Marlin Firearms Co. is an American

manufacturer Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a ran ...

of semi-automatic,

lever-action The toggle-link action used in the iconic Winchester Model 1873 rifle, one of the most famous lever-action firearms Lever-action is a type of action for repeating firearms that uses a manually operated cocking handle located around the trigger g ...

, and

bolt-action Bolt-action is a type of manual firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the bolt via a bolt handle, which is most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the weapon (as most users are right-handed). Most bolt-action ...

rifle A rifle is a long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting, with a barrel that has a helical pattern of grooves ( rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus on accuracy, rifles are typically designed to be held with ...

s. In the past, the company, now based in

Madison, North Carolina Madison is a town located in Rockingham County, North Carolina. At the 2020 census, the town had a total population of 2,132. Madison is part of the Greensboro-High Point Metropolitan Statistical Area of the Piedmont Triad metro region. It was ...

, and formerly based in

North Haven, Connecticut North Haven is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut on the outskirts of New Haven, Connecticut. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 24,253. North Haven is home of the Quinnipiac University School of Health Sciences, the School of Nur ...

, made

shotgun A shotgun (also known as a scattergun, or historically as a fowling piece) is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge (firearms), cartridge known as a shotshell, which usually discharges numerous small p ...

derringer A derringer is a small handgun that is neither a revolver nor a semi/ fully automatic pistol. It is not to be confused with mini-revolvers or pocket pistols, although some later derringers were manufactured with the pepperbox configuration. ...

s, and

revolver A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold up to six roun ...

s. Marlin owned the firearm manufacturer

H&R Firearms H&R 1871, LLC, or more commonly known as Harrington & Richardson, is an American brand of firearms and a subsidiary of JJE Capital Holdings. H&R ceased production February 27, 2015. History The original H&R firm was in business for over a centu ...

. In 2007,

Remington Arms Remington Arms Company, LLC was an American manufacturer of firearms and ammunition, now broken into two companies, each bearing the Remington name. The firearms manufacturer is ''Remington Arms''. The ammunition business is called ''Remingto ...

, part of the

Remington Outdoor Company Remington Outdoor Company (ROC) was an American firearms manufacturer and holding company. The company had notable brands under its umbrella, such as Bushmaster, DPMS, Remington and Marlin. History On August 15, 2017, James Marcotuli announced ...

, acquired Marlin Firearms. Remington produced Marlin-brand firearms at its Kentucky and New York manufacturing facilities. In 2020, Sturm, Ruger & Co. bought the company from bankrupt Remington Outdoor Company.

History

Marlin Firearms was founded in the 1870s by John Marlin. Marlin produced a large assortment of firearms such as lever-action rifles, pump-action shotguns and single-shot rifles. Marlin was considered the main competitor to Winchester. In World War I Marlin became one of the largest

machine gun A machine gun is a fully automatic, rifled autoloading firearm designed for sustained direct fire with rifle cartridges. Other automatic firearms such as automatic shotguns and automatic rifles (including assault rifles and battle rifles) a ...

producers in the world for the US and its Allies, building the M1895 Colt–Browning machine gun and a later variant called the "Marlin gun" optimized for aircraft use. In 1917 Marlin Rockwell bought out the Hopkins & Allen Arms Company to promote an expanded line of firearms and restore the image of the Marlin company as makers of "sporting arms". Marlin Firearms labored for a century as an underdog levergun maker to Winchester (formerly of New Haven). However, in the 1980s and 1990s, Marlin finally began to outpace its old rival. It is currently the dominant seller of lever-action rifles in North America. Its use of side ejection allows for flat-topped firearms, thereby making the mounting of scopes easier than for traditional Winchesters. This helped Marlin capture more market share as American shooters came to rely more and more on optics. Marlins are larger, stronger and heavier than most of the comparable Winchester line, allowing Marlin to use higher powered cartridges such as the .45-70. Marlin's model 1894 lever-action rifles and carbines are available in handgun calibers, including

.357 Magnum The .357 Smith & Wesson Magnum, .357 S&W Magnum, .357 Magnum, or 9×33mmR as it is known in unofficial metric designation, is a smokeless powder cartridge with a bullet diameter. It was created by Elmer Keith, Phillip B. Sharpe, and Douglas B. ...

