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What to look for in a 336?

2104 Views 13 Replies 6 Participants Last post by  HerkyBird, 
H
I need to fill a void in my Marlin collection. I own a Model 60, 880SS and XL7. A 336 in .30-30 needs to join the crowd. I know there are a ton of different variations of the 336 out there. What are some of the better ones and are there any I need to avoid? Am I better off buying a new one? Are the older ones better built? Any and all opinions are welcome!
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Mr Fixit
Right now I would not get near a new one until Marlin by Remington gets their act together and starts building them correctly. Plenty of good used Marlins out there depending on what your after. As you say all kinds of variations out there to choose from, however they all have something in common.....They are shooters and reliable. Others will kick in shortly I'm sure. Mr fixit

Edit...BTW Welcome to MarlinOwners!
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gunrunner
With the older ones,theres not a bad one in the bunch. Comes down to what you like.Me? it walnut uncheckered and blue steel all the way in carbine or rifle. But everbodys different.They all are shooters.Get one that looks right to you,you cant go wrong.Gunrunner,,
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H
What seems to be the issue with the newer ones now that Remington has the con?
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gunrunner
Shoot Id like to get into that,but dont have the time ;D check out some of the threads,its jammed guns extra dovetails sloppy fittings cracked forearms bent screws stripped screws bent sights the list goes on.You need to read some of the horror storys.Take care Gunrunner,,
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Mr Fixit
Scroll on down Marlin Rant Forum, although in all honesty I'm not sure if all them problems have made it to the 3030 line up. Mr fixit
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gunrunner
The last one I read was(new Marlin 1894 big problem)
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Brian in FL
If it were me, I'd be looking for a nice pre-safety Marlin 336, anywhere from the late 50's through 1982. The suffixes to look for are 336C and 336RC (regular carbine) in the standard 20" barrel models. If you can find one that's a 336SC (sporting carbine), that would be about the best. It's got a 20" barrel and a 2/3 length magazine tube with a forend cap instead of a barrel band of the standard C's and RC's. They are highly sought after.

If you feel that you need a manual safety, you'll want a 336CS which they started making in 1983. They later changed back to the C designation, and through the mid 2000's they were very finely made. Some are roll stamped just the 336 and no letter suffix. Those are C's. Then there are the Texans with straight grips instead of the standard pistol grips. These are also highly sought after, and they generally fetch higher prices than the standard C's.

I don't want to leave out the Marauders, which were Marlins with 16.5" barrels and the Y, or Spikehorn designation, which are short barreled and with a reduced length of pull.

With the latest, new Marlins they are having some teething problerms with quality control at the Ilion, NY facility they moved to fairly recently.

If I've left anything out, someone will be along to fill in the gaps.
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gunrunner
I like the looks of the longer barrels and half mags,but hardly ever hunt with em. The carbine just feels right in the thick stuff. Brian I might have to see if this one out shoots Crazy Horse for the match. Gunrunner
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Brian in FL
Oh, shoot, I left out the old A's and ADL's with their 24" barrels. I've got a couple of them with old waffle top receivers, not D & T for scope mounting, and they are very sweet shooters indeed.
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MJ
This will just not work.

Your going to need that in 35 rem and 32 also!! ;)
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gunrunner
Ive been biting my lip, trying not to say that MJ ;D But 35s are what Ive been talking about.
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G
HerkyBird, welcome to MO!! From your screen name I would guess you have something to do with C-130's. Any model of 336 is good, just depends what tickles your fancy, long/short barrel, pistol grip/straight grip or blued versus stainless steel. You have a lot of choices to make. Just take your time, all Marlins are great, pick one You like!!. Take care, John.
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H
glockmeister said:
HerkyBird, welcome to MO!! From your screen name I would guess you have something to do with C-130's. Any model of 336 is good, just depends what tickles your fancy, long/short barrel, pistol grip/straight grip or blued versus stainless steel. You have a lot of choices to make. Just take your time, all Marlins are great, pick one You like!!. Take care, John.
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You guessed it. I flew 130s for 3 years at Dobbins ARB in Ga. Now I'm flying T-6s.

I think I'm going to be looking for something with a shorter barrel. I would prefer a straight stock, but pistol grip is ok. Definitely no checkering and I'd love to have something in stainless, but it's not a must. I wouldn't mind refinishing the stock. I've done a couple (an M1 and a Mosin M44). I really enjoyed it and love the way they both turned out. One of the Texans would be nice, but they seem hard to come by. Guess I'll just have to keep my eyes open.
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