the Remington in a M770 is junk from the get go, sloppy and binding bolt, press fit barrel into the reciever, flimsy stock and heavy and gritty trigger. the Savage Axis is much better choice than the M770. decent rifle, decent accuracy and a decent price. the Mossberg is a decent rifle and IMO, better choice than the Savage for a hunting rifle, very good accuracy but the stock is not anywhere as good as the Marlin X7 series. the Marlin is a better rifle than the Stevens, because of the adjustable trigger, pillar bedded stock and much more accurate, and priced better. the Marlin X7 series is much closer in comparison to the Remington M700, the Winchester M70 or even the Weatherby Vanguard rifles in finish and accuracy.
just so that a person doesn't think that i am just a Marlin fan and doesn't think objectively. i have owned all the others and still own several others than Marlins, so this assessment and opinion comes from experiance. i own three Marlin X7 series, an XS7 in 7mm-08, an XL7 in 25-06 and an XS7VH in 308. i can attest to their accuracy compared to the others and is every bit the equal in that department. fit and finish are very good and the price is the only thing budget about them. i also have another XS7VH in 223 ordered and am waiting for it to arrive. do yourself a favor and check them out.