Initial report on new XS7 in .308

[Snakum]

Just got a new Marlin XS7 after weeks of reading everything I could find on the newest bolt guns. I made a spreadsheet with the weight, barrel lengths, comments from owners, accuracy, etc. And chose without regard to price initially. I finally decided to try the new Marlin line. I have it now and am putting the scope on and boresighting. It's kind of funny ... the XS7 looks like it has a Remington safety and recoil pad, a Savage barrel, bolt head and trigger, and a Winchester action.

My perceptions:

The 'fit and finish' is at least equal to any synthetic stocked rifle I've handled recently, excluding perhaps Winchester's Extreme Weather SS, Savage's LE model tactical rifles, and Remington Senderos and LE models. No real molding/flash issues anywhere, relatively clean corners, etc. The bottom seam does need to be sanded completely even and smooth, however. It's on par with the newer Savage 111 and 116 Accustocks and perhaps a little better finished then the last few Remington SPSs and Stevens 200s I've handled or shot. The matte bluing is pretty darned good and I couldn't find any blemishes at all when going over it out in the sunlight.

The synthetic stock is stiffer than the Stevens I've handled or fired. It is close to my Win Black Shadow stocks and seems to be similar to the Savage 16 nonAccustocked line (which is the only one I've seen up close while apart). Relatively stiff, considering the weight. I think it would benefit from stiffening the forearm with aluminum.

The action appears to be very solid in the stock. No looseness nor gaps anywhere. Inletted pretty well compared to my other rifles.

The barrel rifling looks very good. Nice and sharp edges all the way thru. Appears deep, uniform, and fully cut all the way to the muzzle (I've seen a new Marlin 336 and new Remington SPS that weren't).

This thing is LIGHT and quick handling. Possible as quick and 'handy' as my Rem 7600s. Snap shooting would be a breeze. It would make a helluva Scout Rifle. It shoulders and points well, and the raised stock seems it will put you exactly where you need to be on a scope, unlike my 7600 which required some work. I feel like I could point-shoot this thing without a scope or irons. It feels THAT good when shouldering.

The recoil pad is similar to Remington's SuperCell pad. I have them on my 870s and on my 7600s and I love those things. The Marlin is very similar. With the light weight I'd imagine the .270 and 30-06 carry a pretty good punch, and I'd bet the pad soaks it up quite well.

The bolt lifts without a lot of effort, operates smoothly. It closes solidly, yet without requiring one to stand on it (like my Model 70 in 300 Win Mag when I first bought it ). It locks up nice and tight, for sure.

The trigger is very nice. It feel like about 3 - 3.5 pounds and breaks pretty cleanly with practically no overtravel. It's about as nice as my worked Model 70 trigger (pre-MOA Trigger), and that's a helluva compliment. I think I like it a bit better than the Savage Accutrigger, but I have little time with the Savage so I could easily change my mind at some point. For now ... I am pretty stoked about the trigger feel.

Mine came with a one-piece scope base that looks like a picatinny rail, but may be a Weaver base. I'll find out tomorrow when the scope gets here. I have a Weaver style medium ring set and I hope it clears the scope. I will get the long range Leupold base at some point or perhaps shim the stock one-piece if it performs ok.

My only negative observations thus far ....

1. The molding seam must be sanded down smooth and evenly. It's actually an issue right on the grip, but it needs it everywhere.

2. The forearm definitely needs stiffening when the action is bedded.

3. It's so light I imagine a 30-06 running 180gr BSTs would kick like mule. The weight is good for handling, but bad for recoil. Pick your poison.

4. Two position safety? Marliiiiiiin puleeeze! I really can't understand that one.

In all, I am very impressed with it, for the money. If the accuracy claims are on the money I'd say this is the next legendary budget rifle. Right up there with the Savage 110 one day. I only hope that Marlin is not as negatively impacted as Remington has been in the quality and service areas by the Cerberus acquisition. Marlin has a great service rep and they obviously are building excellent rifles at terrific prices. But if Cerberus' bean counters are allowed to run rampant who knows what can happen? I trust Marlin won't go down that road.

