Home Forums Lever Action Central Lever Actions - General what to do with marlin 336 in 32 spcl

i have a 1951 marlin 336 in beautiful condtion.I have had for 10 yrs finally shot this year to site in as back up deer rifle and did not shoot acceptible.Idon't expect ragged hole which i get from 444 at 100 yards but a 3-4 inch group i can't handle.

So i could sell and not sleep at night for passing problem off.unless found someone willing to deal with it.

Or maybe rechamber to another caliber if so which one???
I thought about 444 to throw heavy cast being my other is micro grove 1-38 twist.But hate take away from other 444 that i've harvested alot of deer with.

so what is your thoughts???
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Dont rechamber. Try some different loads, and either live with 3 or 4 inch groups or sell.

How clean did you get the bore? How does the crown look?I would also recommend you post this question on Marlin owners forum. (Not exactly this post) just ask about ways to accurize the 336 in 35 rem. You might want to post the rifle for sale there! Another option would be to contact Jim Brockman of Brockmen Rifles in Gooding Idaho. He is a Marlin GUY. Best of luck and let us know how it goes!

That rifle should shoot! There are some common problems with lever action rifles that aren't hard to fix if you like to tinker. The first thing I do is make sure the forend and magazine tube are a little loose. Another thing to check is the butt stock to receiver fit. If the butt stock is loose it will not shoot good.

If you are not interested in trying to fix it yourself you still shouldn't have any problem selling it. There are plenty of people like me who buy rifles like that and do the fixes. I have a 336A 30-30 made in 1949 that was an ugly basket case and it turned into a real shooter. It is still ugly but it has shot several 100 yard 3 shot groups well under an inch.

Yea what Marc says, please don't trash that rifle, it can be fixed.
I have 3 of them and 1" is not rare, 3-4" is.

3-4" group at 100 yards with iron sights is not bad.I have had many Marlins that did no better until I (GASP) drilled and tapped them for a scope.I have always done better with hand loads in the 32 Special.I don`t get why so many people think all lever actions should shoot like a accurized bolt rifle.They just don`t.

First make sure buttstock is tight and bears evenly against receiver on both sides of tang without bearing at rear of tang. Inspect crown for concentricity/damage and freshen if necessary. Make sure bore is free of jacket fouling. Try different loads. My current Marlin .30-30 hates 150 core-lokt factory loads {2.5" 100 yd. groups} but groups 170 Federal power shoks under 1" all day long. Your forearm and mag tube DO NOT need to be loose to shoot good. I don't know where that notion ever came from but it's definitely not true.

ok i'll give rifle a look over probably tomorrow i don't remembr s loose stock but we will see.the barrel is clean

ok thought i should add pics it is a 1949 marlin 32 spcl i guess i rembered wrong.

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ok stock fit looks good and crown look good.I don't expect a ragged hole like bolts but i shoot mostly lever guns and they all shoot better 3-4 inch

Sometimes hard to do much better than 3-4" at 100 yds with factory iron sights. I bet if you mounted a nice Williams or older Lyman receiver sight on the side of that receiver and smaller 1/16" bead or sourdough post front sight your groups would tighten up. I have owned probablly a couple hundred Marlin leverguns over the years and I have never had one from that vintage that would not shoot unless the crown was dinged or the bore fouled/leaded badly.

Try a Williams receiver sight on it.Do a trigger job on it.The butt stock does not have a through bolt it is held on by a bolt through the upper and lower tang.Nothing you can do to the butt stock to enhance accuracy.You have the old style one piece trigger which is super easy to tune.Join these forums and get advice from some of the most knowledgeable folks around on Marlin Lever action Rifles. Link>>>>>>

http://www.marlinowners.com/forum/

Hogwash. The receiver flats on either side of the tang act essentially as your recoil lug. You want even bearing of the stock on both sides and you definitely DO NOT want it teetering on the rear of the tang. Not only will that eventually split your stock but it ruins accuracy as badly as if the action were shucking around in the stock of a bolt gun due to poor inletting/bedding.

I'd start by chucking the crummy factory sights and installing a Williams receiver sight combined with a 1/16 or 3/32" flat faced ivory bead. That alone would likely cut your groups in half.

I agree. Double your sight radius, cover less of the target, and things should look better.

Exactly what I did with my M94 .30-30. It works.

I have many Marlins and none teeter in their butt stock.I have never bedded any .The only time that is of any value is when your butt stock is held on by a through bolt.Adding a through bolt could help,but is hardly worth the trouble of doing.As far as acting as a recoil lug????Are you on drugs???

No I'm not on drugs but I am a gunsmith by profession and have worked on many Marlins over the years. How about yourself ?

Really, where is that? Ahh crickets,thats what I thought.

tbear99, at is a very fine 32spcl. known as a waffle top. from the condition of the outside I'd say if the inside looks as nice I would switch ammo. the 32spcl is coveted and your example would sell in a flash. you could easily get enough for say a new 1895 45-70 or such.
beautiful rifle, love the 3/4 magazine.

That's a 336-A. Do not sell or alter in any way.

Thank you I always liked the rifle.I think weather might allow me to range tomorrow.right now I have both rem and win 170gr.don't remember which ammo I shot earlier I would guess win .I start at 50yard target and have a friend with me to see if it is just me.

I have 2 Marlin 336's in 32 Special. One a micro-groove barrel & the other a waffle top with conventional rifling. Both are outstanding in the accuracy department. I have never even tried jacketed bullets in them. I only shoot cast at full power (2250 fps). I'm sure that your rifle is an excellent shooter with the right load and sights that work for your eyes.

I keep coming back to look at this and it still is gorgeous. fine rifle and I would try some cast in it. be sure it has no leading in it now as that will really impact its accuracy with jacketed.

left with a friend at his range he had sometime this am and told me he got 2.5 to 3inch group so i'm gonna chaulk up to the bad shooting must of been me.i didn't expect 1inch groups but when i got 4 that's getting too big for me

That gun needs to be hunted! You are lucky to have one in .32 Special.

Late the party here, but I'm echoing Wilkes above. I've never hunted in Upstate NY, but that beautiful rifle there should poke holes in deer as it was meant to. Congratulations on having a really great looking and functional piece

Damn, don't spoil that sexy lady! Take her out and dance with her.

I think you should just send it with me so it could take some whitetails from the state of Misery. I might split the shipping with ya.;)

One of my early mentors in deer hunting used a Winchester 94 in .32 Special. Like most 94's, it would shoot groups at 100 yards of about 3-4"....plenty good enough as most of our shots came at 50-75 yards.

He always claimed the .32 Spl. hit harder than the more typical .30-30.....and although I can only say from a half-dozen examples, it really did seem to have an advantage over the .30-30.

In the "real world" a 3-4" group is no disadvantage at the distances the .32 Spl. is intended for (100-125 yards at best)and is probably as good as most can shoot with open sights.

This is NOT a long range rifle.....don't try to make it something that it isn't.

mine is a tack driver with RL7 and a 170gr. rcbs cast boolit. please don't alter that beauty in any way!

I have that rifle coming my way. I have some Hornady 165 gr. FTX ammo waiting on it. Once I get it and some decent weather, I'll take it to the range and see how it performs for me.

Here are the specs. on the ammo. Since this rifle sports a 24 inch barrel as does the Hornady test barrel, should be close.


Test Barrel (24") Velocity (fps) / Energy (ft-lbs)
Muzzle 100 200 300
2410/2128 2145/1685 1897/1318 1669/1020
Trajectory (inches)
Muzzle 100 200 300
-1.50 2.00 0.00 -13.00

you lucky dog! enjoy it.