Marshal Chance Morgun Posted June 21, 2018 Share Posted June 21, 2018 Widder, seems a little odd that she wouldn't try to sell it here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sedalia Dave Posted June 21, 2018 Share Posted June 21, 2018 Not saying the just released rifles do or don't have some issues but just for curiosity how many NIB JM stamped Marlins would have held up to our kind of shooting without some gunsmithing? Wonder how many sellers have been hanging onto to rifles manufactured during the transition waiting for Marlin to start back up production so they can finally sell rifles that they couldn't sell before due to poor quality control. For quite a while there were almost no .357 Marlins for sale and now that Marlin is starting up production suddenly they are everywhere being sold as "Like New" vice New or NIB? Makes me wonder if I am buying actual 2018 production or a rifle that has been sitting for 3 or 4 years in the hopes of finally being able to unload it. The sad truth is that Marlin lever actions were on a down hill slide before being bought by Remington. Most parts would no longer interchange without work and several design changes have been made through the years that are very poorly documented. Had they not been bought out I suspect that we would be telling folks not to by JM Marlins with a date code higher than X because of poor workmanship. Sadly Marlin lever guns had to be hand fitted because they failed to keep their tooling and drawings up to date. Remington essentially bought a pig in a poke and has paid dearly for it. I know of several people that only shoot .357 brass because their JM Marlin will not reliably feed 38 specials. Widder made a name for himself by developing a modification that will allow a Marlin to reliably shoot several different lengths of brass. Before that Marlins could be just a finicky as 92's about OAL. Even some NIB 73's will not reliably feed 38's without some work and most 73 clones will eat themselves without smoothing up the internals. Most CAS shooters are 10,000 times harder on their guns than the manufacturer ever intended. We shoot tens of thousands of rounds through guns engineered to shoot a few thousand rounds over the life of the gun. My view from the cheap seats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. John Campbell, SASS #58165 Posted June 23, 2018 Share Posted June 23, 2018 Despite all the naysayers and folks that will bash any rifle that does not begin with 1873 (and the obligatory trip to the gunsmith to make it work "properly for the game"), I am thrilled to finally see Marlin getting the 1894C carbines back on the market. I put one on layaway, and will pay it off in the next month or so. Quality wise, judging from the several 1894's I've seen and handled locally, in .44 Magnum and .45 Colt, I think it will be a pretty nice rifle. I already have a Marlin 1894CB, and I've been looking for a 1894C for some time, as the girlfriend is taking up CAS, and needs a lighter rifle to use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jefro, SASS#69420 Posted June 23, 2018 Share Posted June 23, 2018 On 6/20/2018 at 1:29 AM, Lou Graham, # 26112 said: It would be good to have Marlins for Cowboy on the market again so I hope they have really figured it out this time. Yep, let's hope so. If not may be a good time for Uberti or Mirouko to start making them right from the start...... At least I can dream Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irish Pat Posted June 23, 2018 Share Posted June 23, 2018 I purchased a new 1894 limited edition with the engraving and gold marlin cowboy and custom stock. I took Lumpy Grits advice and changed out the ejection part he suggested and runs fine in 45. It is beautiful. I have two 73s and two 66. Cody did a 73, PGW a 66, and Nate Kiowa Jones did the other 66. The new Marlin works just fine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jabez Cowboy,SASS # 50129 Posted June 24, 2018 Share Posted June 24, 2018 Folks the New Rem/ Marlins can be made to run in this game, IF you a willing to pay a smith for about 20 hours of his time and $ 35-60 for parts ... Jabez Cowboy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tuco Taveras SASS#79313 Posted June 26, 2018 Share Posted June 26, 2018 Didn't Remington have a safety issue on their bolt action rifles for years.???????are these the same people producing the marlins now????I have seen their marlin lever .45-70s not good. big difference between the jm marked one and the later ones......I hope they got some new QC guys in...….They had the old marlin tooling but who put it together ??????Might help talking to some one who tunes them for cowboy...….Tuco…... