Dot.Com
12-14-11, 14:59
Hi all,
I've recently decided its time to add a lever action to the collection and had my sights set on a Marlin 336 stainless model if I could find one for a good price. As per usual MO I tend to read up on things for a while before I drop some bank and reading all of these recent threads regarding Marlin/Remington build quality and qc has me a little worried now.
With most stories of failure or lemon guns I tend to think along the lines that yes, while failures and bad workmanship are somewhat indicative of the type of products a company is producing, there are still a large amount of purchases/use of their firearms that go off without a hitch and are never reported. However, with the volume of reports I have read over the past few months I feel that a brand new Marlin may be something I should actually avoid, so maybe those with more expertise could chime in here.
I prefer buying firearms new as I like to call them my own and break them in and obviously not have to worry about some kind of damage from a previous owner, but the way I understand it lever actions are pretty fool-proof and generally robust so I am not completely adverse to the idea of purchasing one used.
In the end I have it narrowed down to two courses of action:
- Buy a new "Rem-lin" and shoot it until I have issues
- Look for a used Marlin and worry about previous issues.
Will I most likely be okay with a newer Marlin, or should I start hitting all the pawn shops and consignment stores around me in search of an older model?
I've recently decided its time to add a lever action to the collection and had my sights set on a Marlin 336 stainless model if I could find one for a good price. As per usual MO I tend to read up on things for a while before I drop some bank and reading all of these recent threads regarding Marlin/Remington build quality and qc has me a little worried now.
With most stories of failure or lemon guns I tend to think along the lines that yes, while failures and bad workmanship are somewhat indicative of the type of products a company is producing, there are still a large amount of purchases/use of their firearms that go off without a hitch and are never reported. However, with the volume of reports I have read over the past few months I feel that a brand new Marlin may be something I should actually avoid, so maybe those with more expertise could chime in here.
I prefer buying firearms new as I like to call them my own and break them in and obviously not have to worry about some kind of damage from a previous owner, but the way I understand it lever actions are pretty fool-proof and generally robust so I am not completely adverse to the idea of purchasing one used.
In the end I have it narrowed down to two courses of action:
- Buy a new "Rem-lin" and shoot it until I have issues
- Look for a used Marlin and worry about previous issues.
Will I most likely be okay with a newer Marlin, or should I start hitting all the pawn shops and consignment stores around me in search of an older model?