I've been kicking around for awhile the idea of getting one. Today I stopped in at a larger area gunshop and they had all three major examples I've considered: Marlin 39s, a Browning BL22, and a Winchester 9422. All were in excellent shape, with just a minor mark here and there on the stock.

The Winchester was priced considerably higher than I would want to go, so it's probably unnecessary to consider it any further.

One Marlin was a 39A; the other a 39AS. Both were marked "Original Golden", and had gold-colored triggers(don't know if this constitutes being a "Golden" -you tell me). I was impressed with the wood on both, also the fit and finish. I didn't like the sights on them, though. One was marked at $540 and the other at $525. I think the Browning was a little higher but I don't remember for sure.

I would be interested in any experiences you've had with any of these, knowledge gained from your familiarity with them, etc.

A few questions:
-Can you tell me from my brief, inadequate description approx, how old the Marlins are? Do the prices on them seem reasonable?
-The buttstocks on all were too short for me, really. Is there such a thing as an extended recoil pad to mitigate this problem at all?
-My "old eyes" prevent me from seeing the front sight, so I would probably want to mount a scope if possible. However I noticed that the receivers were pretty short on all the guns, and wondered if a scope is even a possibility on them.

Well, thanks again for your time, fellows.
Andy

My vote is for the Marlin. I have one which belonged to my grandfather, and dates back to 1954 (he traded a .36 muzzle-loading squirrel rifle for it).

At some point in time, Marlin began drilling and tapping the receiver for a scope. I did that for mine many years ago, but replaced it with a Skinner peep sight more recently. Skinner sights are easy on old eyes, and can be installed in lieu of a scope on the receiver, on the tang, or in the dovetail instead of the rear sight on the barrel.

Skinner peep sights are not only attractive, but effective. I replaced the skinny front brass bead (standard 3/8"x 1/4" dovetail in a ramp) with a taller one of the same style. I have come to appreciate a wider (1/8") front blade, either plain black or with a white insert. The 1/16" OEM bead is really hard to see.

The Skinner front blade can be filed to the right height, and is arguably the most accurate style for punching paper. Fiber optic sights are nice in daylight. Tritium sights are a waste of time, even if you could see one 30" from your eye.

When you clean a Marlin .22 from the muzzle, be certain to clamp the ejector out of the way by pressing it down and turning the cam (shaped like a slotted screw) to hold it in place. It's easily broken and nearly impossible to secure a replacement. It took me two years before Marlin made a new batch.

I would be leery of a "new" Marlin, but the older ones are great firearms.

Take a look at the Henry's, I have bought both and .22 LR and a .22 mag, no problems, shoot just fine.

I have owned all three. All are nice, but different. The Marlins and Winchesters are closer to full sized rifles, the Browning is very small and light in weight. The Winchesters and Marlins have a longer lever throw, and decent triggers. The Browning has a short lever throw, and the trigger travels with the lever - nice, but results in a heavier trigger pull, resulting in a gun that is a little harder to shoot accurately than the full size guns. The Browning probably has the best finish, and slickest action.

No problem mounting a scope on any of them with the right mounts. Personally, if weight is a consideration, I would take the Browning BL-22, if not, either the Marlin 39 or the Winchester 9422, with the 9422 being my favorite. A recoil pad that would increase stock length can be installed on any of them if desired. You may find you will need a hammer extension when using a scope, depending on the size / location of your rear bell. Some guys mount their scopes high so they can get a good grip on the hammer, but that often results in having to lift your head off the stock. Better an extension, and a low mount that just clears the hammer.
Larry

Henry's are worth a look..

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JR

Here's another vote for the Marlin, just make sure it has a JM stamped on the barrel to distinguish it from the newer "Remlins".

"Remlins" being new production by Remington that has proven to be inferior to the older Marlins before the takeover.

