Author Topic: Marlin 17 HMR any good? (Read 6125 times)

tominboise · « **on:** July 20, 2003, 12:04:09 PM »

Walmart will sell me a marlin blue heavy barrel rifle in 17 HMR for $179. Seems like a good deal, next best thing would be a CZ452 american for $369. But you can buy a lot of ammo for $200. Is it worth it? DOes anyone have the 17 HMR marlin?

Tom

redial · « **Reply #1 on:** July 21, 2003, 05:45:33 PM »

In our flurry of buying .17HMR rifles last Spring, my brother in law got a stainless Marlin in a laminate stock. He hasn't stopped giggling since.

I took him to my favorite local guncounter one Saturday morning where he bought it, had a scope mounted (gratis) and got some ammo. I had him on paper in 3 shots and the remaining 97 rds were launched toward fur.

By Monday night, he'd called about a half dozen times telling me how much fun the weekend had been. My sister thinks we're both idiots.

Long winded, but he liked it. I thought the trigger was mediocre but dared not say so.

Redial

His lordship. · « **Reply #2 on:** July 22, 2003, 01:46:30 PM »

Actually, I have the CZ 452 American in .17 hmr, and a CZ 452 in .22 rimfire. I used to have a Marlin model 25N in .22 rimfire for about 7 years.

As the Marlin .22 rimfire and the magnum receiver (.22 mag, .17hmr) are the same, with different dimensions, I think it is a good comparision between the two rifles. My Marlin kept shaking loose as there is one large threaded fastener that holds the action to the stock, instead of the multiple screw construction of the CZ. Although toward the end of ownership the screw stopped coming loose as the wood stock was pushed in/dented enough to stop turning out. The steel on the Marlin's receiver where the bolt would rub against it during the closing of the action was soft, I mean this rifle had rapid rate of wear, despite gun grease and oil being applied on the contact area. :x I also had flyers, one every 5 shots toward the end of ownership. I checked to make sure everything was tight, and yet, those flyers.

The Marlin was reliable though, never jammed with most ammo. The Russian steel cased .22 ammo had to have the spent case knocked out with a cleaning rod as each shot would stay in the chamber. My fellow shooters at the gun club had lots of jambs with their Marlins, so I was lucky with mine.

The CZ's are a good deal for the money. They are nicely made, excellent construction, very accurate, and no flyers in their shot groups. They also have solid steel dual extractors, not the sheet metal type on the Marlin. I currently own 5 CZ products. I have owned 3 Marlins, all sold off after a few years of use as they are cheaply built!

It depends on what you are looking for. I enjoyed hunting with my Marlin, the stock fit me ok. The price was low, but in the long run better quality guns are more economical as they last and they satisfy fully. If I wanted a knock about rifle that would not see much shooting, would hang on a barn wall for the occasional varmint, yeh, a Marlin would be ok.

redial · « **Reply #3 on:** July 22, 2003, 04:13:27 PM »

For the record Tom, I have a 93 Savage with all the same characteristics (and complaints!) as the Marlin and today I fired my CZ for the first time. The CZ is exquisite and is one I'll surely keep.

Redial

vmaxx · « **Reply #4 on:** July 23, 2003, 10:14:57 PM »

In defense of the marlin I have to say I have never had one single malfunction. I also own a cz 22 lr. varmint it gave me plenty of ejection problems and had me pulling my hair out as to what to do to make it more reliable. The marlin ejectors may look cheap but bigosh, they work. I have not experienced any so called soft metal wear. Let me tell you this: I was doing some trigger work on the Marlin and the metal was so hard that a file would not cut it ( this is the stainless steel model) and I ended up having to use a stone to take metal off the trigger and sear. IF the bolt is as so called soft as the trigger it will be here long after I am gone. Now the blued guns may be different but these stainless models are tough and I have been at this game for 30 years now.

His lordship. · « **Reply #5 on:** July 24, 2003, 04:50:56 PM »

After I posted the comparison between the 2 brands I remembered several more. The trigger is adjustable on the CZ, the Marlin is the lawyer trigger, heavy and gritty with a long pull and fixed.

The clip on the CZ can be easily taken apart for cleaning and oiling. The CZ has swivel mounts for a sling, the Marlin does not. The CZ has fine checkering, with a rubber but pad on Turkish walnut, the Marlin has machine pressed on indents for so-called checkering on birch. I also saw places where the butt plate on the Marlin was ground roughly to the stock, it was either made of wood or plastic, could not tell, the factory worker must have been in a hurry.