, .44 Magnum and

.41 Magnum The .41 Remington Magnum, also known as .41 Magnum or 10.4×33mmR (as it is known in unofficial metric designation), is a center fire firearms cartridge primarily developed for use in large-frame revolvers, introduced in 1964 by the Remington A ...

, making them suitable companion long guns for

s in those calibers.

Acquisitions

In November 2000, Marlin purchased the assets of H&R 1871, Inc., a Massachusetts-based manufacturer of shotguns and rifles (New England Firearms branded), founded in 1871, and now located in

Gardner, Massachusetts Gardner, officially the City of Gardner, is a city in Worcester County in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. The population was 21,287 in the 2020 census. Gardner is home of such sites as the Blue Moon Diner, Dunn State Park, ...

. Marketing its products under the brand names of Harrington & Richardson and New England Firearms, H&R 1871 claimed to be the largest manufacturer of

Single-shot Single-shot firearms are firearms that hold only a single round of ammunition, and must be reloaded manually after every shot. The history of firearms began with single-shot designs, then multi-barreled designs appeared, and eventually many ce ...

shotguns and rifles in the world. In December 2007

Remington Arms Company Remington Arms Company, LLC was an American firearms manufacturer, manufacturer of firearms and ammunition, now broken into two companies, each bearing the Remington name. The firearms manufacturer is ''Remington Arms''. The ammunition business ...

purchased Marlin. Remington announced in April 2008 that it would close the Gardner manufacturing plant by the end of 2008 affecting 200 workers. In March 2010, Marlin announced that it would close its North Haven plant, and move the work to Remington plants in Ilion, New York, and

Mayfield, Kentucky Mayfield is a home rule–class city and the county seat of Graves County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 10,017 as of the 2020 United States Census. History 19th century Mayfield is in the center of the Jackson Purchase, an eig ...

. In September 2020, Sturm, Ruger & Co. bought the Company from bankrupt

Products

Major models of Marlin rifles include: *Marlin No. 20, a .22 caliber pump-action rifle with a tubular magazine *

Marlin Model 20 The Marlin No. 20 is a slide-action .22 caliber rifle with an octagonal barrel and tubular magazine, bearing patents of August 12, 1890 through November 29, 1904, produced by the Marlin Firearms Co. of New Haven, Connecticut. It is not the same a ...

, a

.22 Short .22 Short is a variety of .22 caliber (5.6 mm) rimfire ammunition. Developed in 1857 for the first Smith & Wesson revolver, the .22 rimfire was the first American metallic cartridge. The original loading was a bullet and of black powd ...

.22 Long 22 Long is a variety of 22 caliber (5.6 mm) rimfire ammunition. The 22 Long is the second-oldest of the surviving rimfire cartridges, dating back to 1871, when it was loaded with a 29 grain (1.9 g) bullet and 5 grains (0.32 g) of black po ...

, and

.22 Long Rifle The .22 Long Rifle or simply .22 LR or 22 (metric designation: 5.6×15mmR) is a long-established variety of .22 caliber rimfire ammunition originating from the United States. It is used in a wide range of rifles, pistols, revolvers, smo ...

rifle *Marlin Model 27 and 27s,

Pump-action rifles Pump action or slide action is a repeating firearm action that is operated manually by moving a sliding handguard on the gun's forestock. When shooting, the sliding forend is pulled rearward to eject any expended cartridge and typically to co ...

chambered in several smokeless powder cartridges. Early models had octagon barrels. *Marlin Model 1881, lever action repeater, the first commercially successful lever action that could handle big bore cartridges such as .38-55 and 45-70. *Marlin Model 1893, lever action repeater, the precursor of the Model 36 and 336, identifiable by the square flush bolt. *

Marlin Model 1894 The Marlin Model 1894 is a lever-action repeating rifle introduced in 1894 by the Marlin Firearms Company of North Haven, Connecticut. At its introduction the rifle came with a 24-inch barrel and was chambered for a variety of rounds such as .25 ...

