1897 .22 Marlin lever Rifle Oct Barrel replacement required

[123Ken]

Hello, I recently purchased the above at a Sydney, Australia gun show and it does not have the orginal barrel. (serial number #225215). Everything else looked ok. How do i go about purchasing a 24 inch .22 Octagnal marlin Barrel? Any advice would be much appreciated. Regards Ken

[Hornetb]

Ken, in short...good luck. Don't know if you've noticed but they aren't making them anymore :P

Your chances of getting one in Australia are next to non-existent. There just aren't that many in Australia and I suspect more than a few probably found their way into Johnny Howard's Gun Destruction adventures. Yes, there are a few around (and I mean only a few) but you have to find one that is willing to let the barrel go and for it to be in any decent condition and the chances of that is slim.

You really have to look to the states for one and try and find a used one, and that comes with problems because you need an export permit from the US side (so someone willing to do it and it's expensive, your average seller will risk prosecution to send it without the proper paper work), the import permit this side isn't too hard but getting it out of the states is tricky. You really have to employ the services of an exporter over there and that comes at a cost. Somehow you have to get a used barrel from someone into the hands of someone who has the export paperwork necessary to be able to send it.

I am assuming you want to get it back to original for lever silhouette or something? Otherwise if you need a new barrel consider a Green Mountain Octagonal barrel blank. That barrel that is on it currently starts to look pretty good

What is on there currently?

I have a 97 octagonal that I am going to reline as my bore is toast. It will be a nice gun ones its finished, but if I had to try to find an octagonal barrel for one it's going to be a lot of work and quite expensive. I probably would just let it go if that was the case.

[the judge]

Ken are you sure that the barrel is not original to your gun. I guess what I
mean is why do tou think the barrel is not original to the gun.

[Hornetb]

Glad we could help.