Help me pick a .22lr for Target shooting

I don't have any advice for you regarding the gun to buy. But I'd urge you to check out the .17HMR instead. Far more accurate and much harder hitting than any .22 rimfire. I always say it is what my .22's have always wanted to be.

DustyGmt said:

I've always liked 10/22's and favored semi's for general plinking but lately I've been wanting a bolt action .22lr and intend to buy higher quality .22lr ammo for better QC/tighter groups.

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If you already have a 10-22 and want to shoot tight groups, I’d put the $500 towards a good barrel and you’ll be able to beat any out of the box $500 complete rifle.

Like this test session where a factory 10-22 averaged 1.259” groups with a best of 1.110” at the same session my Clark custom 10-22 with Lothar Walther barrel shot the same number of rounds of the same ammunition and distance with a much smaller .275” group.

https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/side-by-side-597-10-22-model-60.811602/

https://clarkcustomguns.com/product/clark-custom-10-22-barrels/

I have bolt action rifles that will shoot better but your not going to find one for $500.

TIKKA T1 MTR .22LR mine was $500 when I got it I see they are now $650 my best advice is to wait and save up that last $150 bucks it’s worth it to me and that’s a question you have to ask yourself

If you are wanting to shoot targets, I would highly recommend saving up a little bit more and getting a larger, target-oriented gun, such as Varmint-style or target-style gun. For example, currently production options would include the CZ 457 MTR, and there are probably others from other manufacturers. There is also the 457 Varmint and Pro Varmint, which are similar in size to the 453 Varmint below, smaller than the MTR. I'm a fan of older guns such as the Varmint and target style shown below, and would go that direction, but some people prefer to have something brand new.

I have a bunch of 22 LR rifles from small to large, Youth-size up to 12-pound target guns. The target size guns are significantly easier to shoot good groups with, and therefore more rewarding and satisfying to shoot if you're going for best accuracy or groups. The smaller guns may be just as accurate in some cases, but the lighter and smaller they are, the more challenging to shoot their best. For example, the first three guns below (all pictured laying on the same bag for size reference) are fundamentally the same gun (same action, same trigger, same quality barrel, etc.), but it's MUCH easier to shoot .3" groups at 50 yards with the bigger target guns, and the largest of the three, the Model 4, is easier than the mid-size Varmint.

452 Scout


453 Varmint


Model 4


Here's another larger gun (but a lighter than the Model 4, that is also easy to shoot from the bags for best accuracy.
Model 52


I have lots of .3" 50-yard groups from the above-three rifles. It's pretty easy with the Model 4 and Model 52 because these large guns ride the bags very nicely. It's a little harder with the 453 Varmint. The 452 Scout is capable of very good accuracy, but it's much more difficult to achieve the tightest possible groups because the rifle is small and relatively light.

If you shoot at your own private range (nobody beside you blasting away with some loud cannon), the long-barreled guns like the Model 4 and Model 52 are great because you don't need hearing protection with Standard Velocity ammo. These guns with their 28" barrels literally sound like they are suppressed. For example, when shooting a KYL target such as the one shown below, the clang of the bullet on the steel at 25 yards is louder than the muzzle blast. This is a huge appeal to me because it just makes the outing about 2x as much fun, being able to enjoy the outdoors without wearing muffs or plugs.

CZ, hands down.

I went with a CZ457 Varmint, but the Tikka is probably similar in terms of accuracy. Both are a little above $500 at retailers. For lower cost, consider a Savage.

CZ, no question. 2 weeks ago I saw a CZ 457 Varmint .22 at Fleet Farm for $520. CZ 22's dominate competition, I posted some targets in the prove-it thread and others. Tikka T1 is comparable in accuracy but has a plastic stock and doesn't have the option of changing barrels.

Under $500. My 10-22, $125, Jard trigger, $100, Shaw barrel $140, Ruger target model stock $75. Sure, most was used but is way more accurate than my old 10-22 factory target model and doesn't throw the first round. CZ455 Varmint. $455 new a few years ago. Winchester 52, first model. Nostalgic accuracy. $350.

I really like my Ruger American 22, it has a 22" barrel and is very accurate. For your budget you should be able to add a decent scope too. It comes with a nice green fiber optic front sight too. Just a polymer stock, but someday I hope to add a nice wood one.

I have a 10/22 clone from Thompson/ Center owned by S&W. It is a Performance Center gun with fluted barrel, Hogue stock.

I haven't done much more with it than sight it in.
It seems to shoot good.
I have bought some Eley target ammo, and it needs a better scope than the Simmons that I have on it.
I would love to take a day and put it through the ringer and see how it does.

Wasnt thrilled with the accuracy of my 457 American, but otherwise it is a fantastic rifle. With the LW barrel on it, i have no complaints.

DustyGmt said:

I'm really quite fond of that 52 and Model 4. Are those in stock condition? What would I expect to pay for either of those.

