Marlin 35 Remington Rifle

T

ThomasT

New member
Well I messed around on GunBroker and won a Marlin 336 in 35 Remington. I have wanted one of these for several years but never found one for a price I was willing to pay. I got this rifle for $380 and $35 shipping. The total with transfer will be $440 and I will have my gun.

Anyone have any opinions on the rifle and the 35 Remington round? Any hunting stories? I haven't bought a new rifle in a while so I am excited about this one. According to the serial number it is a 1991 model. I like the smooth stocks, the sling stud attached to the front band and the side of the receiver is tapped for a peep sight. That scope and see thru rings will be gone as soon as I get my hands on it. Now to order dies, bullets and brass and I am on my way.

http://www.gunbroker.com/item/651466571
 
Brass is sometimes a bugger to get due to being a 'seasonal run' item for the manufacturers...

Once you get your dies etc, here is a page with some 'low level' data that has opened new worlds for me and my inherited 336RC in .35 Rem...

http://www.gmdr.com/lever/lowveldata.htm

Due to the micro-groove rifling, if you are planning on using cast bullets, you should probably start thinking 'fat'...

My .35 Rem likes a minimum of .360" to get tight groups with cast...

Enjoy your gun...
 
I've had a few over the years, still have one. They are a cool round for the guy who wants a lever action and just wants to be different from the 30-30 crowd. A lot of 35 fans will swear it is a better deer and bear killer than 30-30. Not a bit of evidence to support that and in my experience performance on game is identical. Which isn't a bad thing at all when used within it's limitations.

The round has never been particularly popular and in recent years it has slipped even farther. But I think there is enough of a following that there will always be ammo and brass. It just may take a little more effort and I'd advise stocking up when you do find stuff.
 
Thanks for the link Salmoneye. I don't know if I will do a lot of low powered lead loads but you never know... I do spend a lot of time over on leverguns.com reading on light loads, heavy loads and cast bullets in Marlins.

http://www.leverguns.com/ Go to the articles heading. Most know about this site already but some do not.

jmr40 I know its close to the 30-30 but I just want something different and I got this at a really good price. The $380 I won it for was going to be my top bid. I was surprised no one over bid me. Check out the leverguns site at the link I posted and there are loads listed to get a little above the factory loads but how much better they are I can't say.

http://www.leverguns.com/articles/paco/35remington.htm

Midway has Hornady brass, Sierra bullets and Lee three die sets. The Lee dies should be in stock tomorrow and I will make an order. I have a bunch of powder and primers so reloading should be pretty cheap once I have the brass in hand. And somewhere down the road I will have at least one bullet mold. I have over a thousand pounds of lead so having a mold is a good idea.
 
The 35 Remington is slightly faster than the 30-30 with the same weight bullets and is a larger caliber. Even though the paper ballistics don't show a big difference there is a noticeable difference in terminal ballistics at the same range with comparable bullets. It isn't near the 358 Win. or the 35 Whelen but it is an improvement over the 30-30.
 
I like the 35 Rem cartridge. It fits a lot of my short range tree stand hunting spots and puts a good thumping on deer and hog.

Its the only lever gun I have. I use my CVA chambered in it more than the levergun.

Pretty good stock of the Hornady leverevolution out there now online from $21-23 a box.
When 35 Rem was really scarce a few years ago. I bought 260 rds of it, and 400 bullets to reload the cases with sometime way down the rd.
 
Thanks for the suggestion on the leverevolution ammo but frankly I always thought it was gimmick ammo. And I reload so I doubt I will ever buy a single box of factory ammo. I have many guns that since I have owned them have never had a single factory round fired through them.

My goal is to stock up on componants and never rely on store bought factory anything if I can help it. Its why in the last shortage starting in 2008 I never felt the slightest pinch. Sandy Hook was a non issue for me.

If you read the link I posted above on the 35 remington you would have seen that with careful loading the round can be improved a bit. But that is common when dealing with rounds that are over a hundred years old. The factory stuff has to be safe in the weakest gun it could find its way into. Thankfully most antique guns have found their way into collections and will never be fired again.

I don't intend to try and turn this rifle into a 35 Whelen by hotrodding it. The actual factory loads would do for the ranges and areas I hunt. I just like to piddle with my guns and think I have reloaded a superior product no matter if I have or not. Its all part of the game.:)

When 35 Rem was really scarce a few years ago. I bought 260 rds of it, and 400 bullets to reload the cases with sometime way down the rd.
Click to expand...

See? Thats what I'm talking about. You are carrying the fire.;)
 
That looks like a winner.

I like it.

Check for cracks in the wrist and at the back of the tangs. If none present, drive it like you stole it. If there are some present, get it repaired now ... and then drive it like you stole it.