I have two Marlin 39Ms and a Winchester 9422. I have never owned a
Browning BL22 but they are neat looking compact little rifles, they are
also made in Japan and somewhat complicated and difficult to take
apart for maintenence if that matters. Winchester 9422s are going to
be priced high, more like collector's items than shooters. The Marlin
39Ms that I have are the 20" barrel version and the 39As are longer
with a 24" barrel which you probably prefer. If conditions are equal the
39A would be the pick because it is older and the 39AS has the
crossbolt safety as per the S after the 39A. The Marlins are drilled
and tapped on the top of the receiver for a scope base so mounting a
scope is no problem. Henrys are liked by lots of owners but because of
a few reasons they are not in the same category as the older machined
steel Marlins and Winchesters. "Golden" means a gold colored trigger
which all the 39s have after a certain date and is irrelevant. The 39A
is the pick of the ones you mention.

I had a Marlin 39A. It was supposed to feed shorts, longs, or long rifle. If you didn't cycle the lever sharply, it would jam. I had the rifle for many years but finally got tired of the jams.
I too would suggest you look at the Henry rifles. They are way more smooth than Browning or Marlin.
You mention that the stocks are too short. I had the same issue until I bought a Remington pump. It is a full size 22 and it works just great with shorts, longs, or long rifle. I put a scope on it as my 63 y/o eyes don't do well with open sights. But I can't find longs anymore!

I say full speed ahead. I've always wanted a 9422, but I grew up shooting two Marlin 39s, and the Golden was my favorite. Both were a pleasure to shoot and very accurate. I can't see a bad decision here, but I don't really like the short throw of the Browning, just my preference.

I would go with the Marlin 39, but only if it is marked JM, or
you check serial number to make sure it was produced by
Marlin. Personally I think the ones made before the cross bolt
safety are better. The Marlin design has been around many
years, starting with 92-97-39, time tested. The gun I always
wanted was a Win 73, in 22. Was my Grail gun, very hard to
find, black powder ruined most of them. The Win 94 & Browning
are good rifles also. I'm not much into Henry's, I believe any
one of the 3 you are looking at is a better gun, and a better
investment.

I have a 39A Golden which dates to 1991 I believe and its a dandy of a rifle. They seem scarce to me here in central Virginia. For that shop to have 2 available would be quite a treat around here.As said, theJM stamping on the barrel probably puts it in the better realm of supposed quality but who knows? If this shop test-fires their used firearms and has a range available that`s a plus and if they "promise" to pay and do shipping to Marlin if there is a problem then I say full speed ahead on one of the Marlins but; even if they don`t, get the Marlin. Good Luck, John

My vote would be a Winchester 9422, I had one for awhile that went with the ex during the great divorce collection sale and dispersal. They are a great .22! The Marlin 39's are a fine rifle too, I have only handled the Browning, never shot one so I can't say much about those.

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Life NRA, Life TSRA, C&R FFL

The Marlin 39 series were great .22 rifles. I have owned both the 24" rifle and the 20" carbine versions, which went to my sons about 25 years ago. Both were very accurate and reliable.

Also meant to say in above that prior to year 2000 the first 2 digits of the serial # is the year mfg( I think). After then there is a little formula you can find on line. You can go to marlinowners.com and get a lot of info. I wouldn`t wait too long if those rifles are nice. John

Marlin 39 hands down. A classic, well built rifle that will never disapoint or fail you.

My wife has owned and shot a Marlin 39A the entire time I have known her. First one was stolen in a home burglary in the late 70's and we immediately found her a replacement. Both were very picky about the ammunition they liked (extraction is the issue). We found that Winchester SuperX 22 ammunition works perfectly every time. The other brands we tried had a rounded edge on the brass and the extractor would not engage and hold consistently. Both were extremely accurate and we have yet to wear one out.

Proven is such a strong word. I have a new 1894 that I like very much.

In any event, I don't know that any 39's have been produced by Remington. It's an expensive rifle to manufacture and Rem might not think the market is big enough to justify a reintroduction. The die cast and stamped Henry is a lot cheaper to make and works fine. (I have one). I was wanging steel with mine the other day. Fun.

