Where does the Marlin XLR rank in the dumbest ideas in the history of rifledom?

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Dr. Tad Hussein Winslow

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1st, 2nd, or 3rd place, would you say?

You take away one of the primary advantages that a levergun has going for it - the short handy brush-busting length & weight, and un-do that advantage, for very small gain in performance which is not needed, when instead, you could actually get the same length or a shorter barrel in a different caliber (such as .308 marlin), and have as much or more power and still retain the handy length and lighter weight. The more I think about the XLR, the dumber it seems to become, in calibers like .30-30, .35 Rem, .444 Marlin, and .45-70. This is true with OR without using leverevolution ammo.
 
Lots of .45-70 hunting rifles, from the 1870s to the present, are long. The 1895XLR is not heavy, by .45-70 standards. So that cartridge can be nixed from your list. A .45-70 in stainless/laminate is a nice gun for those who want modern weather resistance in their traditional big bore.

Otherwise, I'll agree with you.

I like lever guns. But in centerfire chamberings, I like them for their "short handy brush-busting length and weight."

However, if Marlin sells them, they'll build them, I guess.
 
in calibers like .30-30
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I'm confused. The 30-30 is THE lever gun cartridge. Of all time. John wayne used it.

Other than that, i would prefer a lever action 45/70 over a falling block of single shot personally. but then again, i wouldn't get a 45/70, i'd get a AR in .458 socom :evil:

I see what you mean though
:)
 
Actually, .45-70 lever guns have limitations. Falling blocks tend to be able to use rounds with heavier bullets, which matters if you're hunting something big.
 
If I had been Marlin wanting to introduce a 336 variant I would have gone the other way, an 18inch bbl, synthetic stock, knock off a pound and offer in .25-35, .30-30 and .35 Rem.
 
I'm confused. The 30-30 is THE lever gun cartridge. Of all time. John wayne used it
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I thought J. Wayne used a mod 92 Win. not the model 94. The 92 was never chambered for 30-30, action is too short. It is for calibers 25-20, 32-20, 38040, 44-40.
 
i always remember JW usnig a 30-30 in all the movies, but i can be wrong. that box of JW special edition 30-30ammo helped feul that thought :D
 
If I had been Marlin wanting to introduce a 336 variant I would have gone the other way, an 18inch bbl, synthetic stock, knock off a pound and offer in .25-35, .30-30 and .35 Rem.
Click to expand...

THISiswhatI'msayin! [P.Reiser]
 
Actually Marlin has gone the other way several times during their history. I have one of 500 stainless Marlins made in 2005 with half magazine tube in .35 with 18 1/2" barrel. Model 336 LTD. It is essentially a guide gun in .35.

They made quite a few Mauraders in both 35 and 30-30 with 16 barrels during the 60's. I missed out on those but bave one of the 16" LTS models in 30-30 made in 1988.

I agree that these models make more sense, but if they were selling they would probably still be making them. I predict that the few people who really want these new rifles already have them, or soon will and demand for these rifles will taper off.
 
If I had been Marlin wanting to introduce a 336 variant I would have gone the other way, an 18inch bbl, synthetic stock, knock off a pound and offer in .25-35, .30-30 and .35 Rem.
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Now THAT I'd buy. A Marlin Guide Gun (unported) in .35 Remington would go straight to the top of the short list.
 
I have a shortened Marlin 336C that is quite a handy carbine -- a great general purpose gun.

On the other hand, I also have a 336XLR and I think it carries and handles just fine. Plus it was deadly accurate right out of the box. The XLR in combination with LE ammo gives a good performance boost while retaining the handling characteristics that I like about lever guns.
 
16" ar15 in 6.5grendel with a dot optic, NOW THAT'S DUMB

The XLR not so much


I like them, but then again I'm sick of all those little pannywaist 20" barrels that have been on leverguns for the past 50yrs. I want max ballistic prefromance, maximum sight radius. Brush busting is a myth propagated by people whose never been in the woods. A rem700 in 30-06 is just as effective a brush gun as a 20" 30-30

308 marlin LOL don't make me laugh that cartridge was already 2/3rds the way to becoming obsolete before the first round was sold.

This is true with OR without using leverevolution ammo.
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I just love it when people turn to turn their OPINION into fact.


