Wow! I suppose I've been lucky. My .308 MXLR in stainless/ laminate with 24" barrel has performed flawlessly at the bench and in the field. It is fast handling, smooth cycling, and consistently very accurate. My sons and I have no trouble ringing the gong out to 300 yds. on our local range using this weapon. Terminal performance with Hornady Leverevolution 160s on deer has been impressive on the whitetails I've taken. I wouldn't hesitate to use this on any medium size game and would consider it adequate for larger game within 200- 250 yds. I hope the cartridge and rifle stay around for a long time. I have been a 30-30 Marlin Lever guy for years and this gun fills a longstanding void in the Marlin line, a gun which could reasonably be expected to perform on deer/antelope out to 400 yds. It's just plain been a lot of fun to have around. The only thing I might change is the barrel which is a bit longer than what I've been accustomed to owning carbines. Any thoughts on shortening to, say, 20"?