One of a kind Marlin guide gun

[Jim Watson]

I asked about the load. The owner replied:

"Load was 48 gr of 3031 with Barnes solid copper 300 gr .458 bullet. Others that were loaded at that time were pulled and checked. They were spot on. I did NOT allow the stuck bullet in the barrel to be removed. I will leave that for the collector to pull or leave in place. It does have a hollow point copper bullet stuck and the front and rear of the next round in the magazine is still there. The center of the case was blown out. I am including a couple of rounds that were loaded for the gun along with the example that exploded. The case is peeled wide open and the barrel split open starting at the case, but it split along the milled slot on the bottom of the barrel, which weakened it. There is evidence of different colors of metal exposed, whether that is a flaw in the casting or some sort of evidence of heat treating the metal is up to interpretation. If it is sent back to Marlin, I will never see it again(lost in receiving dept), and I don’t want it replaced with a Remington made Marlin. Worth more as it is to the right collector. I am including pictures taken in the emergency room of what remained of my left hand. The buyer gets the pics, open if you have a strong stomach!! The proceeds will go toward a prosthetic thumb, probably an “M. Thumb”. Not covered by insurance. So far $90,000 in medical expenses. Not done yet. Dennis"

That is the Lyman starting load for a 300 gr JSP in 1886/1895 bracket. Solid copper would no doubt increase pressure somewhat but I would not think it enough to blow the gun.

[Totem Polar]

There has got to be more to this story.

[Stephanie B]

How is that thing a collector’s item?

[RevolverRob]

Pretty much guarantee that was a double charge, a charge and a half, or bullet setback.

I’ve seen it with heavy .45-70s with poor crimps. Recoil can cause the bullet to strike the rear of the cartridge in front of it sufficiently to cause setback. Fortunately the time I saw it happen they were heavy black powder loads. Still, stuck case that required a hammer, dowel, and significant effort to get out.

When we pulled the rounds in the tube noticeable setback was present on three of the four remaining rounds.