| The Marlin 917VSF Rifle & The 17HMR Cartridge. |
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| Written by Keith | |
| Sunday, 14 January 2007 | |
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Marlin 917VSF 17HMR Rifle. I had always had an interest in this little cartridge and recently I got the chance to try one out. It was a Marlin 917VSF wearing a Leupold VX-1 4-12x40 (which I thought was a good choice for the rifle) that my mate had recently purchased and was kind enough to lend me it for a short trip away. In this short review I’ll attempt to cover my thoughts on the rifle and the cartridge in the field. Marlin 917VSF 17HMR Rifle. I had always had an interest in this little cartridge and recently I got the chance to try one out. It was a Marlin 917VSF wearing a Leupold VX-1 4-12x40 (which I thought was a good choice for the rifle) that my mate had recently purchased and was kind enough to lend me it for a short trip away. In this short review I’ll attempt to cover my thoughts on the rifle and the cartridge in the field. The Rifle: It is a nice looking rifle with grey laminated stock, heavy stainless steel fluted 22” barrel, seven shot single stack magazine and weighs in at 6.75lbs/3kgs.  It shouldered well and I quite liked the feel of the stock though I’m not that fussy when it comes to rifle stock fit. The trigger was nice and crisp with little if any creep and seemed to be of a medium pull weight. It is the better of the two triggers I have used in Marlin rimfires and Marlins new T-900 trigger system is far superior to the old one. I do not believe it would require any adjustment out of the box. But with anything that is mass produced maybe the owner just got lucky in this case. I didn’t like the action finding it quite stiff, noisy and not smooth at all, this may smooth out after a few hundred rounds but I can’t say it is an attractive feature when you compare the bolt to a CZ or Anschutz rimfire rifle. The seven shot magazine was another thing that disappointed me greatly. Very fiddly to load as you have to line up a channel that is spot-welded to the magazine to one on the release catch which either means you have to watch what your doing or attempt it a few times if your not. The other thing that annoys me about the magazine setup on the Marlin is that the release catch is located between the magazine and the trigger guard making it very hard; if not impossible to release the magazine one handed and not drop it on the ground. So to take the magazine out you need to use two hands. The magazine does not fit the rifle all that well and rattles whilst walking which I was really dissapointed in. Overall it is a good entry level rimfire rifle but I would fork out the extra $150 or so to get a CZ or something similar as I feel the CZ is a much more refined rifle then the Marlin. It does however work and hits what you aim it at and if that’s all you’re after the Marlin will suit you. Functionality: 2.5/5 Value: 3/5 Looks: 4/5 Overall: 9.5/15 The Cartridge:  Getting the chance to try a 17HMR out has been a great blessing in the fact that I did not have to buy one to find out if I would like it or not. The ammunition tested was Federal Premium V-Shok featuring a 17 grain V-Max projectile (designed especially for the 17hmr by Hornady) at a listed muzzle velocity of 2530fps or 242foot pounds of energy at the muzzle. In the field: I found the cartridge to perform as reported and kill quite well. I went to a rabbit warren and setup at just over 100m where it killed rabbits with ease but does not leave exit wounds on chest shots. I did not get a chance to have a shot at a fox but I would have loved to have seen how it would have performed on a more solid critter but alas no foxes came to my whistle. Practicality: I really think this cartridge would be great for someone who only has a Category A license and is after something that performs more like a small centrefire rather then a rimfire or someone who has a gap to fill for small varmints i.e.: 22lr and .243win etc. I myself having a 22lr and a 222rem would now find it hard to use it in a place where I couldn’t use either the 22lr or the 222rem but if I had a small property where I could only safely use rimfires and needed to take longer shots I would be sending away my PTA for a 17hmr but until such time I can’t justify owning one. It’s not to say I did not really enjoy using the 17 because I did but I just am not in a situation where I would use one on a regular basis. Overall: It lives up to its hype. It is the little rimfire that could. It certainly is a huge leap up when compared to the humble 22lr but it has its limitations and providing it is used in those limitations it is a great cartridge. I can only see the 17hmr becoming more popular and eventually becoming a classic rimfire cartridge. Rating: 5/5 |
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