Before buying a scope, there are a number of things to put into consideration. These things will guide you in making the right choice of scope for your Marlin 336. Let’s take a close look at some of these things:
Tube Construction
The scope tube comes in different sizes; the tube’s size determines the range of the shots. Because Marlin 336 is made to take shots from short to the average range, usually 150 yards to 200 yards on the maximum. The large tubes are not required as they are used for taking long-range shots.
Tubes of about 25mm to 30mm are okay for a Marlin 336. The modern ones are filled with inert gas to make them fog proof for a better view. The inert gas can also act as a shock absorber if any incidence of the scope falls.
Eye Relief
The distance between your eyes and the end of the lens must be long enough to ensure that your eyes are at a safe distance when the rifle recoils. Getting a scope with little or no regard for the safety of your eyes can be pretty dangerous. Whenever the rifle recoils, you would find it hitting you squarely on the forehead or, worse still, on your eyes.
Never get a scope without checking for the eye relief as the safety of your eye may be compromised. It also gives you the Confidence you need to shoot like a real “badass” without fear of sustaining an injury whenever it recoils. A distance of 4 inches or even 3.5 inches is perfect for a Marlin 336.
Magnification
for Your rifle’s usual range to fire at a targeted matter a lot in choosing your magnification strength. For Marlin 336, fires at a range of 200 yards on the maximum, between 2x and 4x, are perfect. Using a 2.5 – 10x magnification scope may not give you a clear view of your target, but it sure would give a more significant zoom ratio.
Trying to increase the magnification of your scope unnecessarily will only cause more lenses to be added. The more the lens, the more you would have to treat the lens, not to mention that the rifle’s weight would be increased.
Weight
Considering the lightweight of a Marlin 336, the scope that should go with it is not supposed to be very heavy. It must be light enough for a deer Hunter to carry around the woods and mountains without feeling too burdened by the weight of the rifle and its scope. You might want to settle for the right scope with just the right magnification. It has been observed that the more the lens, the heavier the scope.
Glass Quality
A high-quality scope glass is supposed to have a fully multi coated lens, giving you a clearer view at any time of the day. It would allow more light to enter it, making it easier to focus on a target.
Field of View
The field of view has a lot to do with the size of the objective lens. The objective lens with the appropriate lens diameter would also allow more light to enter the lens, assisting in sharpening the image even when the lighting conditions are poor—the diameters of the objective lens in the market range from 20mm to 72mm. For your Marlin 336, the 40mm objective lens goes well with it.
Durability
Some shooters have complained about the durability of some scopes; this is not to discredit any company’s product. I would advise you to check the track record of some of these products in the market when buying a scope for your Marlin 336. You might want to go for the ones with at least a moderate warranty. There is nothing as frustrating as going back to the store just to purchase the same thing over and over again.
I’m pretty sure you don’t want to discover that the scope on your rifle has gone bad right on the mountain, just as you are preparing to take that deer down.
