1886 and 336 Update

[pshort]

Howdy Folks,
I finally got the '86 and the 336 that was keyholing....
The '86 was built in 1890, the 336 built in 1958....
OK, the '86 seems to be in good mechanical condition, but the bore
is the worst sewer pipe I've ever seen ....... Sad....
OK, the 336 bore took a .305 pin gage.. (Micro groove)
After some research, that was the size of the bore in
1957 & 1958 .... The bore looks really nice ....
So, my conclusion is that a .308 bullet going into
a .305 bore with a thou or 2 of rifling isn't going to
work that well....
I'm going to recommend that the guy replace the barrel
with a later one with the proper bore size...
Marlin bore size was smaller in the later years ...

Watta y'all think ..???

Paul

[vancelw]

I'd try a .309 bullet mould 1st, unless he's just dying to shoot jacketed.
Might even have a custom made .310 mould made

Try loading some .312 (32-20) cast bullets and see how accurate they are.

[GunnyMack]

Certainly some experimentation is in order before a new barrel is turned on.

[Rockrat]

a .305" bore might not be too bad. What is the groove dia? Did you check the muzzle crown? As said, a .310" cast slug might work well in the gun. Did you clean the gun first to get rid of any fouling the barrel might have had?
With jacketed, you might take some .308" jacketed bullets and roll them between two fine files a bit to make them .309/.310" diameter and see how they work. If they copper up the bore, you could coat with some heavily thinned Lee liquid alox lube and see if that stops the fouling.
What cal. was the '86? You might be able to get it re-bored by JES

[6pt-sika]

I’d shoot the Marlin on paper myself before I took the guys word for it .

[44shooter]

Are you positive it doesn’t have a damaged crown or a ringed barrel? I find it hard to believe conventional bullets will not work. I had a 284 that would not shoot even after a recrown. It was ringed. I sent it to Ruger to be rebarreled.

[6pt-sika]

Are you positive it doesn’t have a damaged crown or a ringed barrel? I find it hard to believe conventional bullets will not work. I had a 284 that would not shoot even after a recrown. It was ringed. I sent it to Ruger to be rebarreled.

The lands and grooves sure didn’t tighten up over time . And no one had complained about it for sixty years . I’d not be in agreement until I fired the gun myself then saw the proof on the paper . I’d try it first at 25 yards and if looks okay then fifty and if looked okay then 100 . I don’t buy the barrel being to tight and make the bullets keyhole .

[vancelw]

Are you positive it doesn’t have a damaged crown or a ringed barrel? I find it hard to believe conventional bullets will not work. I had a 284 that would not shoot even after a recrown. It was ringed. I sent it to Ruger to be rebarreled.

The lands and grooves sure didn’t tighten up over time . And no one had complained about it for sixty years . I’d not be in agreement until I fired the gun myself then saw the proof on the paper . I’d try it first at 25 yards and if looks okay then fifty and if looked okay then 100 . I don’t buy the barrel being to tight and make the bullets keyhole .

Yeah I may have misread/misinterpreted what he wrote.
I was thinking he was saying it was .305 across the lands (i know he wrote "bore") when it should be .300/.308 lands/groove.
Should probably slug the bore if shooting it doesn't prove fruitful

[marlinman93]

Unless you just enjoy spending money, I'd give the Micro-Groove barrel a good chance. They are great barrels, IF you find out what it likes for bullet size. A pin gauge wont tell you much, and you need a lead ball to slug the bore and a quality micrometer to measure groove diameter before you go guessing at groove size, or considering a new barrel.

[Eddie Southgate]

Howdy Folks,
I finally got the '86 and the 336 that was keyholing....
The '86 was built in 1890, the 336 built in 1958....
OK, the '86 seems to be in good mechanical condition, but the bore
is the worst sewer pipe I've ever seen ....... Sad....
OK, the 336 bore took a .305 pin gage.. (Micro groove)
After some research, that was the size of the bore in
1957 & 1958 .... The bore looks really nice ....
So, my conclusion is that a .308 bullet going into
a .305 bore with a thou or 2 of rifling isn't going to
work that well....
I'm going to recommend that the guy replace the barrel
with a later one with the proper bore size...
Marlin bore size was smaller in the later years ...

Watta y'all think ..???

Paul

Can't remember ever hearing of anyone with that era 336 having any issues with too tight of a bore. Should shoot just fine with any suitable .308-.309 jacketed bullet. What about the 1886 ?

[pshort]

Howdy,
Thanks for all the replies .......
I need to clear up a couple of things:
Bore to me, in this case, means the hole drilled in the barrel before rifling ....
The rifle belongs to a friend of a friend that I've never met, so,
if it were mine I'd experiment with bullet size, etc, to get something to work ..
I took in the project merely as a learning experiment, I've learned a lot ...
The F of a F does no casting, reloading, or wants to...
Anyway, the 336 is in nice condition, just large "bore"...(Typical in '57 & '58)
The (1890) '86, 45-90, appears to be in good mechanical shape, except the sewer pipe ....
Anyhow, I'm waiting to hear back from Little Crow Gunworks to see what they think...
Then, I'll pass on all the tips and return the rifle to it's owner....
(Joke) Maybe I can "hammer forge" it smaller ......

Thanks again for all the tips and replies..........

Paul