, lever action carbines in

calibers —

(1894C),

(1894FG & 1894S), .44 Magnum (1894SS or plain 1894), and

.45 Colt The .45 Colt (11.43×33mmR), is a rimmed, straight-walled, handgun cartridge dating to 1872. It was originally a black-powder revolver round developed for the Colt Single Action Army revolver. This cartridge was adopted by the U.S. Army in 1 ...

(1894 Cowboy) Based on the original 1894. * Marlin Model 1895 Several versions like 1895, G, GBL, GS, M, SBL, CB. All are chambered for the .45/70 caliber except for the "M" (.450) Introduced in the 1970s, based on the Model 336 and named after the original 1895. *Marlin Model 1895 Square bolt. The original rifle introduced in 1895, based on the 1893 action but scaled up for larger cartridges such as 45-70 and 45-90 to replace the Model 1881. *Marlin Model 444, produced from 1964 to present date. Variations include (from oldest to newest) 444T, 444S, 444SS, 444P (Outfitter) and 444XLR *Marlin Model 1897, lever action repeater, the precursor of the Model 39 and 39A *Marlin Model 25M, .22 WMR bolt-action rifle * Marlin Model 25MG, .22 WMR, smooth bore, bolt-action shotgun. It was designed and marketed as a " Garden Gun" *Marlin Model 25N, now the Model 925, a

, .22 Long, and .22 Long Rifle

rifle *

Marlin Model XT-22 The Marlin Model XT is a series of rimfire bolt-action rifles produced by Marlin Firearms, first saw production in 2011. The rifle comes in several different models in both the .17 (XT-17s) and .22 calibers (XT-22s), with either a detachable bo ...

available in long rifle and .22 WMR, There are 15 variations of this rifle available *

Marlin Model XT-17 Marlins are fish from the family Istiophoridae, which includes about 10 species. A marlin has an elongated body, a spear-like snout or bill, and a long, rigid dorsal fin which extends forward to form a crest. Its common name is thought to deri ...

chambered for

.17 HMR .17 Hornady Magnum Rimfire, commonly known as the .17 HMR, is a rimfire rifle cartridge developed by Hornady in 2002. It was developed by necking down a .22 Magnum case to take a .17 caliber (4.5 mm) projectile. Commonly loaded with a 1 ...

, There are several variations of this rifle available *

Marlin Model Golden 39A The Marlin 39A represents the oldest and longest continuously produced shoulder firearm in the world. The current variation gold trigger lever-action .22 Caliber ''Golden'' 39A is produced by the Marlin Firearms Co. of New Haven, Connecticut. T ...

, lever action repeater, the longest continuously produced rifle in the world * Marlin Levermatic, an innovative short-throw lever-action rifle in a variety of small cartridges *

Marlin Model 60 The Marlin Model 60, also known as the Marlin Glenfield Model 60, is a semi-automatic rifle that fires the .22 LR rimfire cartridge. Produced by Remington Arms in Huntsville, Alabama formerly in Mayfield, Kentucky, formerly by Marlin Firearms C ...

, a popular

.22 LR The .22 Long Rifle or simply .22 LR or 22 (metric designation: 5.6×15mmR) is a long-established variety of .22 caliber rimfire ammunition originating from the United States. It is used in a wide range of rifles, pistols, revolvers, smooth ...

caliber

semi-automatic rifle A semi-automatic rifle is an autoloading rifle that fires a single cartridge with each pull of the trigger, and uses part of the fired cartridge's energy to eject the case and load another cartridge into the chamber. For comparison, a bolt-act ...

Marlin Model 336 The Marlin Model 336 is a lever-action rifle and carbine made by Marlin Firearms. Since its introduction in 1948, it has been offered in a number of different calibers and barrel lengths, but is commonly chambered in .30-30 Winchester or .35 ...

, one of the most popular lever-action hunting rifles in the world *

Marlin Camp Carbine The Marlin Camp Carbine is a self-loading carbine chambered for either 9mm Parabellum or .45 ACP, formerly manufactured by Marlin Firearms Company of North Haven, Connecticut. The carbine has been discontinued since 1999. Description As the nam ...

, a discontinued model *

Marlin Model 70P The Marlin Model 70P, also known as the Marlin Papoose, is a .22 Long Rifle semi-automatic rifle manufactured by Marlin Firearms. The rifle is notable for its portability; it is less than in length when disassembled and weighs 3.25 pounds. Disasse ...

