Well, it sure seems like Ruger has been killing it lately… no pun intended. It seems as though they decided restoring Marlin to its former glory wasn’t enough, and they’ve decided to revive another classic American marque. Rolled into the purchase of Marlin was Glenfield Firearms, and as of press time, they’ve breathed new life into the company with the release of the new Glenfield Model A.
A Short History of Glenfield Firearms
The Glenfield brand was created by Marlin Firearms in the mid-20th century as a way to sell affordable, store-brand rifles and shotguns through large retailers like Montgomery Ward, Sears, and K-Mart. Rather than being a separate manufacturer, Glenfield served as Marlin’s economy line—built on the same dependable actions and barrels but with simpler wood stocks, plainer finishes, and minimal embellishment to keep costs down. The name first appeared in the early 1960s and was used through the early 1980s, a period when department-store gun sales were booming and hunters wanted reliable yet inexpensive firearms for the field.
Although marketed as budget models, Glenfield rifles were mechanically identical to their Marlin counterparts, sharing most parts and the same reputation for accuracy and durability. Among the most recognizable were the Glenfield Model 60 (that featured Marlin’s legendary micro-groove barrel) and Model 75 .22 rimfires—cousins of Marlin’s best-selling semi-automatics. As retail trends shifted and big-box stores phased out firearms sales, Marlin retired the Glenfield name and sold all models under its own brand again. Today, Glenfield rifles occupy a nostalgic niche: working-class guns that helped introduce generations of Americans to small-game hunting and recreational shooting.
Glenfield Model A: Overview
First, let’s address the most obvious characteristic of the Glenfield Model A: it looks a lot like the first-generation Ruger American, which makes a lot of sense. This should also be reassuring, because the Ruger American has always been the best bang-for-buck in American-made hunting rifles since it hit the shelves.
The Model A is already available in a wide variety of calibers, including:
- .308 Win.
- .30-06
- .270 Win.
- .243 Win.
- 6.5 Win.
- .350 Legend
- .450 Bushmaster
With this diverse array of cartridges, some flavor of the Glenfield Model A is going to be appropriate everywhere from the elk woods to the Western coyote flats to the straight-wall states.
All feature 20″ barrels and trigger pulls (likely Ruger’s Marksman trigger) adjustable from 3-5lbs, which is excellent for a rifle coming in at $499.00 MSRP. As the American series of rifles have increased in price recently, this is likely intended to be the spiritual successor while maintaining the same quality and accuracy the originals were known for.
Other important features that are included on the base rifles are factory-installed, one piece Picatinny scope bases, “splatter finished stock” (likely polymer, as the first-gen Americans were), and, perhaps most importantly, a factory-threaded barrel. Suppressor usage is on the rise among hunters, and for good reason. This trend is likely to continue in 2026 when tax stamps are reduced to zero, and the factory-threaded barrel on a rifle of this price is going to be a major selling point.
Thoughts on the Glenfield Model A
In the same way that the small block Chevy motor and the subsequent Corvette democratized horsepower and brought affordable speed to the masses, so has Ruger done with their American series of hunting rifles. It’s clear that the Model A, along with whatever else Glenfield Firearms has coming down the pipeline, are going to continue that business.
We’re excited to see where these go as they start trickling out to a late-season hunt near you.
Read Glenfield Firearm’s full press release about the Glenfield Model A here.
