OK, marlin experts,

[jnyork]

Need a little help here. I have two 336 Marlins built in the late '40s, their triggers seem normal in ever respect. I recently bought another 336a made in '73. The trigger on this one has a BUNCH of slop, it flops around loose whether the rifle is cocked or not , maybe as much as 1/4" or so. Otherwise it functions normally. Am I missing a spring in there, I cant tell anything from the schematic on the Numrich website. Thanks.

[Cast Bullet Hunter]

In the early 1950s Marlin re-designed the trigger from a one piece to a two piece. It is part of the safety mechanism which prevents the rifle from firing unless the lever is held completely closed. What you observe is completely normal for each respective time of manufacture.

[marlinman93]

Yes, Marlin used to use a trigger that directly contacted the notch in the hammer, but later they added a sear in the middle between hammer and trigger. They also added a disconnect pin that protruded thorugh the lower tang so the lever had to depress it before the trigger could engage the sear. Another safety to keep the gun from firing before the lever was fully closed.
Funny thing was this was first used by Marlin on the model 1891 lever action, and subsequently dropped later in the 1892 model.

[Leverdude]

They used it in the 1889s too..

[jnyork]

Thanks for your help, fellers, I appreciate it.