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My 1958 vintage Model 4 is stock except that I think the finish may have been re-applied to the wood at some point, and it has a Model 1 / Model 3 style safety lever on it instead of the Model 2/4/5/CZ 452 style (the difference is that the lever sticks out the back of the bolt instead of the side). The Model 4s (produced mostly in the mid-late 1950s) seem to go from a bit over $500 if they are "cosmetically challenged" (like this one https://www.gunbroker.com/item/973582197 - the sights alone are worth $150 or more), to over $1000 for a nicer one like this 1957 model https://www.gunbroker.com/item/966228689

My 1938 vintage Model 52 is not stock. The wood has been refinished and looks a little more glossy and shows the grain a little more than most, and it's been drilled and tapped for a scope (I don't think it came from the factory that way). It also has a Leon Thomas trigger in it (an aftermarket supplier from waaay back in the day). That trigger is awesome, IMO (you can find some posts on the internet from people who claim to have handled some Thomas triggers that were not so good, but this one is very good -- I don't know if I got lucky or if internet experts are wrong.) The standard B trigger is reportedly more hit-or-miss, some being good and some being not so good when you are comparing them to really great triggers.

The 52s are really fantastic guns, especially for someone who appreciates guns with old-school build quality. It was Winchester's flagship quality rifle back when Winchester was building guns that are prized today for their quality and workmanship. There were several variations of them that you can read up on, Pre-A, A, B (mine is a B), C, a few Ds and Es. Generally speaking, the later models were better for accuracy (partly due to the improved factory trigger in the later models (Cs and beyond) but I don't see how they could be better than my old B. It is an incredibly good shooter. It is also the mid-weight version -- there was a Sporter model (rarer and usually the most expensive all else being equal), this mid-weight one like I have that's bigger than the Sporter, but not as big and heavy as the 3rd style, the heavy Target model. I love it as you can probably tell.

Costs range very wide on the original Winchester-built Model 52s from about $600 or so for a well used but still perfectly functional one, to a few thousand for a good condition, rarer version. (Miroku later built a Winchester and also a Browning-branded version of the 52B sporter in Japan for several years starting in 1991 I think, long after Winchester stopped producing them here in the US.) There have been books written on the details of the various Model 52s, so it's hard to do more than making broad general statements in a short response like this one.

Also, 28" bbl on a .22lr seems a lil long, is it only favorable in that it doesn't necessitate the use of ear pro or does it aid in balance and/or accuracy in any way.

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Most people say that shorter barrels are just as accurate as barrels in the 26-28" range, but it seems to me that most high-level shooters who are chasing ultimate accuracy and shooting from a rest, and aren't rule-restricted in barrel length, tend to use the longer barrels. I have a bunch of rifles with barrels in the 16" - 28" range, and mine tend to follow the general trend of the longer barrels being the more accurate in any given caliber. Granted, the longer barrels are usually the heavier barreled Varmint/Target style guns as well, so there are more variables at play than just the length of the barrel. As I said in the earlier post, my longer-barreled, heavier guns are definitely more likely to deliver the best accuracy for me in my hands when shooting from a decent rest, but that doesn't necessarily prove anything about barrel length. If I were shooting off-hand with these guns, I'd want the barrel at about 18" - 20" because the long heavy barrels are just not good for me to try to hold steady off-hand. The 453 Varmint in the photo above has a 20" heavy barrel and I like it quite a bit for offhand shooting. It might be even better for offhand if it had a 16" barrel.

I would echo the notion of buying barrel/stock/trigger for your 10/22.

If you want a bolt gun you won't get as much for $500. That said, you could just get lucky. My ruger American 22 is amazingly accurate considering I paid ~$250 for it.

You could also try a savage 64 precision. I see them for sale at academy for under $300. For a bolt gun there is a Savage B22 precision for around $500-$600.

LoonWulf said:

Wasnt thrilled with the accuracy of my 457 American, but otherwise it is a fantastic rifle. With the LW barrel on it, i have no complaints.

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I wasn’t very impressed with the initial accuracy of my CZ 455 either, it’s gotten a lot better with hundreds of rounds through it but still can’t shoot like the Clark/Walther 10-22. The CZ is now more accurate than the Ruger American and 77-22 I have though.

I have always liked the feel of the 77-22, when I linked to the 10-22 barrels above I noticed they also have them for the 77-22, might have to order one myself.

I could not afford this gun now. It was a retirement present to myself twenty years ago.

The point being that Anschutz is worth looking at. Used guns might be within your budget.

What's possible when you accurize a Ruger 10-22.

Spats McGee said:

Honestly, I haven't seen a rifle on this page that I wouldn't love to shoot. I've had my 10/22 for about 40 years, and I wouldn't trade it. Maybe I could invest some time and $ and make it a target gun, but it's my plinker, and I guess that's the way I like it. If I'm shooting for small groups, I'm fine with a bolt gun. I'll also be the first to admit that I like having bolt guns that take 10/22 mags. Now, I don't have any numbers that will tell you just how accurate my Ruger American Rimfire is, but I strongly suspect that I'm the limiting factor, not the rifle.

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Spats McGee said:

Those are nice little rifles. I put a scope on mine originally, but after buying the target model (pictured above), I took the scope off. I like my target rifle with a scope, but I like this one with iron sights.

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I once had a Ruger 10-22 and mounted a Williams 5D receiver sight and heavy Shilen barrel on it...that turned it into a Super small game rifle, "able to hit small critters with a single round!" It became a sub-half-inch diameter killer at 50 yards.

Well if you're dead set on $500 and bolt action I would go with an old Winchester 69, 72 or 75. Remington offered some good ones too. But if you can swing it an Anschutz 1415 is a very fine rifle.

500 bucks? I'd be scouring the used racks and classifieds for a CZ 452.