My new .22. Should I get semi-auto or lever action? And which one?

[epijunkie67]

I've got a pretty decent collection of long arms but it struck me the other day that I'm missing the most basic foundation weapon of all. A good quality .22 rifle. This must be corrected! Soon!

I had a nice little polymer knock around .22 but I gave that to a family member recently as a present. The only other .22s I have are a beat to pieces single shot bolt I don't really care for and a Henry .22 mag lever that I love. What I'm trying to decide on now is a nice .22LR. No single shots and I've never been a big fan of bolts.

The obvious starting point would be the Marlin mod 60 and 39a. I could also get another Henry as a companion to the magnum I already have. I haven't looked at anything with a box mag in this caliber yet so I don't know about those yet.

Things I want;
.22LR. Ability to handle .22 short nice but not required.
At least 8 round capacity.
Easy to reload.
Wood stocked.
Light.
Accurate.
Reasonably priced. (I'm not spending $1000 on a .22lr)

After that I'm open to suggestions.

 

[Auburn1992]

Ruger 10/22?

 

[goon]

I'd second the 10/22.
I just bought one. Had to put a volquehartsen extractor in it to get it reliable but it's still quickly becoming one of my favorites.
To be fair, I'm sure Ruger would have fixed it - I just didn't want to wait two weeks.

Nothing against the Marlin 60 - a cousin had one and loved it. It did shoot very well. I prefer the 10/22 because of the detachable mags. If the mag gets damaged, you just get a new one and the problem is fixed. The marlin mechanism will have to be a little more complicated because of its tube mag.

The top choice would be the CZ-452 but you already said no bolts. I do feel kind of sorry for you for ruling this rifle out though.

I've thought about getting a Marlin for awhile but right now I can't justify the money. But it's on my wish list.

Last, maybe a Taurus/Rossi M-62? My dad has one that is a really neat little pump action. Breaks into two peices with the turn of a screw.

 

[ArmedBear]

Marlin 39A

After you've forgotten about the hit to your pocketbook, you'll still be loving the rifle.

The Remington pump guns are neat, too.

Those will both shoot shorts.

I like my 60, too, as a basic semiauto. Accurate, reliable, with a stock that still gives a cheek weld with a scope (unlike the 10/22 I sold).

 

[sfmittels]

Since you don't like bolt guns (the CZ 452 is incredible!), I would suggest a good ol' Browning Semi-Auto 22. It's the last gun designed by John Browning, yet it's still manufactured. You can get various grades with fancy wood, etc, depending on your wallet. And there are some great buys in the used gun market. I picked up a beautiful Belgian-made Browning last year through GunBroker for about $400. You can't find a gun that's as "dainty" as a Browning. It tube loads through the buttstock. On the outside chance you're left-handed, it's the only semi-auto .22 that won't blow gas back into your right eye because it's bottom ejection. Plus, the barrel is attached to the receiver by interrupted threads locked in place by a slide. That means you can break it down into two pieces really quick, then reassemble without loss of zero. Happy shopping!

 

[FlyinBryan]

ruger 1022.

you may want to customize it someday.

check available aftermarket support for the 1022 vs anything else before you buy.

my 1022 shoots about an inch at 50 yrds right out of the box, so i bought my son one for christmas, and his was just as good.

well spent 150 bones.

 

[rangerruck]

if you can find a cz semi around, they are not made any more, or if you can find a BRNO, get that; also the T/c and kimber are both excellent, with the t/c being supremely good, and not too high priced. If you are looking to stay budget, go with marlin or Savage. I do not reccommend a ruger 10.22 , if you are not good with tools, and not confident about replacing parts, as you have a 50% chance of getting one out of the box, that is not reliable, and not accurate. Then you will need tools, and about 100 bucks in aftermarket parts to make it both reliable and accurate.

 

[rangerruck]

Oh , wait a minute, Dudes... we all forgot the best one here!!!! It's been around for about 50 years now, and is the best overall. The remmy speedmaster. you can find them used for about 150 bucks, in okay condition. a brand new one will run you 300 plus, and a BDL grade will be 400. These are fantastcally reliable, beautiful, lifetime type guns you will be proud to hand down someday. The best thing is, they have a unique floating chamber design, and it will fire short, long, and long rifles, and will do so interchangeably, how cool is that??? I have one, and normally a semi auto has trouble with cb or low velocity rounds, or the biggest prob can come from the humongous 60 grain Aguila sniper subs. Most semi's will not feed or eject them very well, and if they do, they are not accurate with them, and on paper at 50 yards you will see them tumbling.
For some reason, I don't know how the twist rate in these are, But not only are they 100% reliable in mine, but they are accurately fired, with no tumbling.
This is the best overall semi to get, period.

 

[lvcat2004]

can't go wrong with a 10/22

Cheap base gun with a LOTS of aftermarket goodies if you're into that.

 

[CajunBass]

How much do you want to spend? It's pretty hard to beat a Ruger 10/22 or a Marlin 60 on the low end of the price range. I've got a Remington 597 also in that price range that works fine and shoots as well or better than the others.

Personally I like the 10/22, but I prefer the delux sporter version with the walnut stock or the Wally-World Special. I just think they look better than the standard 10/22. The standard shoots just fine. In spite of what you'll read on the internet, you do NOT have to spend a bunch of money to get a 10/22 to shoot. You CAN spend a lot of money to make it shoot a lot better, but you don't have to. They do just fine for most users right out of the box.

