Anyone recall a rimfire rifle witha smooth bore?

[EdwardSE]

What is out there and of these rifles, which ones are the sweetest and which should you pass up?

Thanks,
Ed

 

[41mag]

http://www.savagearms.com/markigsb.htm

No first hand expierience.

 

[Chawbaccer]

I think Marlin still makes a model of their garden gun.

 

[Onmilo]

Winchester Model 36 9mm rimfire shot.

 

[Smoke Rizen]

Lakefield Arms of Canada makes a bolt action 22rf. smoothbore.

 

[FPrice]

Mossberg made their Targo series of smoothbore .22 rifles from about 1938-42. They were designed to shoot .22 shotshells and Mossberg developed their own brand of Targo clay Targets to go with them.

I was in one of the local gun stores about two years back when a friend walked in with one to sell. The owner put him off for a few minutes so I asked to look at it. Not knowing much about them I was not sure what he had and put off giving him the $100 he was asking. Later the dealer took it and sold it a few days later for $300. It was in very good shape and I believe even had the little attachment which mounted on the rifle and threw the clay for you.

 

[deadin]

I've seen any number of old Winchester pump 22's with "smoothbores", but they were shot out, not made that way.
Actually I believe Winchester? made a .22 RF "shotgun" and had even tried to start a sport that shot at miniture clays. I think it was called "Mouskeeto" or something like that. I seem to remember it from Boy Scout camp back in the 1950's.

Dean

 

[macavada]

What are the advantages or what is the purpose of a smoothbore rifle?

 

[deadin]

Same as a shotgun. Shooting .22 shot cartridges through a rifled barrel just causes the shot to be spread all over the place with big "holes" in the pattern. A smooth bore tends to keep it in a tighter pattern, (it still has some spread) thereby making a telling hit more likely.

Dean

 

[Darth Ruger]

Marlin stopped making the Garden Gun a couple of years ago.

...what is the purpose of a smoothbore rifle?

The intended purpose of Marlin's .22 smoothbore Garden Gun, using .22 shotshell cartridges, was around-the-house pest control, i.e., gophers, rats, etc. Hence the name "Garden Gun".

 

[Carl N. Brown]

Two cents

I believe the Mossberg smoothbore was adverised as the Moss-quito
and the barrel accepted a screw-on rifled extension for use as a rifle.

 

[GunGoBoom]

The intended purpose of Marlin's .22 smoothbore Garden Gun, using .22 shotshell cartridges, was around-the-house pest control, i.e., gophers, rats, etc. Hence the name "Garden Gun".

Correct. But it should be noted that said ".22 smoothbore" was chambered in .22 WMR, not .22lr. And yes it was discontinued.

 

[Darth Ruger]

Yup, forgot to clarify that.

 

[Dave R]

Despite umpteen bricks through my 1980's Marlin Model 60, I have not been able to turn it into a smoothbore. There's still plenty of rifling.

 

[rudolf]

What are the advantages or what is the purpose of a smoothbore rifle?

It's cheaper to make one.

Other smoothbores are the 44-Shot in the US and the 6mm and 9mm Fobert rifles in Europe which shot round balls or shot.

 

[deadin]

Despite umpteen bricks through my 1980's Marlin Model 60, I have not been able to turn it into a smoothbore. There's still plenty of rifling.

Dave, I think you need to find a lot of the old corrosive ammo from around 1900

 

[Ohen Cepel]

One can of Morton's salt could always take care of that pesky rifling

Didn't know that Marlin had stopped making their's. That was the only recent one I was aware of being made.

Really a niche gun. I think one might be just as well off buying a rough old user for shot use.