Another rare Marlin daily plinker, 39 Mountie

[North Country Gal]

I've been on the prowl for a lever gun to shoot off the deck with CCI Quiets that meets my needs, namely a 22 lever gun with a 24" barrel for the sake of quiet shooting. Found a surprising one over the weekend and it's a beauty.


Now some of you may know that the Marlin 39 Mountie, later called the 39M was the straight grip Marlin 39 with a 20" barrel and you'd be right. Starting the second year of production for the Mountie, Mounties had a 20" barrel for the rest of their production years. What a lot of folks don't know is that the first year of production for the Mountie was in 1953 and in that year, and that year only, it had a 24" barrel. Only 4300 of these first year Mounties with the 24" barrel were made, so this is one rare Marlin 39. These are sometimes called K prefix Mounties because al 39s made in 1953 had a serial number starting with K.

Despite the long 24" barrel, this is still a Mountie. What makes it a Moutie is that straight grip stock and straight lever.


The only thing missing on this one was the Marlin bullseye in the stock and the front sight hood. No problem on the Marlin bullseye. Already had one in the parts drawer and glued it into the stock. Will have to go hunting for the front sight hood, though.

Given this is a 1953 39A, it has standard rifling, not microgroove. It's not drilled and tapped for a scope, either. I already have a plan to add a scope, but for now the iron sights are fine. It is drilled and tapped for a receiver peep sight, but much to my surprise, no one makes a receiver peep sight for the 39, anymore.

As for the action and trigger, well, it doesn't get much sweeter than this one. Very quiet, too, with the CCI Quiets, just as I predicted.

Never was a fan of the white line spacers, so the spacer came off and I stored it the parts drawer. Like it better this way.


Having owned my share of 39As with the pistol grip, I have to say the balance on this straight grip version has been a delightful surprise. It has the feel of a very trim gun, which it is, of course. Points like a dream.

Yup, every daily plinker shopped have a daily plinker lever gun and this one is mine. Doesn't get much better than a vintage 39A.

[John M]

Mine is the 39M

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[fortyshooter]

A mighty fine looking .22 lever shooter NCG! What is the large screw head on the right side? I am lacking in knowledge on the older Marlins.Great background shot of your Marlin John!

[Ernie]

Nice find. I do like the Marlin 39s for plinking.

[BigAl52]

Nice Marlin both John and NCG. Hard to beat a 22 lever for plinking fun. I’ve owned 2 Marlin 39A gave one to a step daughter and sold the other one. I have 2 Henry 22 levers and enjoy shooting those.

[Hatchdog]

Very nice, didn’t know the Mountie had a 24” bbl in the first year of production. Recently a local LGS who advertised on the local guntrader page had a Mountie for sale. He didn’t make mention that it was a Mountie in his ad so somebody got a nice surprise.

Thanks for the pics.

[North Country Gal]

Thanks guys.

Forty, that large screw on the side of the receiver on a Marlin 39 is the take down screw. The receiver you see on a 39 is actually two pieces for the sake of take down. Loosen the screw and the two halves of the receiver separate and your 39 is now essentially two pieces.


Somewhere along the way, a little bit of history has been lost when people see how so many of these old 22 rifle designs from the late 1800s through the 1920s also have a quick take down feature. Yes, it allows for easier packing and transport of the gun, but the quick take down feature was originally for the purpose of quick cleaning, reason being that 22 ammo prior to the early 30s used an organic wax lube that quickly gummed up the action with a lot of shooting and, of course, 22s were shot a lot more than centerfire guns.

In the 1930s, 22 ammo got new lubricants that greatly eliminated this problem, but the take down feature was maintained because it was a part of the design on these much loved 22 rifles. All those much sought after Winchester pump and auto 22s from that era that are now highly collectible had a take down feature. My 1920s Marlin 22 pump has it. In fact, it's probably the fastest of all for take down. That long knob on the top of the tang is not the safety. Pull it to the rear and the receiver separates from the butt stock, exposing the action.


FYI, the only gun still in production with this quick take down feature is the little Browning SA 22 semi auto, given it was introduced all the way back in 1914.

Back to the Marlin. A Marlin 39 wouldn't be a Marlin 39 without that take down screw on the side of the receiver, even if most 39 owners have probably never bothered to use that take down feature. The down side of this two piece receiver for those who keep dreaming about the Marlin 39 coming back into production is that the two halves required a lot of expert hand fitting due to the elaborate curves on the parts involved. If you ever take down a 39, you will find that one half of the receiver on the inside is stenciled with the gun's serial number. One thing a 39 owner will also quickly discover is that the action on a 39 gets rough and sloppy in a hurry if that take down screw gets even a little loose. Just shows how important and how difficult it is to turn out a smooth 39.

Of all the Marlins that Remington tried to produce, the 39 was the biggest headache thanks to this take down, two piece recover. Remington finally gave up, of course. Will Ruger try to bring back the 39? Same challenge, so if Ruger does bring back the 39, it will be one very expensive 39.

Here's a close up pic of the right side of the 39 receiver. Notice those fine lines that separate the two pieces. Step back even a few feet and you can't see them. That's how perfectly the pieces fit together.


The left side of the receiver is mostly one piece, but notice right above the trigger where it mates with the other side.


Bottom line: If you want a Marlin 39, get out and buy one, now. Yeah, they are pricey, but if they ever do come back in production (and I doubt it), they will cost you a whole lot more.

[fortyshooter]

Thanks NCG for the explanation!

[Hatchdog]

I’ve had mine (39A) apart several times. I do struggle with the directions in the owners manual that state to separate the two halves smack the buttstock on a table. It’s not as bad as it sounds as it really just takes a tap not a smack!

ETA, I just looked at the manual again and it says to strike the muzzle not the buttstock. That makes more sense but it’s still funny to read about “striking” your firearm against a table or floor. `

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[North Country Gal]

Yeah, I've taken down my 39s a time or two. Always a little surreal to see that receiver fall apart into two pieces. The Marlin 39 is such a great gun, though, and I've had most of the various models of the 39 over the years. If I had to vote for the greatest 22 rifle ever made, the Marlin 39 would certainly be a serious contender. It's built like a centerfire lever gun with the same quality as a centerfire lever gun, but just on a 22 LR scale for size of the action. That makes the 39 feel like a very serious gun when you shoot it, but at the same time, it also feels like a really fun rifle to shoot, which it is. Kind of hard to describe, but it provides a one of a kind shooting experience all its own.