"Papoose", a lightweight, magazine-fed, .22 LR carbine with a detachable barrel; it is designed to be taken down for easy transport while camping, backpacking, etc. *

Marlin Model 795 The Marlin Model 795 is an American .22 LR semi-automatic rifle produced by Remington Arms of Mayfield, Kentucky, formerly by Marlin Firearms Company of North Haven, Connecticut. Major features include micro-groove barrel, a cross-bolt safety, b ...

, a .22 LR

. *Marlin Model 700, a .22 LR

, similar to the Model 795, but has a heavy tapered target barrel * Marlin 780, a bolt-action hunting rifle *Marlin Model 80 (and subsequent 80C etc.) Bolt action .22 rimfire using 7-capacity detachable magazine introduced circa 1939, the predecessor to later versions such as Model 25, etc. *Marlin Model 7000, a .22 LR

, similar to the Model 795, but has a heavy non-tapered target barrel *Marlin Model 2000, a .22 LR

rifle, designed for competition target shooting ( biathlon version available) *Marlin Model MR7, a long action center fire

rifle available in .30-06,

.270 The .270 Winchester is a rifle cartridge developed by Winchester Repeating Arms Company in 1923 and unveiled in 1925 as a chambering for their bolt-action Model 54The Complete Reloading Manual for the .270 Winchester, Loadbooks USA, Inc., 2004, ...

,and

.25-06 Considered by many as the most balanced of the "quarter bores" for hunting medium-sized game, the .25-06 Remington remained in obscurity as a wildcat cartridge for nearly half a century before being standardized by Remington in 1969. Its design ...

manufactured from 1996-1999 A few were offered in

.280 Remington The ''.280 Remington'', also known as the 7mm-06 Remington and 7mm Express Remington, was introduced in 1957 for the Remington model 740, 760, 721, and 725 rifles. History Having been released 32 years after the .270 Winchester, it had somewhat ...

in 1999 *Marlin Model XL7, a long action center fire

rifle available in .30-06,

, and

*Marlin Model XS7, a short action center fire

rifle available in

.308 The .308 Winchester is a smokeless powder rimless bottlenecked rifle cartridge widely used for hunting, target shooting, police, military, and personal protection applications globally. It is similar but not identical to the 7.62×51mm NATO ...

.243 Win The .243 Winchester (6×52mm) is a popular sporting rifle cartridge. Developed as a versatile short action cartridge to hunt both medium game and small game alike, it "took whitetail hunting by storm"Ron Spomer.Whitetail Deer Cartridge Shoot-Out ...

, and 7mm-08 *Marlin Model 1881, one of the earliest large caliber lever-action repeating rifles Significant variations of many of these rifles have usually also been manufactured. For example, there are six distinctly different variations manufactured for the Marlin Model 60. Marlin has been making lever-action rifles since 1881, and in 2008, they produced their 30 millionth lever-action rifle, which was donated to the

National Rifle Association The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent Gun politics in the United States, gun rights ...

. Double-barrel shotguns: * L.C. Smith Double The Marlin Model 90

Over and Under ''Over and Under'' is an album by folk singer/guitarist Greg Brown, released in 2000 on the Trailer Records label, a brief departure from his normal Red House Records label. The album stemmed from Brown's desire of assembling an all-star band o ...

Exposed hammer, pump-action shotguns: * Marlin 1898 * Marlin Model(s) 16, 17, 19, 21, 24, 26, 30, 42, and 49 Hammerless pump-action shotguns: * Marlin Model(s) 28, 31, 43, 44, 53, 63, 120 Submachine guns: *

M2 Hyde The Hyde-Inland M2 was a United States submachine gun design submitted for trials at Aberdeen Proving Ground in February 1941. Work was undertaken by General Motors Inland Manufacturing Division to develop workable prototypes of George Hyde's de ...