I hope to get the scope boresighted and sling some lead if the wind dies down. I'll post range results if I get to take it out. And I'll put up pics if i can borrow a camera.

 

[Snakum]

Just put the first 20 rounds down range in winds gusting to 20mph. I'm using 147gr PMC FMJBT to break it in and sight the scope. I'm not fanatical about the break-in, but I do run a few patches thru it and check all the screws every five rounds or so till I get thru a couple of boxes. Here are my impressions:

1. It really does handle very, very well. With the relatively lightweight Redfield 4-12x40 the Marlin feels lighter and 'quicker' than my Rem 7600/Nikon Pro Staff combo. The marlin shoulders well and just points so naturally. Getting my NPA in various positions was a breeze.

2. The light weight does have a recoil penalty, of course. It's relatively sharp, but the pad soaks it up so I only have to contend with muzzle jump and getting back on target. I imagine the heavier GameKings I'll be using later for groups and hunting will be a little sharper.

3. I did have loading and feeding issues. It took a while to get the hang of loading the blind mag. My other blind mags all load right up, but the Marlin in .308 requires one to press them in farther toward the chamber then slide the rounds back against the rear of the mag. And even then, the sharp-nosed FMJs were still hitting against the ramp, requiring two or three tries to get one in. If I'd been using soft points I'd have severely deformed the tips if I wasn't careful. Hopefully this will become smoother over time.

4. Accuracy, even with cheap FMJ ammo, just shooting off a stick, and in a horrible wind, was a surprise. I don't know if it's just the gun is so easy to point-and-click, inherently accurate, or I was having a good day. But allowing the gusts to die down as much as possible, as I got used to the trigger I could break it at the wind's lowest point without pulling off line. I was able to get 2" groups with a cold barrel ... and it seems they hovered around 2" with a warm barrel. I never run a new barrel too hot, but I didn't allow for much cool-down time either, yet the rounds didn't start stringing at all. With cheap ammo and unbelievable winds I was getting 2" out of the first group, the second, the third, and the last one. No change at all, and that's a very welcome thing (and surprising). I'm sure that benching the rifle, with good ammo, and better conditions would get me close to 1" groups. And I can live with anything from 1 to 1.5" all day. In the woods with my heart pounding and in a kneeling position I can't hold one inch, anyway. Yet.

So far, I still really like the rifle and i think it is an excellent base for a beanfield rifle for deer or hogs or a great base fo0r a lightweight tactical bolt gun. In its price range I don't think it has any serious competition except for the Savage 10/110s which can still be found here and there ($397 at Wally World).

 

[Asherdan]

Thanks for a thorough write up, Snakum.

The Marlin XL/XS reports has me thinking pretty hard about one in .270.

 

[FMJMIKE]

 

[paintballdude902]

i noticed alot of the same things with my .30-0 xl7 i ended up adding about a pound of lead shot to the butt to add weight. now i love it

 

[jlott00]

great review, thanks.....

 

[Snakum]

"Sir... the private does not own a camera, SIR!"

I love that movie.


I finally got to shoot with a little less wind today, but still with the not so accurate PMC FMJ ammo. At one hundred, using bags on the trunk of a car and with the wind still kicking up a little, it will still hold 2' groups. At 150 yards they opened up to 3", which still isn't bad, everything considered. I'm sure if I had access to a solid bench and a LeadSled and was shooting 168gr MatchKings it'd shoot under MOA easily. Pretty accurate rifle, just like the rest I've read about.

The trigger is feeling sweeter and sweeter. I shot it today with my Model 70 which has an excellent trigger. I think the Marlin trigger feels even better and has zero over-travel. It's really sweet and makes it easy to shoot good groups.

The loading is easier if I load it somewhat forward in the mag then slide it back. The feed ramp still needs to be rounded and polished I think. The PMC FMJs are the most pointed boolitts I've ever seen and yet they still hang. Gotta fix that ramp.

Today I also shot it beside my 7600, and the feel on the Marlin is equally as nice. It seems just as quick and easily shouldered as the 7600, and that is a compliment. I'll take the slightly sharper recoil in trade for the light handling.