Another vote for the Marlin 39A. I have a model made in 1948 and it is a great shooter.

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USN Submarine Service '66-'71

The "Golden" thingy on the Marlins started about 1954. Give or take a year or so. In addition to the gold colored trigger, they started using "micro-groove" rifling. This was more, shallower, lands and grooves. The one I have is from the early '50's, and has Ballard rifiling. Marlin returned to this style rifiling in recent years. Most, if not all of the golden models are drilled and tapped for scope rings. The standard rifle has a 24" barrel and curved grip. The "Mountie" carbine has a 20" barrel and straight grip. I would not buy one with that silly cross bolt safety.

Hey, thanks, fellas -lots of helpful information here.

Andy

snow, consider a reddot rather than a scope. I have burris fasfires on a 9422M and the Browning. They are fast, accurate and my eyes like them better'n irons..... My Marlins are both scoped. You should consider adapting to the shorter lop, rather than putting on flugly lengtheners, too.....

I'd go with the Marlin. I have several,an original 39,a 39 "Mountie",a Golden 39 an 2 1894Ms in .22 mag. Great, solid rifles all. The 1894M is a real joy to shoot and super accurate but pricey and hard to find now. Years ago my brother borrowed the 39 to shoot crows,used modern hi-speed ammo and cracked/broke the bolt. Should have used target or standard velocity ammo. Got very lucky and I was able to get a replacement from Numrich Arms way back then. I don't believe any more parts are now available. It is also a great shooter with standard/target ammo only.

ischia

I put more rounds through my Papal's old BL22 as a kid than probably any other single gun in my life. Spent summer after summer honing my skills with it. One of these days I'm going to pick up a maple stocked Browning, truly a thing of beauty.

Check out the Marlin forum on Rimfirecentral.com

Any Of the 3 would be a great rifle for you.....I have all 3...Bought the 9422 the year they came out.......Bought a Marlin 1897T( short 39 with octagon bbl) later....And later added a Browning BL-22 grade 11 ocatgon bbl........Three of the best .22 lever guns ever made.

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S&W Accumulator

Marlin 39d with Nikon 4x= Lotta Fun!

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I have a Marlin 39 and couldn't be happier. It was made before the cross bolt safety and has the JM stamped barrel.
Mine is labeled as Golden 39, but I remember buying this one because the trigger is not gold colored.{don't really care for the gold painted trigger}

Well made and reliable.

I also like the Henry.

If it were me I'd go the extra bucks for the 9422. I bought one new years ago and it's my favorite .22. It's a tack driver. For my old eyes I mounted a Williams peep sight on it.
Paul
Salome, AZ

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Paul
Salome, AZ

Add me to the marlin list.

About 2002 I was weighing similar options as you. I went with the Marlin and have been very happy. Always wanted a 9422 however.

Snowman:
I sympathize w/your "old eyes". Rather than mount a scope, consider a Williams Foolproof receiver sight w/target knobs. Screw-in rear sight aperture (choice of sizes) clears up the front sight. Marlin 39-As are already drilled/tapped on the receiver's left side for Wm's sights. Knobs are click adjustable for windage & elevation. I shoot mine out to 200 yds.

As you can tell, I'm also an aficionado of the Marlin 39-A. "Every man and boy should own one". I've owned three, still own two both with Ballard rifling (pre 1953). Dearly love them. Don't know why some people may have had extracting problems, probably ammo brand. Switch ammo brands, but don't sell the gun in disgust. Personally, I've fired Shorts, LR's, & a mixture of both with zero problems.

Best Of Luck To You, Hank M.

Wow, lots of votes for the Marlin! I'm certainly not going to fault that, I like them, too!

But I wonder how many voted for the 39, without ever handling a BL22?

