I think 6,000 were made, but I could never find one at a decent price or acceptable condition. Well, finally got one at a reasonable price, not a great price, but close enough that I am not concerned. I have a 39m Article II already (and I think only 4,000 were made of those) but I prefer the long barrel and the pistol grip stock.

Great little .22s in any configuration. I have a 1970 Marlin 100 year anniversary 39 carbine with octagon barrel. Don't shoot it much anymore but it was always super accurate. I did use it a few weeks ago to execute 14 feral hogs we trapped.

These were made around the same time and are very similar, with the octagon barrel at 24" and 20" (like the Century), but do not have the stock brass placard. I don't think the Centuries came in 24"+pistol grip stock, only the 20" straight stock. I've got two of those, but am selling one to a friend to make room in the safe.

An interesting tidbit about your gun. It is not a carbine. As a lever action aficionado I have studied about every make and kind of lever action. Just because they may have been advertised as such don't make it so. Advertising for any company was done by a separate company or a division within. None necessarily had to have ever fired a gun. There are district difference between a rifle and a carbine recognized universally in the collectors field. Just because it is short does not necessarily mean its a carbine. The main differences are;

CARBINES
Round barrels only
Different butt plate than rifles crescent butt
Forend held onto barrel by a band

RIFLES
Any configuration of barrel shapes, round, octagonal or half
round of any length from 16" to 36"
Most rifles have a crescent or flat shotgun butts.
The forend is held onto the barrel with a cap not a band.

In the lever world and RIFLE with a barrel shorter than the normal 24" or 26" were known as short rifles. Any rifles longer than the above lengths were known as extra long rifles (very rare).

By the 1960's few knew the differences and even Winchester advertisers got it wrong occasionally.

In 1971 IIRC Marlin produced a full length rifle like OP's without the medallion or gold plated forend cap. They only made them for one year and I do not know how many they produced but I had one for awhile before a friend traded me out of it.

Very nice firearm, I hunted for a decently priced 39A for years, but all the good ones, except the Mounty versions (that I did not want), were too expensive for my tastes so I went to another manufacturer. Congratulations,

Very nice gun OP. Very cool to find a Grail gun. My very first .22 was a 39a, not sure why I ever bought another .22 rifle.

I also inherited my Dad's 39as, even though it has the dreaded cross bolt safety, it is an heirloom in my house. It took some work to get it to be reliable. He also carved a running deer into the stock.

As a side note. Everytime I post about my Marlin having a pistol grip stock, or wishing my Henry did have a pistol grip stock. I get reprimanded that a pistol grip stock is what is on an m16. Sheesh!

Very interesting thread about the carbine rifle differences, leaves me wondering if either stock is appropriate on a carbine? I thought carbines always had straight stocks. Also does the saddle ring come into play?

Again congrats to the OP for a great addition to the stable.

Rifles can either be straight gripped or have a pistol grip. Carbines very very rarely will have a documented pistol grip. The forend attachment is the deciding factor to define a rifle or carbine with the barrel being a second but not definitive factor. The only guarantee is that all carbines have round barrels. Then Marlin mucked up the waters. Their Mountie's are true short rifles. Then in the 1980's they produced a 39 called the carbine and is stated so on the barrel but it is just a short rifle with an abbreviated magazine. So about this time Marlin decided to muck the waters again and produced a model 39D that had a true barrel band attaching the forend to the barrel. They then decided to confuse things a little more and added a pistol grip to this carbine. Marlin make me want to pull my hair out.

Their rifles/carbines are so good, I forgive them.