The CZ has a polished deep blued finish, the Marlin had the "dipped it quickly look" of blue with the barrel showing tooling marks. The CZ has a dropped forge barrel for precision and long life.

I recently did some trigger work on a Taurus revolver and several of my files were too dull to remove casting irregularities, I simply used a new and sharp file to do the trick. I don't think I will need to use a file on a CZ as their machinist do it right the first time.

If I was going to do many years of shooting and took it seriously, the CZ would be my choice. :-)

tominboise · « **Reply #6 on:** July 27, 2003, 06:32:35 PM »

Thanks for all the input. I was leaning towards to CZ anyway, and as the saying goes, the bitter taste of poor quality lingers long after the sweetness of a good deal is gone. My only problem now, is that the same shop has a CZ 452 in 22 hornet, and it is a sweet little rifle. They have a slightly larger CZ in .223 Rem next to it, too.

Sigh, so many choices, so little time and money......... :?

matt d · « **Reply #7 on:** August 15, 2003, 05:49:03 AM »

You will spend a little more money but I think you should get the marlin .17 vss. I think it is the vss. It has the stainless steel barrell and laminated stalk. It shoots as good or better than the higher end guns like the Anshutes. The stainless steel barrell is the one to get, I shot two and they are very good! 1/4" five shot group at 100 yards. The down side of them is that the trigger is poor but you can learn to shoot it. I have put an after market trigger in mine but I don't shoot any better it is just nice to have. The laminated stalk gives the gun a nice feel and is way better than the stalk available the cheaper model. Some scopes don't work with the mounts that come with the gun and they are peices of junk anyway. I have a Nikon 4.5 - 14 40mm mildot scope on my .17 and while you don't really need that much of a scope it is really cool to use sometimes and make sure you buy a scope with click adjustments and AO so that you can be quick and clear. This is what has worked for me after a bunch of trial and error which means money lost. The marlin vss is a hell of a deal but as far as .17s go it stops there.

matt d · « **Reply #8 on:** August 19, 2003, 12:19:27 PM »

I am not sure what .17 ammo costs other places, but I get it for $9.00 a box which, for you math majors is $0.18 a piece. I reload my .223 for 13.5 cents a piece. Take into account the price of a good shooting .223 and a the fact that you don't have to reload, I like the .17 idea. I shoot both and favor the 17. for squirrels up to 225 yards with no wind. It might just be a phase but it makes sense to me.

gopherboy · « **Reply #9 on:** November 25, 2003, 11:45:16 AM »

I paid $199.00 for my Marlin 17v. I wouldn't sell it for twice that amount. I have had more fun with this gun than any other firearm I have ever purchased. Yeah, so its not the best fit or finish, but I dare you to find another at twice the price that will shoot like the Marlin. No problem taking Montana gophers at out to 200 yards on a windless day.

coyote 2 · « **Reply #10 on:** November 25, 2003, 05:33:40 PM »

Quote

I wouldn't sell it for twice that amount. I have had more fun with this gun than any other firearm I have ever purchased. .

I have to agree: Mine was higher as I purchased the 17vs. But like the above - you could not get me to sell it. I added the RIFLE BASIX trigger. Man what a difference. http://www.varminthunters.com/riflebasix/ When you can take a gun out of the box - add a scope - and after sighting it in - get groups 1/2" minus.... at 100 yards - every time.....One grip though - ammo is still a little high....... :lol:

TC Shooter · « **Reply #11 on:** November 27, 2003, 03:24:25 AM »

My Marlin kept shaking loose as there is one large threaded fastener that holds the action to the stock, instead of the multiple screw construction of the CZ.

True for many years Marlin used only one screw to hold the action to the stock their bolt guns. All the Marlin 17s have 2 screws which hold the action into the stock, One screw located in the trigger guard and the other in the Marlin long time location on the barrel. In fact many of the 22/22 mag bolt Marlins now have 2 screws anchoring the action to the stock.

Those over at rimfirecentral.com have high praises for the Marlin 17s as well as the CZs. THe main Marlin downside seems to always be the trigger. However , it is one of the easiest to work on. I will be going with the 17V myself simply for the price - at $179 it seems to shoot as well as anything else out there from the various posts I have read.

