Lyman receiver sight or rimfire scope for Marlin 39a?

[tparker]

I am down to these 2 options for my new Marlin 39a. I've tried it out with the stock sights at 50 yds. and haven't really been able to gauge its' accuracy. I like the traditional look (for the lever gun) of the Lyman, however I'm somewhat familiar with using a scope. Contrary to the scope option, I have never used and am somewhat fuzzy on the use of the Lyman. It's just that I've never seen one, let alone shoot one. Could someone give me a brief description of how they work. Also with the Lyman, would I need to replace the front hood and bead?

 

[LHB1]

Hi TParker,
I have owned Marlin lever guns with both receiver sights and scopes. It is really personal preference or needs. Have you ever shot a receiver sight before? It does take some adjustment. You look thru the small hole in a receiver sight and see a HUGE BIG AREA with the front bead just hanging out there. All you do is put the front bead on target and fire. Doesn't look like you could hit anything that way until you try it. Note: some people don't like receiver sights and some do. These days, my old eyes need a scope to put the target and cross hairs in the same focal plane (sharp at the same time) so I have reluctantly gone to scopes on all rifles and even on my hunting pistols (S&W M629 .44 Mag's with 6 inch barrels).
The lever guns handle better with receiver sights and that is my personal preference. YMMV

Good shooting and be safe.
LB

ps: If you attach a receiver sight, be sure to remove the rear sight to keep it from interfering with your vision and creating a distraction.

 

[CZguy]

It screws on to the rear of the receiver using two 6-48 screws, and is adjustable for both windage and elevation. It comes from Lyman with two different size sight apertures. You will have to either drill and tap your own mount holes or have a gunsmith do it for you. I did it myself with no difficulty, but some may want to spend a few dollars rather than make an expensive mistake. You can use the same front sight and hood.

I like mine over a scope because of the more traditional look, and am able to shoot just as well with it as a scope.

 

[LHB1]

CZguy,
As I recall, all my Marlin 39A, Marlin 1874, and Winchester 9422 guns in .22 and .44 calibers came already drilled and tapped on the side for mounting a receiver sight.

Good shooting and be safe.
LB

 

[CZguy]

LHB1,
mine wasn't, it's one of the newer ones with cross bolt safety.

tparker,
look at your upper rear left hand side of the receiver and see if the are two small screws. Let us know.

 

[Sistema1927]

Another option: Get the XS Ghost Ring sights for your 39A. For $90 you get both front and rear sights, and if you aren't a complete klutz you can install them in less than 10 minutes.

 

[Gordon]

I keep control of my ground squirrel population ,without disturbing the neighbors, with a K2.5 weaver micro trac on tip off mounts which your rifle should have. I could not possibly hit the little rascal everytime like I do with Remington Subsonic HP ammo at 50-60 yards with a peep sight. I do have peepsights on my larger caliber Marlins as the targets are bigger

 

[30Cal]

I use the Williams reciever mounted peep sight (5D-39A). I love it on my 39A. It doesn't have click adjustments which is fine for this particular rifle. It's also easy to mount (mine had pre-existing mounting holes in the receiver).

One of the nice things about the peep is as pointed out above: you put the bead on the target and squeeze. The other thing is that looking through the aperature tends to sharpen the front sight for you.

http://www.midwayusa.com/rewriteaproduct/187449

I used to have a 4x Redfield on it, but only because my little brother stole the Williams sight I originally had mounted on it. The 4x did fine until I had to do a little night-time anti-varmint work. A 7mm fully dialated eye pupil and a 5mm projected image out of the scope is a sure recipe for frustration.

Ty

 

[LHB1]

CZGuy,
Thanks for the update on newer Marlin lever guns. Is that what is called "progress"?

Good shooting and be safe.

 

[tparker]

I have never shot a peep sight before. I guess what I'm wondering is how accurate can you be at say 60-70 yds. with a receiver peep sight (Lyman) and what front bead (replacement) would you recomend for this setup?

 

[LHB1]

TParker,
In my opinion, scopes are more accurate than receiver sights, BUT receiver sights are surprisingly accurate even at longer distances. Some Small Bore and High Power Rifle competitions are held using receiver sights only at ranges of 100 yards and over. The scores are outstanding. The longest shots I ever tried with my receiver sighted Marlins were about 50 yards. I could place a .22 LR ammo box at 50 yds and chew it to pieces in rapid fire using either the .22 rifle or .44 Mag rifle.

Chances are you can keep the original front sight. On one of my guns, I replaced the front sight with a Lyman Globe front sight using a clear disk center punched with a small hole. I just looked thru the rear receiver sight AND put the target in the bright center circle of front sight. It was an extremely accurate combination. I let my brother talk me out of that gun. Hmmm. Wonder if he still has it?

Good shooting and be safe.
LB

 

[pete f]

i just put a williams fp-39-tk on my nephews brand new 39a and it was drilled and tapped for the mounts.

I find that on my 94 trapper and my 39 and my savage 99 that have peeps i am faster and more likely to hit what i am aiming at with the peep over a scope.

 

[mainmech48]

Personally, I prefer a receiver sight such as the Williams FP/5D or Lyman 66 on my LA carbines. They give me more precision than open irons while retaining the handiness of secure balance point carry in the field.

I have a FP on my 39M , 19895G, and 336. Lyman 66A on my Rossi 92 and Browning 71.

The unifying factor here is that they're all chambered for what are basically short-to-medium range cartridges. Even with my now middle-aged eyes I have no problem taking game with them out to the practical limits of their respective cartridges, say 150 yds max.

As has been mentioned, they are capable of remarkable precision at ranges up to and including 1000 yds when used by highly skilled riflemen and women. Personally, I don't think I could hit a compact car at that range more than three times out of five, even with a high-bucks 'scope.

 

[Logan5]

tparker,
You don't necessarily have to replace your front sight at all. I've got Lyman reciever sights and factory fronts on a Marlin 336 and a Winchester 54, and haven't felt the need to get a different front. Basically with my reciever sights, you've got a click adjustable (windage and elevation) rear aperture a bit smaller than a ghost ring, and a couple of smaller apertures that screw into it for adjustment. If you look at some of the NRA smallbore rifles from years past, like the Mossbergs, plenty of them have a variety of flip up front blades; bead, square post, aperture, etc.
Usually for NRA smallbore (50 feet) you'd be shooting with a front sight that was also an aperture, of a size to just frame the bull, but I think that's more of a specialized setup. A normal front post or blade ought to work fine, changing it out is more a matter of individual preference.

 

[P. Plainsman]

I'm with Gordon. I have XS ghost ring sights on my Marlin 1894C. Good product. They're real fast to acquire, and tolerably accurate with practice. (Takes a while to get the hang.) For a home D/plinker carbine, which is what that 1894C is for me, they're perfect.

I wouldn't put a ghost ring on my 39A. That gun's about painting tight little groups in the middle of bullseyes at moderate range; also picking off squirrels or tin cans if that's your thing. Fine accuracy, at least in good light, is much better with the slow, stock semi-buckhorn sights.

Now a scope is another matter.

 

[Bullet]

tparker

Here is a link to Marlin sights.

http://www.midwayusa.com/esearch.ex...o+Begin+Search.x=15&Click+to+Begin+Search.y=8

I like the Williams fire sights the ones with the fiber optic front sight.

 

[CZguy]

C&R license reminder

If you have a C&R license, don't forget to keep it on file with both Midway and Brownells. That Lyman receiver sight (66MC) at Midway that sells for $63.99 drops down to $46.99.