What to get for our first .22 rifle

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neededausername

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I recently bought our first handgun a Ruger Mark III 22/45 and we love it. She grew up shooting handguns, I grew up shooting rifles and shotguns. She's never fired a rifle and I want to buy one to teach her how to shoot one as she teaches me to shoot the handgun. I'm looking for ideas on which .22 rifles to research.

I have about a $400.00 budget, here are the criteria

1) accuracy
2) weight, my wife has a shoulder problem so lifting heavy things for a long time can cause problems for her
3) ease of maintenance

This rifle will be used for training, plinking, and possibly competition shooting. The people I will be shooting with will have rifles in a similar price range, so the competition will be equal.

I don't care if it's bolt, lever, or auto feeding. So what should we buy?Edi
 
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I'm partial to the Ruger 10-22. But mine are 10 + years old. I hear the new ones have plastic trigger groups.

Any of the major brands will (should) be OK. But there is just so much stuff out there for the 10-22.
 
Criterion #3, plus just good training means a bolt-gun to me (though I have a 10/22 for my main .22 rifle).

Marlin or Savage for a good inexpensive rifle around $120 or so (replace the trigger for another $80 or so and you've got a heckuva nice shooter). CZ if you want to spend a few extra dollars, around $250.

I had a Western Auto Revelation (Marlin in disguise) from when I was 12 until the firing pin died about 3 years ago, that makes 30 years, and my folks bought it used for me. It wasn't worth fixing it to me, but it was very accurate and easy to clean.

PS: Spend the extra on a nice scope.
 
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get a bolt action...less moving parts...easier to clean...more accurate. Better gun if the SHTF
 
Here you go. TOZ 78. Light, extremely accurate, won't cost a fortune. If you can't tell, I want to get one here shortly. BTW it's the second one down, bolt action.

http://www.ssmedwi.com/Rifles page 3.htm

The Winchester Wildcat is almost the same thing, but the 78 has better sights and an optional threaded barrel for a supressor.
 
I love my 22/45. So I bought a 10/22. I was disappointed in its accuracy and reliability, and sold it. That 22/45, which is both very accurate and rock-solid reliable, spoiled me.

I STILL love my 22/45.

Marlin Golden 39A lever gun is a fine rifle, but weighs as much as a 336. Probably not what your wife would want. They made a shorter, lighter version in the past, and my wife likes those, but they don't sell them now.

Henry Repeating Arms' Octagon lever gun is nice.

Bolt guns from CZ Marlin and Savage are accurate, well-made and relatively inexpensive. Those would deserve a scope.

As an inexpensive, accurate, reliable semiauto, I'm partial to the Marlin 60.
 
First off, bolt action. Any other action, other than single shot, break open, is a hassle, unless you are experienced. So no lever, pump, or semi auto. I don't recommend the single shot, simply for the mechanics involved, may tire out your wife. so then, i recommend a Savage or marlin, they can be new or used, if used buy from a gunshop that has a smith on site, or one that they use, to test weapons to see if they are 100% functioning. actually , any old rifle , including remmington, winchester, mossberg,etc., will all be beautiful, unique, and accurate. But for new , go Savage or marlin. now then, you could go with a cz, they are exceptionally beautiful, and fantastically accurate, but they will be more money. With 400 bucks, you could get a marlin or savage, with weapon bag, scope, cleaning kit, cleaning clothes, Gunsock, scope rings and mounts, And about 20 or 30 diff types of 50 round boxes, to see which ammo it likes best. With the cz, you could get the rifle, the bag, and a cleaning kit for 400. Scope, rings, mounts, and ammo will all cost you more.
 
Again, if new to the game, and you need light, and easy use and maintenance, GO WITH A BOLT ACTION!!! could I stress that any more?
 
My only bolt-action .22lr is a Marlin 880. I don't think they make them anymore. It is extremely accurate. With the right ammo it is... astonishing.

