GUNS THAT NEED TO BE MADE: WALTHER, SPRINGFIELD ARMORY, MARLIN, COLT

Every now and then I post about guns that need to be made, and sometimes, made again because they have previously been in production. Most of these have appeared before, but hey, they still need to be made. New to this list are some suggestions for Marlin to make.

MARLIN

There are a bunch of very cool and indeed, very function rifles and...wait for it...pistols you could be making.

A little Marlin personal history first, echoed by millions across this nation.

I love my Marlin rifles. My 50+ year old bolt action .22 is still going strong, and my Dad bought it shortly before my birth. Thousands and thousands of rounds have been through that rifle, with no issues whatsoever.  As recently as a few weeks ago, still shooting straight.

A few years later came the first deer rifle, a 336 in .30-30. Of course, I still have it as well. It was sighted in shortly after it was purchased, and has been dead on ever since, which has been nearly 40 years.

So I started shooting with Marlin, and still have arguably the best Texas deer rifle ever, even if I don't do much deer hunting as of late. The 336 has been used, however, on multiple occasions to hunt hogs, and it does remarkably well at that task.

I know Marlin is aware of an Alaskan gunsmith who works as Wild West Guns and who makes a nifty take apart carbine based on the Marlin lever action called The Alaskan Co-Pilot.  They bore out a .45-70 to some wildcat magnum caliber that still chambers the .45-70. It's transformed into a takedown rifle and there is lots of other gunsmithing done to it and just every gun writer I've read stories on this gun just thought it was a great gun. It's been used by a big game hunter in Africa but I guess the intended purpose is not only big game hunting but bear defense in the great white north.

The Alaskan Copilot from Wild West Guns

From the Wild West Guns site, this work of art could

take down a grizzly as well as the most dangerous

in Africa and breaks in half. With a 16" barrel,

it's a compact hunting/bear defense machine.

When I get mine, and I will find a deal on one

of these or just break down and order one from

Mr. West, my scope will be on the receiver, despite

the contrary opinion.

Interestingly, a few years ago this same gunsmith, the owner of Wild West Guns, which is located in Alaska,  created a very cool version of the Steve McQueen Mare's Leg (Laig) out of one of these big lever actions. It's a very cool gun, but the threads and posts I read on various forums, a few purporting to be from the Wild West Guns owner himself, said because he's modifying existing rifles to a pistol the NFA rules kick in for short barreled weapons and such and forms and licenses and fees all get thrown into the mix.

THE BUSHWACKER FROM WILD WEST GUNS

ANOTHER VERSION OF THE BUSHWACKER NEXT TO A S&W MODEL 329PD FROM http://www.armas.es/galerias/image.raw?type=img&id=7326

Of course, Marlin knows that they can take a receiver that's never been attached to a rifle barrel and make a pistol out of it, just as Henry and Rossi are doing with their versions of the Mare's Legs.

But what's missing is the Mare's Leg in a rifle caliber, as was originally portrayed on the McQueen show. A .45-70 or  .444 Marlin would be a nice chambering, not to forget a scaled down version in .30-30 based on the 336 large loop pistol grip.

Believe it or not, some pundits on internet forums gave the owner of Wild West Guns a lot of grief about The Bushwacker.Why I don't know. I'd sure like to have one, but as a production pistol and not an NFA weapon.

The other product missing from your line is the above-mentioned takedown rifle in several calibers. Being a Texan, I'd like to have one in .30-30 or .35 Remington, just cause we don't have the bear issue here. Our biggest threat in the woods is a large russian boar, perhaps wounded or cornered, in a situation where it will charge you.

Maybe you could work a deal with the Wild West guy and avoid the inevitable litigation if you made either of these guns part of your product line. Seems like he's created many works of art from your original product. How about making him consultant on a line of innovative firearms like these and working together to put out a custom line AND a budget line of the same guns.

Me myself, I'd like a Bushwacker IN A BIG CALIBER and could only hope that the black synthetic appearing stock was actually made of Pachmayr materials. I'd like a takedown 16" trapper or carbine based on the pistol gripped .30-30 and outfitted with some of the options Wild West offers, particularly the replacement sights and the internal gun work Wild West does.

So that's what I say Marlin.

WALTHER

I fail to understand why your company does not make the PPK/S or PPK in .22 caliber. You make it in .380 and .32 ACP. It was, as you know, made for decades in .22 L.R. caliber. It took several decades of S&W making the stainless Walthers to offer the blued version. I think you'd sell a profitable number of guns if you reintroduced the .22 L.R. into your PPK/S lineup.


SPRINGFIELD ARMORY

You need to make and actually market the pistol version of the M6 Scout Rifle. As i recall, the pistol was chambered for .45 Long Colt and .410 in one barrel, and I guess .22 L.R. or .22 WMR or .22 Hornet in the other. Shown at several mid-2000's gun shows as a product that would soon be for sale.

Likewise, how about selling more scopes and mounts for the M6, or making the M6 again/buying it again from CZ. These guns are selling for a lot of cash now. I'd buy the pistol version I've seen RIOT NOW if you had them for sale.

Are you listening, CZ? 

COLT

How about some reasonably priced Single Action Army or Peacemaker guns for the loyal customers of your company. I like the recently (re?) introduced New Frontier but it's too expensive for me. How's about getting that priced down to about $700?

Likewise with the 1911's.

And think really seriously about putting the Python, Detective Special and Cobra back into production.