years ago i bought an old marlin when i worked at a gun store.no one wanted it ,and i think i gave the little old lady ,who just wanted to get rid it,15 bucks for it.no rust just nice brown petina.its straight stocked witk 24" barrel.it says 1897 on tang,and 39A on the barrel.it has hooded front sight,and no spacers inbetween the butt stock.if anybodys got an idea of what it isplease speak up.

Round or octagonal barrel? What lenght barrel? Straight or pistol grip stock? Anything very old I wouldn't know about. People that know more than I do will at least need the answer to those questions to help you.

Recent 1897's have had octagonal barrels of 24" (Cowboy) or 20" (Texan) and un-hooded front sights. Also straight grip stocks.

The Marlin Model 39 evolved from a gun developed by L.L. Hepburn, which thru evolution became the Model 1892 and Model 1897 and was produced until 1915 by Marlin. Production of the Model 39 .22 lever rifle did not begin until 1922 and in 1939 was redesignated the 39A. Your gun is undoubtably made after 1939. I believe the '1897' you refer to on the tang is a patent date.

The 'recent' 1897's mentioned above came out in 1997 and are not the gun you describe, at all.

Sounds to me to be a piece/parts gun. If it says 1897 on tang and 39 on the barrel, it probably is two parts put together as one. All patent dates were on barrel, not tang.

alright lets see here.first i put straight stock and 24"barrel in my post.it is a round barrel.and 1897 on the tang is 1" long and 1/2" high,i thinks thats to big for a patten #.the gun also is not a parts gun,its browning is all even,the upper and lower receivers math perfectly with no signs of fitting or even a file mark.it has been shot.the barrel and chamber look good,no sign of pitting or wear.and the action is sticker than snot.not from an action job,from years of use.the wood is in great shape,not alot of figrure,but no cracks or big dings.and the forearm matches the butt stock.just a good old shooter.just trying to figure how old it is.almost forgot,the tang is also drilled and tap for peep sight.looks stock,even the screws dont have a scratch.

That's right, you DID say straight stock and 24" barrel. My bad in asking it again. I got somewhat distracted while reading your post. You got agood deal out of the old lady too.

My curiousity is up for certain. I too was thinking it was a '97' receiver with a 39A barrel but didn't say it. If it were a 39 I would venture that this could have been done by the factory, and it's still a possibility, I guess. The '97' was the basis for the 39, according to my references.
I don't have a lot of references or experience with the early 39's, just like em a lot. I'd really like to hear what you find in your search.