The Good Ol’ Days Are Here Again: Marlin Golden 39M Lever Action

The Marlin Golden 39M lever action is chambered in .22 and from the first trigger pull takes you back to the days of laying waste to soda and vegetable cans set up as targets in the 1970s.

My dad and I used to go to Mr. Harris’s farm, taking the Golden 39M, his High Standard Double Nine revolver, and a bag of empty cans. We would fire round after round and the cans did not have a chance.

Through the years since, I somehow misplaced the Golden 9M but the memories of shooting with Dad stayed clear. And when I think back on those mornings spent target shooting, I have asked myself, “Could that rifle really have been as accurate as you seem to recall?”

Well…fast forward to January 5, 2026, when I found the old Golden 39M while cleaning out a closet. It was made in 1974, designated the “Golden” model with a trigger of gold color instead of steel blue.

It did not take me long to grab a box of .22lr and head out to test my memories. (The Golden 39M is chambered in .22 short, long, and long rifle.) I put 15 rounds of .22lr in the tubular magazine, levered the action, took aim, and ping, just like I remembered. I levered the action and fired again, then did it again and again, until the magazine was empty. 

I grinned and knew the Marlin Micro-Groove barrel was every bit as accurate as I remembered.

The Golden 39M is a shorter variant of the Marlin 39A so it swings up quickly and is easy to manipulate. The rifle’s receiver is drilled and tapped for mounting a scope but I prefer the open sights affixed to the barrel. The rear sight is adjustable while the front sight is fixed and enclosed in a circular shroud to prevent it from being damaged if the gun gets knocked into something in the bed of the truck or in the shop or while you traipse through the woods.

Marlin Golden 39M rifles are no longer in production, but a used one in good condition can be acquired for around $750-$800. The memories you could make with this rifle are worth every penny.

AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio and the director of global marketing for Lone Star Hunts. He holds a PhD in Military History with a focus on the Vietnam War (brown water navy), U.S. Navy since Inception, the Civil War, and Early Modern Europe. Follow him on X: @awrhawkins. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.