I'm sticking with pre-2009 Marlins myself and particularly 1998-2002 model year Guide Guns & Outfitters. They are still out there, not sure why anyone wouldn't stick with what is a known entity.
Too many people are scared of used guns.
"What if it has problems?"
"What if some one did something stupid to it?"
"What if it was stolen?"
"What if it killed some one?!"
Many, many people seem to think that buying new is a guarantee that they won't run into trouble; and that if they do have problems, it'll be taken care of with less hassle.
You and I both know how well that theory works with Remlins.
And I know we're not alone.
On MarlinOwners, there are plenty of current reports about ongoing issues -- particularly stupid things that never should have left the factory, or would have been INSTANTLY discovered if the rifles were function tested
at all before being boxed.
And there are still only two stores in my area that sell Marlins: Sportsman's Warehouse and Dick's. (Probably WalMart, too, but I don't do business with them. So I don't know.)
All other shops have stopped ordering and selling new Marlins (most more than a year ago), because they had so many issues resulting in warranty work and angry customers.
There was a shop here that tried their luck with an 1895 last year, to see if quality was improving. Just like the rifle I got some parts from for my project M444, it wouldn't even cycle, right out of the box, and Remington never fixed it. The finger lever was jamming hard against the cartridge lifter. It went back to Remington three times for repair, with no improvement. Remington would not offer a refund since he was a dealer. And they told the dealer to sell it to a customer, before sending it back in again. In the end, the brand-new 1895 was slated to get parted out, because that was the best option for recouping the investment; when a buyer swooped in and bought it for parts value, in order to send it to Wild West Guns as a donor for one of their conversions.
