Louis-Nicolas Flobert invented the first metallic rimfire cartridge in 1845. A small charge of mercury fulminate in the rim was sufficient to propel a 16-20 grain projectile across the parlor for casual evening entertainment. By the turn of the century, a time when Coca-Cola had enough cocaine to keep the entertainment going well into the evening, parlor shooting was a popular evening activity for the well-to-do crowd, and Flobert’s cartridge, known in the United States as the .22 BB or .22 CB, was the cartridge of choice.
Advertising a rifle for indoor shooting was a bit anachronistic, even in 1909, when Marlin introduced the Model 25 ‘trombone action’ rifle. It should then be no surprise that the Model 25 was available for such a short production run – it was available for only approximately 2 years with an unknown total production quantity. What the rifle lacked in punch, it more than made up for in price: available for only $8.50 to dealers, the rifle also aimed to indirectly assault the gallery-gun market, long dominated by the Colt and Winchester offerings.
(Forest and Stream Magazine, February 1910)
(American Artisan Magazine, June 1909)
Capable of chambering the .22 short in addition to the CB and BB, the Model 25 magazine was designed to allow rapid reloading from pre-filled tubes, like those used in shooting galleries, and held up to eighteen CBs. Though it was advertised in some publications as a takedown model, like it’s predecessor the No. 18, the No. 25’s disassembly was effectuated by removing the tang screw and removing the stock.
