deerslayer512
Plinker
I have owned a Marlin 980s for 3 years now, and i absolutely love it. For starters, its incredibly smooth. I still havent polished the bolt but i dont see a reason too. Its perfectly smooth out of the box. Accuracy wise, the marlin surprised me. I wasnt expecting much from it but it was actually extremely accurate. The only drawback is that it is ammo picky when it comes to groups. I wouldnt recommend remington bulk ammo if your looking for good groups because the marlin hated it in particular. The best groups i had were with CCI and surprisingly, federal bulk ammo. I could cover 10 rounds with a penny with both of those. As for reliability, the marlin was incredible. I put well over 5,000 rounds threw it without a single jam. It will cycle any kind of ammo you put in it. Durability wise, the marlin was also spectacular. I bought the stainless model with a wood stock and it hasnt rusted at all even after being exposed to the rain. If your looking for a varmint hunting gun, i would highly recommend the 980. Its light at about 5 pounds and has a nice balance to it. If your not looking to put a scope on it, the marlins comes with collapsible irons sights that are spectacular. I used them for a year before buying a cheap barska rimfire scope that served me well but i will be upgrading it soon. The magazine was also well built. It came with a 7 round stainless magazine but i soon bought the 10 round at a local gun show for about 15 dollars and it was well worth it. As for looks, i believe the marlin is a beautiful gun. The stock is beautiful walnut, but i will say that checkering would be nice. I dont know the retail price for it because i havent seen one since i bought mine (i bought mine at a local gun shop for 300 dollars) so it should be around there. Overall, i would highly recommend the marlin 980 for anyone who is looking for a good gun to plink, varmint hunt, or bring a youngster into the sport. If you enjoyed this review, please tell me if youd like to see more reviews.
