. I just bought five boxes of Federal 170 gr at Walmarts on sale for 9$ a box. I can't handload it for that price. I handload cast bullets for my 30-30s but buy most of my jacketed rounds. Both of my 30-30 shoot all factory ammo well so I generally stock up with what ever is on sale.

 

[WyrTwister]

Yep , I used to buy the $ 10 a box 170 grain Federal at Walley World . Scarcer now and several dollars higher . Keep hoping it will come down some more .

Mostly I shoot cast bullets in .30-30 .

If the barrel is OK , there are several things you can do to improve the accuracy of your Garand .

God bless
Wyr

 

[Roadking Rider]

WyrTwister. Thanks
The barrel in the Garand is very much used and fires with reasonable accuracy for as old as it is, but I originally bought it to shoot blanks to do funerals with. I'm glad it can still put a round down range, if need be, but without dropping allot of money in it it's never going to outshoot this 336. Like I mentioned she's allot prettier than she shoots live ammo. I restored her with new wood to her original look. Which is perfect for what I bought it for. For me it's more important to put this old war rifle back into service of the country for peaceful purposes and to say goodbye to the men who actually used them to protect our way of life than it is to put a hot hard one in the bullseye at 100yds. The rewards are much greater shooting blanks then they ever could be shooting the real thing. (Example)When I shoot live ammo in the Garand, reloaders would fight each other to the death to get the shell casings if I didn't pick them up. When I shoot blanks people with tears in there eyes come over and ask if they could have them in rememberence of a loved one.
Vets Don't Forget Vets.........EVER.

 

[WyrTwister]

WyrTwister. Thanks
The barrel in the Garand is very much used and fires with reasonable accuracy for as old as it is, but I originally bought it to shoot blanks to do funerals with. I'm glad it can still put a round down range, if need be, but without dropping allot of money in it it's never going to outshoot this 336. Like I mentioned she's allot prettier than she shoots live ammo. I restored her with new wood to her original look. Which is perfect for what I bought it for. For me it's more important to put this old war rifle back into service of the country for peaceful purposes and to say goodbye to the men who actually used them to protect our way of life than it is to put a hot hard one in the bullseye at 100yds. The rewards are much greater shooting blanks then they ever could be shooting the real thing. (Example)When I shoot live ammo in the Garand, reloaders would fight each other to the death to get the shell casings if I didn't pick them up. When I shoot blanks people with tears in there eyes come over and ask if they could have them in rememberence of a loved one.
Vets Don't Forget Vets.........EVER.

Sounds like you have put the old was horse to good use .

Please do not ever let anyone reload the fired blank brass . I read they are not up to the pressure of full power loads ?

When shooting live loads , please pick up the brass . If you do not reload , please give them to some one that does . Same for all reloadable brass .

By the way , I have an old war horse Garand , WWII receiver , 1946 or 1948 barrel ( I forget ) . I figure it was used in Korea , the riflings are well rounded on the edges . NO clamping force between the action & wood when you close the trigger guard .

But a few years ago , when my rifles could see a little better , it would shoot 2" ( at 100 yards ) with LC 69 . About 1-5/8" with match ammo .

Nearly as good as my Garands that have been accurized .

God bless
Wyr



God bless
Wyr

 

[Roadking Rider]

Yes The live rounds we've been shooting we are saving for a friend of ours to reload for us. The blanks we either give to the families that ask for them, or we scrap them for money to buy the things we need to do what we do. I've heard that before that the blank brass is not the same grade or quality of brass the the live rounds have. So far mine has not even seen a reload round. The reason I changed the Stock and all it's parts on mine was because it was sloppy and did not want to even try shooting live ammo through it the way it was. I got a very nice entire stock from Boyd's gunstocks.
I will shoot more live rounds out of mine as time goes on but I'm kind of liking this 336 at the moment for any kind of target shooting. I stll can't believe I managed to come across the deal I did for it.

 

[WyrTwister]

Yes The live rounds we've been shooting we are saving for a friend of ours to reload for us. The blanks we either give to the families that ask for them, or we scrap them for money to buy the things we need to do what we do. I've heard that before that the blank brass is not the same grade or quality of brass the the live rounds have. So far mine has not even seen a reload round. The reason I changed the Stock and all it's parts on mine was because it was sloppy and did not want to even try shooting live ammo through it the way it was. I got a very nice entire stock from Boyd's gunstocks.
I will shoot more live rounds out of mine as time goes on but I'm kind of liking this 336 at the moment for any kind of target shooting. I stll can't believe I managed to come across the deal I did for it.

Is your front sight and gas cylinder , tight on the barrel , or loose ?

That is something that can degrade accuracy & is easily corrected .

God bless
Wyr

 

[Roadking Rider]

Is your front sight and gas cylinder , tight on the barrel , or loose ?

That is something that can degrade accuracy & is easily corrected .

