Serial number is MR prefix. I looked it up and found conflicting info on the year it was made. From what I found Marlin switched to the MR serial in 2011.
Remington had so much trouble building Marlin lever action rifles they drug their feet on the 444 until the very last. The good news is: by the time they got around to building the 444's they had the bugs worked out. Many were the best rifles produced by Remington. All the reports I read on the Marlin forum at the time were positive. I would buy one and I am picky when it comes to them. Their Add men went around calling them 1895 models, but as you can see in the photos, it was still a model 444 in 444 Marlin cartridge. I have no dog in this fight as I have way more than I can shoot, but if not I would be trying to buy this one.
On the Remington built Marlins, you can't go by the serial number to get a date code. Remington stamped the barrel code on the barrel just like Remington rifles. If you want you can check the code and post the info for a potential buyer.
Here's a link to a good video that will explain it.