A '91 rifle should be pretty decent, and it looks like that one should be broken in and fairly smooth.


(I like .35 Remington as something to have just to be different, but have not, yet, messed with it. One day... But, for now, I can't comment with real experience.)
 
You got not just a good buy you got a great buy!
Last 35 I found and was considering? the seller wanted 680.00 for a JM pre button 336. Thought it was way to much money at the time and went home to think about it. Next day went back early in the AM to buy. Oops! Sold to someone else the evening before who didn't procrastinate over that 35s price.

I'm not at all disappointed. I still have a 32 special 94 that's pleased me over and over with its down range terminal ballistics in past years.
 
I still have a straight stock model that was made in 1964 and purchased by my father for me that same year. It is the first firearm I ever owned.

It has killed many deer over the years and still shoots as well as ever. It prefers the Rem. 200gr. round nose over the new Hornady Leverevolution. I have reloaded for it in the past but it is the ONLY rifle I own that prefers the factory ammo over anything I have concocted for it.:confused:

It has worn an old Realist scope for most of it's life but I recently upgraded to a Leupold with duplex reticle so that these aging eyes can better see what I'm shooting at. I agree with you about the see-thru rings. I can't stand the things.

Best of luck with your new purchase.
 
Those see thru rings will be gone muy pronto. I tried a set many years ago on a 22 rifle. They were so far out of line I had to use almost all the windage adjustment to zero the gun. They were taken off as soon as I got home and put in my parts box.

I may put that scope on my H&R Handi rifle I have in .223. I have a 2x7 Pro-Staff on the H&R now and if I wanted to scope this gun that should be a good match.

Some don't like scopes on lever guns but I can go either way. I did miss one deer at almost dark once because I couldn't see it in the peep sight I had on the 336 30-30 I was hunting with. A scope may not look that great on a lever action but you can only shoot as well as you can see.
 
Very nice. I have a 1965 Marlin 336 in 35 remington and a 1945 Remington Gamemaster 141 also in 35 Remington. It's a powerful round, but not for super long range. I shot my 1st buck with the Gamemaster when I was 15.
 
That's a super deer killing woods rifle. I have a couple of them with the Ballard rifling and have killed a lot of TN whitetails with the .35 in the 336. I also have killed a bunch of deer with a Rem 760 pump in .35 Remington. I like the cartridge a lot. My favorite load is 37.0g/IMR 3031/200g Rem corlokt. This load came from Ken Waters I think but work up from below in your rifle.
 
TnTnTn I intend to try 3031 powder. I have about a pound of it already. I also have 8 pounds of Accurate 2495, the same thing as IMR 4895 and that is supposed to be a good powder for this case size. I am going to test a few loads and when I have decided on what shoots best I will make a 100 round run and that should hold me for a while. Here are a couple of good videos of Hickok45 shooting a Marlin 336 in 35 remington.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGG6n4UGRGY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifiYkMQ2l5A

I am a fan of the older cartridges. They worked way back when and still work today. From my sig line you can tell I like 30-30s and lever action rifles.
 
The Marlin 336 has great balance and shoulders quite naturally for me. With the iron sights, I am more accurate with the 336 than any of my other rifles.
 
GarandTd I may have to wait on getting the peep site for mine until my gun allowance catches up a little. The cost to get ammo is going to be over $150 when I order 200 bullets, 100 brass and dies. I may have got a good deal on the rifle but I am making up for it on reloading stuff.:mad: But that will last me a long time.

Once I have the brass the shooting will be cheap compared to factory loads.

And if you watched the two videos I posted ole Hickok did all his shooting with open factory sights. So for a while its factory sights for me.;)
 
One of my favorite marlins. The 35 Remington is one of those rounds that just punches above it's weight class when I pig hunt with it.
 
We have one on it's third generation in the family, and it's put a lot of meat on the table since it was made in the 50's.

I like it, low recoiling and I have never shot a deer with it that has gone very far. Leaves a good sized hole with minimal damage to the meat.
 
family favorite back in the day

The .35 Rem chambered in the early 14/141 pumps was a family favorite back in the day. I'm remembering the 200 gr Silvertip was the load of choice.

I've always wanted a Marlin in .35, the longer barreled, half magazine version has always appealed to me, the only one I ever saw in a shop I did not buy, and have regretted it ever since.
 
My Marlin and my Remington are the reason I will start reloading. I bought the dies, and a couple different kinds of bullets. I still need to get a press and all the other stuff. I have 100 brass cases accumulated from commercial ammunition. One I get set up for reloading the 35, I'll start picking away at the other calibers I own.
 
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