EAGLE EYE 444
King Casanova
I have a Marlin just like the one shown above as I bought it in mid-1980 and I put a 4 X 32 scope on it. It was manufactured in 1979 and has been shot less than 6 times total as it was sighted in for my wife with 4 shots and she ONLY shot it once "at a buck" back in 1981.
That morning, my wife and I met my best friend as we frequently went hunting on his uncle's property back then. I got my wife up in her stand and in position, then she pulled the rifle up with a rope and got it loaded properly before I left as I hunted in a different location about 200 yards away. I still remember that cold frosty morning in Wilke's County, Georgia just like it was yesterday. I was so excited when I heard the LOUDEST BOOM and I sat there for a few minutes as that was the game plan after any shot. I was shaking like a leaf as I hurried and got closer to my wife's stand and she told me that as she fired, the buck just wheeled and ran right back where it had came from. While she was still in her stand, she then showed me where the deer was at the point of her shot. I searched for any evidence of a wounded buck BUT it didn't take me long to discover that unfortunately she had hit a pine tree on the far side of this buck and because of the angle of her being up much higher, I think that she obviously shot just over this buck's front shoulders due to the angle of the trail on the side of the hill. There were a scuffed up place on the pine straw on the ground BUT absolutely no blood of any kind to be found as my best friend and I made sure to check, check and re-check the area again before we gave up.
That was the only "real" opportunity for my wife to shoot a buck...as we didn't have does days back then like we do now. Our Daughter was born 6 months afterwards and even though my wife did get to hunt a few more times that season, unfortunately, that was my wife's ONLY shot at a deer in her lifetime.
After reading this thread earlier, I went and got this same rifle out and looked it over and I had some really good memories as they just flooded my mind just while holding this Marlin 336 which was manufactured in 1979. It still has the same Glenfield 4 X 32 fixed centered reticle scope on it since I first mounted it back then. To the best of my memory, this rifle has never been fired since back then either. It still has the "hooded front site" and also the sling swivel mounts installed on the stock near the "Bulls-Eye logo" on the barrel magazine band.
I have several models of Marlin 30-30 caliber and also a 444 caliber and some 22 calibers as well. Thankfully, I still own a bunch of Marlin rifles and ALL of them were manufactured by good friends of mine in their Connecticut plant back then. I am still in touch with a few of those that are still surviving these days....in fact, I had an email from one of them this morning. Unfortunately, most of those dear friends have been deceased several years now, including the owner, Mr. Larry Stout, of the original MarlinOwners.com website. Larry's brother, Gurnie Stout, actually came down to Georgia and used his bow while hog-hunting with some of the members here back several years ago. Unfortunately, Gurnie has also been deceased for several years now as well. My late wife had her own "Forum" on the Marlinowners website for several years up until her untimely death at 52 years of age. She and I were close friends to a lot of the actual employees at Marlin.
I have always LOVED my Marlins for sure. Unfortunately, I have had a few Marlin rifles stolen in a burglary back about 6 months before my wife and I got married in March 1975. I never got any of those Marlin weapons (a .22 caliber single shot and also a 30-30 caliber) back unfortunately. I have never sold any of them BUT, fairly recently, I did give my dear lady friend's son two of my Marlin, 22 caliber rifles (one semi-auto Model 60 made in 1979) and also a single shot model that had been manufactured for Sears Roebuck back in 1980.
Thanks for bringing back some really great memories of some wonderful employees that manufactured the finest rifles that I have ever owned. The 70's, 80's, 90's and into the earlier 2000's were awesome years that I enjoyed my Marlins as often as possible.
I never thought that I would have these kinds of emotions just because someone want to sell a firearm as such. I came home from having lunch with my lady friend and I even got to see her son at his after-school workplace on my way home as well.
Thanks to Marlin Firearms for creating so many good memories for me and being able to enjoy these memories with other like-minded people such as others here on this website. Ya'll might think that I am crazy BUT I really feel the presence of my late wife just as she might be here in the room with me as I typed this tonight. Unfortunately, she has actually been deceased since December 9, 2006 but I still feel her presence most every day in one way or another.
Hopefully, the OP of this thread might get whatever he wants to get for his firearm, but as for me, in my mind, the value of the actions and thoughts that have surrounded all of my firearms would surely never be justified in any amount of money that may be derived as such. At some point soon, I probably will be gifting the majority of these to my Daughter and SIL and possibly my lady friend's family as that is all of the family that I have left these days.