It's the fastest shooting lever action I've ever fired, and I challenge anyone to show me a lever action .22 that they can shoot better! When cycling the action, your hand doesn't need to leave the rifle, the lever can be worked with your fingers. A little practice, and you shoot like a semi-auto!

I've seen a Henry .22 (not the Golden Boy), and compared it side by side with a BL22. I'm reminded of the saying "The extra you spend for quality will be forgotten long before the PITA of going cheap". The receiver is plated, not solid steel like the 39 or BL22. I've heard they shoot just fine, however. My neighbor had one, and he liked it.

At least the Marlin compares favorably in the quality department. That rifle would be awesome as well, I just like the Browning better.

The Winchester would be a great choice, too, but just try to find one that's affordable!

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I would also vote for the old Marlin without hesitation.

I like the older Marlin. I have several Marlin Model 97 leveraction .22 cal including a couple deluxe models.
They are saddled with using 22Standard Vel ammo only and have the old style so called one piece mag tube, but are what later became the Mod 39, the 39A.
The Model39 was still using the old style bolt that limited it and the 97 to StandVel ammo.
The M39A and forward have the redesigned bolt. Actually just a tiny radius to a machining cut made on the bolt in place of a sharp, square corner. The small difference makes a big difference in strength of that locking support face.

The cartridge interuptor (a stamped out spring steel piece) can give problems if not just right by allowing a second round out of the mag and onto the carrier instead of holding it back. A common cause of jamming in the 39A.

The cartridge guide spring captured above the chamber face in a cut between the frame and bbl shank can also cause problems if bent or twisted. It does the same thing in the M80 bolt series of rifles.
You have to remove the bbl from the frame to replace, but the part is cheap.
Don't snag & damage the ejector when cleaning from the muzzle. At least the ejector is held in place with a couple screws on the 39A.
On the Mod97 pre1905 mfg,,the ejector assembly falls free from the rifle when the bolt is removed for cleaning from the gun.
Lots of those early rifles have the ejector missing and it's easy to gloss right over it and miss it when looking at a rifle. Repros are available now and are good quality.

Some early Mod39A round bbl rifles you'llfind drilled and tapped on the side of the bbl up near the rec'vr for a scopemt.
These were guns made up to be sold excusively thru Sears at the time. A(Weaver?) side bbl mt and 'scope accompanied the rifle and thru the agreement, only Sears would sell the scoped M39. That lasted several years. Later Marlin began D&T the top of the rec'vr for scope mts and and offered a cantilever type base for the 39A in the 60's and 70's.

Once again, thank you much to all of you for your time and input. It gives me a lot more to go on. A special thanks to 2152hq(& a few others) for the 'technical service bulletins' -very helpful to know possible problems ahead of time.

Regards,
Andy

I bought a Browning BL-22 in 1974. Since then I have put untold thousands of rounds through it, taught my three kids and a bunch of others how to shoot with it, and it has never failed once, never needed a repair. As mentioned before, the short stroke lever makes it unbelievably fast to fire repeat shots. It's so light you can hunt all day with it and hardly feel like you are carrying anything. My second choice in a .22 lever gun would be the 9422.

Cheers,
Whisper

I love my Marlin 39A. It was born the same year I was; 1973. The only thing that would make it better is a Williams Foolproof receiver sight.

There's a reason the Winchester 9422's are expensive. They are the best.

Haven't handled the Win or Browning, but I can tell you I've been delighted with my Marlin 39A for 57 years. It feels like a rifle, not a toy. There's something to be said for machined steel. If there's a down side, I find the hammer fall very heavy, but I'm used to it.
It's a fun gun for paper, tin cans, groundhogs in grandfather's garden and squirrels in the bird feeders.

I mounted a Williams Receiver ( peep ) sight on my Winchester, my "old eyes " do quite well with it. Looking through the rear peep hole , you only need see the front sight and target. Much easier for us old dudes.
I just couldn't bear to put a scope on that classic looking lever gun and the Williams Receiver Sight helped big time.
Gary

If I found a LGS, with those 3 in stock, I'd think I'd died and went to heaven.

