Marlin 336a 30-30
 

I have a bunch of whitetail calibers from 243 to 300wby but as long as I have been hunting I have never had a 30-30. I went to Dicks sporting good this weekend and they had their combo scope/rings/rifle for $350 and I couldnt pass it up.

I picked up a box of the Hornady Leverevelution. in 160grn to try out before getting my dies, bullets etc for next year.

Couple questions though, this gun has a safety on it plus using the hammer itself. How do folks usually carry these for quick-non treestand shots? Safety on hammer back? or safey off hammer forward or just safety on and hammer forward?

2nd what should I apply to the wood stock. I realize I have a $350 gun and was not expecting a "great" stock and there as a couple spots in the checkering where it doesnt look like the stain got into so the wood is close to bare. I looked at 3 different rifles and they all looked like they had this issue.

Any other general tips would be appreciated. Odd to be hunting for 25years and finally getting the gun most folks start out with, plus I like how the Hornady ammo give it a bit more flexibility.

I carry a much older lever action .30-30. So no safety. My hammer has three positions, all the way forward, half way and fully back. I've always carried it at the half point, because it is not in contact with the firing pin that way. Also, if it doesn't have on, pick up a hammer spur, it just hooks on to the hammer and extends it out to the side, makes it much easier to handle. Good luck!
-Jake

Hammer in the half **** position with the safety on. When you get situated in your stand it's still safe to push the safety off, just remember to put it back on if you pull the hammer back but don't get a shot. It's a great feature in case the hammer slips from your thumb. Always remember to put the safety on when you unload the rifle. A lot of guys don't like the safety, but it's the best way to prevent an accidental discharge while unloading the gun by racking the shells out.
On the checkering I use any of the oil finishes, mixed 50/50 with mineral spirits. Whatever you might already have will work. True oil, tung oil, linseed oil etc..

Hammer in the half ******* position with the safety on. :hit:

When unloading the tubular magazine, the cartridges do not have to be chambered and then ejected. When a cartridge is fed from the tubular magazine, rotate the rifle 90 degrees with the lever action open, the ejection port pointing to the ground and your hand over the ejection port to catch the cartridge. The same principle works with any firearm utilizing a tubular magazine (pump action shotguns, rifles, etc.)

I agree that there are better ways to unload the gun. I always unload the magazine through the loading gate, but the truth is that 90% of guys with lever actions will just rack them out. I've seen some pretty unsafe methods used to unload these guns. My favorite is when they stick the barrel in the truck so that the cartridges land on the seat, while someone else is sitting in the passenger seat. I've seen that one done several times when I was a kid hunting in Pennsylvania, even at 15 years old it would make me cringe.

I gotta ask, i am not familiar with this. I usually always rack them out.. Can you explain how this works? are you working the action in this method? would like more info if you care to share.

Just push the loading gate open with your finger and have the cartridges slide back out the way they went in.

while i dont have a 30-30, i have a 1895g in 45-70, same features as the 336. I carry mine with saftey on at half-**** until i reach my stand, then take safety off as its easy to forget about it with a lever gun when a deer steps out. in the stand i just use the half ****. i was raised using older lever guns so i could care less about the extra safety, but its there so might as well use it when loading/unloading and/or anytime a fast shot is not required