That morning, my wife and I met my best friend as we frequently went hunting on his uncle's property back then. I got my wife up in her stand and in position, then she pulled the rifle up with a rope and got it loaded properly before I left as I hunted in a different location about 200 yards away. I still remember that cold frosty morning in Wilke's County, Georgia just like it was yesterday. I was so excited when I heard the LOUDEST BOOM and I sat there for a few minutes as that was the game plan after any shot. I was shaking like a leaf as I hurried and got closer to my wife's stand and she told me that as she fired, the buck just wheeled and ran right back where it had came from. While she was still in her stand, she then showed me where the deer was at the point of her shot. I searched for any evidence of a wounded buck BUT it didn't take me long to discover that unfortunately she had hit a pine tree on the far side of this buck and because of the angle of her being up much higher, I think that she obviously shot just over this buck's front shoulders due to the angle of the trail on the side of the hill. There were a scuffed up place on the pine straw on the ground BUT absolutely no blood of any kind to be found as my best friend and I made sure to check, check and re-check the area again before we gave up.
That was the only "real" opportunity for my wife to shoot a buck...as we didn't have does days back then like we do now. Our Daughter was born 6 months afterwards and even though my wife did get to hunt a few more times that season, unfortunately, that was my wife's ONLY shot at a deer in her lifetime.
After reading this thread earlier, I went and got this same rifle out and looked it over and I had some really good memories as they just flooded my mind just while holding this Marlin 336 which was manufactured in 1979. It still has the same Glenfield 4 X 32 fixed centered reticle scope on it since I first mounted it back then. To the best of my memory, this rifle has never been fired since back then either. It still has the "hooded front site" and also the sling swivel mounts installed on the stock near the "Bulls-Eye logo" on the barrel magazine band.
I have several models of Marlin 30-30 caliber and also a 444 caliber and some 22 calibers as well. Thankfully, I still own a bunch of Marlin rifles and ALL of them were manufactured by good friends of mine in their Connecticut plant back then. I am still in touch with a few of those that are still surviving these days....in fact, I had an email from one of them this morning. Unfortunately, most of those dear friends have been deceased several years now, including the owner, Mr. Larry Stout, of the original MarlinOwners.com website. Larry's brother, Gurnie Stout, actually came down to Georgia and used his bow while hog-hunting with some of the members here back several years ago. Unfortunately, Gurnie has also been deceased for several years now as well. My late wife had her own "Forum" on the Marlinowners website for several years up until her untimely death at 52 years of age. She and I were close friends to a lot of the actual employees at Marlin.
I have always LOVED my Marlins for sure. Unfortunately, I have had a few Marlin rifles stolen in a burglary back about 6 months before my wife and I got married in March 1975. I never got any of those Marlin weapons (a .22 caliber single shot and also a 30-30 caliber) back unfortunately. I have never sold any of them BUT, fairly recently, I did give my dear lady friend's son two of my Marlin, 22 caliber rifles (one semi-auto Model 60 made in 1979) and also a single shot model that had been manufactured for Sears Roebuck back in 1980.
Thanks for bringing back some really great memories of some wonderful employees that manufactured the finest rifles that I have ever owned. The 70's, 80's, 90's and into the earlier 2000's were awesome years that I enjoyed my Marlins as often as possible.
I never thought that I would have these kinds of emotions just because someone want to sell a firearm as such. I came home from having lunch with my lady friend and I even got to see her son at his after-school workplace on my way home as well.
Thanks to Marlin Firearms for creating so many good memories for me and being able to enjoy these memories with other like-minded people such as others here on this website. Ya'll might think that I am crazy BUT I really feel the presence of my late wife just as she might be here in the room with me as I typed this tonight. Unfortunately, she has actually been deceased since December 9, 2006 but I still feel her presence most every day in one way or another.
Hopefully, the OP of this thread might get whatever he wants to get for his firearm, but as for me, in my mind, the value of the actions and thoughts that have surrounded all of my firearms would surely never be justified in any amount of money that may be derived as such. At some point soon, I probably will be gifting the majority of these to my Daughter and SIL and possibly my lady friend's family as that is all of the family that I have left these days.
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