It's one of the best rimfire bolt guns on the planet. Good luck trying to equal the impressive performance of the Marlin 925 and XT-22 series of rifles for their reasonable cost. Accuracy is amazing. Easily capable of one hole groups at 50 yds, maybe longer with very careful shooting and ammo selection, the Marlin 925/XT-22s impressed me with their capabilities after THREE YEARS of shooting them for this review. CCI Mini Mags performed with excellence and even Federal Bulk ammo produces acceptable groups. In informal paper punching competitions, like my "Circles of Death" drill and in shooting steel targets, these .22s bring high enjoyment levels. Recreational rifle is its first POU, followed by marksmanship trainer, introductory gun (check out those youth models!), critter getter, and as a replacement trainer for that uber-expensive-to-shoot centerfire bolt gun you have. As with other quality bolt gun designs, reliability is superb. Just make sure you don't short stroke that bolt like some rookie! Replacing the .22 925, the XT-22 brings a wider array of barrels/calibers/stocks/finishes and adds such improvements as a Pro-Fire® trigger, palm swells (yawn), less bolt resistance (love it), and a new design sythetic stock. Both the 925 and XT-22 are highly recommended and I find difffculty preferring one over the other. Some will prefer the now-special North Haven, CT 925s and I don't blame them. Fieldstrip and maintenance is a snap. While you have that bolt out, check out those dual extractors while you're at it. Quality as demonstrated in these three guns (from different eras) is excellent, even in 2011 the new Mayfield, KY-produced XT-22. I saw no issues whatsoever. "Firepower" is ten rounds with the magazine equipped .22LR versions if you pitch the included 7 rd mag and upgrade. For real fun and perhaps more firepower in your RAT or STARLING JIHAD (recommended btw), go for the tube fed Marlin .22s which can be stoked with 25 rds of .22 shorts!. Tube reloading is slower however. With CCI CB rounds, shooting will be very quiet. Many versions are available and shown, all good. Perhaps the threaded end version #70763 Is preferred for suppressor use but it lacks the fun and usefulness of the iron sights. Ergos and features in both guns are great: you will find perfect placement and positive actuation of the safety (ala Rem 700), light and crisp triggers, decent iron sights, right LOP in the stocks, light 5.5 lb carry weights, sling studs/holes, milled 3/8" scope dovetail (limited space however), ultra smooth and fast bolts, adequate butt pad traction, and in the 925, an outstanding synthetic stock. Value is smokin' for these high quality and proven .22 bolt action repeaters. Several other competitive options are shown and discussed but the Marlin XT-22 and 925 models remain one of my favorites of all time.///////////////////////////////Music licensed from Zapac///////////////////////Nutnfancy Likability Scale: 10 out of 10 for both models, price considered

• published: 23 Jul 2011
• views: 201200