Marlin 25N

**priell3** · August 13th, 2013, 09:52 AM

I have the chance of getting a 25N, free. I only have seen pics of it so far and it looks like the stock is in pretty good shape but the steel has lost most of the bluing and has some rust spots. I'm not even sure if it was ever fired and by the amount of dust on it, it appears to have sat untouched for a long time. I don't think it has any magazines with it.

I'm thinking of turning this into a project gun as I will have zero investment in it to start. My son loves shooting my Savage FV-SR and this could be his if he plays his cards right.

Here is a pic.

**Pilot321** · August 13th, 2013, 09:54 AM

They are good .22 rifles. I have a 25MN which is the .22 magnum version, and it is very accurate. Marlin used to make great barrels.

**M&P Chris** · August 13th, 2013, 10:17 AM

I have had one for about 15 years. The 25N is my small game rifle.

Magazines are around 15-20. I know Cabelas has them.

**R L Suehr** · August 13th, 2013, 12:32 PM

My dad has had one since the '70s. It is very accurate and is his go to small game rifle as well. They have some heft to them for a .22.

**CBennett** · August 13th, 2013, 05:43 PM

Ive got the MN in .22 Magnum...at our local Wal Mart they had it mis-marked..they were on sale and had a 25M tag on the .22 magnum..I bought it then when they rang it up it came up a lot more..manager got involved and said that they would do the sale price but explained it was mis-marked...So I ended up with the .22MN for around $125 which is a GREAT price for a .22 Mag rifle! its still my primary Woodchuck gun..well that is till I can get my hands on one of those Super magnums just coming out..a rimfire at 3000 FPS really interests me

.

Oh nice gun..accurate.

**PA Rifleman** · August 13th, 2013, 06:45 PM

Great gun, overlooked by many. Since it's manually operated, it should fire .22 short/long/long rifle if a standard .22 LR. And, they don't require a lot of care. Just don't lose the bolt.

My only criticism of them is the difficulty of changing the trigger weight...it isn't practical.

I recall the mags are still around, possibly even new mfg.

I agree with Pilot321, the older ones were very accurate. It might have been due to the smaller rifling grooves (micro-groove, IIRC) that Marlin used. Don't know if they still cut 'em that way.

Many, MANY kids learned to shoot with Marlin 22 bolt guns.

Here's the manual if you need it:
http://forum.pafoa.org/rifles-42/176...tml#post225092

**priell3** · August 16th, 2013, 09:23 AM

I picked up the rifle last night. My first impression was that while a bit dirty, it was in pretty good condition.

First thing I did was remove the bolt which didn't look too bad. That is a spot of white paint on the bolt handle.

Mostly dust, minor rust inside:

Next, I gave the bore a good scrubbing after which, it shined like a mirror with no obvious defects. The exposed parts of the barrel and action have lost most of the finish and one spot near the front sight it looks like it was scrubbed. Just a few minor rust spots with no pitting.

The stock is solid with only a minor nick on the forend. The entire stock appears to have been varnished at some time in its life.

Mechanically, everything is sound and functional. The action functioned smoothly after I cleaned and lubed everything.

I only had an hour to tinker with it but I got it cleaned and lubricated. My next step will be a range trip. After that I just have to decide how I want to restore the finish.