winchester 94 ae vs. henry vs. marlin 336

[Sure Shot Mc Gee]

Never had a smoother lever action rifle than a 1953 SC model 336 marlin my Father let me use at my whim. Little 30-30 sure downed allot of deer partridge & rabbits of all sizes and gender back in the late 50s & early 60s growing up off grid in Northern MN with my parents. In a few short years I got to know those Big State woods pretty well by my early teens. Old Marlin was my preferred companion back in those days. "What a dandy shoot'in 30-30 that one was."

[T_PRO_Z]

they are all beautiful guns. the way you load it doesn't really affect my opinion on the gun. id say in order my favorites would be :
1. Winchester
2. marlin
3. henry
4.
5.
6.
7.browning

sorry for throwing the browning in there but I had some bad experiences with a blr 22. It would jam or just not shoot the entire time I owned the gun, which wasnt long.

I do love my winchester. I am thinking of getting a 44 mag lever action rifle but I don't know which one to get.

[2ndsojourn]

My favorite lever 30-30 is my Savage 99. (it's the only 30-30 I have!) But I used to have a Marlin 336 35 Rem that I traded away because I never used it. If it was a 30-30 I'd still like the Savage 99 better.

[Gunplummer]

Never cared for the Winchester 94 either. I had quite a few Marlins and 94's I picked up over the years and the Marlin is a better manufactured rifle. However, I do consider the model 88 a great deer gun. If I want a great deer gun and nostalgia, the 99' Savage is my rifle.

[GarandTd]

I don't have much or any experience with the Winchester or Henry. I do have a mid 60's Marlin 336 in 35 Remington. I am aware of the mechanical differences and appreciate the differences the Marlin has to offer. The Marlin fits me well, shoulders very well, and is quite accurate.

[Hawg]

I like the Winchester best but not the AE. I prefer the old top ejects.

[Joe-ker]

I don't have much of a dog in this fight since the only one I own is a Henry big boy .357. Very good quality I have to say. My dealer said after the hurricane flooded them they got new tools and machines and quality improved. Gotta like the made in America part. Not sure where the others are built. Like others have mentioned I really wish it had a loading gate- that is the only complaint I have. Wouldn't mind a half cock but really isn't that big of deal. Very, very easily to disassemble.

My brother has a trapper .357. That gun simply put a bad taste in my mouth with that God awful hammer and cross bolt safety. The lever mechanism just seems more complicated and nowhere as smooth as my Henry. I haven't had access to other models so take my opinion lightly. Needlesstosay I agree the right Winchester probably belongs at the top of the list.

Years back I thought it would be awesome to get a Navy Arms, but I like my money to much......

[McShooty]

My Henry 009 30-30 has the best wood I've ever seen on an over-the-counter rifle. Shoots good, too. I'll see about a picture

[McShooty]

[cocojo]

I like my Pre 64 Winchester 94 30-30 with a peep sight and my Miroku Japan 30-30 94 with Glass over my Marlin 35 with glass. I always like the Winchesters better than the Marlin. Not that one is better, it's just a personal preference. The Winchester Miroku is built to a extremely high quality the way they use to build the Pre 64 Winchesters, and the price reflects that.

[Danwin22]

I only have one lever action 30-30 at the moment, a Winchester Trapper model-94 from 1980, it's the top eject model before Winchester went to the AE version and became US Repeating Arms.

I bought two of them, one had the standard 20" barrel. I sold the long one but hung on to the Trapper. It's light and quick handling but best for open sights.

Back in the 1960's I had a Marlin 336C in .35 Remington. It was a beauty and very solid. If you need to use a scope, this would be my pick.

Don't know about the Henry but if it's anything like my Henry Golden Boy .22 it's probably very smooth and dependable.

Any of these lever actions will get the job done. For me, it's like choosing between a Chevy Camaro, Ford Mustang or Dodge Challenger for a trip from Florida to California. They'll all get the job done.

Just check them all out and buy the one that speaks to you. If you're wrong, buy a different one. I wouldn't be happy until all three were in my safe.

[dgludwig]

Nice piece of the tree there, McShooty.

[Sarge]

There are indeed some pretty stocks showing up in this thread.

I don't like the way they carry in the hand but the best shooting 94 I ever fired was an Angle Eject.

[dgludwig]

What don't you like about the "way they carry in the hand" Sarge? My AE model carries like any other Model 94 I've ever toted in the past.