God bless
Wyr

WYr it's tight. To be honest I think I need to shoot live ammo out of it more to get to know how good or not so good it really is. Or should I say how good I am or not so good with it.

 

[WyrTwister]

WYr it's tight. To be honest I think I need to shoot live ammo out of it more to get to know how good or not so good it really is. Or should I say how good I am or not so good with it.

In my opinion , the sights on a Garand are some of the best made , for a mass production rifle . Much better than on a typical lever gun .

Many militaty rifles have had the muzzle damaged by careless cleaning with steel cleaning rods . :-(

If not too bad , this can some times be helped by counter boring the barrel back a littler , to get back to riflings that are in better condition .

Course , you can not go back very far with out running into the gas port .

When possible , it is best to clean from the breech . That is not possible on the Garand .

God bless
Wyr

 

[Roadking Rider]

Thanks for the advice Wyr. Maybe you could help me with finding the right sites for the
336C30. It's and older model made in 1981 if that's any help. I was thinking along the lines of somethng fiber optic. TIA. ....RR

 

[WyrTwister]

Thanks for the advice Wyr. Maybe you could help me with finding the right sites for the
336C30. It's and older model made in 1981 if that's any help. I was thinking along the lines of somethng fiber optic. TIA. ....RR

Well , all my Marlins wear their original irons and / or optics . So I may not be much help .

Other than google searching , I can only suggest you check midwayusa.com and brownells.com .

God bless
Wyr

 

[Roadking Rider]

WYR Twister Here's a pic of my Garand and the 336c30 I managed to pick up. Garand is a 1955 and the Marlin is a 1981.
In this pick of the Garand there is the BFA installed on the end of the barrel, enableing it to shoot blanks and still cycle.

 

[Warhawk]

Williams makes the fire sets and sells them in sets for the 336.

RKR, where are you located? I enjoy riding a Harley myself.

 

[Combat Diver]

Welcome RoadKing Rider,

Never owned a Marlin 336 but do have a Marlin 1894 in .41 Mag. Love that rifle which I bought new in 88'. Love in love with the M1 when in High School as I was on the JROTC Drill Team for 4 years. Now I've owned 8 in the past and currently without one which I hope to rectify later this year with a CMP Service Grade (have a CMP M1 Carbine enroute). Also managed to rebuild a few M1s for the Haitian Police when I was there in 95'. Did my longest shooting (conventional rifle) with a modified M1 called the M14 with irons out to 1000yds. Thank you for providing your services to veterns. It does mean a lot to the families. I remember the firing detail at my fathers furneral.

CD

 

[Roadking Rider]

Warhawk I'll check them out. Thanks. I'm located in S/E Pa (Bucks Co.)

Combat driver first let me say THANKS for your service. Sounds like you have your fair share of experience with these old peices of what I call "American Pie."
I served in the USN from 66 to 69. After I retired from being a Carpenter I felt like I had more to do for the Vets and the country. Being that I own a Harley it only seemed natural that I join the Patriot Guard riders. That in turn got me asked to be a Guardian at the new National Cemetery where they use M1's for internments. I hadn't seen or held one in years but when I picked one up I knew I had to have one. I found mine at a local gun store in AS IS condition for $375. Looked like a CMP rack grade. They had quite a few there so I picked one that seemed to be the best of the lot and went to work on it. After replaceing a few internal parts and the woood it shoots fine for such and old weapon. It probably didn't need some of the parts I put in it but I needed it to be 100% when doing funerals. I've got $700 total in it and wouldn't sell it for twice that amount. I think it is just so cool that I've been blessed with good enough health to do what I do for Vets and to be able to bring this old weapon back into service of the country and the men who used them. I'm a big believer that once a Vet always a Vet, and Vets don't forget Vets............EVER.

 

[WyrTwister]

WYR Twister Here's a pic of my Garand and the 336c30 I managed to pick up. Garand is a 1955 and the Marlin is a 1981.
In this pick of the Garand there is the BFA installed on the end of the barrel, enableing it to shoot blanks and still cycle.

Both are fine looking rifles . Do not forget to remove the BFA on the Garand , when you shoot live ammo .

God bless
Wyr

 

[Roadking Rider]

My buddies and I always double check each other out on those BFA's and make sure they are removed.

 

[M1894]

Roadking, a good trick used to remember the BFA is to make a sight cover and paint the side faceing the shooter red or else Day Glo Orange, that way you will be able to tell at a glance that the BFA is still installed.

My M1 is a trifle older than yours [1943 Winchester] it was rebarreled with a star guage barrel, and is glass beded for use in competition while I was stationed in England. I was lucky to take ownership prior to 1968 GCA, so was able to ship it back without any problems. It took me two years to locate a BFA for it when I got back.

 

[Roadking Rider]

That my friend is a very good idea. Thanks