from what i've read/heard , there were old fellas at marlin that had been hand building them their whole lives . when remington took over they moved the factory and lost all these old fellas and their knowledge . remington actually had to get design/workshop drawings made cause none existed . the JM's were hand made with passed down knowledge .
my 1894 44 mag definately needed some hands on tweaks . luckily i'm a old school muscle car/hot rod guy who's prepared to give it a go with fabrication , hand finishing type stuff . the MR serials just need a little work ........the JM's had that done at the factory
i've owned 3 model 94 winnies, and although more complicated , they all fed floorless . if i could've scope mounted a winnie 92 i would have one over a marlin. but now i've put my mark on my marlin and got it working great i do like it