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. John Campbell, SASS #58165 Posted June 27, 2018 Share Posted June 27, 2018 Got a chance over the weekend to handle and look over a new Marlin 1894C at one of the local gunshops (of course I find one local after putting one on layaway on-line). Fit and finish were pretty good on it, and the wood looked pretty good on it as well. It's still not as nice as the original Marlin wood, but not bad. With a good cleaning, lubing, and working the action, would be a good rifle for anyone looking for an inexpensive rifle to purchase to get into the sport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jabez Cowboy,SASS # 50129 Posted June 27, 2018 Share Posted June 27, 2018 The problems start when you actually try and fire them ... Then more problems when you run them fast .... I did one for a Client 2 years back the trigger pull was 29 pounds out of the box ,,, I though the trigger might break before she fired , I used my son's fishing scale to test it as none of my trigger scales goes higher than 14 pounds ... Jabez Cowboy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warden Callaway Posted July 3, 2018 Author Share Posted July 3, 2018 On 6/19/2018 at 10:08 PM, Marshal Chance Morgun said: Hey Widder, There is one on GB that the seller states you worked on. Is this the one you are talking about? I watched it sale. One bid $1,150.00. Plenty good price for a JM Cowboy 357 with Widder action job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Widder, SASS #59054 Posted July 3, 2018 Share Posted July 3, 2018 In regards to the Remington made Marlins, I can add this bit of info. Last week, a Pard gave me his JM Marlin, of which he had installed a new Extractor (from Remington). The rifle wouldn't work with the new Extractor. Or I should say, it wouldn't feed very well and every cycled round seem to be a 'tug of war' trying to get it to feed. It was so sad. The Extractor didn't fit in the hole correctly because Remington had beefed up the bottom area too much that it wouldn't pivot ANY. I had to remove some of the bottom portion of that new Extractor and round it off on the bottom before it would function in his JM Marlin. All is well now........ .....But it made me feel sorry for others who are probably dealing with similar situations. And I feel sorry for those Remington guys who either don't know what they are doing or don't care. Anyhow, that is my most recent encounter. And that is just another reason why I no longer work on Marlin's. Even aftermarket pards can give you a headache. ..........Widder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warden Callaway Posted July 3, 2018 Author Share Posted July 3, 2018 I've been reading on the Marlin Owners forum lately and check the comments being made about the latest Marlins coming out of Remington. I don't buy the logic. People are willing to buy them - even with faults they see - because they want to encourage Marlin to keep making guns. That makes as much sense as watching the latest crop of incredibly awful western movies just because they may stop making incredibly awful western movies. Some have looked at the latest Marlins at the local gun store and made comments that included, "The action was incredibly stiff. I guess that's a good thing.". People are trying too hard to love these ugly babies. There are still JM Marlins out there. On GB right now there is a new RM Marlin 1894c with a starting bid on $789.00. There is also a 1893c JM that looks near 100%, made in 2003, with a buy now of $800. If the RM was $399 and the JM $1,399, then I'd have to think about it. But at $11 difference, there is no thinking involved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. John Campbell, SASS #58165 Posted July 4, 2018 Share Posted July 4, 2018 What I really want to see is one of you folks go out and buy a stock 1873, and actually use it in a match. I'm talking no action work, no short stroking, straight out of the box. Of course, that will never be done, because every cowboy action shooter knows that these rifles require an action job, a short stroke kit, enlarged sights, lightened carriers, laser engraving, and whatever other "necessary" modifications everyone does to them...before even firing a round of ammo through them. Not everybody in this sport is a retired person with thousands of dollars to spend on a new rifle. Some people are actually on a budget, and it would really be nice if those people were able to purchase a rifle for use in this sport, without taking out second mortgage on their home. There are not too many choices on the current market for such a rifle, either you purchase a new Henry Big Boy, or you purchase a Marlin 1894. Remember, Rossi is no longer producing their 1892 rifles for the US market. Some people would be amazed at just how simple it is to smooth out a new rifle, without involving a gunsmith in the process. Just cleaning the rifle thoroughly, then lubricating it, then sitting in front of the TV and cycling the action 200 to 300 times will do wonders to smooth out an action. This is the old fashioned tried and true way of doing this, and works well on almost every firearm that it is done on. Should we just let Marlin discontinue the 1894 line because you people don't like it? Would that be doing a service to people trying to purchase firearms for this sport without breaking the bank in the process of doing so? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jabez Cowboy,SASS # 50129 Posted July 4, 2018 Share Posted July 4, 2018 Some of the problems are not about just not smooth,, Like new guns with an EXTRA 55 Thou. Headspace over SAMMI max ... Cracked levers , Triggers that won't drop the hammer till the lever is opened... ( just a little ) Thank-fully we still can get 92s up here ... Jabez Cowboy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Widder, SASS #59054 Posted July 4, 2018 Share Posted July 4, 2018 1 hour ago, Sgt. John Campbell, SASS #58165 said: Should we just let Marlin discontinue the 1894 line because you people don't like it? Would that be doing a service to people trying to purchase firearms for this sport without breaking the bank in the process of doing so? "......you people....." are those of us who are sharing personal experiences and trying to give honest information to our fellow Cowboy shooters in order for them to make wiser choices before spending their money. Some of us still think its an honorable thing to do. Should those of us who have tried to work on these new Marlins just sit back, keep quiet, and allow our fellow shooters to buy into something that we are aware 'might' not work well, or even work at all. The 1st Remlin I worked on had the portal (the receiver portion between the mag tube and carrier) drilled straight thru and allowed the magtube follower to push thru onto the carrier at the last round and prevented the action from working. The front part of that portal was suppose to be slightly funneled to stop the magtube follower at a specific spot. This was temporarily shimmed with a round piece of brass until a good machinist could weld it up and drilled that portal correctly. I think we have a responsibility to share info concerning good products and bad products when we are ask for this information. I like Marlins. I shoot Marlins in our Cowboy competition. But when others ask about quality, I haven't haphazardly spread any 'hearsay' gossip about them..... I have shared my personal experiences with them. And my personal experiences with the Remlins I have encountered isn't good. The last Remlin I worked on was a New rifle (1894) and got the Marlin Jam on the very first 2 rounds. It was horribly put together. Should I not share this information when ask? ..........Widder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roscoe Regulator Posted July 4, 2018 Share Posted July 4, 2018 Hard to call a match "fun", when your rifle isn't working. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Original Lumpy Gritz Posted July 4, 2018 Share Posted July 4, 2018 10 hours ago, Widder, SASS #59054 said: "......you people....." are those of us who are sharing personal experiences and trying to give honest information to our fellow Cowboy shooters in order for them to make wiser choices before spending their money. Some of us still think its an honorable thing to do. Should those of us who have tried to work on these new Marlins just sit back, keep quiet, and allow our fellow shooters to buy into something that we are aware 'might' not work well, or even work at all. The 1st Remlin I worked on had the portal (the receiver portion between the mag tube and carrier) drilled straight thru and allowed the magtube follower to push thru onto the carrier at the last round and prevented the action from working. The front part of that portal was suppose to be slightly funneled to stop the magtube follower at a specific spot. This was temporarily shimmed with a round piece of brass until a good machinist could weld it up and drilled that portal correctly. I think we have a responsibility to share info concerning good products and bad products when we are ask for this information. I like Marlins. I shoot Marlins in our Cowboy competition. But when others ask about quality, I haven't haphazardly spread any 'hearsay' gossip about them..... I have shared my personal experiences with them. And my personal experiences with the Remlins I have encountered isn't good. The last Remlin I worked on was a New rifle (1894) and got the Marlin Jam on the very first 2 rounds. It was horribly put together. Should I not share this information when ask? ..........Widder Ya-What Widder said, x100 Facts-They be stubborn things........... OLG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tennessee williams Posted July 4, 2018 Share Posted July 4, 2018 18 hours ago, Sgt. John Campbell, SASS #58165 said: What I really want to see is one of you folks go out and buy a stock 1873, and actually use it in a match. I'm talking no action work, no short stroking, straight out of the box. Of course, that will never be done, because every cowboy action shooter knows that these rifles require an action job, a short stroke kit, enlarged sights, lightened carriers, laser engraving, and whatever other "necessary" modifications everyone does to them...before even firing a round of ammo through them. Not everybody in this sport is a retired person with thousands of dollars to spend on a new rifle. Some people are actually on a budget, and it would really be nice if those people were able to purchase a rifle for use in this sport, without taking out second mortgage on their home. There are not too many choices on the current market for such a rifle, either you purchase a new Henry Big Boy, or you purchase a Marlin 1894. Remember, Rossi is no longer producing their 1892 rifles for the US market. Some people would be amazed at just how simple it is to smooth out a new rifle, without involving a gunsmith in the process. Just cleaning the rifle thoroughly, then lubricating it, then sitting in front of the TV and cycling the action 200 to 300 times will do wonders to smooth out an action. This is the old fashioned tried and true way of doing this, and works well on almost every firearm that it is done on. Should we just let Marlin discontinue the 1894 line because you people don't like it? Would that be doing a service to people trying to purchase firearms for this sport without breaking the bank in the process of doing