.22 Caliber rifle

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JamesHarrison1212

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Hi, I am a newby to guns and I am wanting to get a good .22 calibre rifle. I am most likely going to put a scope on it as well. I would like an accurate, durable, reliable gun.
The purpose of the gun is going to be for target practice, small game, and coyote hunting.
I am trying to decide between bolt and semi-auto rifle.
I have been looking at the CZ 452 I think this is a very good gun, everyone keeps telling me to get the ruger 10/22 but feel it is not that great a gun until you do mods to this gun. I would like a gun that is going to be great right out of the box.
I would really appreciate getting an opinon on what to get I feel my top price would be about $700 with a scope. So about $550 to $600 tops for the gun.
 
Im not sure why you think the 10/22 is "not that great a gun until you do mods"

all 3 of mine have been great. they are all bone stock, save for the stocks, which were changed to meet the desired use, but functionally, they are bone stock. Sure, they are no anschutz olympic small bore accurate, but for a $200 rifle, they dont need to be. THere is a reason they are the number 1 selling 22 rifle of all time. They are perfectly capable of doing everything they were deigned to do, which is everything that you listed.

I use mine for hog hunting, Appeseeds (which it is every bit accurate enough to score rifleman, bone stock), and Steel Challenge Rimfire rifle division.

If you dont want a 10/22 because there are other rifles you like better, then more power to you

but to discredit the rifle due to others poor opinions of it, that they try to put unrealistic expectations upon for a economical mass produced rifle, just isnt fair to the rifle.

as for a choice in your price range, perhaps try to find a nice bolt action Savage heavy barrel rifle, or a Ruger M77/22, or a CZ of some sort, with a quality Adjustable Objective scope.

Or with that kind of budget, you really could do a custom 10/22 that you could build to whatever configuration you so desire
 
I'd second pikid's response. A 10/22 is a great all around gun, its' weak point is a bad trigger that can be fixed for under $100. As far as bolts go if you can find a CZ452 Varmint, it has a medium weight bbl and can shoot...see 1st quarter and this quarter rim fire challenge thread. My other personal choice would be a Ruger 77/22 or 77/22 mag.
 
A used Marlin M60 with Williams Firesights is my favorite recommendation because they're just so handy and fun.

$100 for the rifle, $30 for the sights, spend $12 for a Spee-D-Loader, and the rest on ammo.

my $.02, I'm glad to be wrong and probably am.
 
I have had a dozen 10-22s and still have two, one the standard carbine and the other the target version with the hammer forged barrel. Volquartzen hammers, accurizing block and stock bolts, good scopes. Target model does ragged holes at fifty yards for a magazine full. It leaves me wanting at the small bore bench rest matches where the x ring is about the size of the end of a coffee stirrer. A 455 CZ varmint has replaced it for those matches. All good guns but as a buddy who has mentored me in the small bore sports said, "shooting groups ain't like shooting them bullseyes".
 
For a first rifle, you can't go wrong with a 10/22. I don't know where you have heard that they are bad guns, but you have been misinformed. That said, CZ makes fine rifles, from .22 on up.

For target practice and small game, the .22 Long Rifle is great, but I would not recommend it for coyote hunting. It is not common to be able to get a coyote within 50 yards, and I wouldn't take a shot further than that because the kill zone on a coyote's head is small, and the critters don't stand still for long. I don't trust the .22 LR for shots at the chest vitals of an animal that size.

Sent from my HTC One X
 
the stock 10/22 i owned wouldn't do anything that a $125 marlin wouldn't do. unless you want to do a bunch of customizing, then i don't see a reason to spend the extra money for the ruger.

out of the box, neither the ruger nor the marlins will hold a candle to my CZ 455 American. just my experience.
 
I love my 10/22, only mods I have are tech sights and sling swivels. AKA Appleseed Liberty Rifle.
 
I've got a couple of .22lr rifles.

The Mossberg 702 is really light and fairly compact. Makes for a great ranch type rifle for small varmints and scaring off coyotes.