If you can find one, I'd recommend it without reservation. Otherwise, get this:

http://www.marlinfirearms.com/Firearms/BoltAction22/925r.aspx

I also have two Marlin Mod. 60s. Both are accurate, reliable and fun to shoot. Also a bit lighter than the 880. Cleaning (seldom necessary) is a bit tricky for the novice.
 
Get a 10/22. If you got $400.00 get two of them. They may not be the best 22 on the market, but they're plenty good enough for most uses. They're short light, and fun to shoot. Yea, the new ones have plastic trigger guards. So what? So do a lot of other 22's. So do Glocks, XD's and half the handguns in the world now. It's an inexpensive 22 rifle.

If you want to shoot a 10/22 out of the box you can, and most likely you'll be happy with it. If you later on decide you want to upgrade it, there are a truckload of parts and gizmo's you can buy to soup it up like a NASCAR racer if you want to.

Personally I don't care for the Marlin 60, but it's supposed to be a cracker jack little 22. I just don't like the way it looks or I'd probably have one or two.

The Marlin 39A is in a class by itself. I've got one. I don't shoot it often, but I will say it's a great, well made rifle. It's heavy, being all steel and walnut but it's quality.
 
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Marlin Model 795 it weights 4.5 lbs has 10 shot clip its basically the same rifle as the model 60 with a clip instead of a tube. I have the Model 60 5.5 lbs,shoots great right out of the box Super accurate with CCI Mini Mags or other quality ammo,but i can pick of empty 12 Ga. hulls at 100 Yds with federal bulk pack all day long only upgrade would be a decent 22 scope or red dot sight and a couple extra clips.

http://www.marlinfirearms.com/Firearms/SelfLoading/795.aspx

Other Marlin 22 rifles.
http://www.marlinfirearms.com/Firearms/SelfLoading/60.aspx

I also have one of these Savage MII G with 3 x9 x 40 scope nice mounts and sling and extra clip I have $265 in that setup.
http://www.savagearms.com/markiig.htm
 
Bolt Action

A good bolt action is the right way to go. Savage and Marlin both make guns that shoot waaay better than they ought to for the price you pay. I was recently looking for a 17 HMR and I took a good look at the CZ rifles. I have got to say that I was impressed. Unfortunately, the gun that I wanted did not have nice wood or I would have bought it. I opted for the Savage BTVS instead. Along the way I did notice a rifle that had a very nice miltary style iron sight on it. I am not sure of the model but I was very tempted to get one and may in the future. Scopes are great but iron sights arejust plain fun. By the way, those russian guns that another poster pointed out look to be a great deal. I had an old military Russian trainer that I bought for $49 bucks that was scary accurate.
 
With your budget in mind, I would suggest the CZ452 or 453 if you are looking for a more accurate rifle and probably the best dollar for dollar value in a better 22. What can you expect out of it? More than likely with good ammunition, you will be shooting about 0.5" groups at 50 yds which is pretty good for 22's.

If your wife is small in stature, I'd probably go with a Ruger 10/22 deluxe with the walnut stock. They are not highly accurate 22 rifles out of the box, but they aren't bad rifles overall.

The bolt action Marlin and Savage rifles are good values for 22 rifles.

The Marlin Model 60 with the tubular magazine is easy to load, good shooter, and accurate. I'd get the composite stock vs "hard wood". I hate the hard wood stocks as they look cheap.

The Remington Model 597 is not a bad choice for a semi-auto. Some are very accurate. When they were first introduced, there were problems with them. The bugs have been worked out.

The Remington Model 504 (bolt action) is a good choice at the upper end of your price range. They can be extremely accurate or just average. I'd buy a new one of these versus a used one... why? Well... the 22 shooters buy them, try them out and if they are not really accurate, they sell them and try another.

There are a lot of very good choices. Some great choices. You tend to pay for the great choices as in most things. Decide on the action type you want, semi-auto, bolt, lever, pump, and go from there. Your first $400 gets you about 75% of what the $1000+ rifles give you. You can pay dearly for the next 25% with Cooper and Anshutz being the upper end of things these days; which is why I bring up the Weatherby next.

