Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles New Gun....sent back

Hi all,
I had been looking at a reasonably priced way to get a new rifle.I have been wanting a 25-06 for awhile. I had heard good things about Marlin Bolt actions. I figured for $300 I would give it a shot:)

The shop called today and said the gun was in. I had to order it as he doesn't sell many Marlins.I opened the box and for $300 and change I was impressed with the stock,recoil pad,barrel etc. Then I got to the bolt. It is fluted. The bolt had more tool marks on it then ...well I don't know:) Where it was supposed to be shiny metal.There was LOTS of black metal that had not been machined off.It looked like SH$$.

Anyway it may not have affected how it shot but it was shoddy work even for a $300 gun. The shop guy agreed and it's going back.IIRC I believe the box said it was made in Kentucky. This would be the first Marlin bolt I have owned and I certainly hope they have not screwed the pooch( when they moved) and ruined a decent affordable rifle.Hopefully it was a monday morning/friday afternoon bolt:) Either way the quality control guy must have forgot his glasses.

Just wanted to give you all a heads up and was wondering if anyone has purchased a new Marlin since they moved out of CT? If so how did it shoot?

Thanks,
Bill/WI

Nuttin? lol

Sounds like you got a $300 rifle.

Fit and finish is what you pay for. Look at savages, great shooting guns but fit and finish is just below avarage.

I agree with Calvin.

You get what you pay for.

Just wanted to give you all a heads up and was wondering if anyone has purchased a new Marlin since they moved out of CT? If so how did it shoot?


Bill/WI[/quote]

Thank you. I bought one about 1 1/2 years ago and what impressed me the most was how well finished the bolt was.Something changed.

Marlin Q/C is not good right now. Lots of 338 Marlins getting sent back for barrel droop. Actions are rough, too. The 1895's are suffering from issues as well. Remington has told some Marlin owners they are aware of it, but poor rifles continue to find their way to dealers and buyers. They are even shipping shims with the rifles to mount the scopes. This is the first I've heard of it affecting the bolt guns, but I usually pay attention only to their leverguns, so it may have escaped me.

First Remington had Q/C probs after they got absorbed by Freedom Group/Cerberus, and now Marlin is having probs as well after they were absorbed. With the lever actions, the serial numbers beginning with '91' seem to be the most affected.

Ditto

Isn't the Weatherby Vanguard in that range? I bought mine for $249 with fancy satin walnut, in the 80's... I think the current production is much the same sans stock. I have been very happy with mine, as a go to deer rifle..

Isn't the Weatherby Vanguard in that range? I bought mine for $249 with fancy satin walnut, in the 80's... I think the current production is much the same sans stock. I have been very happy with mine, as a go to deer rifle..

That's a friggin' joke. Remington has had Q/C issues for a long time.I dealt with tons of their junk back in the late 80's - 90's when I had my shop. The new Marlins are being made in Remington's Ilion NY plant by Remington workers. As soon as I heard that news I knew Marlin quality would go to crap.

Careful - Stick and Steelie will be along any second to accuse you of blasphemy...

yup

The old, I want my cake and eat it too. I am in the lawncare business and this post reminds me of a potental customer I once spoke with. She had a high school student who was cutting her lawn but was not doing a good job by her account. I gave her a price to which she responded, his price is much lower. I then told her but he is not doing a job, that is why YOU called me. She wanted a professional job for a non-professional price. Needless to say I didn't get the job. Moral of the story is these large companies selling rifles know their price point and adapt production methods to meet their end means. Rifle prices has sky rocketed over the last 10 years. A $500.00 rifle is going to better than $300.00 and so one. There is no way a $300.00 rifle is of the same overall quality, fit, finish, and workmanship of a $1000.00. Now if you pay $1000.00 for a rifle and you get a lemon, that is a differnt ball game. I would be VERY suspect of a used $300.00 price point rifle let alone a NEW rifle. In a free market economy you can't drive Cadilac and only pay for a Colbalt. This being said there is nothing wrong with buying a $300.00 rifle, but just don't forget YOU BOUGHT A $300.00 RIFLE!!

