I finally have my Marlin 39A. It is a beautiful rifle. So far I have only played with it. I am surprised at the smoothness of the action and the lightness of the trigger pull (there is no trigger creep at all). From all the reading, I had expected some problems in those areas with a new 39A but that hasn't eventuated. The action appears smooth and the trigger is firm but doesn't appear too heavy. Maybe I will have a different opinion once I get it to the range and use the rifle, but I doubt it. Maybe it is simply a case of expecting them to be worse because of all that has been written when new 39A's have been compared to the smooth action on the Henry's and the trigger pull on older 39's. Maybe it is all relative and I am lucky I don't have another lever action to compare mine to.
I initially fitted a Skinner sight to the Marlin. It looked like it was part of the rifle. Unfortuately, unless I wear my glasses, my eyes have trouble seeing the front sight. And if I am going to use it for hunting, I don't like to walk through the bush with glasses on (my glasses are those ones that have a variable focus depending on where you are looking - I lose my balance easily if I am wearing them and move about). I could probably get away happily with using the skinner at the range with glasses on, but not for hunting without the glasses - and I want to be able to practice consistently with the same setup for both events. It is nothing to do with the Skinner sight, just my poor eyesight.
As much as I didn't want to do it, I eventually fitted my fixed (x4) Weaver shotgun scope. I'm glad I did. The optics are crystal clear and because of its small size it doesn't appear to have much effect on the balance or weight of the rifle. My tired old eyes are happy with this scope and rifle setup. I am also happy with the appearance of this scope. If any lever action looks made for a scope it is the Marlin. The rifle looks great with this little scope on it.
I probably wasted a small amount of money on the sight base. I paid $50 Australian for a base and rings one piece that was specifically made of the 39A. I didn't realise that a different base came with the rifle that allows you to use your own rings. I did happen to have a spare set of BKL rings that could have fitted onto this base.
The wood on my rifle has a very nice grain to it. The only minor blemish I could see is that the metal to wood fit could be better in a few places. I can't wait to get to the range next Sunday.