The Savage semi auto rifle I have is actually accurate enough to mount a scope on but I haven't because it works just fine with basic iron sights.
 
The CZ is a bolt action; the Ruger is a 10-round semi-automatic, making it the perfect Appleseed machine. The 10/22 responds extremely well to modifications, including a trigger job, chamber, bedding, and barrel work; perhaps that's where it got the reputation of "needing" this work. The aftermarket parts availability for the 10/22 has become a cottage industry in its own right, so if you like tinkering, the 10/22 is right for you. But it's fine out of the box, too.

The CZ needs nothing, with the possible exception of an easy-to-install spacer to take up trigger creep. It's handsome to boot, especially in the full-stock version. If accuracy is what you're after, I'd opt for the CZ.
 
You won't go wrong with the CZ 452, accurate great target rifle. In my opinion well worth the higher price over similar rifles.

The Ruger 10/22 is a good rifle and a good rifle right out of the box. Taught my son to shoot with one and now the grandson is learning on that same 10/22. Right out of the box.

I also like the older Remington bolt action 22 rifles. A rifle like the Model 511 can be had pretty reasonable at a gun show or online. They are old but very durable and accurate. I have several of the old 500 series 22 rifles and love them all to no end.

As to the 22 LR and the coyote? My thinking runs with allaroundhunter:

For target practice and small game, the .22 Long Rifle is great, but I would not recommend it for coyote hunting. It is not common to be able to get a coyote within 50 yards, and I wouldn't take a shot further than that because the kill zone on a coyote's head is small, and the critters don't stand still for long. I don't trust the .22 LR for shots at the chest vitals of an animal that size.
Click to expand...

Not saying a 22 LR won't kill a coyote because it will under the right conditions. I would just prefer another caliber like the 17 HMR.

Just My Take
Ron
 
I've had two 10/22's and now have a CZ. The Rugers are quite suited to what they are made to be. Dependable and relatively accurate.

Interesting to note with the previous replies......as soon as we start talking superb accuracy different modifications start popping up. Guys say "well, a 10/22 with a new trigger, new stock, and new barrel is really good."

Yeah, and it's no longer a 10/22. You just spent $700 to make a $300 rifle shoot well

My CZ 4453 Varminter with the single set trigger shoots measured .2's at 50 yards with Wolf Match ammo. It has a very high end 4x14x40 scope which helps a lot.

If you want something that's adequate and dependable, get a Ruger. If you want really good accuracy I'd get the CZ.
 
I'd like to try the CZ one day but, with the ammo situation the way it is, that's not gonna happen.
I've had my 1022 since 1986, and have nothing but good to say of it. I scoped it later that year with a Bushnell 3x7 rimfire scope that seems to work just fine. The rifle (standard carbine model) was fitted with the Tapco Intrafuse AR-type stock in 2011, with their M4-style buttstock. It retains the scope, and is also set up with Ruger's BX-25 magazine and a sling. I had planned to attend an Appleseed event sometime this year, which would be my first, but the ammunition situation may well put a damper on those plans.
But, I have no doubt it would serve me well at such an event.
 
unless you got lots of bucks you want to spend....the Ruger 10/22 gets the job done. if you got the money spend it on fancy stuff. I stay with a proven product and as far as I am concerned, the .22 is a .22. still got a 60 year old "Sears and Roebuck" single shot (made by Marlin) that will outshoot any fancy rifle.
 
I have my doubts about "outshoot any fancy rifle".... but it is possible. I dislike single shot 22 rifles.

Choosing a rifle.... The CZ 452/453/455 are good choices as are the different versions of the CZ bolt action rifle that are available. They typically shoot real good.

My favorite 22 rifle is a Remington 541-S. It is not the most accurate 22 rifle I own, but it will hold its own with most CZ's. Basically if you can shoot 1/2" groups at 50 yds, that is the mark of an accurate sporter 22 rifle. You can buy better and often they do shoot a little better when you find the right ammo/gun combination.

