want a good .22 bolt gun

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thomis

thomis

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Looking for a good .22 bolt gun. Wish I had my Dad's old Marlin .22 25N I believe it was, the rifle with the old thin magazine before they switched to the thicker mags. I've looked online at Marlin's new .22 offerings, are they still as good as their old "micro-groove" barrel guns? Are they still USA made?
I've a Savage bolt gun chambered in .22 LR and I like it, great accuracy, but I have to take the bolt out and clean the extractors too often or the spent cartridges stick in the chamber and are hard to feed.
I've got my eyes on the CZ bolt guns, I hear a lot of good things from them.

Interested to hear your opinions on other .22 LR bolts.

Thanks,
 
The CZ's are incredible guns but be careful which stock configuration you buy as it may affect your choice of scope rings.
My choice for an accurate yet low cost would be a Ruger American Rimfire. Great trigger and as you can see very accurate when thrown over a front rest at a local indoor range using something around 30 shots at 50 yds. CCI High Velocity HP's.
20140212_173926.jpg
20140212_173926.jpg
 
I have a 50s vintage Savage that is flat out amazing but ugly. Other than a new cz most new 22 rifles seem kinda cheap to me. I have heard great things about the new Mossberg 22 accuracy.
 
Personally I prefer older .22s. I have a vintage Springfield 84c (I think that's the model) that will hit chicken eggs at 50 yards all day long. You can pick up the vintage stuff any time for less than 150$. Or you can spend a weeks pay for a CZ. Either way you can have a very nice rifle.
 
If you can find a CS 452 American you will have an excellent rifle. Some of the CZ rifles only have one action screw and the barrel is forced against the stock barrel channel. The 452 has two action screws and allows the barrel to float. There are a number of people who use them in smallbore silhouette and do quite well.

At the top end of rimfire rifles are the 1710 and 1712 models in the Anschutz line. Yeah they are pricey, but they are quality rifles that shoot exceptionally well and will hold their value for years.
 
Often, you can find used old .22 bolt guns languishing on the back shelves of gun stores and pawn shops. And many of these can have stellar accuracy if you find a load that they like. Right now on gunbroker, there are several Marlin 25n's for sale for under $200 for example--just took a look to remind me what they looked like. I have seen other makes such as Savages, Remingtons, etc. for about the same price.

CZ firearms are nice too but you will pay more. An intermediate priced alternative is the Ruger American .22 LR.
 
I have a CZ 455 American. It has two stock/receiver screws. Great rifle for a very reasonable price.
If I had more discretionary money i'd buy a Anschutz
If money was no object i'd buy a Voodoo.
 
I have had great luck with the CZ 452 and so/so luck with the 455's. Right now I am holding out for the Tikka T1x. I has a more modern look, but I am more interested in accuracy as this would be purely a mountain hunting rifle.
 
Nothing wrong with a Savage..... I almost bought one just over a year ago. I had given up trying to talk my buddy out of his CZ 452 and started looking real hard at the Savage offerings because they shoot real well. But CZ's do, too. Then a local shop got in a shipment of CZ .22's last January and I went down to see 'em. Started fondling a CZ 455 Varmint Thumbhole Fluted; they gave me a good price, and it went home with me. Savage and CZ are the only currently produced bolt action .22's that I'm familiar with these days. Back in December I bought a Savage Rascal bolt .22 kids rifle for my step-grand daughter to shoot this summer, and it shoots great and even has an accu-trigger but I don't think a Rascal would appeal to you, LOL. My CZ 455 seems to shoot as well as my buddies 452 and I'm real happy with it. Sorry to hear about your Savage extractor issues. Have never heard about that yet. No issues at all with the 455 yet and it seems to shoot just about any 22LR real well. Here's that 455; this particular variant has been discontinued but a thumbhole 455 model is still available although the stock looks different. IMG_1659.JPG
 
thomis said:
Interested to hear your opinions on other .22 LR bolts.

Thanks,
Click to expand...

The only bolt .22s I have are a CZ452 Trainer, a Remington Model 5, and a Zastava MP22.

My CZ452 was ready to go right out of the box and uses really good magazines. Some people do trigger upgrades, but I didn't as the trigger is plenty good for offhand shooting and even basic bench shooting. If you can see iron sights well, you would like the Trainer sights on the 452 or current 455 that has a quick adjust slider from 25 to 200 yards, just like a milsurp gun.

The other two I have are both made by Zastava in Serbia (same gun as the Charles Daly rimfire and CZ99 rimfire rifle). They are exceptional shooters with adjustable triggers. However, they are more of a tinkerer's gun. You might have to fuss with the magazines, or not. If you see one of these guns on used rifle rack or new at a price too good to pass up, you may like what it can do. If you get one, PM me and I can give you magazine tips.
 
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I currently have a Mossberg 802, which i like, but dont realy recommend if you can afford nicer. Ive also had a savage 93r17, and while i liked it, if i get another bolt rimfire it will be CZ.
Or if i have the money ill spring for one of the Anschutz 54s or 64s.
 
A CZ trigger can be taken from good to great in about 15 minutes with a homemade shim and a clip off the trigger spring or a replacement spring from the hardware store.
 
CZ's are pretty nice 22's, EXCEPT for the assbackwards safety, I just can't live with that...

That would be one reason why I'd be looking HARD at a Ruger, they are also a pretty nice 22 and are AMERICAN made...

DM
 
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