Marlin Golden 39a Review:

Caliber:  .22 Long Rifle, .22 Long, .22 Short

Capacity:  Tubular magazine; 25 .22 Short, 20 .22 Long, or 18 .22 Long Rifle

Action:  Lever

Front Sight:  Blade with brass bead windage adjustable

Rear Sight:  Folding blade with notch adjustable for windage and elevation; dovetailed to barrel. I added a Skinner receiver-mounted aperture sight.

Price:  These run around $550 new. This is a 1979 model I got in excellent condition for $380.

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This page is under construction. Full review coming soon.

I've wanted a Marlin 39a since college (about 1999) when a fellow Purdue University Rifle and Pistol Club member let me shoot his. That was some of the most fun I'd ever had with a firearm. At the time I couldn't hope to afford one so my lust went unfulfilled for years as other projects eclipsed my memories of the Model 39a. From time to time I handled some newer iterations of the 39a; ones with a rebounding hammers and cross-bolt safeties. I just couldn't bring myself to spend $500-550 on one of them; the wood and metal just felt sub-par to me. So for about a decade I eyed the used gun racks in Indiana, Kentucky and Georgia gun stores as my life took me in various directions, never spotting a 39a that seemed worth my money. Then on my way home from work in October 2009 I was making my weekly stop at a local store in Warner Robins, GA. I spotted the brass glint on a tubular magazine that identified a rimfire rifle in the lever-action section. I approached it expecting a Henry but was surprised to see a Model 39a. I hadn't even seen a used one in a store for about 6 years. The wood stocks had a very pleasing grain and the blued metal was in very good condition with only a few tiny spots showing surface corrosion. The bore was dusty so I had a clerk run a Bore Snake through it. After that the bore was nice and shiny. A quick search of serial numbers with my iPhone identified the rifle as a 1979 model. The price tag asked $400 but the clerk offered it for $380. I was trying to avoid impulse gun purchases so I decided to sleep on it and discuss the purchase with my wife. The next day I returned to purchase the rifle and was shocked not to see it on the rack. My heart sunk in my chest. I had allowed a gun to slip from my grasp after a decade of waiting. Further searching showed that the rifle had simply been moved to another section, so with lifted spirits I quickly made the purchase.

I returned home beaming with my newest firearm but the feeling would be short-lived. I loaded a few .22LR dummy rounds to cycle through the rifle and test its function; the rounds would not enter the chamber. I was new to lever-action rifles and certainly to the Model 39a platform but after taking the gun apart and examining schematics online I noticed one piece that was obviously broken.




The Skinner aperture sight is an excellent addition to the Model 39a. The brass version looks good with the gold trigger, it's easily adjustable, accurate and keeps the traditional look of the rifle intact.

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