doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com Rock Island Auction

I too love old Marlins and have had several from 22LR to 45-70, all originals and all made in the 1890s. Have tested them with jacketed bullets against equivalent Winchesters in cals 30-30, 38-55 and 45-70.

Without exception the Marlins always shot tighter groups than the Winchesters, sometimes half the size. One takedown 1893 30-30 would consistently shoot 1 MOA with iron sights and both Win and Rem factory loads.(!)

I've had good luck with the 0.377" Barnes bullets when loaded close to max, even in the 0.380"-0.381" Marlin barrels. Apparently they obturate enough to make good contact.
Regards, Joe

You are right Joe......almost caliber for caliber, Marlin rifle bore twists were "stand alone"....not the follower in the late 1800's, as so many gun manufacturers were....

Example: 30-30 Marlin rate of twist 1 in 10....Winchester 1 in 12...
32-40 Marlin & Ballard & .32 HPS Marlin 1 in 16..... Winchester .32 Spl 1 in 16...32-40 1-18
38-55 Marlin & Ballard 1 in 20..... Winchester 1 in 22
45-70 & 45-90 Marlin 1 in 20..... Winchester 1 in 22

Generally Marlin had a little tighter twist which IMO resulted in the accuracy that you speak of.....I see the same thing shooting both Marlin and Winchester in the same caliber, shooting them side by side from the same bench.....

Best...

any of you guys watch the RIA auction on discovery channel yesterday? i think it was at 1:00 PM jeff

I don't get the channel -I don't have that cable/satellite ability here. But I sure would like to see it. What I saw on line is that they moved a lot every 30 seconds. I was amazed.

it was pretty cool showing how they fly all over to look at guns and the people who collect. my buddy just had them pick up about 40 guns a few months ago, every thing went pretty smooth, most estimates were realized. i thought the cost was pretty high, 15%, but when you watch how much they travel it kinda makes sense. jeff

I believe RIA has the less-expensive items grouped in multi-lots in their 'Regional' auction and they reserve the better pieces as individual lots in their 'Premier' auction.

I don't use these type auctions because of the auctioneers' excessive charges, but I have several friends who are frequent participants. We meet once a week for a geezer breakfast to do show-&-tell and talk about everyone else (grin). One of our group is Clarence The Collector, who has been a very frequent auction participant as both buyer and seller and in-person-attendee.

For the last 40 years.

He's on a first-name basis with all the auctioneers and most of their employees, and he is the poster boy for the 'Gun Show Shark' title. I asked him about the auctioneers and their organizations and here's what he said.

"The only honest person I ever knew in the auction business was Terry Dunning and he's retired. He was dead honest but you had to watch his employees."

FWIW Clarence has long been on a first-name basis with such luminaries as George Madis, Larry Wilson and Al Frasca among many others. His auction transactions number in the many, many hundreds if not thousands by now. I tend to believe 90% of what he says but as always YMMV.
Regards, Joe