I tried an American in 30-06 a few years ago. Always been a big fan of M77s so I really wanted to like the American. I never liked the zipper sound of the bolt and the factory stock just felt cheap and flimsy. I replaced the factory plastic with a Boyd's laminate, but that made it heavy, and one of the few things I liked about it in factory form was the light weight. Also, after trying two stocks, two scopes, and every handloading trick I knew, I couldn't get it to consistently shoot under 1.5 MOA. I already had experience with the Marlin X-7 as a budget rifle, so the American just seemed like a big step down in quality. It eventually went down the road.
I've decided if I want to shoot a Ruger, I'll stick to my M77s. If I ever feel the need for another budget level, synthetic stocked rifle, I'll look for another Marlin on the used market.
Those Marlin X7 are great rifles at the price point. I have owned 4, kept the SS 7 08 and a blued 223. Both are very accurate and IMHO well built. Down side is they are a little heavy. BTW the 223 has a 1:9 twist for heavier bullets. 1:9 works well at my altitude with 70 grain Hammers. I can't recall but I think I paid less than $200.00 for the last purchase on closeout, wish I'd have bought more.
I'm curious to know if they have the same or similar foot print to the Mod 70 Win as I've seen a couple with McMillan stocks. May need a lot or a little work to make fit. ( Stock is more expensive than the rifle)
Sorry for being a little off subject!