On a side note anyone notice how year after year the 30-30 has a shorter and shorter effective range in shooters minds. Way back when the 30wcf was a great 250yd deer cartridge, nowdays you actually hear people say that 30-30 is only good out to 100yds. Then hornady comes out with their wiz bang $20 a box load and POOF 30-30 magically becomes a 250yd cartridge again.:rolleyes: there's one born every minute

What's funny is the 30-30 handgunners fell that the cartridge has a longer effective range than the rifle people
 
I've been in the woods and I've found that a rifle that helps me get on target and deliver the shot as quickly as possible leads to cleaner kills than one that delivers more ballistic performance - after the deer is running away.

If the bullet hits the deer in the right spot it doesn't matter what rifle it came from. I'm at a loss to recall a single time, in the woods, when I felt ballistic performance helped me make the shot. But easy handling, quick target acquisition, and ergonomics definitely has.
 
I'm very glad I don't live in a 'one size fits all' world, where the only choices available to me are those that win the popularity pole or are determined to be what's best for me by 'the man'
 
I will agree the tube feed rifle have limitations. BUT we still use tube fed shotguns :eek: and never thing twice about it. :confused:

Just because rounds are not popular today or in your area doesn't mean they are not well though of and used in differant areas of the country.

The 444 marlin in a marlin lever action, is one of the most accurate rifles I've ever fired. Basically think of it as 2 44 mag cases together. Serious brush gun really hard hitting. NO it's not a long range gun, but not everybody has wide open fields to shoot.

I find it hard to believe but not everyone wants a lot of different guns.:what::) The XLR falls in in between a brush gun and a long range rifle. Where I come form S. La. it's mostly brush with a possible pipe line shot. It fills the niche.
 
This is true with OR without using leverevolution ammo.
I just love it when people turn to turn their OPINION into fact.
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Incorrect. It's a FACT that with or without leverevolution ammo, the .308 Marlin has better ballistic performance than the .30-30. It's a FACT that no matter what barrel length, the .308 Marlin has better ballistic performance than .30-30. I'm no big fan of the .308 Marlin, but what I stated was complete fact as a basis, and then my conclusion was indeed opinion (24" bbls on .30-30s and such are dumb!) . :p

The point it, you don't NEED .308 Marlin in the kind of hunting that a levergun is designed for - the .30-30 is more than enough, and that is true with or without the additional 25 yards of range the little plastic tip adds on the leverevolution ammo. Also true with or without the longer barrel length. I'm not anti-leverevolution at all. In fact, I'm pro leverevolution ammo, because you get *something* without sacrificing anything. With the XLR, you get *something* (a bit more ballistic performance) while sacrificing a lot - sacrificing the main point of the brush gun - a short barrel. It just doesn't make sense. It's like putting a 8" barrel on your .25 auto - you get negligible gains that completely ruin its raison d'etre - that being small size & light weight.

I say to each his own, and it's great that people like theirs - but I just shake my head when I see these long unweildy guns going for $650, when if anything the ideal .30-30 is 16" - shorter than what you typically see, not longer, and when you can get a .30-30 for $250-$275 at any gun show in very close to the optimal length. YMMV. :) :p
 
I'm confused. The 30-30 is THE lever gun cartridge. Of all time. John wayne used it.
Click to expand...

I thought J. Wayne used a mod 92 Win. not the model 94. The 92 was never chambered for 30-30, action is too short. It is for calibers 25-20, 32-20, 38040, 44-40.
Click to expand...

i always remember JW usnig a 30-30 in all the movies, but i can be wrong. that box of JW special edition 30-30ammo helped feul that thought
Click to expand...

He used a model 92
In 44-40
Click to expand...

He was an actor. He pretended to use rifles.
 
Thank You, Thank You, Thank You, :D
And yes he did use a Model 92 in 44.40. That was the one cartridge in the back of his cartridge belt in some of his movies, per his son Patrick in an interview.
TaKe CaRe
Ted
 
i love how people alos say that a .30-30 is not an elk round whne the elk were almost driven to extinction because of the .30-30

to all of you who say that teh .30-30 with long barrels is dumb......go look back at the old winchester 94s i believe they came with a 26 inch octagon barrel and are dang perty rifles in fact my father killed a number of deer with his old 94 as a kid past 200yards


less than 2 weeks ago i was shooting 400 (roughly 365 yards) paces with my marlin had a hell of a drop but once i got my scope on it was alot of fun and i shot around a 6 inch group

people need to stop letting their opionions of guns getting in the way of the facts......oh crap im talking to people i forgot this is part of human nature
 
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