I agree with brad. Stay away from marlin. I have a 45-70 guide gun and a 444. the 444 is 2003, the 45-70 is last fall. 13 rounds in the 45-70 and the stock busted from the recoil and the wood seems shitty. The finish on the late rifles are nothing like they were a decade ago. The pics:
This wouldnt turn me away from a Marlin built lever gun, this can happen to any lever gun. The stocks are generally thin, few screw points, and more prone to cracking than other designs. I have seen a lot of cracked butstocks from many makes.
In general Marlin puts some of the better wood on compared to Winchester (soft) and Braztech (Not sure what piece of rainforest they are using).