I've owned/shot all of the rifles mentioned.
The Marlin rifles (Model 60 and variants) are, by far, the best value for the money as far as accuracy. Almost all Marlin rifles will shoot great.....but this is ofset by the fact that they are generally fairly plain and ugly. They also require more frequent cleaning than the other rifles mentioned. Neglect a Marlin Model 60 and it WILL fail to feed and fire. Clean it regularly and it will outperform rifles costing twice as much.
The Weatherby rifles do look great and perform adiquitely. You will pay a premium price for the Weatherby name and "looks", but generally not get an equal return in accuracy or reliability.
The Remington 552 rifles are decent looking and very reliable. They require a normal amount or maintainance, but not eccessively. They do have the added benifit of working with any ammo they are fed (.22 LR, .22 Long, .22 Short) which can be an advantage to some. They are not as "pretty" as the Weatherby rifles, nor as "ugly" as the Marlins...but generally they "work" every time.
There is one Winchester rifle I really like. It is not the normally suggested Model 63.....which is a great, but awkward design. No, it is the short-lived Model 490 which was a Model 100 look-a-like. This has been a reliable and accurate rifle, but does require occational cleaning to remain functional.
Now we come to the best of the lot. This is the Ruger 10/22. It might not be the "pretty" candidate (although in the "Deluxe" version that has cut checkering....it ain't bad) and there are some that are better. I'd like it a lot better if everything was steel instead of cast alluminium....but it ain't bad. Considering the accuracy (which is most often outstanding), looks and value-for-the-dollar, the Ruger is head-and-shoulders above anything on the market.
Unless you are going to regularly shoot .22 Shorts (damn seldom today) or want to impress your friend with a "name" (Weatherby) the way to go for most is the Ruger 10/22. I p-refer the "Deluxe" with cut checkering, but the "Standard" version is just as good.