You got to compare them side by each, I'd say pick the one that fit you and your budget. In a that situation I'd probably get a couple lof them.

While I would agree that their name is synonymous with lever action rifle, I have to disagree. A buddy had a 9422 that he bought in the mid 70's. My old Marlin would out shoot it any day of the week. No jams, no failures of any sort. The action was much slicker, and the trigger much crisper. The Winnie was a nice rifle, but not better than the 39A. They cost more because they are less common and bare the Winchester name.

all three are nice guns, but I have a preference for the marlin 39a's as well, I have several and they are all excellent rifles that are superbly accurate.

I would also recommend the JM marked guns as well, the boys in KY are not as good at putting these together as the old school Yankee craftsman.

take the first two digits and subtract it from 100, this will get you the year of manufacture on the marlins that do not have an alphabet prefix in the serial number, serialization is easily found online

the difference is the 39as has the cross bolt safety, just as good as the A, but collectors like the non cross bolt safety guns.

you can get a set of fire sights and solve that front sight picture issue, believe me I know

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Marlin-1895-...IAAMXQudxRYvvU

I once had a Marlin carbine, perhaps it was the Mountie. I always coveted one but had the same experience as Revolver in post #8.

If one does not work the lever smoothly and firmly in both directions it jammed and jammed. I did not like the weight as I thought a 22 rifle should be light for carrying by hand when hunting. I can had have carried many 10 plus pound deer rifles and have no issue with that.

I traded it off and have not missed it. I have been looking for a Browning or perhaps a Winchester, but I need for the guys who own them to fess up, are those 2 good for head shots on squirrels out to 40-50 yards?

For hunting or plinking I do prefer my Ruger 10/22. Light, handy and accurate. No lever.....

I've shot the Browning and the Marlin and certainly won't knock them. They are excellent rifles.
I also know several people who have Henrys and are very happy with them.
What I own is a 1978 Winchester 9422XTR. There's a reason these are more expensive. Its because they're worth it! When Winchester decided to make these .22 lever guns , they went all out to make sure it was the best quality rifle it could possibly be. That's a forged steel receiver in this rifle. Not some cast or stamped thing you might find in other .22s. Winchester considered the 9422 to be one of their top tier products and the attention they paid shows in both looks and performance.
If you can afford it and are willing to pay the extra cost, you won't regret it.

I have marlin and henry. My Marlin is a 1972, very solid but seems off balance to me, the buttstock is short and the barrel is long. I had a browning but couldn't stand it. I could not get past the trigger being attached to the lever.

I have a 39A marlin from 1956 shown below:

It came to me a couple years ago from a friend -- with a low cost, but good working scope.

There is a simple procedure for finding the build year from a Marlin serial number. I don't remember the details, but it's easy to find with Google.

Great accurate rifle.

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I have an older Marlin 39A, it is "the bee's knees".

For those panning the new Remlins, you might want to check out the Marlin Owner's Forum. It seems that the teething pains are ended, and the new guns are every bit as good as the old ones now. Some there contend that they are actually better.

I recently purchased a brand new Remlin 1895GBL (.45-70), and it is every bit as good as my JM Marlin 336, 39A, and 1894C.

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Only a cold warrior

Winchester 9422 , forget the rest , enough said ,

Got a Marlin 39A...an older rifle in great condition and a nail driver. If the one the OP looked at is a pre remlin sounds like a pretty good deal. If it has a safety button on the side, move along.

My shooting buddy has a Henry .22. It's as accurate as my Marlin, lighter in weight because the receiver is a zinc compound covered by a steel cover. It seems to be perfectly strong enough for a .22, though. Winchesters post-64 rifles I assume have the bad points of the 94 30-30s.

Browning lever rifles don't interest me.

Nothing really wrong with either of the three so it comes down to what fits you and your budget best. I have a BL22 but my second choice would be the Marlin. I've always been a Marlin fan and have several variations.