I am in need of a bit of advice. Almost a year ago I purchased a Marlin 980S .22 bolt-action rifle. I really liked the feel and looks of the rifle, and also heard Marlin was a reliable firearm company. I bought the rifle from the local Wal-Mart since they offered it at a lower price than the gun shop about 30 miles away from my home. Well I took it out to shoot a couple of weeks after the purchase with my friend who just bought a 10/22 Ruger.
After firing some rounds, my gun seemed to stop firing every time. I would pull the trigger and just hear "click". After waiting about 20 seconds I pulled the bolt back and inspected the round. Sure enough there was a mark on the rim of the bullet. I figured it was just those rounds, that I had gotten a bad brick of Remington hollow points. I tried my friend's CCI rounds and even some of those did not fire. EVERY round of mine fired in my friend's 10/22.
So I decided to send the firearm back to the company for repair since I filled out the registration card to get a lifetime warranty. They sent it back saying that they had replaced the bolt. I took it out a couple of weeks ago out to my friend's farm and fired some rounds. Seemed like it was shooting well and I was pleased. The next day we did the same thing, only after about 4 spent magazines, I would get 2 or so rounds that would not fire from each full magazine. I have decided to send the gun in once again with a note saying this will be the second time for repair.
My question is if I get the gun back and I end up getting more misfires, should I just give up on it and purchase a different .22? I know I made a mistake purchasing it from Wal-Mart and not a gun dealer, but keep in mind I'm new to guns so I really didn't know any better. Any chance Marlin will just send me a brand new rifle if I request it in the letter?
I really want the same gun, I love every aspect of it!
After firing some rounds, my gun seemed to stop firing every time. I would pull the trigger and just hear "click". After waiting about 20 seconds I pulled the bolt back and inspected the round. Sure enough there was a mark on the rim of the bullet. I figured it was just those rounds, that I had gotten a bad brick of Remington hollow points. I tried my friend's CCI rounds and even some of those did not fire. EVERY round of mine fired in my friend's 10/22.
So I decided to send the firearm back to the company for repair since I filled out the registration card to get a lifetime warranty. They sent it back saying that they had replaced the bolt. I took it out a couple of weeks ago out to my friend's farm and fired some rounds. Seemed like it was shooting well and I was pleased. The next day we did the same thing, only after about 4 spent magazines, I would get 2 or so rounds that would not fire from each full magazine. I have decided to send the gun in once again with a note saying this will be the second time for repair.
My question is if I get the gun back and I end up getting more misfires, should I just give up on it and purchase a different .22? I know I made a mistake purchasing it from Wal-Mart and not a gun dealer, but keep in mind I'm new to guns so I really didn't know any better. Any chance Marlin will just send me a brand new rifle if I request it in the letter?
I really want the same gun, I love every aspect of it!