So my dad just gifted me an interesting Marlin 39a project gun

[afultz075]

So I was at my dad's today for Christmas festivities, and he took me aside and told me he had one more thing to give me, and handed me this Marlin 39a, and said "I know i'll never get around to having this refinished, so I want you to have it. Just don't ever get rid of it"

Interesting story behind this gun, he bought it about 8 years ago from a guy who had it in his basement for $10. The rear of the stock was totally broken off and the buttplate was (and still is) missing. My dad had his friend rebond the stock back together and have it refinished. He never shot it and that's the extent of the repair work he had done to it.

I was with him when he bought it (was around 14 at the time), and knew nothing about firearms, so I figured it was nothing special since it was only $10. When I got it today and saw it for the first time since 2002, I realized it was the much coveted Marlin 39a that my dad bought for $10 nearly 10 years ago.

The action is butter smooth and the internals look great. The exterior has seen better days and there are quite a few spots of surface rust on the barrel. The receiver still looks pretty good. Amazingly, the bore still looks great with sharp rifling and there is no pitting anywhere. There was a few spots of rust on the last 1/8" or so of the bore but I removed it with a brush and the metal underneath was not damaged.

The stock sight has been removed and an aftermarket peepsight added.

Any idea where I can get a replacement buttplate? I really want to get this reblued and looking nice since i'll have this until it's time to be passed down again. How much would I be looking at (ballpark) for a reblue job usually?

Serial number begins with P15 which from what i've found puts the gun around 1957 as DOM.

Finally, a picture:

[Rodolfo Fierro]

Any idea where I can get a replacement buttplate?

Numrich has the buttplate, but it is going to cost more than your dad paid for the gun. $13.15 + S&H LOL They also have a nice walnut stock for $90
http://www.gunpartscorp.com/catalog/...aspx?catid=639

[dewalt-2]

Very nice! What you have is a straight stock 39A often incorrectly referred to as a "Mountie". The designation for a true Mountie is 39M. Your's is a much sought after model.
The rear sight appears to be a Marbel's like this one, I got it for Christmas and mounted it yesterday! These are expensive sights, and you can get the aperture set from Marbel Arms.


This rifle is a '47 39A that my Dad gave me on my 9th birthday-44 years ago.
As far as the bluing goes, I'd just give it a very light polishing with 0000 steel wool and gun oil. A reblue would certainly lower its value.
Put up some more picks, would love to see more detail before you do anything to it.
Best of luck, great rifle.

[afultz075]

Thanks for the info! I was PM'd by another member last night about the sight and he said it was a Lyman that was worth some money. I just looked at the bluing again and it doesn't look as bad as I initially thought, most of the "rust" is actually where the bluing has turned a brown patina that old blued guns tend to get. I've taken some more detailed pics for you. The one picture shows where the stock was split off and where it was rebonded. Since the stock seems to be a bit of a rarity, i'm thinking of getting the cheap $29 replacement Numrich has for sale so I can preserve the straight stock. How do rebonded stocks generally hold up? It looks like my dad's friend did I really good job on it.

[dewalt-2]

That is a Lyman sight, and you can get apertures for it as well.
The rust should easily removed by the method I described above.
Hard to tell from your pics what the reciever looks like, the flash makes it look white.
I think your stock is toast, get the new one and strip the forearm and refinish with an oil finish like tung oil or Tru-Oil.
The front sight doesn't appear to be original either.
Judging from everything I see, you do indeed have a project rifle there.
The '47 I pictured above was in much worse condition than yours, except the wood was good. I did a full home restoration on it. I stripped the wood with Zip Strip and sanded it smooth, then some Varathane dark walnut stain. Don't use any MinWax products, the oil finish wont penetrate well over it. I used Formby's Tung Oil varnish for the top coats, and buffed with steel wool to a dull finish. Then paste wax to seal it.
For the metal, I started with 600 grit sandpaper, then coarse to fine steel wool, then Mother's Mag polish to get it all white and shiny. This is it all stripped down...

I then washed it down with dish soap and very hot water to get rid of all the debris, and dried it in the oven at 200*. Prior to applying the blueing, I hosed it down with non chlorinated brake cleaner followed by a good wash in isopropyl alcohol.
Before I put the blue on, I used my old Ruger Standard as a test bed. The Birchwood Casey cold blue was less than I expected-a blotchy mess. I took a chance and ordered the Oxpho-Blue Creme from Brownell's, no HAZMAT fee, and give's you more time to work than the liquid. Here's how the rustbucket Ruger turned out...

With the success achieved here I did the rifle, just follow the directions on the bottle.
If you should decide to take this project on, you will be rewarded with the satisfaction you did it yourself. It's not a hard project, just takes time and patience.
Have fun with it whatever you decide to do!

[harold63]

I'm with Walt. By the way, the old rust bucket looks damn good!

[afultz075]

dewalt - Thanks for the advice. Your 47 vintage Marlin looks awesome. I had no idea it was refinished until you told me. Unfortunately the pictures of the finish I take without flash are worse and even less detailed. The finish actually doesn't look too awful unless I put it under intense light. I hit the finish with some 0000 and breakfree this morning and it's already starting to improve.

Right now i'm a little undecided about a reblue. I think i'm gonna see how it shoots first and spend another hour going over it with some 0000 (only was able to spend about 15 min on it this morning.

I have decided I am definitely going to get a new stock for it. The rebonded stock is going to bug me to no end and the gun is certainly worth putting a little bit of money into.

My only concern is, is the tang of the receiver exactly the same on my straight stock gun that it will take the standard stock that I replace it with?

[Rodolfo Fierro]

Right now i'm a little undecided about a reblue. I think i'm gonna see how it shoots first and spend another hour going over it with some 0000 (only was able to spend about 15 min on it this morning.

USE BRONZE WOOL not steel wool. It is harder to find, but bronze wool will remove only the rust, not the blue.

[dewalt-2]

My only concern is, is the tang of the receiver exactly the same on my straight stock gun that it will take the standard stock that I replace it with?

You don't want a standard 39A stock, it has the curved pistol grip. You want a straight stock. Look for a Mountie stock(39M), and if I'm not mistaken an 1894 stock will fit.

[Rundownfid]

Fine rifle, what a gift. You have gotten some very good advice here, but you might try Marlin Owners Forum and Rimfire Central (they have a Marlin sub forum).

I would re-stock it and leave the metal as is, That sight looks like the one on mine, does it have a little lever that allows you to switch from a small to a larger aperture?