.22 LR rifle

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Man, you're gonna get a million suggestions! (a good thing!)

My .$02, Depending on your use and location,(plinking, hunting) a bolt action will serve you very well. There are TONS of choices out there. I'd suggest going to gun shops and shouldering a few of them to see which one "fits" the best. Then, snooping around the market for the best buy. Savage, Marlin are usually very "out-of-the-box" accurate and inexpensive. Winchester's Wildcat (Russian TOZ 78) Remington Mod 5 (by Zastava) are good bets, CZ's are super (more expensive) but as I said.. there are MANY 22 rifles out there. Best of luck in your hunt!
Now I'll let all the Ruger 10/22 guys chime in. ;)
 
10/22 guy chiming in

Bearhands is right, you're going to get a lot of different answers.

I like my 10/22 it is easy to upgrade by myself, accurate, reliable, and semi-auto. Magazine fed.

The Browning Buckmark rifle is a mag fed semi-auto that utilizes the same mag as the Buckmark pistol.

The Winchester Wildcat looks interesting. Marlin 60's are reliable and everywhere. The Marlin 60 is tube fed.

For a bolt-gun I would choose between the Savage and the Marlins.

Higher-end bolt-guns would be CZ, Weatherby XXII, Browning.

Lever guns are also available from Marlin, Henry.......

Long story short, there are a lot of choices for rimfire shooters. A good place to get even more information is:http://www.rimfirecentral.com
 
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I'd say pick an action type first, then settle on the gun.

Here are my personal choices:
Semi - 10/22
Bolt - Savage Mark II
Lever - Henry 001

As a side note, my Henry is my favorite long gun of all time. It's light, accurate, inexpensive and lots of fun. I can hit a soda can at 75 yards offhand, standing and with the original iron sights with ease. I love this gun.
 
Simply depends on how much money you want to spend. Anywhere from 100 bucks up to thousands. Acquaintence of mine is having a bench 22rf being built that is setting him back 18K. Marlin 60 is great in the low price market. Marlin 39A is a dreamer in the 400 buck range.
 
I just got a Winchester Wildcat. I haven't shot it yet, so I can't comment on the accuracy. It comes with three 10 round magazines and one 5 round magazine. Pretty generous.

I had a tough time assembling the bolt the first time, but then I realized it was made entirely of metal and I should quit pussyfooting around and use some force and the thing twisted right together. The stock was nice. Not as pretty as the one on the Winchester website, but still nice.

I read one review where the reviewer said he had trouble getting the magazines in easily. I didn't have trouble with that, but getting them out is a little harder than it should be, but not a big deal. The magazine release is in an awkward position and you have to hold it down until the magazine slides out about an inch or two.

Other than that I am pleased with it. I'm hoping we get a warm day so I can see how it shoots, but I might just take it out in the snow.

The MSRP just went up from 230 to 269, so I guess they are selling plenty of them even though I don't hear much about them on THR.
 
The question with .22 rifles is never which one, but how many. :D I agree with other posters to pick an action first, then look at guns. Since no one has brought up pump guns, Taurus has a slick looking copy of a Winchester gallery gun for a reasonable price. 10/22 is always a good starter, but .22's are just so much fun, and inexpensive (somewhat), pick one you like to start, and just go back to get more as finances and the fun permits. YMMV.
 
Same as RockyMtnPractical, but I would also add a Taurus pump gun for some old time plinking fun.
 
