Marlin XS7+McGowen pre-fit barrel good idea?

[FiveInADime]

I am really thinking hard about doing this. I would buy a XS7 in .308 then put a McGowen pre-fit barrel on, hopefully in .260 REM. Does this sound like a good idea to you guys? It seems like this would be the cheapest way for me to get what I want.

 

[the jigger]

Barrel switch?

I am not familiar with the XS7 or McGowan. However I have done essentially the same thing with the Stevens 200 action. I generally search the "used" racks to find the cheapest rifle I can and go from there. I have used E.R. Shaw, Shilen,
Douglas, and take-off barrels. Using this method I now have Savage bolt rifles in:
220Swift Varmint
243Win Varmint
250 Savage Sporter
250 Ackley Sporter
257 Roberts Sporter
Your idea is excellent if Marlin is what you want and is not chambered in 260.

 

[FiveInADime]

I like the Marlin a bit more than the Stevens 200 action and I can get a Stainless/Synthetic in .308 for $359+$289 for a 26" barrel. I don't know how much it will cost me to either buy the tools to swap the barrel (apparantly just like a Savage barrel) or have someone else do it. I most likely would be able to sell the .308 barrel and recoup some of the cost. Does anyone know where I could get a barrel wrench and a go/no go gauge to accomplish this?

 

[Elkins45]

I apologize if I'm telling you something that you already know, but make sure they know you're putting it on a Marlin and that you're not just getting a Savage prefit. The threads are the same but the Marlin has about 0.015 more case protrusion than the Savage (deeper bolt face) and if you install a Savage barrel on a Marilin without facing off the extra 0.015 from the breechface you will have an excessive headspace condition.

 

[FiveInADime]

Thanks for the heads up. I had heard of the differences between the Savage and Marlin barrels but not exactly what is different. McGowen advertises pre-fits for Marlins, so I should be alright.

 

[Mobuck]

Seems like a waste of a good quality barrel.

 

[FiveInADime]

Which barrel is being wasted? If you're contending that the .308 barrel is being wasted I would say that I simply don't need a .308 but I desperately want a .260Rem. I would never fire a factory round from it so that isnt a factor.

 

[Mobuck]

I was commenting on the choice of action but my tongue in cheek cynicism went over the top.

 

[FiveInADime]

I can't find a problem with the Marlin action but I haven't really thought on it too much. If I was going whole hog I would cannibalize my Winchester .243 and build off of that. Of course that would cost twice as much due to the gunsmithing and such.

The Marlin action certainly isn't a Model 70 action, but do you really think it's not good enough to make an accurate rifle out of? I think it's just as good or better than a Stevens 200 action. If you don't like the round receiver then I agree with you, but this is a budget build with a budget action and a decent barrel.

I have not heard anyone bad mouthing the Marlin X7 series, but I suppose I haven't looked too deeply either.

Anyone have any info on where I can get a barrel wrench and a go/no gauge?

 

[taylorce1]

Nothing wrong with wanting to build off of the Marlin, but the prices you listed puts you over $600 already for $300 more you could probably pick up a Savage long range hunter. You probably recoup less than $80 for an unfired Marlin barrel, they just aren't in high demand. Plus if you want to replace the stock on the Marlin there isn't a whole lot of options out there yet. IMO your better off to stick with a Savage or Stevens 200.

 

[FiveInADime]

If I upgraded the stock it would be a Boyds and they make plenty of X7 stocks. Maybe I could buy a Savage in .260 and be happy, but for some reason I just don't feel an attraction to Savage rifles. I know it's not rational but I just have never pined for one. I have had Marlin .22s all of my life and even though the x7 series may not have the reputation that Savage rifles have recently gained, I would be proud to tell people "It's a Marlin".

 

[taylorce1]

I really don't care what you build it on, but the way I look at it Marlin X series rifles are just the same as M10/110 Savage rifles. They just are enough different not to work in the same stock. With Boyd's you get three options for stocks, with Savage you get several more than that. I'm just saying don't limit your options by being brand loyal.

I figured with a 26" barrel you are probably going with a varmint contour or full bull. That would require modifying the forearm on the current Marlin stock so the next logical thing was you might be looking for another stock. Savage just wins out in the replacement stock category, Remington would be far better but not completly a DIY prospect for the barrel change.

So the way I look at it now you are about $600 for there rifle and barrel (my last McGowan took 16 weeks to deliver and wouldn't thread into my action), $100 for a new Boyd's stock, another $80-100 for the tools and gages necessary to swap out the barrel. Of course you could always rent the gages and save a lot of money $50-60 at least. Then with a new stock your going to need to glass bed probably pillar as well, if you can't do that on your own it will cost around $200 for that. Plus unless you do it you'll have to pay around another $100 for the person bedding the rifle to open up the barrel channel for your new stock.

