The unintended gun collection, part 2

Last week I mentioned the assortment of Savage model 24 firearms I’ve accumulated over the years. After giving the topic more thought, I realized I have a few other “collections.” I’ll talk a little about them here.

My first “deer” rifle, bought when I was a teenager, was a Marlin model 336 in 35 Remington caliber. I already owned a Marlin model 39 in 22 rimfire which was and still is my favorite small game rifle. I inherited a Marlin model 1895 in 45-70 caliber from my father after he passed. I traded my younger brother for a Marlin model 1894 in 44 magnum caliber, which was the rifle my father carried on our last deer hunt together.

I’ve harvested both white-tailed and Sitka blacktail deer with the 35 Remington. The 45-70 predated the Guide Gun model, so I had a gunsmith shorten the barrel and remount the front sight to make a more useable “brush gun.” I harvested a forkhorn bull moose with it during the last late season spike/fork moose hunt we had here in the Valley. I’ve carried the 44 magnum as a bear gun on various fishing trips because it is a light and short rifle to handle.

Over the years, I found an unfired Marlin model 336 in 30-30 caliber, a Marlin in 444 Marlin caliber, and a Marlin in 375 Winchester caliber. All these lever action rifles are of the pre-push button receiver safety vintage. I understand the reasoning for the safety, but I think it’s unnecessary if you follow safe gun handling procedures. Plus, it’s ugly!

I have a small selection of World War II military and Korean era rifles also. The first is a British Enfield No. 4 Mk. II in 303 British caliber, the second is a CMP (Civilian Marksmanship Program) M1 Garand in 30-06 caliber, the third is a 91/30 Mosin-Nagant in 7.62x54 Russian that I was able to find parts for to “convert” into a sniper rifle configuration, and, finally, the civilian version of the M14 rifle by Springfield Armory (M1A) in 7.62x51 caliber (308 Winchester).

To my eye, the silhouette of the M14 rifle has always looked great. Over time, I wanted a Garand because of its history and the relationship it has with the development of the M14. I bought both the Enfield and the Mosin-Nagant because, at the time, they were dirt cheap surplus, less than $100 each. In fact, the Enfield was brand new and unissued, and arrived packed with cosmoline and wrapped in its storage paper. I spent a lot of time cleaning grease out of the crevices of that rifle!

The final group of firearms I’ll mention is a representative group of rifles one would find in eastern deer hunting camps in the first half of the 20th century. I’ll start with my grandfather’s rifle, a sporterized German Mauser model 33/40 in 8x57 Mauser caliber. My dad’s dad was a tool and die maker who got into gunsmithing because he couldn’t find folks to do the type of work he wanted. In addition to building this rifle for himself, he built a customized Springfield 1903-03 in 30-06 caliber for my dad. The end of WW II found a shortage of commercially available rifles and my grandfather built these two rifles for hunting.

I have four lever-actions that fit this grouping. The first two are the aforementioned Marlins in 30-30 and 35 Remington calibers. The third is a Winchester model 94 in 30-30 caliber and the last is a Savage model 99 in 308 caliber. I bought a Savage model 340 a while back in 30-30 caliber because it was an inexpensive bolt-action firearm used by less affluent hunters back in the day.

I bought a Remington model 81 in 300 Savage caliber from a friend who got it from his grandfather. My friend wanted a long-range precision rifle for his hunting and shooting. The model 81’s predecessor, the model 8, was the first commercially successful semi-auto rifle available to the American hunting public. The models 8 and 81 functioned identically, the difference being slightly different stock dimensions.

I have one other rifle which could be included in this group, especially in eastern Canada in the time period mentioned. The rifle is a Browning remake of the venerable Winchester model 71 in 348 caliber. I bought this rifle for moose and black bear hunting here in Alaska, but I’m sure a few turned up in eastern deer hunting camps, too.