so? Well, yeah it'd save them money wouldn't it. Hypothetical numbers here. JM marlin for 800 that will fire every round. Remlin for 700 that you may have to spend 250 on to fire every time. I'd rather save that extry 150, since I'm not retired and have the extra thousands to spend on a rifle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warden Callaway Posted July 5, 2018 Author Share Posted July 5, 2018 Being Independence Day, gets me to thinking about freedom. One of the aspects of freedom is principal of free enterprise. Companies compete with goods and services that drive the economy. Good businesses survive or even thrive. Bad businesses fold. If we eat in a cafe and we don't like the food or service, we just don't go back. If it's really bad, we'll tell others and they will avoid that business. If the food is good and service is good, we'll be back and tell others. That's how it works. I've had a love affair with Marlins for 40 years. We have more than I can account for in my head. I like the old ones and have more than a few that are pre-JM - 100 years old and older. Another bunch that are pre-safey JM. And more yet that are safety JM. But I've yet to hold a RM Marlin that I'd buy. I hope they change because lord knows I need another Marlin 1894. Just a bit ago I did a search on GB for Marlin 1894s. There were just over 150 listings. Exactly 75 were used. Of those many were clearly described as JM. There were about 70 listed as new and the balance new old stock. If you ignored collector models and rare ones like 41 and 32 magnums, the prices of new RM Marlins fell real close to the prices of really nice looking used JM Marlins. Several used JM 44 Magnum carbines had starting prices in the $400-500 range. We have a choice. Even those on a budget can find a JM 1894 44 Magnum at a good price. I know because we've bought 3 pre-safey Marlin 1894 44 Magnum in past two years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warden Callaway Posted August 3, 2018 Author Share Posted August 3, 2018 Mary and I took a road trip today and hit four gun shops. One had a Marlin 1894S 44 Magnum carbine RM made. It's the first one I've handled that the fit of the wood to metal was very good. The wood was even nicely figured. I couldn't see any flaws in the exrerior metal work. The crowning of the muzzle was correct. I just opened and closed the action and it was stiff. Price was $680. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chili Ron Posted August 3, 2018 Share Posted August 3, 2018 Howdy, My sister wants a marlin, I told her to wait a bit. She thinks the ones in the stores are like mine.....hahahaha. They might actually get some workin right, yet. Best CR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warden Callaway Posted August 3, 2018 Author Share Posted August 3, 2018 Local gun shop got in a JM Marlin 1894 357 carbine today. He posted it on his website and it is already spoken for. $599.00. There are some out there but you have to be quick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunner Gatlin, SASS 10274L Posted August 3, 2018 Share Posted August 3, 2018 Sure is nice looking - clean to boot: https://www.marlinfirearms.com/lever-action/model-1894/model-1894cb-45-colt GG ~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Original Lumpy Gritz Posted August 3, 2018 Share Posted August 3, 2018 36 minutes ago, Gunner Gatlin, SASS # 10274 said: Sure is nice looking - clean to boot: https://www.marlinfirearms.com/lever-action/model-1894/model-1894cb-45-colt GG ~ Ain't CGI impressive..... OLG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunner Gatlin, SASS 10274L Posted August 3, 2018 Share Posted August 3, 2018 1 minute ago, The Original Lumpy Gritz said: Ain't CGI impressive..... OLG I reckon. GG ~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warden Callaway Posted September 11, 2018 Author Share Posted September 11, 2018 We just got in from a run to MidwayUSA to get a few items. On return, we stopped in at nice gunshop. They had a Marlin 1894CS in the racks so I took time to handle it. The wood fit around the action is very adequate. No gaps or jumps. The forend wood around the band and reciever is not rounded and blended as before - just a butt fit. The checkering was very lavish and generous. But obviously laser cut. It would be attractive to some but leaves me a bit cold. The metal finish looked ok. I opened and closed the action. VERY STIFF and rough. Sawmill Mary came around and I showed it to her. I said, "Now, open the action.". She made a push on the lever and it didn't move. She had to pull it down to anchor against her hip to get it open and closed. She made a face. "That'll never do.", she says, and hands it back to me to put back on the rack. I told the store owner it took me back 60 years when I had a Daisy BB gun and would have to hook the but under my leg to cock it. He agreed. Price was $669.00. