35 remington obsolete?

[Ed L.]

Luckily I found two mint LNIB JM stamped ( non- Remington made) Marlin 336c in 35 Remington for sale at GB from private parties and bought both. One was W/S&FFL $585 the other $565. I felt both were fair and acceptable prices.

When I got both I was quite frankly shocked at just how beautiful and elegant these two rifles were. I own VERY few wood stocked blued rifles and these JM stamped Marlins were by far the nicest looking rifles I own The walnut furniture was beautifully done and the checkering was excellent. The bluing was very very rich and very deeply colored. Was also very surprised at the triggers on both rifles. Equal to my Tikka's and M700's they aren't but very crisp and near zero OT and about 4.5lbs.

You are absolutely right about the quality of the wood and the gun. My first gun was a Marlin 336C in .35 Remington. This was back in the late 1970s and I was a kid. I really liked that gun and felt that with it I was ready for anything that I could possibly face in NY State--be it black bears or burglars. There is a special feeling in getting your first gun. The gun has long since been traded. A bit over a year ago I found a Marlin 336C of a somewhat older vintage in a gunstore in 30-30 and bought it. This was perfect for me since I don't reload and 30-30 ammo is more available that .35 Marlin. The gun had absolutely beautiful bluing and stocks. The gun reminds me of a time when life was simpler and easier--a time when most guns came with nice wooden stocks. Here is apicture of the gun:

[e z money]

Here is a close up look at my Marlin stocks as an example of some of the wood they used over the years. The top rifle is a '78 walnut stock with Mar-sheild finish. Mar-sheild is an electrostatically applied lacquer finish that they used in the mid-late '70's, I'm not sure exactly when they started and stopped using it. I've always thought the late '70's were some of the most beautiful Marlin rifles. Some people don't like Mar-sheild.

The rifle in the middle is an '89 30AS, It's the budget model, that did not have walnut furniture. I think its birch wood. Very similar to the Glenfield Marlin rifles and other store brands. I think Western Auto and K-mart were some of the store brands. They are great rifles 100% JM Marlin and even though they were budget versions, now are sought-after by some collectors because they are believed to be more accurate because they have only one barrel band, unlike the regular carbine that has two barrel bands. I like my 30 AS just as much as my other Marlins. It has the smoothest action I've ever seen in a lever action rifle. It feels like the bolt is sliding through butter.

The rifle on the bottom is a '50 SC 35 rem with a walnut stock. It is an example of the finish that were on JM rifles from the '50's to the early '70's

[AndyLate]

Wow, EZ, the top rifle stock is gorgeous! The rifle on the bottom is more typical of my Marlin stocks and honesty more typical of all my walnut stocks. I want to say my 1971 336 has a poly finished stock, my 1964 336 has an oil finish. Pretty sure both were factory finishes.

Andy