I'm a rookie but i'm one hell of a shot

[lightweight wallet123]

Alright im planning on joining a shooting club where i live but am in desperate need of a firearm. im looking for open, peep, or iron sights on a mag. fed, bolt action .22Lr. being a shooting club, accuracy is key and i've been looking for an extremely accurate one under $500. i'm only interested in american or canadian made. 39.5 inches and up with 1 in 16 twist on the barrel. i've narrowed my choices down to 2. a Savage mark ii FVT with peep sights (http://www.savagearms.com/firearms/models/) and any of these quality marlins with the above description (http://marlinfirearms.com/Firearms/B...ion22/980S.asp.) any suggestions?.P.S. I also have a 1914 savage model 25 pump action 22 but i don't think it'd be any good for target shooting but if you think so please do tell. and other model suggestions are okay too. SOS please help me!

 

[Armedleprechaun]

I know It's not American made But the CZ 452 Trainers are absolutely excellent! I own the 452 Trainer and it has great iron sights. The bolt is very smooth and it is extremely accurate. But out of the two you chose I would go with the Savage. I love the feel of the accutrigger, Plus it's adjustable.You just can't beat the CZ though IMO. I hope this helps, happy shooting!

Evan

 

[Sebastian the Ibis]

If you are young enough, I think the CMP has those savages for half price new. You might try and get one that way.

 

[benzy2]

Not sure why you would limit it to USA made rifles. Many of the better rimfire rifles aren't made in the USA. That said I would look for an older Winchester 52. About the most American made rifle for the money you are looking to spend. If you ignore the country of origin you could look at used Anschutz rifles, some of the old Walther rifles can be had around that price now and then, some of the Suhl 150's can be found around that price. If you can get a Remington 40x jump on it. The CMP Kimber rifles can be had around there. Some of the older mossberg rifles the CMP sells were great shooters as well.

Today, new, under $500, one of the best buys is the CZ line. Not made here, but made of great quality and most all shoot outstanding. I have an FVT and its a good gun but the sights aren't match grade and the stock is pretty flimsy. Its a decent entry rifle, but if you can swing it to buy a used target rifle listed above you will be far ahead of any current run Savage.

 

[Grey Morel]

The Savage MKII FVT is a phenomenal gun.

The Savage, from the factory, is easily capable of 1" groups @ 50 yards in MY hands. With a capable user and match ammo I suspect it could do better.

For what its worth, I did not find the stock to be flimsy at all. I also found the sights to be easy to adjust and hold zero utterly reliable. "Match grade" is more a function of the user than the gear. The Savage FVT will out shoot probably 95% of shooters.

Long story short, if a Savage FVT is holding you back, then you need to stop plinking and get into competitive shooting, because you could be wining some good money.

 

[benzy2]

You never shot the rifle prone from a sling have you? That stock bends a ton and POI is all over the place. If you shoot off a front rest its a different story, but with any sling pressure you instantly want a new stock. The rear site is imprecise. Mine has a bit more horizontal play than I would like and the clicks aren't as solid or audible as I would like. It shoots well enough, but in the $500 market, if you consider used rifles, it doesn't stand up to the competition. I still shoot and enjoy my FVT, but if I were to spend $500 there are multiple better options out there with better stocks and better sights for a guy looking for the most accurate rifle for the money.

 

[DasFriek]

I can shoot consistent 3 shot groups at 50 yards and keep all three shots inside a 3/4" paster, Most shots if measured would be 1/2" and less.
Ammo-
CCI Blazers i size give 50% chance of 1/2" group
Aguila Match Rifle 75% chance of 1/2" group
RWS Match Rifle 85% chance of 1/2"
Wolf Match Extra 90% chance of 1/2" and 40% chance of one hole or all touching.

This is done with a $400 CZ Ultra Lux and 28" barrel with only trigger mods done to it.
I consider myself an ok shooter, Its the gun and ammo that makes it look easy tho.
Id suggest the shorter barreled CZ's tho as if i dont have my gun just right in the front rest the barrel likes to whip from being so long.

Anyhow if you HAVE to have American i agree with a Savage but id get the MKII BV or MKII BTV and get the wood stocks and varmint barrels and the BV is under $300 and the BTV is normally $329.

I owned a 93BTV17 in .17hmr which i traded in on my CZ and i dont regret it one bit.
But the Savage is a well made gun and the trigger is easily modded for lite,smooth and crisp pulls.
But ill be honest my CZ can out shoot that .17hmr at the range and with ammo at 1/4 the cost. Thats why i traded it was ammo selection sucked for .17hmr and its expensive as heck, But its a hunting gun more than a bench gun imo.

Invest in a good benchrest also, Dont cheap out like i did and regret it and end up having to buy a new setup and waste the money i spent on my first crappy setup.

 

[rangerruck]

i agree with the cz or the savage; now then, If you can find a older marlin 25 or better yet, a 2000 or a 880sq, then you would really have something, also an older remington winchester, mossberg, or H/R will do the trick as well.
but for new, look at cz or savage.

 

[goon]

I agree with the CZ. Mine is an incredibly accurate rifle. I had it scoped at one point and my practice was to shoot one hole in a target, then use that hole as the target. More often that not my group would just be an enlongated hole.
My only regret is that I couldn't afford two of them.

 

[sta500rdr]

I have an old winchester model 52, with a stainless barrel. I found out that it is a pretty rare bird. But it shoots like a dream. It weighs a ton, but you can shoot a respectable pattern at 200 yds with decent standard velocity ammunition, and the right weather. If you can pick one of these up (not necessarily with a stainless bbl), I would do it in a heartbeat. If I could find one, I would consider picking up another one.

 

[Smith357]

Remington 513T Matchmaster

 

[Jolly Green]

Along with a majority of the advice, get a CZ. If you are interested in iron sights only, look at the 452 Ultra Lux model, Its pretty long (28.6 barrel). This scrubs a little velocity off your bullet (~30 fps) compared to the 24 inch lux. However, the barrel length makes iron sights a breeze. If your going for a scope, get the 455 AMERICAN. Note: The 452 american w/ 16 inch barrel was discontinued this year for the 455 American w/ ~20 inch barrel.

You limit yourself by sticking to USA/CA only rifles. Besides, most USA/CA firearms manufacturers use forign parts for assembly.
Be proud of your ability, but don't let it get to your head.

Best Regards.



What the CZ 452 Ultra Lux is capable of:

You can get the Ultra Lux for a little les than $400. The Lux is more towards $500.

 

[Grey Morel]

You never shot the rifle prone from a sling have you? That stock bends a ton and POI is all over the place.

Yes. Iv done the Appleseed thing; and I use a sling as a shooting aid on all my rifles. I never had a problem with the FVT stock... But then again, I don't crank on my sling hard enough to warp the stock either - I generally use hasty sling, adjusted just right so its nice and snug, but not uncomfortable; Ive shot it from the bench a few times, but most of my trigger time with the FVT was in the field taking game; a task the FVT excels at (no scope required).

 

[scythefwd]

Try a mossberg 44. Bed the action and you have a very accurate American made rifle for under 300. Frequently you can get them with lyman or mossberg aperture sights on them. Every once in a while, you can get a set of redfield olympics on them for that price.

 

[junkman_01]

Canadians can't purchase from the CMP. It's only for American citizens.