I just bought a Marlin 336W, which is basicly the old Glenfield with a hardwood stock. The bolt looked like it had been made with a handgrinder, the extractor cut and ejector groove were full of burrs. The end of the lever that engages the bolt was rough as a corncob, didn't look like it had been touched at all. Took about 3 hrs of work with a file, sandpaper and buffer for me to get it into usuable condition. I figured it must have been made after Marlin anounced they were laying everyone off. Yes, it does have a serial number that begins with "91".

It is indeed a shame that Remington, upon their first foot out of the gate, is already tarnishing the Marlin brand with inferior manufacturing and quality control. This is exactly what all Marlin owners feared from the moment the announcement was made.

I'm usually not much of a brand-stroker or care to get involved much in forum debates anymore, but I do feel compelled to comment that the Pre-Remington Marlin X guns were no $300 rifle, regardless what their list price was.

I'll agree with many here that with most things in life you usually do indeed get what you pay for. Price ordinarily reflects quality.

The Marlin-made X guns were one of the rare exceptions to that rule. It is a rifle that Marlin could have easily sold for $500 or more and buyers would still be singing the praises of how fine it shoots, how well made it is, and how incredibly accurate it is.
Virtually all six caliber offerings of the gun have been reported to shoot Sub-MOA or very close to it in the hands of an experienced shooter even with factory boxed ammo.

Anyone with an interest in this firearm should drop by the Marlin Owners Forum and check the page-after-page threads describing accuracy, dependibility, value, and overall satisfaction with the Marlin X guns. You simply won't find anyone that has purchased one of the original Marlin-made guns to be disappointed.
There are still many original Marlin made guns still available on the market which are an outstanding deal.

To assure it's a Pre-Remington Marlin, the barrel will be stamped with a "JM" near the receiver end. The newer productions do not have this marking.

In any case, don't mean to offend any of the members here with my comments, just want to inform that the Pre-Remington Marlins X guns are well known to be a fine firearm at an exceptional price.

Unfortunately this is what Remington is becoming known for. They should be a mid level priced company selling a well made firearm with mediocre finishes, and well made firearms with above average finishes. Instead they are trying to compete in a market already saturated with established budget rifles. They should also drop their 750 autoloaders as it shows their attitude toward their buying customers, as in "we just want any money you'll spend, value for your dollar is not our concern, and neither is long term customer satisfaction".
They can still turn it around. Ask more for the rifles, and give more quality in return. Their market is not and I do not think it will be, the low dollar public. Solid workmanship products for the working man is where their bread and butter would be. In other words when an American buys a product made in America, they want to know it was made with American pride and attention. They do not want to look at it and think America is turning out a poor product.

Yup!!

Well at least Scott Ryan gets it.Yes there are LOTS of guys singing the praises of the earlier Marlins as far as accuracy.I didn't hear any complaints about workmanship either. I didn't think I was getting a Cooper rifle. I had heard good things about the Marlins and figured for $300 I would give it a shot.Its a inexpensive way to get another rifle/caliber to reload for. I guess it's easier to say " YUP" then it is to read the whole post.

Part of what I wrote is below

"I opened the box and for $300 and change I was impressed with the stock,recoil pad,barrel etc"

I didn't excpect anything extravagant.I only excpected the people at the factory to do there job and do it well. There is no way that bolt should have come out of the Marlin Factory looking like that.I dont care if it is a $100 gun it was SH**** work.

Thanks to the folks that contributed something intelligent to the topic.

Bill/WI

Swamptroll thinking a Marlin XL-7 is a $300 rifle is the best arguemnt yet that they are worth more.

No you bought a Marlington...and you thought this company couldn't care less? It's the redheaded stepchild of that parent company...so sad.

As far a big greens rifles...bought and sold my last one in '07. It was a $900 3 moa turd.

I'm so glad I got a pre-rem XS-7. It would have been a great buy at twice the price.