if you are new to the 22, and looking for a rifle, get either a Marlin, cz, or Savage bolt action. for semi auto, get a marlin mod 60. these are all under 150 bucks, they are all reliable, they are all accurate.
DO NOT GET A RUGER 10.22. I have one, and like it very much, except i do
not consider it a beginners rifle, It needs mods and upgrades, at least another 100 bucks worth, just to make it remotely accurate, and function reliably.
You can typically get a marlin mod 60, for less than 80 bucks, at a pawn shop.
it would be better to go to a gunshop that has a used section. Ask if that gunshop has all it's trade ins and used stuff checked by a gunsmith.
Also, if you don't know how the rifle takes down, or works, don't be afraid to
ask the clerk. The guys at the gunshops are usually pretty helpful, at least they are In houston, and know what they are doing.
If looking for a pistol, get any revolver, so simple , usually a Taurus will fill
the bill, they come in switch bbls, 22 / mag , or 17hmr/ mach2.
For pistol, go with the simplest to take down, and they will also be very accurate, this would be the S&W 21A or the Beretta Neos. Both will be less than 230 bucks, and they require 1 button to push, or 1 thumbscrew to turn, to take down. Again, DO NOT GET A RUGER PISTOL. Unless you are handy, and can follow directions exactly, the ruger is simple to take down, but if you put it back together wrong, and do not follow the directions exactly, you will ruin it, or blow it up. Now the ruger is a great pistol, and has the rabbit ears for easy pull back on the bolt, it is so easy to pull , I had a couple of Grandma/Grandpa's at the range decide they would buy models just like mine, for home defense. they were both old and Artheritic, but they could both easily manipulate the mag release, and the bolt pull. this was on the ruger 22/45. easier mag release, than the MK I or II or III models.
 
A Ruger 10/22 is accurate enough for plinking and squirrel hunting right out of the box. No, it's not a match grade rifle, but it's not supposed to be. I've got two, I've done nothing to either except add scopes and they'll knock squirrels out of trees all day long if I do my part. When I miss, it ain't the guns fault.

Yes, the pistols do require you to follow the directions to strip them down and reassemble them. That hardly seems to be a major inconvience to me. Actually it sounds like a prudent thing to do. (I hardly ever clean mine, but that's a subject for another discussion.)
 
The question with .22 rifles is never which one, but how many.
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Yep, that's exactly where I'm at. :D I LOVE rimfire rifles! I like bolts, single shots, autos, pumps (don't have one yet), levers (don't have one yet), whatever. IMHO there is no BAD .22!!!!! I even have a Charter Arms version of the AR7 I like that most people here seem to despise.

I guess my favorite is my first OLD Remington M512X bolt gun. But, my favorite plinker/utility rifle is my 10/22. It's a stainless gun, rugged goes everywhere with me. Iron sights on it, scopes on my other ones.

I'm going to get a Browning take down someday, beautiful little guns. I want a Marlin sometime or another, also, maybe a papoose. Those are handy and better built guns than my AR7. Ah, the .22 ain't made that I wouldn't like to own, really, but I'd probably still use my old Remington for hunting and my 10/22 as my utility .22. Just that .22s are so affordable and I just like owning them.
 
I agree with Rangerruck for the most part. I would recommend a Marlin 60 for a cheap good to go rifle out of the box. I also have a 10/22T and although I now have it shooting way better than my old Marlin, it took some additional $, parts and basic gun intuition to get it there. I wouldn't consider a 10/22 as an entry level .22 from my experiences either.
 
My 10/22 will put 10 rounds of mini mag into an inch and a half at 50. It's bone stock. Granted, that's no target rifle, but how the heck accurate does a plinker need to be, even a squirrel rifle???? As a beginners gun, it works, does not jam, is easy to clean. I don't see a negative here. Yes, my old Remington will put 10 into a half inch at 50, it's more accurate, no more reliable or easy to live with, and both will tear up a coke can at 25 yards. :D One thing about the 10/22, it can grow with you if you want more accuracy later on.
 
My Remington 572 Fieldmaster is one of the few guns I wouldn't sell. I would sell my 10/22 off in a heartbeat for the right offer. My 572 is just as accrurate as my bull barreled 10/22. It will cycle anything I put in it. With aguila super colibri ammo it is quieter than a powerful pellet gun. And its really nice looking too. I will admit it is an older model when craftsman ship was a little better.
 
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