, a World War II

submachine gun A submachine gun (SMG) is a magazine-fed, automatic carbine designed to fire handgun cartridges. The term "submachine gun" was coined by John T. Thompson, the inventor of the Thompson submachine gun, to describe its design concept as an autom ...

prototype *

United Defense M42 The United Defense M42, sometimes known as the Marlin for the company that did the actual manufacturing, was an American submachine gun used during World War II. It was produced from 1942 to 1943 by United Defense Supply Corp. for possible issue ...

, a World War II submachine gun for OSS Revolvers: *

Little Joker Little is a synonym for small size and may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Little'' (album), 1990 debut album of Vic Chesnutt * ''Little'' (film), 2019 American comedy film *The Littles, a series of children's novels by American author John P ...

O.K. Revolver ''OK'' (spelling variations include ''okay'', ''O.K.'', ''ok'' and ''Ok'') is an English word (originating in American English) denoting approval, acceptance, agreement, assent, acknowledgment, or a sign of indifference. ''OK'' is frequently ...

XXX Standard 1872 XXX may refer to: Codes and symbols * 30 (number), Roman numeral XXX * XXX, designating pornography ** XXX, an X rating#United_States, X rating ** .xxx, an internet top-level domain intended for pornographic sites * XXX, a symbol of the straight ...

* XX Standard 1873 * Standard 1875 * Tip Up 1878 *

Top Break 1887 A spinning top, or simply a top, is a toy with a squat body and a sharp point at the bottom, designed to be rotation, spun on its vertical Axis of rotation, axis, balancing on the tip due to the gyroscopic effect. Once set in motion, a top will ...

Derringers include: * 1st Model * O.K. Derringer Square Butt "Rare" *

O.k. Derringer Birds Head ''OK'' (spelling variations include ''okay'', ''O.K.'', ''ok'' and ''Ok'') is an English word (originating in American English) denoting approval, acceptance, agreement, assent, acknowledgment, or a sign of indifference. ''OK'' is frequently ...

Victor Derringer The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

* Nevermiss Derringer * Stonewall Derringer "Extremely Rare"

MicroGroove Rifling

In 1953 Marlin Firearms was issued for what was named MicroGroove Rifling, which was a departure from the standard "Ballard," or cut rifling. One purpose of Microgroove rifling was to increase the speed of producing rifle barrels. Microgroove rifling is described in the patent as having 5 grooves for every 1/10 of an inch bore diameter, and that the driving side of each land would be "tangentially disposed" to prevent accumulating fouling in use. Marlin introduced Microgroove rifling in their .22 Rimfire barrels in July 1953, with 16 grooves that were .014" wide, and nominally .0015" deep. Ballard rifled barrels have grooves generally in the range of .069–.090" wide, and .0015–.003" deep. This change was marketed in the 1954 Marlin catalog, as having numerous advantages that this new form of rifling had, including better accuracy, ease of cleaning, elimination of gas leakage, higher velocities and lower chamber pressures. The catalog also claimed that Microgroove rifling did not distort the bullet jacket as deeply as Ballard rifling hence improving accuracy with jacketed bullets at standard velocity. Designed for factory loaded ammunition, Microgroove barrels have a reputation for accuracy problems with centerfire ammunition handloaded with cast lead bullets due to the increased bore diameter generated by the shallow grooves. The use of oversized cast bullets greatly solves this problem, restoring accuracy with cast bullet handloads to levels seen from Ballard rifled barrels.Glen E. Fryxell, "Marlin's Microgroove Barrels"
Leverguns.com, source cited: William S. Brophy, "Marlin Firearms: A History of the Guns and the Company That Made Them",

Stackpole Books Stackpole Books is a trade publishing company in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. It was founded by E. J. Stackpole Jr. in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in 1930 and was moved to its current headquarters in 1993. Stackpole publishes nonfiction books in the ...

, 1989. Early Marlin .30-30 microgroove barrels had a twist rate of 1 turn in 10 inches optimized for factory ammunition with jacketed bullets; later Marlin .30-30 microgroove barrels show a twist rate of 1 turn in 10.5 inches which improves accuracy with cartridges loaded to lower velocity than standard.

References

External links

* {{Authority control North Haven, Connecticut Companies established in 1871 Firearm manufacturers of the United States Companies based in New Haven County, Connecticut Cerberus Capital Management companies Remington Arms Military in Connecticut Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2020