Anybody else shoot or hunt with a Model 39 lever action Marlin .22?

[Mustangs Rule]

Anybody else shoot or hunt with a lever action Marlin Model 39 .22 ?

I bought mine near 50 years ago and have hunted every type of small game with it, marmots, ground squirrels, cottontails, forest grouse, mountain quail.

Even shot some sitting ducks with it and retrieved them with a fishing pole.

I have used it with Lyman peep sights and also a 3x old Weaver scope. The front sight was on a ramp and I had a gunsmith hand file a dovetail grove in the barrel to install a lower front sight,

With the .22 rimifre market ruled by the Ruger 10/22 not many have chosen the model 39 but in days gone by it was a premium .22 long gun, with almost target level accuracy.

 

[TN2shot07]

I don’t currently have one but have had two. Neither one would’ve been considered collector grade but they were fun to shoot and both were as accurate as i was.

The 10/22 will continue to rule because of the aftermarket support it receives, you can literally build one into almost any configuration.

Henry pretty much rebuilt their business with the 22 lever action so there’s still hope!

 

[BAKPAKR]

I have one that I really like.

Edit based on the post by @BrentD below - I have a 39A, not a 39.

 

[Red-Team 98]

Marlin 39 Mountie
Late 50’s early 60’s model
Sure is a tact driver my first rifle
Love that rifle !

My other 22
Browning 22 Auto early 70’s model
Great shooter

 

[BrentD]

Do you guys have model 39 or model 39A Marlins? There is an important difference. 39s can be easily damaged with modern high velocity ammo. They are fine with subsonic stuff, but not the speedy stuff you see on the shelves most often.

Maybe this is all old news, in which case, my apologies.

Best rabbit rifle ever made (circa 1951).

 

[Schism]

I have a Marlin 39 D given to me by my dad. He bought it new many decades ago and it was the first rifle I learned to shoot. My son is now learning to shoot that same rifle.

I couldn't begin to guess how many rounds have been fired through that rifle but it's many 10's of thousands.

 

[howl]

No, I'm slumming it with a Henry. We all wanted a Marlin growing up, but it was out of reach. Model 60s on the other hand were $50, used.

 

[Gut Shot]

My dad's first gun was a 39A. What a wonderful rifle. I had it for years until my brother decided he had to have it. I believe it was made in the late 1940's.

 

[nhenry]

I grew up shooting two, a Mountie and a long barreled 39a. I have the long barreled one and my sister has the mountie. It’s my squirrel/rabbit/prairie chicken gun

 

[millerkiller77]

I've been looking for a reasonably priced 39a for years...

 

[BrentD]

I've been looking for a reasonably priced 39a for years...

the prices seem totally nuts now. I paid $200 for mine 25ish yrs ago. But it wasnt that long ago I saw them for $500.

See if you can get this one bought. The seller says it is a 1951 make. That would give it an H serial number (as is my own). Any gun from about 1948ish to 1956ish is a premium, best 39a.

 

[millerkiller77]

the prices seem totally nuts now. I paid $200 for mine 25ish yrs ago. But it wasnt that long ago I saw them for $500.

See if you can get this one bought. The seller says it is a 1951 make. That would give it an H serial number (as is my own). Any gun from about 1948ish to 1956ish is a premium, best 39a.

Do you have a link?

 

[BrentD]

Do you have a link?

Yeah, but being a moron, I forgot it

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/975069565

 

[millerkiller77]

Yeah, but being a moron, I forgot it

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/975069565

Thanks for the heads up

 

[BrentD]

God luck but don't post your max bid on line!

 

[millerkiller77]

That was a brain

God luck but don't post your max bid on line!

That was a brain fart

 

[BAKPAKR]

Thanks for the heads upView attachment 267998

In for $500.01!!!

 

[millerkiller77]

In for $500.01!!!

So it was you!

No biggie, I'd be surprised if this goes for less than 850

 

[BAKPAKR]

So it was you!

No biggie, I'd be surprised if this goes for less than 850

I probably paid more for mine than I should have a few years ago after getting caught up in an end-of-auction bid war. It appears likely that I could get my money back now (albeit, in inflated dollars).

 

[David58]

Learned to shoot with one.

David
NM