New 22 for my son

[workingman]

Howdy folks,
My 15 yr. old son is wanting a 22 rifle for Christmas. Don't usually spend this much on one present, but I am thinkiing I might this year. I am leaning towards a Ruger 10-22. I hear mostly good things about them. I have a nearly 30 yr old glenfield that has been great. I thought about one of those.
Are the new ones any good? Anyways if someone knows of something better close to the same price range let me know.
Thanks.

 

[ECVMatt]

I love both those rifle. Marlin is having some problems right now with making quality rifles. I am not sure if it extends to the rimfire lines. The 10/22 is pretty much bullet proof and fun to shoot. You can also build the rifle into different configurations at a later time. I know that I have fun with my son looking through catalogs and thinking about what we want to add next. It extends the time I get to spend with my son and teaches him very basic gunsmithing skills to boot.

 

[chad1043]

Don't forget about Savage. They are producing very accurate rimfires. I have an older Marlin 981T, I decided on a Savage 22Mag... You are gonna get a lot of advice on this one..

 

[Strykervet]

I grew up on a 10/22, had one since I was 8 or 9. I still have one, stainless with a green/grey laminated stock, that I got it in the 90's. Has to be the range favorite of everyone I take shooting. I can't think of a better .22, and I'm not a fan of Ruger (but I do like their rimfires). They aren't all that expensive either.

 

[proven]

my fav is the (older) marlin 39a. but they're pricey and harder to procure. for an off the shelf .22 the ruger 10/22 is hard to beat. there are other good rifles to be had, but the ruger offers quite a bit of bang for your buck. my next .22 purchase may very well be a 10/22. the savages are nice too, bu the one i had with the synthetic stock, i didn't care.

 

[krankieone]

I got my son norenco JW-15 (bruno copy) it is very accurate and very reasonably priced .He decieded cans were too easy to hit at 70 yards and now uses 12g hulls

 

[lowerunit411]

i bought grandkids marlin 795s...after the rebate...99 bucks...look at the reviews..no quality issues with these and they are tough little guns that are great learning tools

 

[Hezmana957]

You can not go wrong with the Ruger
10/22.

 

[frankenstein406]

795 or 60. Also like older mossbergs.

 

[snakeman]

10/22 or savage 22 or henry. My henry is my favorite but my 10/22 is second. I too have a glenfield but haven't shot it much. A buddy of mine has a savage and its a tackdriver so you really can't go wrong with most of them. A remmy 597 would be good too.

 

[husker]

I bought my lil girl a Henry lever action 22 youth. I love shooting it as much as she does.

 

[almherdfan]

10/22 is great--fun out-of-the-box, but so many options down the road.

 

[K-Rod]

Marlin model 60 was my first. I picked up a really nice Winchester model 190 from a gun show for 80 bucks.

Depending on how much you want to spend but at 15yrs old there's still the "Cool" factor. There's a lot of nice AR .22 platforms out there. S&W, Colt, Mossburg, Sig. They are pricey $400-$450. Though as stated already, the 10/22 has a lot of aftermarket "Cool" feature add-ons you can get for it as well.

 

[az_imuth]

I agree that either the Henry or Ruger would be a great choice. Couldn't go wrong with either one of them.

 

[sharps59]

go w/the henry 22, got my son the golden boy when he was 12 he is now 22. we both love it then and now. Its still hard to get it out of his hands! I still like my winchester 22 also that one is the lever action mag. So I do not shoot it tthat much. Hernys just more fun.

 

[mshootnit]

10/22's are great as long as you get an older one. I have seen pretty rough actions and triggers lately.

 

[holdencm9]

Get the 10/22. You won't regret it. He will enjoy it for years to come.

I got my 10/22 when I was 10 years old. Learned on it, enjoyed it for a decade, then bought a tapco stock for it and upgraded the trigger, it is still a range favorite! I can plink pans at 300 yards or blast paper at 25. Fun no matter what!

 

[lonestardiver]

Get the savage bolt action.
Learn the basics.
Easier to control the ammo cost that way too. I've seen kids burn
through a box of bulk 22 or a brick as fast as they can pull the trigger and
reload the magazine and learn nothing about shooting.

Yeah it's cheap fun but what did they learn in the process ?

Either way your son is going to be real happy.

 

[NeuseRvrRat]

the marlin 795 is about $100 after rebate and more accurate than the 10/22 out of the box. same thing as the marlin/glenfield model 60, but with a detachable 10 rd magazine instead of the tube. mine has become my go-to squirrel rifle and headshots out to 50 yds are no problem with a good rest.

 

[rodger1950]

He will probably never get rid of the 10/22 , My kids still have theirs after 20 some years and still love them.

 

[Picher]

Ruger 10-22, the gift that keeps on giving, every time you modify one.

I'd buy the Deluxe wood-stocked model (without the barrel band). They are more easily modified to take a heavy barrel at some point. They can also be bedded in more ways. I still have mine in the original Deluxe stock, but with a Shilen barrel, and it's a great shooter.

 

[chad1043]

I like the suggestion of the bolt action. It is a great way to help them learn shot placement. And the don't burn through a box of ammo in five minutes..

 

[jpwilly]

A semi auto 22lr can teach a young shooter the basics...it just takes a few thousand more rounds. Ha ha!

Plus, varmints are fast and you may need a couple follow up shots to finish them off. Especially if one would purposely shoot behind them to put them to flight first...ahem - Flame suit on!

 

[Gimmered]

I bought my Daughter a 10/22. She loves it but i'm not so impressed. It jams a little too often for me. I'd take a Henry lever action any day.

 

[slowr1der]

10/22 would be my choice also.