.22 Rifle

[Oatmealer]

I have been interested in getting a .22 rifle. Possibly for small game hunting, but really for just "piece of mind" when camping way in the middle of no where, and target shooting for fun. Any recommendations on a cost effective brand/model? Not looking for top of the line or anything. But also don't want a POS lol.

[Bayou Blaster]

If your Looking for a semi-auto 22LR rifle I Would recommend Rugers Stainless All-Weather 10-22 series. If your looking for a quality bolt action 22LR rifle, I would recommend CZ in their American series, they also have a really nice 22 Mag bolt action. Both will serve you exceptionally well and don't cost an arm or a leg. They have years of accumalated reliablity and performance. Good Luck with your decision.

[nakadnu]

A Ruger 10-22 has got to be the best option out there for a semiauto. I think they sell for $200 for the basic model new. Reliable, inexpensive, accurate and there is a poopload of accesories available. I just recently bought a Henry youth model lever action .22. I got it new for $250. It is accurate and not as small as you would think. It is a bit heavy but a lever action is more reliable than a semiauto due to cleaning issues and I just like anything oldwestern. When you go shopping for your rifle one thing you need to do is make sure you are comfortable with the sights. The front should be fairly narrow preferably with a brass or colored dot. The rear sight should have a wide enough notch to allow to see around your target but not so wide that you cannot align your front sight properly, for example the sights on a 10-22 have got to be near perfect.

[Rednekdaddy]

I agree with the Ruger, but just to let you know that Wal-mart has the Mossberg model 702 "plinkster" models that are very reliable for $107 for the bolt action and $117 for the semi auto the only draw back is the semi auto only has a 10 round mag!!

[Bayou Blaster]

Several other reasons to consider Ruger's 10-22 series of 22LR rifles is that while they may not be modular in design like the AR-15/M-16 firearms; they do readily/easily lend themselves to upgrades/conversions. You can easily replace barrels: Blued to Stainless to Heavy to Fluted to Carbon Composite etc. There are countless of aftermarket stocks and trigger groups available as well. Ruger also offers many options as well. One does not have to be limited with this firearm. As an example a number of different sights are also available. This is just a small description of what can be done to the 10-22.

Flexibility and upgrades are the 10-22s major strengths compared to other 22LR firearms. You are also not limited by tubular magazine capacities or proprietary magazines. Rugers 10 round magazine is just about indestructable, however there are also quality high-capacity aftermarket magazines available in 20, 25, 30 and even 50 round capacities. You can start with a basic version of the 10-22 and as funds allow you can upgrade if you wish. Best of all, if you have even the basic of mechanical skills you can do these upgrades yourself and not shell out the big bucks for a Gunsmith to do them. Again Good Luck with your decision.

[Oscar Wilde]

I have a Ruger 10/22 that I've had for 15 years + .... I've recently replaced the factory stock with a folding stock to fit on my ruck sack ....

O.W.

[slowz1k]

I agree with everything that's been said about the Ruger... However, when talking about .22 semi's, It just wouldn't be right not to mention the Marlin Model 60. It's been marketed as "The most popular .22 in the world"
Though the aftermarket offers little more than a few stocks, this rifle is very affordable ($99 to $175 on gunbroker, I got mine for $60.00) and is a very reliable, straight shooter. I know it's an early 1960's design and tube fed, and not very "tactical"...but if it ain't broke, don't fix it.... Just my opinion and I'm usually wrong.:cool:




If you're someone who bleeds tactical and wouldn't be caught dead with anything but a black rifle, you can dress up the Marlin as a Bullpup.



The above is a joke.... Please do not buy one of these stocks. I had one on a Mini-14 once. They are cheap hollow plastic and will bounce the brass right back into the chamber. It's a cool look but not very functional.

[Oatmealer]

Very awesome information! Thank you all. I kinda have my heart set on the Ruger Stainless All-Weather, but I love the pack-ability of the Henry US Survival .22. I don't believe the Wal-Marts in my area carry the "plinkster" (just a couple black-powder kits and some pellet guns). Maybe the ones up in the northern part of the state. For $117, I would grab one today HA! Again, thank you all for your input! Your information and suggestions will lead me to my new purchase!

[nakadnu]

I bought my wife a Marlin Model 60 about 3 years ago. It would not feed any kind of ammo. It was my first .22 and that one was good but the new one was junk.
They make a bullpup stock for the 10-22. It looks cool and is compact, but will not accept hi capacity mags due to the fact that the pistol grip is in the way.

I agree with everything that's been said about the Ruger... However, when talking about .22 semi's, It just wouldn't be right not to mention the Marlin Model 60. It's been marketed as "The most popular .22 in the world"
Though the aftermarket offers little more than a few stocks, this rifle is very affordable ($99 to $175 on gunbroker, I got mine for $60.00) and is a very reliable, straight shooter. I know it's an early 1960's design and tube fed, and not very "tactical"...but if it ain't broke, don't fix it.... Just my opinion and I'm usually wrong.:cool:




If you're someone who bleeds tactical and wouldn't be caught dead with anything but a black rifle, you can dress up the Marlin as a Bullpup.



The above is a joke.... Please do not buy one of these stocks. I had one on a Mini-14 once. They are cheap hollow plastic and will bounce the brass right back into the chamber. It's a cool look but not very functional.

