I Am Not Well...

[Gus Chiggins]

Wheel gun. Alfa Proj 2361. .22lr and .22mag. 9 shots with .22lr cylinder. Big heavy and accurate.

 

[hemiram]

My first recent, like in 30 years, .22LR gun is a Henry "big loop" Lever action. Nice little gun. I bought an S&W M&P15-22 pistol that I had to sell to pay bills, but I really liked and want to get the current one that came out recently. I have a Pietta .22LR SA revolver that is a lot of fun to shoot and even messed up cartridges seem to go through it without any drama. It's all steel and a really heavy, so it's very much like shooting a cap gun, even with high velocity ammo. All that really changes is the noise.

 

[joneb]

I find it therapeutic to shoot clays at a 100yds and then make the evidence disappear. A good .22 lr bolt gun with open sights or scoped is my choice for this, a CZ Lux or 452 comes to mind.

 

[skeptical_in_Ohio]

Ok, I'll play - various possibilities of which I've heard/seen.

I figure if you're looking at .22s, it's never a bad idea to find something novel. I'll try to include at least one "novel" and one "regular" in each category. The "regular" ones are generally ones that tend to be more available - they can be as nice or nicer than the unique ones if they're still made.

Semi auto pistols:
Unique - S&W 422 - barrel mounted low in frame - adapters are available for suppressor (which can be used with the open sights owing to barrel placement).
Regular - any of S&W Victory, Ruger Mark 2, Browning Buckmark, or if you don't want a target pistol, Ruger SR 22 or Glock 44.

Revolvers:
Unique - H&R 922 - break-open revolver (novelty appeal), reasonably accurate, or S&W 17 if you want something nice. There's a lot of decent H&R out there.
Regular - Ruger Single 10 (or Single 6), maybe Ruger LCR 22?

Semi auto rifles:
Unique - Savage/Stevens/Springfield 6A/WesternField 59A. It has gills on the receiver, and if you hold the trigger after firing it will pause the action (you can literally glance into the chamber and see the round cycling in progress). Remington 552 Speedmaster - semi auto that shoots (and cycles) 22 Long, Short and Long Rifle.
Browning SA-22 - take down, and rounds drop out the bottom.
Regular - Marlin 60, Ruger 10/22, others.

Bolt action rifles:
Unique - Izamash Biathlon, or any Anschutz with a Fortner bolt. Volquartsen makes a toggle action receiver for the 10/22 family.
Regular - Savage Mark 2, CZ 455 (or 452 if you can find them) Marlin 81DL tube fed (81s are old, but can be found).

Lever-action rifles:
Unique - find an old Marlin 39a.
Regular - Henry makes a nice lever-action, Browning BL-22 is a bit nicer.

Pump action rifles (sort of unique just by category):
High Standard Sport King or Winchester 270. Henry still makes one (don't know the model)

Breakdown (again sort of unique by category):
Ruger 10/22, Marlin Papoose, Henry AR-7 survival rifle. Ruger and Henry still made.

Hope this helps. Have a great day.

 

[webrx]

Ruger RPR in 22 or 22 mag. Tons of fun for $400. I bought the 22 mag. Bolt actions.

I also just got a savage a22 in 22lr but have not shot it yet.

 

[John Joseph]

A quality .22 target pistol can supply loads of fun---S&W Model 41 or Ruger MK with Bull barrel
An accurate.22 bolt action rifle can give you successful, memorable days afield---CZ, classic Winchester etc...
A semi-auto rifle or revolver just seem so darned handy so there's that

 

[GHinNH]

Among others on the too long list of "never should have sold it"... Falling block is supremely accurate, keeps you busy and makes ammo last longer that a few mags worth. I used to like nothing more than sitting on my back porch, poking holes in a few "soda" cans in my back yard after work.

 

[Spats McGee]

Thanks, guys, for the valuable input. I'll eventually add a number of your suggestions to my collection but I think I'll start with a single action revolver. It checks several boxes on my list, will be convenient to transport, and it's a favorite choice for my wife.
It will have to wait until after back surgery. Just gives me time to whittle down choices... but that's another discussion thread!

I'm sure I'm not alone in wishing you a speedy recovery from the surgery!

It looks like you've made your decision, and I hope that you find a great SA revolver to add to your collection. That said, I do think that every shooter needs at least one .22 in the stable. I'm going to chime in on something that @Odd Job said.

My vote is a .22 rifle with a threaded barrel so you can attach a suppressor. With the right ammo, you will not be disappointed!

I had given that a passing thought!

I bought a suppressor a couple of years ago and it was worth every penny and every minute of waiting. It's hard to go wrong with a 10/22. I've had mine for about 40 years now, and it's always eaten everything I've tried to feed it. Now, I'll grant you that its accuracy can best be described as MOSC (Minute of Soup Can), but I've gotten many hours of plinking fun out of it. It's the bottom one in this picture:

As you can see, both rifles are threaded for a suppressor. The top one is my first Ruger American Rimfire. Polymer stocked, 22" barrel. One reason I chose it is because it takes 10/22 mags. It's a nice rifle and I look forward to shooting it more. With that said, I really wanted a target rifle, so I upgraded to a Ruger American Rimfire, Target model, shown below:

Note that the RAT also takes 10/22 magazines. So all of those mags I picked up over the years . . . now fit in 3 different rifles. So I have 3 fairly different rifles, which all share magazines, and which all share a suppressor. And they share the suppressor with my 22/45 Lite, too.

I guess the other thing to consider about the 10/22 is aftermarket. I shot mine bone stock for about 35 years. Then I had a trigger job done. Then I had the barrel threaded. And so I started down the rabbit hole of customization. Here she is now:

If you got a 10/22, there are a ton of different ways to trick it out, and lots of different manufacturers. If there's a part you don't like, swap it out.

ETA: There's one other potential downside to a 10/22. For many years, my 10/22 was the only .22 rifle I had. Didn't see a need for any others. A couple of years ago, I got my RAR and started shooting other, full-sized .22 rifles. Now my 10/22 feels a little like a youth rifle.

 

[TarDevil]

It's hard to go wrong with a 10/22.

I loved my 10/22, but I'm sure it's long gone considering the life he currently leads. You repeatedly hit one important note; those magazines are widely used across Ruger's .22 platforms. And I doubt any .22 rifle enjoys the aftermarket plethora of accessories and mods. It is a winner.
I'm still pretty sure I'll get the SA revolver first for reasons I already mentioned, but the more you guys speak of that lovely 10/22 the more my fond memories speak to me.
I've no experience with silencers, so that's another learning chapter.

Then again, a. SA revolver really needs a lever gun, doesn't it??

One at a time!

 

[Spats McGee]

I'm not knocking your choice of revolver, @TarDevil . Not one bit. And I kind of agree that an SA revolver needs a levergun companion. I had my eye on a Marlin 39A at the gun show last weekend. Unfortunately, the $700 price tag was more than I could spend that day. The Henry rifles I looked at looked good, too.

 

[Mn Fats]

Didnt read through this. But I say wheelgun. In a time when ammo disappears and reappears due to who is the current President, theres nothing like a Revolver to make a shooter take his/her time with a box of ammo. Or a bolt rifle.

 

[GunnyUSMC]

I didn’t vote because there were not enough choices and a all of the above box.
I have over 60 different 22 cal Rimfire firearms ranging in price from $Free.99 to I paid to much.
I just love 22s.