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Did a little swapping and ended up with another circa 1972 Marlin First Model "444T" . This is another one of those things that according to Marlin was never made !
Seems I have 3 of those not made items now (one from 64 and two from 72)
Gun came with a Marlin 800A 1 3/4-5x scope in see thru mounts . I changed out the mounts for a long Weaver 63B base and a set of new Weaver rings , gonna need and find a couple more sets of the old big thumb wheel Weaver rings to dress this one up a bit more !
Also have some stuff loaded with the new Ranch Dog 432-240GC to try in this one . I am thinking this may be the Ranch Dog 432-240GC rifle !
Loaded 15 of the RD 432-240 with 46 grains of H4198 and another 15 with 52 grains of H322 .
Also loaded up 15 rounds of the Lyman 429434 with 52 grains of H322 just for fun !
We'll see how it does at the range wednesday provided the weather is good !
Last edited by 6pt-sika on Tue Mar 20, 2012 9:37 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Parkers , Mannlicher Schoenauer’s , 6.5mm's and my family in the Philippines !
The other 72 444T I have is in very nice shape . But this one is even nicer . Other then a bruise in the grip area there isn't a mark in the wood and no scratches on the metal . The Marlin scope is even crystal clear . Whoever originally got this one must have kept it in a closet or safe for a good portion of it's time !
Incidently both of the 1972 "444T's" I have , came from North Carolina and I missed out on another that was in that state as well !
So far now I think I know of 6 or 7 circa 1972 "444T's" .
Parkers , Mannlicher Schoenauer’s , 6.5mm's and my family in the Philippines !
Because I Can, and Have
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USAF-72-76
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Disclaimer, not responsible for anyone copying or building anything i make.
Always consult an expert first.
Nice grab ! I sorta wonder, though................. That rifle looks exactly like the new .444 I bought, just about a year after I got outta the service in 1966 - but I don't remember it being stamped "444-T" like your is.
What I'm "wondering" is, do I have CRS, or were the early ones un-"T"'d ?
Also, I'm wondering what the "T" indicates on those .444's, because IIRC, Marlin was already using the "T" to indicate the short barreled (18"-20") Texan Model 336's - and AFAIK,straight-grip/montecarlo .444's all had 24" bbls until the advent of the 22" bbl'd PG Sporter.
Maybe the .444's shoulda been marked "ST" (Super Texan).
Pete44ru wrote:...I'm wondering what the "T" indicates on those .444's, because IIRC, Marlin was already using the "T" to indicate the short barreled (18"-20") Texan Model 336's
OK - I'm one of the ignorant ones here.
What DOES the "T" designation mean? Is it indeed indicative of a shorter barreled model of the standard .444??
Look closer at this rifle the lever is squared instead of rounded in the back . Of the 18 or so of these I have the only years they had squared bolts were in late 1970 , 1971 and 1972 . And the only years they were rollstamped "444T" was in 1971 and 1972 . At the moment I have 5 rifles from 1970 four of those have the Medallion in the stock and one with the higher serial number does not it also has the squared lever . The highest 1970 medallion gun I own also has the square lever which leads me to believe they used up all the rounded ones and went to the square lever in late 1970 .
As to the 444T as I said the only ones that were actually roll stamped as far as I know were made in 71 and 72 . Now not all the 1971 rifles are rollstamped 444T either as the three I have from 1971 only one has the "444T" stamp . Also on the 444T rifles the front sights are dovetailed in the barrel while on the not stamped 1971 rifles and before have a ramp thats was attached with two screws .
The "T" in the 444T was supposed to stand for "Texan" just like on the 336T which could be had in 30-30 , 35 REM and 44 MAG . Although to the best of my knowledge even though Marlin in their catalog called these short barreled 336's the model 336T or 336 Texan nothing of the sort was ever stamped on the guns .
Parkers , Mannlicher Schoenauer’s , 6.5mm's and my family in the Philippines !
Hobie wrote:I think I know why there isn't a .444 Marlin to be found here in VA... 6pt has 'em all!
I could be mistaken but I think outta the accumulation of these rifles I have only two came from the state of Virginia .
The first one I ever got a circa 1971 that wasn't rollstamped 444T came from an auction house in Bedford Virginia and one of the 1970 Medallion round levers I have came from Green Valley last year and I believe the person they were selling it for lived maybe 30 miles from me in Greene County .
I've gotten three or four from North Carolina however . Both of the 1972 444T's I have came from North Carolina along with the first 1971 Second Model 444 I laid my hands on .
Parkers , Mannlicher Schoenauer’s , 6.5mm's and my family in the Philippines !
Well I had just returned from the range before I made the previouse two posts and here's my results .
Got it on papaer at 50 yards and then gave it a try at 100 yards .
I'm about 99.9% sure I'll shoot the Ranch Dog 432-240GC pushed with 52 grains of H322 . And if I kill a deer with it early I just may switch it over two the Lyman 429434 !
Incidently the 429434 was a mold Lyman designed originally for the 44-40 but it seems to do an adequate job in the 444 so far or atleast the rifles I've tried it in !
Parkers , Mannlicher Schoenauer’s , 6.5mm's and my family in the Philippines !
CalvinMD wrote:Very nice..ought to be awesome on those Sikas....time for you to get some big boolits made up for it..life starts at 300grains ya know
Can't hunt with a rifle on the Blackwater
But if I could I have a very nice little Remington Model 7 stainless synthetic in 260 REM with a 3-9 Swarovski on top that is pure death with my 125 grain Nosler Partition handload .
Yep I realize 240 grains is a bit uhm LIGHT for what I normally play with . But RD came up with the mold so who am I to complain !
Besides I've already killed deer with three of the four 375 grain molds and one of the three 400 grain molds i have
You know the lightest bullet I've killed deer with in the 444 has been the Castboolits 432-207GC bullet . Shot three one afternoon on a DCP in about 90 seconds . First two were boom flop and the third took maybe 20 steps after I shot it and flopped over dead . The one I killed this past season with the BRP/RD 432-400GC was also a boom flop at the same distance from the same tree . Seems like the extra 193 grains didn't make it hit the ground any quicker
Parkers , Mannlicher Schoenauer’s , 6.5mm's and my family in the Philippines !
