Tag Archives: new 2023 rifle

Welcome back, Marlin 1894

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Marlin first introduced the now classic revolver-caliber lever gun back in 1894, hence the name, originally chambered in then-contemporary cartridges such as .25-20, .32-20, .38-40, and .44-40. With a straight grip, rectangular lever, 24-inch octagonal barrel, and a healthy 10-shot tubular magazine, the “solid top” Model 1894 was popular enough to remain in production well into the 1930s.

The original Marlin 1894 was a product of the company’s LL Hepburn era and drew heavily from preceding designs such as the very similar Model 1893, shown here in the Cody exhibit at SHOT Show 2019, with the big difference being that the 1894 was the company’s first “solid top” rifle. (Photo: Chris Eger)

Marlin restored the M1894 to its catalog in 1969– when Old Western TV shows like “Gunsmoke” and “Bonanza” were must-watch prime-time family programming– and updated the caliber to the more readily-available .44 Special/Magnum. At the same time, the company shortened the rifle a bit via an easier-to-shoulder 20-inch round profile barrel but otherwise kept the same general layout as the original.

Marlin kept the Vietnam-era M1894 reboot in and out of production, including shorter carbine options and variants chambered in .357 Mag, .41 Mag, and .45 Colt, until the model finally vanished altogether in 2020 with the bankruptcy of Remington Outdoors, which had acquired the Marlin brand a decade prior.

In its final days before going out of production in 2020, the Marlin 1894 was seen as an ideal suppressor host, seen with an AAC Illusion fitted. Note the solid top design allowed easy fitment of optics. (Photo: Chris Eger)

Fast forward to this week and, with Ruger now firmly in the driver’s seat of the rebooted brand, the Marlin 1894 is back.

Chambered in .44 Rem Mag/Special, the new Ruger-made Marlin Model 1894 Classic sports an American black walnut straight stock and forend with pressed in checkering and, much like the circa 1969 2nd generation gun, has a 20-inch round-profile barrel and 10-shot mag.

More in my column at Guns.com.

Ruger makes it official on the Marlin 336 Reboot

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First introduced when Henry Truman was president, the 336 was a staple of Marlin’s catalog, most commonly chambered in .30-30 Winchester or .35 Remington. Sold through a variety of store brands in the 1970s such as the Glenfield Model 30, the simple lever gun was a go-to for sportsmen across generations.

The 336 is a classic as it is…

However, when the Marlin collapsed under the house of cards that was the old Remington Outdoors back in 2020, the 336 fell out of production for the first time in 72 years.

Then came Ruger, who purchased the brand and its assets as part of Remington’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy sale. After moving production from Remington’s shuttered plant in Huntsville, Alabama to a new line set up by Ruger in Mayodan, North Carolina, the Marlin Model 1895 in .45-70 returned to the market in December 2021.

Now, Ruger President and CEO Chris Killoy has kept his past promises to keep rolling out those Marlin favorites to the riflemaker’s huge fanbase.

“The legendary Model 336 helped to build Marlin Firearms into the iconic American brand that it is today,” said Killoy this week. “We have worked for many months on every detail to ensure that Ruger’s reintroduction of this iconic rifle lives up to its stellar reputation.”

I first ran across the new “Mar-ger” 336 in .30-30 at SHOT Show earlier this year some two months before it was “officially” released.

Chambered in .30-30 Win., the Model 336 Classic sports American black walnut furniture with checkering on both the stock and forend. The stock’s black pistol grip cap is inset with a Marlin Horse and Rider medallion and the forend is attached using a barrel band.

I had hoped the new 336 would be more affordable than the $1,479 Model 1895– after all, the “JM” marked 336 of old could be had in big box stores for $299 (with a Simmons scope included!) as recently as the 1990s.

Well, spoiler alert, it is $1,239.

Oof.