Hi all,
I suppose this'll be the most knowledgeable forum about these rifles.

My cousin just bought a mega-cheap Marlin XL7 in .30-06.
Any user info and views on the gun? Especially any dislikes?
What ammo does the gun most seem to like? He'll be hunting moose.

I have found some good deals on the Savage rifles, as well, but I know almost nothing about the brand.
I stumbled on the Savage Weather Warrior 16 FSS in .375 H&H - I wasn't aware that Savage makes guns in that caliber.
Any user experiences? Comments about Savages in general?
What is the "AccuTrigger" concept in layman's terms, please?

Thanks,

- Lars/Finland

Sir,
I don't know a thing about the Marlin XL7. Savage however has a long and plain history of making rifles of great value that often also are very good shooters. The AccuTrigger was the first adjustable "lawyer proof" trigger it was said on the US market. By it's design, it can be adjusted to a light pull but still be completely reliable as long as the trigger is not pressed. They have a "pre-lever" that must be pressed into the face of the trigger that then allows a final let-off after the actual trigger is pressed back. Kind of a modern day two stage pull but mechanically different inside the rifle. For a better description follow the link below.

http://www.savagearms.com/vari...fles_accutrigger.pdf

I own a Marlin XL7 25-06. Good rifle, very accurate and lower priced than a Savage rifle with the accutrigger and it has its own version of this kind of trigger. Marlin XL or XS series better than a Stevens 200 or Savage Edge.
I own a Stevens 200 and a Savage Edge. I often shoot next to the same Gent every Sunday at range we are members and he owns a very nice Savage .308 rifle with a flutted Stainless steel varmit type barrel that cost twice as much as my Marlin. My Marlin will shoot better groups than his rifle at 100 yards. Neither my Stevens or Edge is as accurate as my Marlin.

Just looking at the Marlin in the rack, it looks very similar to a Savage 110.

If ya want to know more about the Marlin XL &
XS7's, the guys here will tell ya all about them:

http://www.marlinowners.com/fo....php/board,78.0.html

I have a 7mm08 XS7 ordered and should be here
Wednesday, $325. That butt-ugly stock has got
to go, though.

I have an xs7 in 308. It's comparable to the cheaper Savage or Stevens except for the trigger. The trigger has is like the Accutrigger on the more expensive Savages. Accuracy was really good in what little shooting I've done with the Marlin (sub MOA). I have a Savage Police Carbine in 223. It's a higher priced Savage. If I only had $300 to spend, I would get the Marlin. The trigger is the tie breaker.

Just got a new XS7 7mm08 last week and put 30 odd rounds through it at the range over the weekend. Looks nice, better than the Savage as it has a more conventional bolt shroud instead of the Savage stubby shroud.
Plastic stock is okay and good solid chequered pattern for grip. Nicely finished metal work with good bluing. Comes as a package here with a good solid Weaver bridge mount and Weaver style rings with four solid Allen head cap screws. Very crisp trigger easily adjustable for weight but weight was good on mine as is.

Only negatives for me is a blind magazine which I accepted as a trade off for a stiffer stock, and a minimal throat, even shorter than my Rem700 in same cartridge. A pain if wanting to use heavier bullets without intruding into powder space but then the magazine will also determine maximum COAL.
Came with a cheaper scope which I swapped with the dealer for a quality German made sling. I put a 3-12x AO Bushnell scope on it.

Shot really well out of the box after bore sighting and got first 3 shot group on an 1". Was trying out a load with 120gr Sierras and IMR4895 and taken a bit by surprise of the light recoil and easy shooting. Will shoot my normal 140gr sub-moa load later.

At NZ$970 it is a very good buy for a new rifle here. Barrel cleans easy, nicely polished bore.

Having owned a couple of high class Schultz and Larsen rifles (among others) and currently own a superb Type A 404J Mauser, I think the Marlin XS7 is a good accurate go getter gun. Although not traditional I would happily take it on plains game to compliment the 404J.

Savage has made some staggering changes over the past decade and the one that is most recognized is their higher end rifles are the most accurate rifles in the world period. No longer is Savage a "discount" good rifle. Today it's the rifle that holds more 1000/600 and SR records than any other. For hunting the 111 long range hunter in: 25-06, 6.5X284, 7MM Rem Mag and 300WM or the 11FYCAK in 308, 7-08 and 243 are simply unbeatable hands down. Another great rifle is the model 14 American classic available in 10 calibers 22-250 to 300 WSM. With all said, there is one issue I have with Savage and it's the accu-trigger. For the most part they function fine but to many times they "hang" if adjusted to light. I've created my own work-around that not only fixes the problem but lowers the pull down to 2 to 4 Oz's. Any one interested, I would be glad to "opine".