[Night Wasp]

After two months aging in my safe, I was finally able to get my newly acquired 1960 336 SC out to the range. It's my first Marlin levergun and it did not disappoint. I think it will become my go-to rifle for whitetails this season. Very smooth and a good shooter by my standards. I'll have to give my Rem Model 7 a break in November.

I started out at 50 yards to dial in my grandfather's old Weaver K4 which I'd affixed to the 336. I was able to get it into a 3 inch ring within about five rounds. I was amazed at how soft shooting this gun was! I'd always figured the .35 to be a kicker, but shooting some old Remington factory rounds, it was really nothing. It actually recoiled less than the .257 Roberts (heavy, long barrel Rem 722) and the .243 (short, light Rem 7) I brought along to shoot as well.

I then moved out to 100 yards and loaded up a full tube of Hornady Leverevolutions. No feeding problems thankfully and it cycled the rounds perfectly. I mixed in some new, factory Remington Core-locks, but couldn't really tell the difference in recoil. Though I noticed that both of these rounds kicked harder than the 30 year-old Remington ammo I'd started out with.

I was surprised though that at 100 yards, I was off quite a bit and had to modify the scope settings (four or five clicks of each) to bring it down and over to center. After about ten rounds, I felt pretty good about it and had my final four shots within about 3 1/2 inches. If I didn't count the 3rd round of this group (a bit of a flyer), it was more like a 2 inch group. Seemed decent to me with a 4X at 100 and for my first outing with the gun.

I'm just wondering now though how it would hit if I moved it back to 50 yards. Seemed to me to be a lot of clicks to get back onto center at 100 yds.
I ran out of time to check it back at 50, but will try it there again next time out. Perhaps it was the old ammo I'd used at 50 to warm up or perhaps it was related to not tightening my group further at 50 before moving out to 100.

Any thoughts?

 

[bigjeepman]

I think you did well with a new-to -you SC. I have a 1961 SC that I still haven't shot : and I bought it last year sometime. I also have a K4 mounted on a '51 336A that I need to shoot and sight in :. So if your Marlin only set in the safe for 2 mos, you're doing pretty good.

As far as sighting in, distances, etc, this is what I would do. Make a decision on what ammo you're going to use on your first whitetail hunt. Think about what you "guesstimate" will be your average distance for a shot at your soon to be dinner fare. Do you think it will be 50, 75, 100, or maybe 125 yards? Naturally, it will be hard to say but I'm betting you have some kind of idea for the terrain you hunt. If you think it will be 75 yards for example but could be more, I'd sight it dead on at 100 yards and practice with it at that distance with the ammo of your choice. After you are shooting consistent groups, say 3" or less, shoot some targets at 50, 75, and 125 yards to see where you are hitting the paper.

I think you will be pleasantly surprised how well you will hit your mark with more practice with the ammo of your choice. If you are not getting consistent 3" groups, you might want to try different ammo. This is my methodology when sighting in for a hunt. It certainly isn't the only way but it has worked for me for a long time. Don't get too caught up reading about 1" groups from other Marlin shooters. Remember, you're hunting whitetail ... not prairie dogs.

bjm

 

[Night Wasp]

Yeah, I probably bit off more than I should have that day. I had the new to me 336, a Model 7 Rem with a new Redfield 2-7x and a Model 722 Rem with a new to it Redfield 3-9x to sight in!

The 336 ran through the 30 year old Remington rounds , the new Remington rounds and the Hornady LEs. I was still pretty happy, but left the range feeling a bit confused having shot three rifles with a variety of ammo. All were hitting fine by the end of the session, but not as tight as I'd hoped and the whole 50 yd vs 100 yd differences left me wondering.

I'll probably use the LEs for hunting if the groups hold tight and like you said, I don't need to hit a quarter at 100 to kill a deer. I thought about that as I "disappointed" myself with a 3 1/2 inch group. That would have been four dead deer at 100.

Throwing out my shortest (15 yard shot) and my longest (180 yard shot) deer kills, my shots have averaged 50 to 60 yards over the past 20 years. I'll dial in at 75. I can't imagine much difference at all +/- 25 yards.

 

[six_gunz]

2 months ??? ;D

Sounds like a winner! Of course what .35Rem isn't?

I have a '61....not and SC, but an RC rather and it is my favorite Marlin....one sweet shooter!! It's peeped, I'm sure I could get better results with a scope, but I'm in minute of deer every shot with the peep.