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. John Campbell, SASS #58165 Posted September 20, 2018 Share Posted September 20, 2018 Well, I just picked up my new Marlin 1894C from my local gun shop. Had it on layaway, and just paid it off last week. Straight out of the box, obviously is still has the factory oil on it from shipping, but the wood on it looks good (still not up to the standards that Marlin had for wood, but Remington has never been known for good looking wood). The fit and finish look good on it, as does the bluing job on the rifle. Trying out the lever, mine must have something wrong with it, because it levers very smoothly, and can be done with one finger (even with my pinky finger). Got it home, and loaded some dummy rounds into the magazine to check out the action. All cycled well, no hangups, and all ejected well (one nice little pile...not all over the place). Next step is to take it apart and give it a good cleaning, then re-lube it, and start to work the action a few hundred times to break it in. I'm very satisfied with this rifle, and am looking forward to putting some rounds downrange with it. Based off my rifle, this would be an excellent rifle for anyone in the market for a new .38 Caliber rifle...without breaking the bank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warden Callaway Posted September 20, 2018 Author Share Posted September 20, 2018 11 minutes ago, Sgt. John Campbell, SASS #58165 said: one nice little pile...not all over the place I like that about Marlins! We shoot with someone with a Uberti 73 that scatters cases over a 10' radius. Front, back and side to side. It's like an Easter egg hunt! Encouraging report. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maddog Al Posted September 20, 2018 Share Posted September 20, 2018 I use a Marlin 95octagon in 44 for sass,. Made in 1976. Was my parents. I had to clean all the action to get rid of allot hangups. I also have a 1 year old 1895c in 45-70. Before I even shot it I worked the inside to smooth the action. That thing is a tac driver and had no problem dropping a black bear. Maybe my new remlin is a Wednesday made one. But like most guns I have owned or still own. I prefer the older craftsmanship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. John Campbell, SASS #58165 Posted September 20, 2018 Share Posted September 20, 2018 Playing around with my rifle a bit more tonight. Have been trying out different dummy rounds in it, to how they function. Found out that not only does it like TC bullets, but it will also cycle LSWC bullets reliably as well. Also, it's not being length sensitive at all, with standard length .38 rounds, or my regular CAS .38 rounds loaded to 1.5" (which are needed to run my 1894 CB reliably and without hiccups). Oh, and before anyone asks, yes it does have Ballard Rifling, and not Micro-Groove. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Original Lumpy Gritz Posted September 20, 2018 Share Posted September 20, 2018 11 hours ago, Sgt. John Campbell, SASS #58165 said: Playing around with my rifle a bit more tonight. Have been trying out different dummy rounds in it, to how they function. Found out that not only does it like TC bullets, but it will also cycle LSWC bullets reliably as well. Also, it's not being length sensitive at all, with standard length .38 rounds, or my regular CAS .38 rounds loaded to 1.5" (which are needed to run my 1894 CB reliably and without hiccups). Oh, and before anyone asks, yes it does have Ballard Rifling, and not Micro-Groove. The very first thing you need to do today-go out and buy a handful of Lotto tickets. You have the luck go'n on........ OLG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. John Campbell, SASS #58165 Posted September 22, 2018 Share Posted September 22, 2018 This morning I took some time to clean the barrel on my new rifle, prior to taking out to the range. Just got back from the range, and I am absolutely blown away by this rifle! Wasn't able to sight it in properly, as it was a local unimproved range, so couldn't really set up a target stand. I shot 100 rounds through the rifle, all .38 Special 158gr LSWC bullets...without a single glitch, hiccup, or bobble of any kind on the rifles part. For the last twenty rounds I went through, was just working it as fast as I could...while trying to hit something at the same time (no sense shooting at thin air). Needless to say, this little rifle is a shooter, and a smooth one at that. Was plinking away at targets of opportunity on the range, and was hitting them on a pretty regular basis. Once I actually get the sights set on this, it will be a very nice little shooter (of course, have to set it up with my regular match load when I do so). Was able to pop the occasional bottle at 50 yards, when I slowed down and did my part of taking a good aim (standing, free hand, like we do at matches). For those of you who have nothing good to say about the new batch of Marlin's, I say, try one before you talk bad about them...you may just end up extremely surprised. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, these are an excellent rifle for someone who is just getting into the sport and wants a quality rifle at an affordable price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jabez Cowboy,SASS # 50129 Posted September 22, 2018 Share Posted September 22, 2018 I have tried out 6 "New Grimlims" And they Ranged from Rough but would function with at least one load ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, to pure Garbage ... I have made 3 of the six into pretty good CAS rifles ,,,, Three were so bad that I told the owners I would not Bother to work on them ... One had 55 thousands of excessive headspace and 29 pound trigger pull ... The 3 worse were taken back to the Store where they were bought ... Jabez Cowboy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.