So like I said sure makes a Savage LRH more appealing, all your going to loose is 2" off the barrel length you want and it isn't stainless steel. Plus you'll be ready to shoot as soon as you mount and bore sight a scope. I've built more than a couple of Savages, and I know where you are coming from about wanting to do it your self. I'm just trying to paint a straight forward picture of what you'll be looking at and where your money will be going.

My last Savage build cost over $1600 to build with optics. It isn't exactly the cheap way to go, but to pay someone to build me the exact same rifle on a M700 action would have cost probably around $2500 before optics. If I could have bought a factory rifle that would run 115 grain .243 caliber bullets for around $1000, I'm sure I would have went that route instead.

I'm in no way trying to talk you out of your build if that is what you really wan to do just laying down some facts about the real cost of a cheap build.

 

[FiveInADime]

I would do all of the light gunsmithing myself. At first I would probably just hog out the plastic stock to fit the heavy barrel (I have done this before, not pretty but it worked) until I prepared the Boyds. I could also just see if i could get a XS7VH stock from Remlin. I want a tapered varmint contour, not a full bull barrel. Stainless is also part of the appeal to me. Right now all of my rifles are blued or matte blued. This one has to be stainless. I see a challenge in fitting the pillars to the round receiver, so i might just glass bed the Boyds stock and forget the pillars. Might have to find different action screws to make that work.

 

[Brian Pfleuger]

I just ordered a McGowen barrel chambered in 243AI for my Savage 11. They told me 8-10 weeks. I ordered July 12th, they shipped September 6th, about 7 weeks.

I haven't installed in yet but it looks great and I found few or no negatives from people who'd actually had one.

So, that part, so far, I can recommend.

 

[FiveInADime]

Which barrel profile and finish did you pick? I am not 100% decided on what profile i would want. This gun will probably spend 90% of its time on a shooting bench but it might see some action for antelope and deer, as well.

 

[Brian Pfleuger]

Mine is fluted, stainless, matte finish, 24", 11dg crown, Shilen #2 profile. It's primarily a deer gun and secondarily target/varmint so I wanted it fairly light and maneuverable.

 

[taylorce1]

Brian, seven weeks is a good turnaround for the barrel. I was quoted 12-16 weeks when I ordered mine so I'm not upset about that. What was kind of upsetting was when the barrel wouldn't thread into my action. McGowan offered to send me a call tag to send the barrel back, but I opted to have a local GS fix it for $45. The threads were correct for a Savage action just not cut deep enough. I'm very happy with the way the barrel shoots and would probably do another in the future.

As far as getting a new stock ordered from Marlin to fit a varmint barrel, I'd imagine you can buy the Boyd for the same price. Like I said I'm not trying to talk you out of the build just putting real prices out there. However if you are going to hunt with of do yourself a favor and go around #3 for your contour and 22-24" in length.

 

[FiveInADime]

I want the barrel optimized for shooting the heavier/longer 6.5mm match bullets like the A-MAX, VLD, SMK, ect. With the heaviest bullets and slow powders I think I may want a 26" to get the most out of those. I was thinking of a #3 contour, though. Like I said, I will be shooting this at targets way more than anything else. If I did lug a 9.5lb. rifle around on an antelope hunt or a deer hunt it wouldnt be devastating to me. I usually carry a heavy bow and a 35-40lb. pack when I am archery hunting up in N. Arizona where I grew up. I carried my buddies 700 Sendero 7mm Rem Mag on a Mulie hunt in a wilderness area for a week, no problem.

 

[Doyle]

I want the barrel optimized for shooting the heavier/longer 6.5mm match bullets like the A-MAX, VLD, SMK, ect.

If you really want to do that then I'd recommend you use an XL7 action. Here's why. I shoot a Rem Model 7 in .260. My buddy built his .260 (actually a .260AI) on a mauser '98 action. The longest bullet I can even get into my bolt opening (much less the magazine) is a 140grn seated to factory length. He can use much longer (i.e. heavier) bullets and seat them out further to minimize the jump. I took one of his minimally loaded cartridges and couldn't even fit it in my bolt opening.

If you build your long-distance .260 on a long action, it gives you much more flexiblity.

 

[FiveInADime]

Interesting. I had not thought about that. This may be a good reason to switch to 6.5 Creedmoor instead. So, with a 140gr. A-MAX you have to seat to factory O.A.L. to fit the bullet in the chamber opening? I am really glad you brought this up before I found out the hard way. Thanks for the info.