The bolt is smoothing out some more, but it was already smooth for a brand new weapon. No gritty feel, and getting smoother every time out.

In all ... probably the best sub $400 rifle I've ever shot, for sure. With work on the feed ramp and sanding on the stock seams I'll be completely and utterly happy with it.

 

[Snakum]

A side note ... shooting the 7600 in the wind today with 130gr Wally World Federals it seemed to shoot better groups than the 308 and the 7mm mag. That's really a surprise. I figured the .270 would be quite a bit more affected by the wind. I love the little 7600 so much I just can't bring myself to cut the barrel. I'm just going to buy another in .308 and trim it to 19" to make a Scout Rifle/Brush Gun mate to my Marlin XS7.

 

[Snakum]

Took the XS and my 7mag out again today for medium range work (200 yards) and to try out the Brown and Silver Bear ammo. From a good benched position and no wind I got the following three shot groups (measured with a tape, not calipers) after working with the scope a bit:

PMC 147gr FMJBT - 1.20" to 1.4"
Brown Bear 145gr FMJ - 1.25" - 1.6"
Silver Bear 140gr SP - 1.4" - 2.0"

I know folks are often slamming Brown Bear and Silver Bear accuracy, but I am perfectly satisfied with their performance. 1.5" to 2" is good enough to hunt deer with all day every day. Most if us aren't going to shoot that well when hunting anyway. The feeding is still problematic with FMJ ammo. The ramp definitely needs to be rounded off and polished. The uneven molding on the grip was never a real issue with gloves on, but it needs sanding out anyway. It's shooting so well and so consistently I am going to forgo bedding the action and fully floating the barrel. Why mess with an excellent weapon?

Again today, the groups didn't seem to spread much once the barrel warmed up. We were waiting only about three minutes between each shot, and maybe 5 minutes between each group. This is really nice to see. I still think sub MOA groups will certainly be possible with good ammo.

So, I'm now done benching the rifle till I get some Federal PowerShoks in and some GameKings loaded ... it's accurate as can be. Better than many, if not most, bolt actions costing twice as much. So now I'm concentrating on 'hunting accuracy'. That is ... how good can I shoot it while kneeling, sitting, or in the prone? So we we set up at 200 yards and considered the colored in area of the target out to the green outer ring to be about the size of the sweet spot on a deer or hog right behind the shoulder. The orange are is about 6 inches in diameter and the green area about 8 inches. I practiced the kneeling position a lot while training for three gun last year and this is what I hunted with last season. But I need a LOT of practice on it for precision shooting, and also on my sitting and prone. My performance at 200 yards was abysmal.

Kneeling - 6 rounds fired, four in the target area.
Prone - 6 rounds fired, two in the target area.
Sitting - 6 rounds fired, one in the target area.

At 200 yards, without a rucksack rest or shooting sticks ... the deer doesn't have much to worry about. Though I did much better with the far heavier Model 70 in 7mm mag, I am way more familiar with that rifle and it holds steadier for me. maybe the weight? Anyway, it isn't Marlin's fault I can shoot long range unsupported. LOL. I got a lot of work to do.

The rifle is still awesome. Everyone who shot it today wants to run to Ed's Gun Shop and get one this weekend. It's the best $300 I've ever spent on a firearm, by far. I'll try to borrow a camera this weekend and get pics up of the rifle, the feed ramp, and the uneven molding.

 

[Snakum]

Got picks after a range session today.





And the groups today, using Brown Bear 145gr FMJ ran from about 1" even up to 1.5" and this includes the last group shot as quickly as I could eject and get on target. It only opened up about .250 from the previous group. Pretty amazing that it shoots so well when hot.

 

[Snakum]

I tried to mark up the groups with MS Paint (don't have graphics package on this laptop). Group 1 was the first. On 2 I adjusted left and back to 2" high at 100 (I had it zeroed to yesterday). On 3 it was a slow fire group in the upper right target. And 4 was a fast group at the bottom right target.

 

[rangerruck]

hmm, I must say, quite a handsome looking rifle; I will either get one of these, or the new t/c ventures... wonder if anyone here has a write up on the t/c's
yet?

