Marlin Lever purchase.

GameStalker30-06

GameStalker30-06

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Newfoundland
I'm taking the plundge. My dealer has some marlins on the way. One of which I will be buying. 336SS .30-30. Should be in a couple days to a week. I kinda got a hold on it, dealer isn't even going to display it, I got dibs on first look. Which I'm 99.99% sure will be mine. Anyone got any opinions.

They are great lookin levers..Going to be my thick woods moose and black bear rifle. I don't reload, so any ideas on a good factory bullet for the purpose's stated. Will be my first lever and my first .30-30.

Can't wait..Got all summer to play with it.
 
I have one and also sold one.

The 336 SS is a gun for a lifetime of pleasurable shooting and then some IMO

I congratulate you on a great choice !

Once you drop a few animals with it,...you'll become good friends...:)
 
I think its a good choice, Marlin makes a better than average lever rifle. I use 170 grain in mine for more power, the 125 are kind of a girlie round or better suited to a small person or youth. There is no reason why an adult would have issues with recoil. 30.30 is a great bush gun but not well suited for long shots past 150 yards. Too light for moose in my opinion but good bullet for whitetails in early season. For trophy deer and moose I find that I do too much chasing with 30.30, where my 30.06 or bigger drops them on the spot and/or reaches out much further if required.

Between my Sweetie, myself, and hunting buddy and his wife, we take up to 12 whitetails per season, plus draws and other species. We learned really well how not to have to chase them down with holes in them. In my opinion 30.30 170 gr is great for medium size deer and quick bush shooting, but if your looking for larger animals or longer shots, your success rate will be better with a bigger bullet. The Marlin lever is a really well made gun for the price.
 
I am sorry I sold mine (to purchase a pistol) The Marlins are accurate, well made and reliable. You will love it i'm sure.
 
buy it...you won't be sorry..i have a marlin 444 and a cowboy...the cowboy is one of the best, if not the best rifle i own...

BTW.....Levers ARE my only choice as far as rifles go

Gord
 
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Buy it, you won't be dissapointed. I bought and older (1980's) 336 w/smooth wood in 30-30 Aug 2009 off of REMBO and love it!! I just installed a Bushnell fixed 4x scope on her to tighten her already good groups with Winchester 150gr PP's.
I am in agreement with Gord ^ that levers as well as single shots are my firearms of choice.
 
Wow!! Nothing but great all around comments on this. I am going to purchase it, and I'm sure will get good use.

(Fiddler) - I too usually shoot moose with my .30-06. Great round, but mine is a rem 700 BDL SS with a 24'' barrel. Kinda long for one of the areas I hunt in. The reason for the 336, besides an excuse to buy another rifle, is my favourite area to hunt moose is very, very thick woods. most shots to take will be in the area of 50 yards. So, I think I could rest assure to leave my 30-06 home and the 30-30 would be ideal in those close quarters..also, I'm leaving open sites on it. No scope going on this one.
 
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GameStalker30-06 said:
(Fiddler) - I too usually shoot moose with my .30-06
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I've shot several moose with 30.30 and although it works ok at short distances, it does not have the penetration that I prefer to have in a bullet for large animals such as moose. I stopped using 30.30 and went back to the 30.06 after the last one I shot, there was very little damage and I felt the reason it fell over was pure luck. I don't like hunting with minimum power, but thats a personal choice I make. Here in Alberta now, we only get a moose draw once every couple of years unless you want to drive for 10 hours. I want to be certain of a good solid kill at any distance or circumstances.

I really enjoy my 30s in lever action but I find it under powered for serious hunting. I usually start the deer season with my lever action and/or my SKS, but only for the doe tags. Its also my favorite quad gun and its usually what I keep in the back of my pick up truck.

Woolly, We each get one buck tag for whitetails, but also 2 supplemental doe tags for 20 more bucks if we choose. 1 buck + 2 does = 3 tags, x 4 hunters = 12 deer hanging in my shop for butchering. http://i755.photobucket.com/albums/xx194/fiddlesks/pre 09 hunting/PICT0169small.jpg
 
Moose are'nt usually hard to put down, many many a moose have been put down with the 30-30 and many more with cartridges smaller than. Shot placement is a factor and if you reload you make the ultimate moose medicine in that caliber. Mine likes 170gr Hornady and 32grs Win 748.
 
Great choice of rifle. IMHO you can't really go wrong with a 30/30. 170 gr and don't look back. With good shot placement and reasonable range ie: no "hero shots", the 30/30 is good for moose. To be honest, if I could get a lever gun in 35 Whelen I wouldn't own a non-lever gun.
 
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