336A Quick Question

[pctfe]

I'm sure you've heard this story 1000 time, but inherited an old 336A 30-30 from my grandfather with a Redfield peep sight. Has not been shot in 40 years. Condition on a scale of 1-10 is about a 7. I realize these were mass produced for chain stores etc., but I was wondering if the fact that mine was made in the first year of production 1948 means anything? Serial # E11XXX. Any info about this rifle would be greatly appreciated. I'm curious to try this new Hornady rubber tip ammo in it. Do I need to get a new plastic tube follower for this ammo? Thanks in advance...

[Regnier (gunrunner)]

Pctfe;

Yes, the "E" serial number prefix indicates your Marlin Model 336A was made in 1948, the first year of production of the Model 336.
You should not need to replace the follower in your magazine tube. The soft pointed bullets are a safety feature so as not to set the round in front of another in the magazine tube. Pointed things do not mix well with sensitive primers in magazine tubes on excessive recoil jolting.

[Bear 45/70]

The Hornady Leverlution ammo has a plastic tip, hence it is too soft to dent a primer. However, I have never actually seen scientific proof that it is even possible to have a magazine discharge cause by the following bullet. Lots of claims but no actual verifiable proof. Mainly because the rounds in the mag are always angled nose down, hence not much chance of the bullet tip against the primer.

[Pete44ru]

[ I have never actually seen scientific proof that it is even possible to have a magazine discharge cause by the following bullet. Lots of claims but no actual verifiable proof.]

You might want to check out EVERY post by Muskeg13 in this thread over on castboolits - with pics/etc of an AD in the tube mag of his .44 mag., and also some pics of experiments with various cartridge shapes in a clear mag tube.

http://www.castboolits.gunloads.com/sho ... hp?t=73196

.

[Bear 45/70]

[ I have never actually seen scientific proof that it is even possible to have a magazine discharge cause by the following bullet. Lots of claims but no actual verifiable proof.]

You might want to check out EVERY post by Muskeg13 in this thread over on castboolits - with pics/etc of an AD in the tube mag of his .44 mag., and also some pics of experiments with various cartridge shapes in a clear mag tube.

http://www.castboolits.gunloads.com/sho ... hp?t=73196

.

I might but I have never seen nor heard of a pointed 44 Mag. bullet, so once again, not believeable.

[Wishbone]

Brophys book - pages 156 - 158. Printed copies of the results of the Marlin Model 1881 during U.S. Military Trials cites a couple of instances where cartridges exploded inside the magazine tube of the rifles being tested. Now granted this was 1881 - 1882, and things such a primer components and such have changed drastically since then, but it does prove that this did and possibly still could happen.

WB

[airedaleman]

To get back to the question, no, it's not necessry replace the magazine follower in your rifle. And your rifle will handle the gimmicky gummi-tip ammunition
with no problems. My first-year 336ADL (S/N 37XXX) won't see any of them, though. Round-nosed bullets worked fine for the past 115 years. That's good enough for me!

[Pete44ru]

[I might but I have never seen nor heard of a pointed 44 Mag. bullet, so once again, not believeable.]

FWIW, The post referenced had the mag tube .44 Mag cartridges fire - NO pointed boolits:

"I had 6 rounds go off at once in the the mag tube of a .44 Mag M92 Puma. They were soft lead flat nose with very wide metplats. I lost a tooth and had a 3/4" hole punched in my cheek and upper lip caused by the magazine plug. It can and does happen.
They were 200 gr commercially cast bullets, but were advertized as being softer alloy than normal, for black powder cowboy action shooting. Using a Saeco lead hardness tester, they registered a 7, or 12 on the Brinell scale, which is about the same as 1:20 alloy. I don't know if lead hardness was a factor, except that these bullets were not that hard or particularly soft either. I had loaded 8 rounds initially, and the accident occurred on the second shot, so I find it hard to believe the bullet noses had been battered by recoil to the point they would set a primer off, but who knows? "




44 Cal .430 225 gr

[big shrek]

It also underlines the need to replace springs periodically.

As stated in the original report, "A weak magazine spring may have contributed to the problem".

Kind of like how one needs to replace the recoil/firing pin springs in semi-auto rifles every 10-20 years.

With time & use, springs do loose a certain boingyness, it's a small amount, but sometimes it's just enough.