Home Forums Lever Action Central Rimfire Levers ID & Info ???'s on Marlin 39 D

Back in the late 1970's & very early '80s I worked for a Spt Gds Dist in the Dallas area. The company was well over 100 years old and had moved out of its original downtown location to a new warehouse in a local suburb as the old locations property was worth more than the Company was. Shortly after I was hired I found lots of dibs & dabs of leftover discontinued fishing tackle & gun related items during the annual January Inventory audit ...and a open case of Marlin 39's stuck in the back of the Gun Room that had never been inventoried ...but were on the Gun Log. After the Audit I asked for a price on all 4 guns and was told I could not have all of them, but I could pick one out and buy it for $75 since I was the one who found them. Company Officers all gobbled up the other 3 guns.

I've never seen another 39D in the 11 years I spent in the firearms industry as a regional rep from '77 thru '88 and was wondering if any info was available on age, value etc. Mine is/has always been a super accurate shooter in 98%+ coondition - one minor hard to see blem on left side of receiver - and has an excellent heavily figured walnut butt stock, the fore stock is straight grained and both are unmarked or bruised . SR # is 27143XXX, 20" barrel with a full length magazine tube, pistol grip and uncheckered stock.

I'd planned on possibly squirrel hunting this year with this gun in a really rough area, but am getting cold feet about using it except at the range or as a plinker. Only other 22lr on hand is a Ruger 10/22 Sporter I found at dealer in 1978 stuck in a pile of custom ordered #1's that has a Walnut AAA++ Fancy grain and overlayed with a Tiger Stripe on both sides bright enough to look like it was painted on with dayglo paint...and shot as always like crap compared to the Marlin the last time it went to the range in 1986.
Any info on Marlin would be appreciated.
Ron

Your rifle was made in 1973. From what I can gather, the 39 "D" was made in 1971 and then in 1973. That's it. Something like 25,000 (plus or minus)rifles were made. The 1971 rifles had white line spacers at the grip cap and butt plate. The 1973 guns dropped that feature. The "D" models may have been the only model 39's with a barrel band, I think.

They are basically Model 39 Mounties (short barrel)with a pistol grip.

I don't know much else, and only recently looked into these because I just sent off for one made in 1971. If it is in as good of shape as I am led to believe, I am going to keep it and shoot the heck out of it. Probably put a peep sight on it too.