 

[Snakum]

I shot a TC Venture in 7 mag at my old range and I've had a woody for one ever since. The guy was shooting something like Fiocchi or S&B ammo and even shaky me was shooting bug holes at 75 yards (that's all we had that day). I have read their 5R rifled (same as the Remington 40-X mil spec sniper kit) barrel is one of the most accurate made and rivals those from custom makers. S&W uses the T/C 5R barrels in their I-Bolt. I dunno if they equal a Shilen, but it shot amazingly well and felt really good in the hands. The synthetic stock was one of the most comfortable I've felt, and definitely the stickiest. My next purchase will be a 7 mag or 300 mag and with Savage's LRH still a ghost (and specs changing) the T/C Venture will probably be it. Unless Marlin comes out with something bigger than 30-06.

 

[Uncle Mike]

Snakum, excellent write-up, nice rifle, the Marlins X series are a great shooting rifle at a great value.
How do you like the Redfield scope?

Also, If your not going to put a larger objective scope on the Marlin, get yourself some 'Lower' rings and get that Redfield's objective bell closer to the barrel...I bet your groups improve with that adjustment!

 

[Snakum]

The Low rings wouldn't clear the bolt, unfortunately. Tried dat.

The Redfield scopes are the Rifleman with a matte paint job and new turrets. Same glass, same prod line. Everything. Only the price is about 30% lower. I have one of those (Rifleman) on an old 700, and I love them for plain old hunting and plinking. So far the Redfield is clear as bell, no parallax to speak of at my ranges, and it tracks wonderfully. Love it.

 

[grubbylabs]

Any one know if they offer this is stainless? I was looking at their web sight and did not see that they did. That is a great price I will certainly be looking for one in the near future. I hope I like the 308 as much as I think I will. Wonder if I can talk my self into the black with the blued barrel?

Thanks for the write up it was very well done. I think I will have to PM you before I buy just to make sure you still like the rifle.

 

[Snakum]

Lipsey's is showing the stainless available at iirc about $500 list, so maybe $450 on the street?

 

[grubbylabs]

That's about a $100.00 jump in price.

 

[grubbylabs]

Well I maid a bad mistake today. I went into a local gun shop and fondled one, it was nice I think I want one. Man have I been bit by a gun bug or something. I bought a Black powder in October, I traded for shot gun last month and I am also getting a XD 45 compact and a mosquito at the end of the week. Now I am itching for one of these and a AR style in 308 along with a 1911 are in the future. Man o man, my wife is going to have me by the short and curlies here real soon.

 

[Snakum]

I gotta say ... I really am infatuated with this rifle. It's one of those that you can just throw up on your shoulder and it feels like an extension of 'you'. Almost like you could point-shoot it. I am shooting it every day now (bought a lot of steel cased ammo from CTD) and hate to put it up when it gets dark. It's been a long time since I had a firearm like that. The 870 TALO I bought last year was like that. I bet I put 200 rounds thru it the first week. My shotties, AKMs, 7600s, M70, and all the rest are get'n no love this week at all.

 

[grubbylabs]

Well I ordered one today. 329.00 now I just need to find a scope to go on it. Any one want to sell a good used scope?

Have you put any more rounds down range any other feed back on it?

 

[Purgatory]

Snakum, I can't thank you enough for your in-depth report on this rifle. The time you put into trial and error would be enough for most to call it a day, but you went the extra mile to actually record your data on this forum for any and all who may be interested. To me, that's just about priceless.

I have been waiting over a year for the short action models to be available and just got mine in yesterday. Same model in .308. I'm as happy as a kid at Christmas and looking forward to running many of the tests that you did.

Thanks to your recorded data, I will be able to compare my results to yours and tread the same basic path that you blazed for all to follow.

So far, I am equally impressed with the weight and balance and everything else except the blind magazine, yet, to me, it's really a non-issue. -Nor does the molding seem to be a problem on mine.

Thanks again and I will post as much of my results as I deem pertinent and not redundant and I'll continue to follow this thread for any future updates.

Happy Hunting.

P.S. If all goes as well as I expect, I may just grab another one in .243.