Hello all,
Recently picked up Marlin 1881 mfg. in 1881, 45 govt. with 26" barrel.

I picked it up for $299 but the trigger is broken (literally). A good friend of mine is building a new trigger, as originals are near impossible to find.

One other shortcoming is that some holes were drilled on the receiver and filled with probably devcon at some point!

So my question is:
Should I fix these ugly holes or leave as is? To fix right I would need the holes filled and then have the receiver rust blued. I don't have plans to touch the barrel's finish in anyway and I'm on the fence about touching the receiver at all...

So what do you suggest? Leave as is or fix the holes?

Here are a couple of pics of the rifle in question. I do plan on using this as a hunting rifle when the trigger is fixed with proper black powder loads of course!

Thanks in advance,
Mark.

PS: I'm all about leaving stuff original alone, but the devcon filled holes really take away from the beauty of this old beast...

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The holes are on the left side of the receiver as shown in the second picture.

With some research I found a Colt-Burgess designed rifle that appears to have a very similar trigger, and Taylors makes/imports an Italian copy of this rifle with a two-piece sear/trigger.

I think it would be better to just have a new trigger fabricated, but I'm curious to see if the Colt-Burgess trigger will work... Burgess designed both rifles I think so there may be a chance...

Figure if folks swap out marlin two piece triggers for one piece it's at least worth a try to see if it works the other way around.

And if I have a trigger built I will have about 10 or 12 extras so there shouldn't be a shortage for anyone with the same problem!

It's a Marlin right? So is there any chance that you can make up a screw that has the "slot head" that you can screw into the hole from the INSIDE after removing the bolt?

Try various "recipes"...heating then dipping in water, heating alone, cold blue etc., etc., on a spare third screw to get a near as possible colour match then just use the screws to plug the hole.

Enfield,

Thanks for the response. It is a Marlin. I will add that to the list of potential ideas. I'm leaning towards leaving the receiver finish as is without a reblue to retain that aged look.

I think the screw idea may work quite well. I am having my friend replace a couple of muscled out screws anyways and he will have to experiment matching the patina on those, so the plugs would be on that order as well...

Thanks again!

Besides fixing the trigger,I would not mess with anything on it.Nice rifle for sure!!!

Are you sure the holes are not for a receiver sight. Sure looks like the right location and spacing to me. If they are, see if a Lyman sight won't fit. They are a great hunting sight.

very nice shooter!

My first inclination would be to leave it exactly as is once I had a working trigger in it. The gun's appearance when you bought it is all its own history. And those filled holes won't hurt its functioning in the least.

If I was going to do anything to the holes, I would first see what size they are. If they are the most common, the 6x48, I would simply redo the holes and retap to 8x40. The 8x40 is a common gun screw, and "plug" screws are available cheap from Brownell's.

Two types of plug screws are available. one with a little rounded crown that stands a tiny scosh proud above the surface the hole is in, and one which goes completely into the hole, so you can make the top perfectly level with the surface of the steel it is being screwed into.

If the holes are drilled and tapped all the way through, then it would be easy to screw the latter type in from the inside of the action, so you could level the end of the screw with the action surface and not have any slot showing on the outside.

A bit of un-needed work though, unless you are intent on denying the rifle its own personal history.

Whatever...it is your gun, not mine. Whatever decision you make will be right for you.