[rsanders]

I bought a Marlin 60 thirty five years ago at the local Kmart for a total of twenty six dollars and change. It was the top of the line model 60 it had the gold tone trigger ( if you know your Marlin 60's you know they made gold ,and silver trigger's ) and came with a scope fit for any BB gun on the market. I used that gun for many years and would be afraid to guess how many squirrels it brought to the table, but I never remember it ever misfiring or jamming for that matter,I no longer own that particular rifle ,although I do own another one just like it the only difference being this one came with the less desirable silver trigger and I mounted a descent scope on it and this one also eats any type ammo I choose to feed it . The big difference is the price , I paid seventy five for this one , used at a pawn shop and that was probably fifteen years ago, I saw one today and they were asking $ 125.00 and that was also used .

[MadScotsMan]

While the 10/22 is an excellent choice, I am really quite pleased with the reliability and accuracy of the Remington 597. Not a lot of whiz-bang gizmos available for it (save 30 round magazines) but I have shot the snot out of mine and still put 10 rounds in one ragged hole in the "X" at about 35 yards with open sights today. It is a bit bigger than the 10/22. But I have been nothing but pleased with mine.

[Bayou Blaster]

I have been interested in getting a .22 rifle. Possibly for small game hunting, but really for just "piece of mind" when camping way in the middle of no where, and target shooting for fun. Any recommendations on a cost effective brand/model? Not looking for top of the line or anything. But also don't want a POS lol.

Very awesome information! Thank you all. I kinda have my heart set on the Ruger Stainless All-Weather, but I love the pack-ability of the Henry US Survival .22. I don't believe the Wal-Marts in my area carry the "plinkster" (just a couple black-powder kits and some pellet guns). Maybe the ones up in the northern part of the state. For $117, I would grab one today HA! Again, thank you all for your input! Your information and suggestions will lead me to my new purchase!

Based on your previous inputs, you are looking for just "piece of mind", "target shooting for fun, and "But also don't want a POS lol". Given your requirements and the fact that this is primarily a PREPARDNESS website, I in good conscious CANNOT/WILL NOT recommend an AR-7 or Henry's U.S. Survival Rifle. I've shot many a 22 rimfire firearm to include more than a fair number of AR-7s and Henry's U.S. Survival Rifles. I'm sorry if this upsets any owners here that own one. I would not trust this type of rifle to work 100% of the time, it's a lack luster performer at best. It's prone to failure/jam, must be kept very clean to function with any kind of reliability and it's accuracy is moderate at short range. Things can be done to help reliabilty with this type of firearm, but why should you have too. I've torture tested a brand new Ruger 10-22 by firing it right out of the box till I got it to jam, it beagn to jam after 3,000 plus round mark. Good luck getting that kind of reliability from an AR-7 or clone. After taking the 10-22 apart and cleaning, polishing parts and chamfering the chamber face slightly, I fired it to failure again. It began jamming after 4,500 rounds. Your mileage may vary. I'm sorry, but I believe that the AR-7 and it's Henry clone are poorly executed attempts at a survival pack type firearm. If I could not get my hands on a Ruger 10/22, I'd pick Marlin's Model 60 or Papoose or Remington's 597 22LR before I'd pick up an AR-7 or clone. Ruger would have a real winner if they took the 10/22 and converted it into a pack rifle. It woud be so easy for them to do. Again good luck with your final decision. I still need to figure out how to post picks of my Rugers at this site.

[Oatmealer]

I love the pack-ability of the Henry, but I totally understand your point. I have watched several videos and read the reviews. It seems I can get a late 80's Marlin Model 60 for less than $200 if I shop around. Any warnings or thoughts on buying used?

[Bayou Blaster]

I have been interested in getting a .22 rifle. Possibly for small game hunting, but really for just "piece of mind" when camping way in the middle of no where, and target shooting for fun. Any recommendations on a cost effective brand/model? Not looking for top of the line or anything. But also don't want a POS lol.

Very awesome information! Thank you all. I kinda have my heart set on the Ruger Stainless All-Weather, but I love the pack-ability of the Henry US Survival .22. I don't believe the Wal-Marts in my area carry the "plinkster" (just a couple black-powder kits and some pellet guns). Maybe the ones up in the northern part of the state. For $117, I would grab one today HA! Again, thank you all for your input! Your information and suggestions will lead me to my new purchase!

I love the pack-ability of the Henry, but I totally understand your point. I have watched several videos and read the reviews. It seems I can get a late 80's Marlin Model 60 for less than $200 if I shop around. Any warnings or thoughts on buying used?

You should be able to get a new Ruger 10/22 for about $200. Nothing against the Marlin Model 60, I've owned several in the past and I'm in the process of refurbishing one for one of my Grandkids, but you would be limiting yourself in capacity of rounds carried internally and availability/flexibility of factory or aftermarket parts/components. It's kind of hard to mess up a Marlin 60 unless it has been severly neglected or abused. If you are intent on purchasing an older model 60, I would look for one with the metal as opposed to the newer plastic trigger guards.

[nakadnu]

I would be careful buying used guns. Most sellers are not going to tell the dealer if there are any problems and most dealers are not going to test fire their used guns. Buy used with caution.

I love the pack-ability of the Henry, but I totally understand your point. I have watched several videos and read the reviews. It seems I can get a late 80's Marlin Model 60 for less than $200 if I shop around. Any warnings or thoughts on buying used?