If you would consider a slightly more expensive 22 rifle for a lifetime, look at the Weatherby Mark XXII (bolt action) and you will have a beautiful 0.5" shooter at about $800. Worth it if you like to shoot well and like the Weatherby stock. I have one. The CZ will likely give you the shooting capability at about half the price; just not as pretty a rifle. Have one. I like good looking 22 rifles.
 
It's mostly been said above, but here are my thoughts. For $400, you could get a 10/22 AND a replacement trigger. 10/22s come with a horrendous trigger. My opinion: a 10/22 with an improved trigger is a great shooter; a stock 10/22 is not all that much fun to shoot once you get past the "new gun" stage. The stock sights are really not very useful (that's true of most .22 rifles), so depending on what you want to do with the rifle, you might also want to pop for a scope or a nice peep sight setup. See http://tech-sights.com/

But, I'm leaning more with the CZ 452 American supporters. $400 gets you the rifle, but be aware that the 452 American does not have iron sights. The 452 is a great shooter right out of the box.

I have an Ultra Lux that I picked up for $250 and throughly enjoy it. It does come with some interesting iron sights. You do have to use European scope mounts or an adapter, though.

Eventually, you may own both...

Have fun shooting!

RBH
 
I would plan on buying a scope immediately for your primary purpose of casual target shooting and plinking. For years, I only put 4x scopes (with 1" tube diameter) on 22 rifles. I always felt if you could not see it with a 4x, then your probably shouldn't be shooting it with a 22 rimfire. If you decide on the Ruger 10/22 or Marlin M60, 4x is the way I would go unless you plan on a lot of 50 yd shooting. Most shoot at 25 yds and dime sized groups should not be a problem with some disipline. If longer shots are your plans, look at the 3-9x rimfire scopes. If you want to go cheap, go with Bushnell 3-9x which is available for about $50. Not a bad scope overall, especially for a 22. In general, higher the power, the larger the scope and more weight. 22's look great with a 4x scope on them!!

All that being said, I am currently buying the Weaver scopes, either 2.5-7 or 3-9x AO rimfire scopes which run around $150-$200 range. The Weaver 2.5-7x is a beautiful scope on a 22 rifle and I like it just as well as the more expensive Leupold rimfire.

A first 22 rifle is an important step in one's gun buying lifetime. You are adults, so the young shooter safety concerns are not as significant. I personally lean toward buying a semi-auto as you will be plinking a lot and the bolt actions are a lot slower. You can get the bolt actions later. If you shoot, you need more than one 22 rifle. :)

The lever actions 22's are fun. The Marlin 39A is the best.
 
This is a no-brainer. If you have the budget for a cz 452 that's what you get. If not, one of the lower priced czs. PS - I say this as someone who loves my Marlin 39
 
I'm confused by the statement that actions other than a bolt are "a hassle".

Bolts have their advantages (straight-line design, easy cleaning), but how is a slide or lever more of "a hassle"? Levers and slides are more fun for plinking, and any good .22 (other than a standard 10/22) is plenty accurate for most anything short of ARA competition.
 
CZ 452 Trainer with Nikon 3-9X40 scope, you can get just the rifle for around $330. I believe I pulled that one shot a tad high.

group2.jpg
 
Savage MkII FVT (with the Accutrigger and Williams Peep Sights). I got one a few weeks ago for about $350, and so far, I've only put ~100rds of cheap American Eagle ammo through it to break it in and start to get the sights lined up, but I was making dime-sized holes at ~20-25yds (max at the local indoor range). Now I have to get to a longer range with some better ammo to see what it can really do!
http://www.savagearms.com/markiifvt.htm
 
After inquiring here on THR myself, I got the CZ 452 Lux, and have been very happy with it. A recent trip to the range with a more experienced shooting buddy produced the comment from him that "it was like a surgical instrument." There are several variations of the CZ 452. They all have the same action and should all shoot just as well. The least expensive I think is the "CZ 513 basic" which despite the different number is a 452 action on a plain beechwood stock.
 
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