A bolt action 22 rifle is a good choice for small game but a poor choice for coyotes. When I say "small game", I mean rabbits and squirrels that are "sitting", not running.

I really like the Ruger 10/22 for small game hunting, especially rabbits and I can shoot them on the jump often. Lots of fun. The thing about Ruger 10/22's is that they typically are squirrel accurate, not particularly highly accurate out of the box. That is okay, but you need to know what you are buying. They are typically 1" group kind of accurate out of the box.

The Marlin M60 is a good choice also and they typically are more accurate than the Ruger out of the box.

If I were planning to hunt coyotes with a rimfire, I'd choose a 22 WMR. Better range and more knock down potential. But not a good choice for plinking.

The semi-auto 22 that was both accurate and semi-auto was the Thompson Center R55. They had problems with their match chamber chipping and most have been sent back to TC. TC does not sell them anymore. But you could expect 1/2" or slightly better at 50 yds with them. I get 0.3" kind of 5-shot groups with standard velocity ammo with mine.

The Weatherby Mark XXII semi-auto is another semi-auto that was very accurate and long discontinued (since around 1990). Weatherby came out with a bolt action Mark XXII rifle a few years ago with the barrel and action made by Anshutz with a fancy Weatherby stock. They were typically very accurate. But have been discontinued. The high end 22 rifles is a specialized market. Not everyone will shell out $900 for a 22 rifle.

The current Remington 547 is a great rifle if you have around $1000 to spend on a 22 rifle. It has a custom barrel and match chamber.

For a more economy priced but accurate 22 rifle, consider the Savage Mark II (bolt action). They typically shoot as well as the CZ's. With most of the CZ models you get a walnut stock which I prefer. I have a Mark II with a walnut stock; that particular version has been discontinued. (Cost more.)

If you want an out of the box accurate semi-auto 22 (10/22), I would suggest you look at something made by Magnum Research.

It is hard to get everything in a semi-auto rifle but the TC and Weatherby deliverered on accuracy.
 
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You cannot go wrong with the CZ 452, 453 or 455 rifles, they are by far the best bang for the buck and the integrated dovetail in the top of the receiver makes it easy to securely mount a scope. If you go with one of the 452 models like the special or the full stock you will also get a very good set of open iron sights. I own many .22 rifles from the 10/22 to an Anschutz 54 Heavy Barrel match model. The CZ will shoot with any similar barrel weight rifles. The 10/22 is a great rifle, but you have to put $400 into a barrel, trigger, and stock to make it shoot as good as a CZ does out of the box. I know beacuse I own 4 10/22s all built into different configurations, one mostly stock, and 3 cz rifles all stock except for the trigger spring which I modded myself. I shoot .22 rifle every week and in some club competitions. The 10/22 is a fun rifle to shoot as well so maybe you need one of each, a CZ and a 10/22. For Coyote Hunting you may want to consider a CZ .17 HMR rifle, it will also shoot very well in 100 yard target competitions where it will outshoot a .22 magnum.
 
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My Savage Mark II ($169.00), with Leupold scope ($250ish) will place 10 shots touching at 25 yards, no problem at all. It also groups 10 shots into 2.5" at 100 yards, same set-up. I'm talking hunting ammo, not target ammo. 8^)

I would never hunt coyote with it, regardless of accuracy. It has insufficient power.

Geno
 
pikid89 said:
Im not sure why you think the 10/22 is "not that great a gun until you do mods"
Click to expand...

Because it has a heavy trigger and a sloppy chamber stock.

I know it's fairly easy to correct these things (I have 5 custom 10/22s), but the OP clearly states "I would like a gun that is going to be great right out of the box.".

That being the case, there are better choices than a 10/22.
 
CZ or Savage all the way. If you want to plink at cans the 10/22 is perfect but if you want to hit empty 9mm cases at 50 yards go with a bolt and a nice scope. Cans are huge unless you want to hit them at 200 yards :evil:

HB
 
In a .22 rifle my choices would be a CZ 452 or 455 in a bolt action, a Ruger 10/22 in a semi-auto.
 
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