Marlin Owners Forum

[Henry88]

I don't know how many of you guys go there, but what a strange forum IMO. Basically, all they say is don't buy anything that's made in the last 10 years.

OK, that may be true (BTW I have a 5 year old Marlin that is fine ), but what kind of owners forum is that?

I think the forum is shrinking as well, since anybody that asks a question about a recent Marlin is usually told that they shouldn't have bought it, and should probably just sell it and get a JM stamped one.

Again, a lot may agree with this, but what a limited and dying philosophy. They should call themselves the ClassicMarlinOwners.com forum or something.

Posted there tonight for the first time in 4 months. Just not a lot to say.

Do I have it wrong?

[RanchRoper]

Thought those were guys with pet swordfish....learn something new everyday.

[JEBar]

I joined over there prior to finding the former Henry forum .... I did enjoy the thread area dedicated to Henry but didn't pay much attention to very many of the thread areas .... haven't checked in over there in a good while

[BigAl52]

Been a member there for years. But I havent been there much, to much whinning for me and people like to run you off the planet if you dont agree with them

[Henry88]

Yeah JEBar, I think it's for JM Owners, and again there is nothing wrong with that, It's just not for me even if I own 3 Marlins.

Just imagine though, if all we did here was tell people not to buy new Henrys; nothning that's not made in Brooklyn

Would change the complexion of this place, don't you think?

[Greyhawk]

I have found some good info there over the years. Haven't been there in a while.
Although, if that is what they are saying I might have to agree with them, I just picked up a JM Marlin 45-70 from Cabela's a couple of months ago, while comparing it at the counter with the new 1895 Marlin's it was hands down a much higher quality rifle than what you can buy from Marlin today. Too bad...
Personally, I didn't care much for the Marlin forum in the past because of their ads that would pop up. I like it that the Henry forum is ad free.

[RanchRoper]

I looked years ago very closely at a 336SS model. Went with Henry instead at that time.

[Ojaileveraction]

Some stuff can be one noted harping over there. I just don't listen to complaining, high whining noises have always bothered my understanding.

[ditto1958]

Been a member there since about 2012. As far as I can tell, the MO forum is doing fine. Which is more than anyone can say for Remington. They almost ruined the Marlin brand when they closed the North Haven plant and moved production of lever guns to Ilion. They found out the hard way that they sucked at making lever guns. They’ve imporoved a bit over the years, but new Marlin rifles are no where near as nice as the JM ones were, and they pale in comparison to Henry rifles when it comes to quality control.

[John E Davies]

I like the forum, I have been there on and off for ten years and have always been well treated, but they are 100% right, new Marlins are just not as good as old ones. Every time I walk by a rack of new ones I pick one or two up, look them over, shake my head and move along. Henrys are put together way better than new Marlins for sure.

Buy a new Marlin if you like, it may possibly shoot fine but it is no longer a great gun. If you want some interestng reading, look at the special forum set aside for members to rant about problems with their Remlins....

There are nearly 1100 threads now. That alone should be a warning.

https://www.marlinowners.com/forum/marlin-rant-forum/

John Davies
Spokane WA

[bandit1250]

I belong to the MO forum. Overall I don't see many problems with it. The problem I see is the constant bashing of the new Marlin's now and some of that is well deserved I admit. If they would quit putting the lousy so called checkering on their rifles it would be a drastic improvement. The checkering seems to be the biggest complaint right now. They have really had their issues with the change but I have friends that have the new ones and never had an issue and they are maybe a little more accurate than some of the JM models. If I got on here and bashed all the gun companies that get a lot of guns sent back for things that should have been caught before being shipped I would be hammering constantly on Ruger for the problems they have with the American series with many folks sending them back. I had two Predator rim fires and a Predator 7.62x39 and all three had problems with misfires and feeding cartridges and very rough actions. I also hear and see a lot of our much loved Henry's getting sent back and some several times for issues especially the center fire guns. A lot of people accept having to send stuff back just because they can say a company will take care of it. Well they should take care of it but they should not have so many getting through that have firing and feeding problems if they test fire all of them. I also give Henry the credit for being the best in the business at taking care of customers problems. Second place isn't even close to Henry. My Henry Frontier is a very finicky feeding lever rifle compared to a 39A Marlin. I know how it doesn't like to be held when cycling so I don't lean it over. My 39A Marlins cycle on their side or even up side down and work flawless. I don't bash the Henry on forums for it's little issue and I sure ain't sending it back. My Long Ranger cycled like it was full of sand and sometimes partially locked up at half cycle. I sold it to a dealer who needed one and pointed out the cycling issue and he bought it any way and said the ones he sold had done the same thing. Half the constant Remington bashers on MO hasn't probably owned a new Marlin and are just keeping the ball rolling by agreeing with every thing the bashers keep saying. I can say one thing for sure. I have 12 CZ 452 rifles and not one has been sent back for any of the problems I see other companies rifles getting returned for. Some companies can do it so why can't the others do better also. Probably made some folks mad now.

