Oh no! Another .22LR rifle followed me home: Marlin 795

A

American Eagle

New member
Ooops, I did it again. One week after buying a Ruger 10/22 (my first .22LR rifle), I just bought a Marlin 795, and put a nice 3-9X32 scope on it. I don't know why I bought this one, except that it was so cheap I figured I didn't have much to loose. I took it to the range this morning and I was blown away by the performance straight out of the box.

For a rifle that I only paid $130 for, this thing shoots and feels better than my Ruger 10/22. I was getting 1 to 1.5 inch groups at 50 yards. I could have probably done better, but there was a bit of a wind, and I have yet to perfectly sight the scope. I'm also not the best shot in the world, which made the performance all the more impressive.

This rifle did not hiccup once. It swallowed the cheap Federal .22LR ammo that I fed it (150 rounds) without a glitch.

I am convinced that if I spend $600-$800 on my Ruger 10/22, I could probably match the out of the box performance of my Marlin 795 that only cost me $130. But I can see why Marlin doesn't have the accessories and customs parts that the Ruger 10/22 has. It simply doesn't need it. The rifle is accurate and reliable out of the box, and there is really nothing else you need to do to it.

Anyway, here she is :D

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If you get a good one, and it seems you did, they are great little shooters! If you do some searching you'll find plenty of aftermarket accessories, such as triggers, stocks, bolt handles, to customize it for yourself. Run over to rimfirecentral and check out the marlin semi-auto forum. There are some pretty 795's there!
 
"Oh no" uh huh. I'm glad you love it. Did you weigh the gritty, long, mushy trigger? Still, for $99 bucks your rationale is right, but...

...I'm not sure that the out-of-the-box superiority of the Marlin 795 is the reason there is little after-market for it. At least I've never heard that over the decades.
 
Funny, I bought one this week too. Needed one like a hole in the head but I got to thinking, hey, I like Marlin 60's so much and the 795 would be even better because I could just switch out the mags instead of filling the tube. And besides, like you said, $122 for a new rifle is hard to beat.
 
Congrats on the 795, and that's from a 10/22 fan, almost purchase one but the magazine turned me off of it. However, one of the best shooters I found was the 22 mag. Still one of the most accurate and favored in my collection.

Jim


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Yes Jim, I agree that the magazine is the weak spot in the design. Although the magazine is very high quality, it is a little weird to remove due to having to pull the magazine down while you press the magazine release (it's a little stiff). I wish the magazine would just pop out by itself when you pressed the magazine release.

However, for range use the magazine comes in handy. My range is too picky on how to reload (must keep rifle pointing straight down the firing line as you reload) and I've seen several Marlin 60 owners incur the wrath of the range staff when they pointed their empty Marlin 60's up while trying to reload the tube. The magazine just seemed easier.
 
@ American Eagle

The range rule of always having the muzzle pointed at the backstop is not too picky. Unless the firearm is unloaded with no mag in the mag well, verified it is unloaded and cased; the muzzle should be pointed at the backstop with nothing other than the target coming between the muzzle and backstop. This range rule is for the safety of everyone.

Personally, I do not like tubular magazines that are filled or emptied from the muzzle end - especially a semi-auto. Many people load the tubular magazine and have the muzzle pointing at themselves (usually head or chest) or someone else. They may think they have emptied the magazine, but one or more cartridges may not have left the tubular magazine. What really scares me is when inexperienced shooters handle rifles with this type of tubular magazine without proper supervision or instruction.
 
Took my 795 out for a short test drive today.

Positives; Only 40 rounds (still just have one mag), but no FTF with CCI Minimags or Federal Value Pack. Incredibly accurate, sandbags at 25 yds, first three-round group was touching, about 3/8 inch. The rifle is free-floated from the factory, BTW, a nice touch. Like the plastic stock because I don't care about banging it around. Bolt hold-open on empty mag is a nice touch.

Negatives: The little bolt closing lever seems flimsy and cheap. Mags don't drop free but must be pulled while holding down tab. Mags have no follower and I got a little sore after loading it several times.

This one will become my beat-around 22 plinker, I'm sure of it.
 
I've had one for two years. I could have written the same review as you did. I love this cheap, little gun. It is my "go to" for hunting.

I recently got an XT-22R, bolt-action for bench and target shooting. I mounted a BSA Sweet 22 scope on it and took it to the range. I found exactly the same performance uning the same Federal Bulk Pack ammo. The scope ain't worth a crap, but live and learn. Save you money on the Sweet 22. I read the reviews but thought i'd be fine with it. Optics are nasty.

Just passing on some info; The 795 mags will work fine in the XT-22 but the XT-22 WILL NOT WORK in the 795.

HAve a look at the XT-22 if your looking for a bolt action to go with thhe 795, you wont be disappointed.

Shoes
 
You got a good one. Purchased mine in February and nothing but problems. Assembly pieces missing and the breech bolt looks like they found the steel in the dumpster and decided to use it. factory installed missing parts but would not replace the breech bolt. First and last "new" Marlin that I will buy.
 
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