[tahoe2]

I have a 1974 top eject Model 94 in 30-30, and a Marlin in 375 Win, they are my go-to guns for deer and black bear in tight timber conditions,
when the clear cuts open up I pick up the Model 99 Savage in 300 Savage.
I don't really prefer one over the other, they each have a designated purpose (IMO) and they work well for each application.
Both the carbines have peep sights and I'm good to about 150-200 yds, but the Savage is scoped and I can hit out to 300 with it.

[bamaranger]

Originally, I was a Win 94 guy. I've owned 2 or 3, and wish I had never sold the last one, which had the dangest good trigger on it. But, we were buying the place, I had other carbines that were filling the same role,and I let it go. Who knew they would become extinct? In those days, I could run bead/blade sights well, and felt I never gave up much at woods deer ranges. Had I put a peep on the old Wins, I would likely have been even more satisfied. And they were a delight to tote, slim, light.......near ideal to ramble the country side.

But we age and things happen. Namely, I cannot run bead /blade sights for general shooting, and a peep helps but my peep days are limited too. I never have cared for the the Angle Eject Winchesters, and the lawyer safeties either. (I'm with Wyosmith on that). But the solid top Marlins allow for scope mounting as is, and many were factory drilled to that end. For a lever .30-30 these days, I'd have to go with the Marlin. My Marlin '94 is on the list for a tidy scope.....maybe a Leupold 2.5x.

The Henry....never shot one. I'm all for the NY based business......don't you know that just galls some folks up there....their making GUNS in NYC!!! But the Big Bores I've handled seemed way to heavy for a .30-30 carbine. I don't care for the tube mag all that much either.

[DPris]

Behind the times.
Henrys are now made in Jersey & Wisconsin.
Denis

[Jeff2222]

The Winchester 94 is my favorite based on looks and history and it functions well.

The 336 is easier to take down to clean, the action is a bit smoother, and it has better sights, but it just isn't a 94.

[shootniron]

Winchester for me...

The Marlin and Henry are nice guns...just don't handle like the Winchester.

[BlackLabsMatter]

I like the Winchester 94 and Marlin 336 equally. Modern "Henrys" are knock off Marlins that they were to cheap to put in a real tube magazine and gate into.

The Winchester handles better for me, it feels like a long pistol. I can easily hold it steady on my shoulder, one handed.

The Marlin has the better feeling action. Smoother and the action feels nice and tight.

The .30-30 is such a light-recoiling round, even with the lighter Winchester, especially for its performance.

Beware the man who says that Marlins are easier to disassemble, he never had taken down either and is parroting what he's read but knows not.

Neither are hard to disassemble but the Marlin has a lot more screws. The Marlin bolt may pop out easily but gunk accumulates in the action on both in the lower part of the receiver, periodic assembly and cleaning will keep them both repeaters. The Winchester has an open top design, hence the bolt needn't be easily removable.

[DPris]

The Marlin is far easier to break down as far as getting the bolt & lever out, giving access for bore cleaning from the back end.
Once those are out, good access to the inside of the frame, and in all the years I've owned Marlins I've never gone beyond that.

Gun Scrubber sprayed inside the frame with the bolt, lever & ejector out, followed by a good re-lube, covers it.
Every few years take the mag tube & follower out and swab the mag.

Much as I like the Win, I find the Marlin much easier to maintain, with one tool- a single screwdriver.
Denis

[Guv]

"The Winchester has an open top design, hence the bolt needn't be easily removable"
And it's not!

[Deaf Smith]

I own both a 94 and 336. Bother are from the late 60s. The 94 was used by a mounted police unit and traded in while the 336 belonged to a good friend.

The 336 action is much nicer then the 94 for my use. The 94 is a nice gun but I don't think it's as nice as the 336. But, i won't part with either.

100 percent agree.

Go look for a used Marlin 336 made in the 60s - 70s.

Kind of like mine!



Deaf

[DPris]

If I get to the point where I want to break a levergun down for more involved internal cleaning, makes no difference if it's an open-top design, I want that bolt out.
Denis

[Deaf Smith]

For my Marlin pictured above, to take the bolt out just unscrew that one screw at the front of the lever. First half way lever the action (unloaded!), then unscrew that screw, then pull the lever down and pull the bolt out! Just watch out for the ejector, it will drop out many times but its real easy to put back in.

Deaf