[daytime dave]

I've been a member over there for a while. I mostly frequented the Henry area. I did see a lot of people voicing quality concerns about Remington made Marlins vs JM. I pop in over there on a rare occasion to look at the Henry area. I prefer the atmosphere here, so I don't stray too far. I have a garden tractor site that is similar to this one that I go to everyday.

I only own one Marlin and it's a nice .22 rifle made well before Remington was involved.

Since I own a forum, I won't bash them. They were nice to me when I was getting this one started. It's been interesting to see this forum grow and develop into what it is. A nice place. The members of a forum do a lot to set the tone if a tone isn't set already. As far as ads go, I assume they are there to pay the bills and possibly make money. There won't be any ads here as long as we own this place. I like it that way and that's the way it will stay.

[Vaquero]

Amen!! Bandit.

RP

[Cowboy Gun Fan]

I'm also a Marlin Owners fan. Go there everyday. Like a few have stated, Marlin used to make a high quality product, which eventually ended up in Remington's hands who try to ruin both the gun and the reputation of the company. Yes, I know that there are some "Remlin" owners out there (a nick-name we have for their guns now) who are very satisfied with their gun, and I am glad for them, but that is way more rare than it should be. Their Customer Service is also pretty poor as well and co-incidentally I (we) use Henry many times for a good example on how a company should be run, on both producing a quality product and having superior customer service.

If a person really wants the know the reasons, history and backroom details of it all, we have 2 or 3 members over there who were there at Marlin at the time of the changes. Not only do they have first hand knowledge, but were also gun experts themselves, proud to make the great product they once had.

Bottom line for the changes though? Greed. Cutting corners to try to make more profits which in the end has pretty much shot them in the foot (yes, pun intended).

[wingnut]

I looked years ago very closely at a 336SS model. Went with Henry instead at that time.

I had an 1894C in 357 Mag in the early '80's. It would not feed 357 hollow points or 38 Spec without jamming often. It went down the road, no regrets.

[Cowboy Gun Fan]

As far as ads go, I assume they are there to pay the bills and possibly make money.

Dave, I actually don't see any ads over there but it must be my ad-blocker that is taking care of it.

I really forgot that they had some.

[GFK]

They should call themselves the ClassicMarlinOwners.com forum or something.

Posted there tonight for the first time in 4 months. Just not a lot to say.

Do I have it wrong?

I think the Classic Marlin Owner's Forum is a good idea. I have frequent Henry Rifle Forum more than I have Marlin Owner's Forum throughout the years. However, I have seem to be visiting both about the same since I purchased my 2019 1894C. Is it flawless? No. Does it shoot? Yes. That is the most I can expect from any firearm. Yes, it should be in good condition. As with anything made by people, there may be some issues. It is just a matter of what one is willing to live with.

Like Henry Rifle Forum, I first joined to investigate any known issues with my 2016 336W. At the time, I experienced an occasional jamming. As I was replacing the forearm to address a cosmetic issue, I found a piece of plastic by the carrier:

Plastic.jpg (8.66 KiB) Viewed 1460 times

Since removing it, the rifle seems to cycle well. More than likely, it will last longer than I. I will probably leave it to my number 2 grandkid. My number 1 grandkid will probably get the Henry. It does seem to be made of higher quality of material. But, I think Marlin brings over 140 years of experience to the table. Now, how well that is executed is a different story.

[North Country Gal]

Been over there on MO for many years, but haven't posted in a very long time. My interest in traditional guns has gone more and more over to single shots and/or bolt guns and less and less to lever guns. Now down to one lone 39A.

I never had any interest in Remington made guns, but not because of quality issues, though there have certainly been some. My preference for JM Marlins has always been for sentimental reasons. Never wanted any Marlin that wasn't actually made by the original Marlin company. Let me add, too, the JM stamp on a Marlin was never a 100% guarantee of quality, either. Marlin had some good years and bad and I've seen some pretty bleak new, out of the box JM Marlins in my time.

[Redthies]

I’ve only been there as a guest. My JM 1895GS is well built, but isn’t a tack driver at this point. Maybe the 405 grain cowboy loads and RPP Cloverleaf sight set will motivate me to shoot it more and dial it in.

This forum is full of great people, and enough Marlin knowledge to satisfy my forum needs...

[Settingsun1892]

I got on the Marlin Forum before I bought my 1895CB. I wanted to research before I dropped some coin. I didnt know that Remington had bought Marlin and that Remington itself had so many problems. What I learned there allowed me to make a good purchase and I am extremely happy with my rifle. My joining this site is for the same reason. I decided on a 357 mag and Henry has the best feedback on that rifle. Even the MO guys speak well of Henry's, except for the lack of loading gate. I feel that I have gotten a lot from both sites and hope to make friends from the experience. Until I purchase my Henry, hopefully in the next few weeks, I feel like the kid that doesn't have a bike and watching all my friends ride off.