SBF · « **Reply #12 on:** November 28, 2003, 03:31:14 AM »

I own a Marlin 17 VS and am very pleased with it from both in looks (I'm a sucker for laminate stocks

) and in performance. I have a Simmons M1048 6.4x20-44mm scope and a Harris BR-S bipod on it. This little sucker is a tackdriver. The trigger, while heavy out of the box, can be fixed. You can get a Rifle Basix Trigger or go the route I did and replace the trigger spring with one from a Pentel Mechanical Pencil (about $2-3 at Staples) to improve it. The trigger is much better now but I may upgrade to a Rifle Basix if I have a chance to shoot a rifle with one installed and feel it's worth the extra money.

Long Story Short - I'd give the Marlin a chance, for $200.00 less than the CZ you can get a nice scope or other accessories. My buddy has a CZ 17 and it is no more (or less) accurate than my 17VS. Although I think mine looks better, but it's my gun so I'm just a little biased

TC Shooter · « **Reply #13 on:** November 29, 2003, 05:18:02 PM »

Well I picked mine up today - went with the Marlin 17V - also bought it at a gun shop for $189 - was not too bad. It is also drilled and tapped and comes with bases. Probably will end up using the receiver grooves. May see about getting a laminated stock later. The stock on the rifle now would not look so bad if it were not for the hideous impressed checkering! How can Marlin think anyone can appreciate this look? It just reeks cheapness! Oh well , if it turns out to be a tack driver the gross checkering will be the last thing on my mind!

Loki_762 · « **Reply #14 on:** November 30, 2003, 04:59:59 PM »

I just purchase the same rifle at Walmart, put on a Bushnell 4-12 scope, replaced the trigger spring with one from a ball point pen, and went shooting. At 100 yards, my best group was less than 1/2 inch with the Hornady ammo! Is it worth the money? HELL YES! I say get it - you will not be disappointed!

everglades1 · « **Reply #15 on:** December 09, 2003, 12:31:54 PM »

I bought an elite 3200 3x9x49 for my marlin 17vs but couldnt get it on paper with the rimfire rings I had, ran out of adjustment. Any recommendations on stainless rings that will fit both?

SBF · « **Reply #16 on:** December 10, 2003, 10:00:50 AM »

I have a set of Burris Rimfire rings on mine that have worked out well, don't recall the part # for them though, sorry. My objective is 44mm and I think they are the extra highs, not positive though. Be aware that not all rings are the same. One companies high rings might be higher than anothers is what I mean.
I'm a little confused by your statement above. You ran out of adjustment on your rings or on your scope? If need be I would reset the adjustments on the scope back to factory zero and try remounting it, maybe have it boresighted at a local shop to get you at least close to the target. You should have plenty of adjustment on your scope. The only other thing I can think of is are your rings high enough? Make sure the front objective lens (esp on a 50mm) isn't making contact with the barrel.
Sorry if this sounds basic but your statement was confusing to me, and that's not hard to do :-D

GotstaHunt · « **Reply #17 on:** December 26, 2003, 05:58:40 PM »

I've shot 500+ shells through my Marlin 17VS without any problems.With a cheap pen spring the trigger can be greatlt improved and as far as accuracy i don't believe any other 17 can do better.The only limitations on accuracy are how steady of a shooter you are.

jrinfoley · « **Reply #18 on:** January 01, 2006, 08:07:47 AM »

I own a Marlin 17VS as well as a 917M2S, Both are very accurate. I really like the 917M2S for squirrels.

hylander · « **Reply #19 on:** January 01, 2006, 02:00:42 PM »

I own a Savage 93R17GV and it is great.
HOwever I personaaly know a couple of guys that have the Marlin.
I was impressed so I bought The Marlin 917VSF
I pick it up on Tuesday.
I have no doubt's it will be a shooter.

ice · « **Reply #20 on:** January 10, 2006, 10:16:37 AM »

I bought a 917V last year. Added a RB trigger. It is a shooter. No complaints.

Whiskey · « **Reply #21 on:** March 02, 2006, 12:55:34 PM »

I have the stainless version with the laminate stock. Its real purty and it is deadly on squirrels (and I shoot tons of them at the ranch) but the extractor (another thread) doesn't extract all the time with the clip in (either empty or with rounds in it).

I now have sent it back to Marlin to get it fixed. It will probably take a couple of months and that sucks.

I have a 3x9 scope on it and at 100 to 150 yards (thats about my limit for the squirrels on our place) and I can actually hit them in the eye with it! It is truly deadly accurate!