ORIGINAL: RemMod1100
Me, I like Marlins better than Winchesters 94. You hold that Marlin & your holding a design that first saw light n 1889. All Marlins lever guns are made on this design & even with its round bolt the 336 is closer to an 1889 than a Modern Win 94 is to the orginal designed by John Browning.
I'm no gunsmith so I won't argue. But I've looked at end of the 19th century Marlins and end of the 19th century Winchester '94's and it doesn't look to me like the '94's have changed much (this is compared to my 1947 made '94 though).
I own both. If I seriously go deer hunting with one of them, I take the 336. If I throw in an extra gun in case I see a coyote while pheasant hunting, I take the '94. I shoot the 336 far more accurately then the '94. Not sure why. The 336 just seems a lot steadier.
The Winchesters might look the same but theyre not. Yours made in 47 is but in the last 15 years or so they ruined it IMO. They machined away the reciever to achieve angle eject, they altered the action to a rebounding hammer wth no half cock & a couple other things. Cant say theyre bad guns as they sure sell alot of them but they lost apeal to me.
Guess I'm a traditionalist so to speak. Theyre way more complex than a Marlin as well. Its a snap to take the bolt out of a marlin for cleaning from the breech & total disassembly is also very simple, not so with John Browning designed lever guns.
Somebody asked about finding the age of their gun. If its a Marlin you should check out Marlinowners.com or the Marlin collectors site. If its a Winchester I suggest you pose your question on Leverguns.com.