The Remington Speedmaster, Browning, or Thompson Center semi's all should be good choices for a little more money.

For a lever, it's hard to beat a Marlin 39a (or the AS).

 

[alaskanativeson]

My sister-in-law loves the Browning BL-22 I gave her as a wedding present. It's a great looking, great shooting little gun, quick to point, short lever throw, butter smooth action.

By the way, her husband (my wife's little brother) got a Randall model 3 knife with a 6 inch carbon blade and a stag handle. Both are much better wedding gifts than a toaster oven.

 

[DDG89]

I have owned a Marlin 39 and that gun shoots anything well. Capable of shooting shorts, long and lr. I only fired lr out of mine it was damn accurate. Its not a cheap gun and is price accordingly.

I also own a 10/22 that after it was broken in has become very reliable and has good accuracy.

I'm sure the browning lever gun and the Henry are good guns but I don't have any experience with them.

 

[22-rimfire]

In lever action, I have experience with the Marlin 39A and Browning BL-22. Both excellent rifles and you won't be unhappy with either.

With semi-autos, I would suggest you look at the Thompson Center R-55. Very accurate rifle normally out of the box and you can get 5 and 10-round mags for it. You can get either the Classic with the walnut stock (blued finish) or the one with the heavy barrel, stainless, and composite stock. For looks I like the Classic and it would certainly be a more flexible rifle for toting out in the woods or at the range. These are full sized rifles. Some are extremely accurate for a 22LR and are commonly used for match shooting in the sporter class.

I'm not a Ruger 10/22 fan. If you lean toward the Ruger 10/22, they have their deluxe version with the walnut stock. I have one. The Marlin Model 60 is a very good choice for an inexpensive semi-auto that shoots pretty good typically.

Up the price a bit and look for a Weatherby Mark XXII semi-auto (not the bolt that is currently offered although it is most excellent) and you have one of the finest 22 rifles ever made at a price tag of $500-$700 typically. Available in tubular or detachable box magazine versions. I prefer the tubular myself but they aren't as pretty.

 

[CB900F]

Epijunkie67;

Any .22 will be picky about the ammo it's fed. Do the requisite testing of brands & variants within the brand & you should find something your new gun will like. And that most certainly applies to the 10/22. Many of them are capable of excellent accuracy as a stock gun if you do the range work.

However, a bargain box of 550 gloppy over-lubed "specials" can cause more familiarity with the cleaning equipment than you want to have. Buy a box of 50 or 100 of a lot of stuff & test it all. Guns with consecutive serial numbers will have different tastes in ammo.

Also, poke around through pawn shops, the classifieds in the local "Shopper papers" & the used rack of non-mass-marketer gun shops. It's there that you can find good deals on older .22's that are classics, such as the previously mentioned model 39, speedmaster, BRNO's (If you find a #1, or #5 and don't buy it may yer trigger finger rot & fall off), or a 9422.

900F

 

[22-rimfire]

Yes, definitely try different brands of ammo after you get your rifle. Don't assume that shooting something like Remington Thunderbolts and the resultant groups are typical of other ammo brands or types. Standard velocity ammo tends to shoot more consistantly.

The Winchester 9422 is a good one too. Forgot about that one. My brother has one and he has always liked it.

 

[okiewita40]

While a lot of people will say get a ruger 10/22 I will say you are on track thinking of the Marlin 60.

There are pros and cons to each rifle but after owning each one this is my thoughts on them.

The marlin 60 will be more accurate out the box. More sized for an adult. And the tube magazine is a good design in my opinion. The draw back to a marlin 60 is there are not nearly the after market parts. And the tube mag. can be a bit slower to reload by hand.

The Ruger 10/22 is a smaller rifle with decent accuracy. a bit easier to handle in brush. Tons of after market support. And has a detacable magazine.

The drawback to the 10/22 is that if you want target accuracy then you'll pay for it.

While you will get what you want to get The marlin is easier to take out of the box and be happy with from start to finish. The 10/22 is a tinkerers dream. and comes in a lot more flavors than the marlin.

 

[Shear_stress]

I second (or third??) the Marlin 39. Serious pride of ownership there. Still, for semi-autos you can't go wrong with a Ruger 10/22 or Marlin 60.

 

[citizen]

.....only thing I can suggest is....GET BOTH! Seriously. A great switch-off.

 

[Furncliff]

I love .22's

Browning BL22 lever, especially if you are small stature, the one I gave my wife is very accurate.

Marlin 39, just can't go wrong here.

Marlin 60, this might be the fun-nest gun I own, I can tell because the 15 round tube magazine goes empty so fast . About speed of loading; this was the first tube fed I owned and at first it was a bit clumsy to load, but after a bit you work out a method and a 15 round load takes me ~ 15-20 sec. working from a bench or other rest( I have arthritis in my hands - I'm sure you'll be faster). To reload in the field... tube magazine loaders are available, basically a straw shaped thingy you pre-load and carry with you. Reload time is now like 7 sec..

Let us know what you get. No-pics.didn't happen

 

[Savage Shooter]

Marlin 60 or winchester 9422 have both and love them to death.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

Since the Winchester 9422 isn't made anymore (and no, you can't have mine. I already gave it to my daughter), I'd say go with the Marlin. Dollar for dollar, it's the best buy in a lever gun on the market today.

 

[Seafarer12]

I say go with a lever action or a pump. They will cycle anything you feed it. My 10/22 tends to be picky about what it likes to eat. My Remington 572 pump is one of my favorite guns.