.22
 

Thinking back to my days in Boy Scouts, some of the most fun I had was shooting at a blurry black dot fifty yards away with a .22. It was a year after I dropped out of scouts that I learned that I needed glasses. It's a wonder I managed to shoot well enough to get the rifle merit badge.

Anyway, I was thinking it would be fun to get a .22 for some plinking. I was looking on the Remington website, and noticed that they describe some of their .22's as "autoloaders". What does this mean?

I'm looking for something inexpensive. Preferably bolt-action. Any recomendations?

.22 autloader is actually a lot of fun. When I go plinking with my friends I bring my bolt action .22 with me, and they bring their autloaders. You can burn through a lot more rounds with the autoloader system, and is extremely easy to use.

If you just want to shoot 100 rounds over the course of the day bolt action can be fun. But if you want to shoot 5 thousand rounds in a day, bolt action is a pain in the arse IMO.

But why choose .22? Didn't you just buy an 870? I could shoot trap all day with a 20 gauge 870. Butt loads of fun there.

And finally .22 is for girlies(j/k). 7mm is the way to go!

Yeah, I bought a 12 gauge 870. Our local range has a FREE rifle range.

Is an autoloader just another name for a semi-auto?

Yeah, autoloader is another name for semi auto. You can set it for single fire or semi. You can load about 20 cartridges before you have to reload again. But it is a whole lot easier then loading them one at a time.......

I thought that you could get clip-fed bolt action rifles...?

Yeah ya can. My friend has one for his .22 pistol. I dont recommend it though. The thing always jammed. I am sure there are nicer ones out there, but in the long run it takes forever to fill those clips with tiny .22 cartridges.

My dad has an ol Remington that I used. It is a bolt action with a 5/6 round clip. I use a Winchester lever action .22 myself. It holds 15 rounds and one in the pipe. It is very easy to throw 500 rounds down range in a few hours...

Dave

I don't recall what kind of .22 autos Remington makes. But probably the most popular such guns are Marlins or the Ruger 10/22. You can get a NIB 10/22 at Wal Mart for under $200. Another fun one, but more expensive, is the old Winchester pump-action .22's. I bought one for my dad for father's day when I was 10 yrs. old for $75. Yes, they sold it to me! It's worth more than 10x that much now.

BTW, if you want a very sweet 9mm, I'm selling my H&K P7 PSP to help pay for the new bike.

hmm rick I am interested though. Send me a e-mail with some details. thughe4@lsu.edu

There is a huge variety of .22 rifles out there in all price ranges. Take a look at all the gun manufacturers' web sites for an idea. My favorite innexpensive .22's are the Ruger 10/22, which is a semi-automatic with 10 round clips (hence the name), the Remington bolt-action (can't remember the model number; they have an inexpensive one and a high end one), and the Marlin lever gun. The Marlin is the more expensive of these three, but you should be able to get any of them for under three hundred bucks.

There are cheaper .22's out there, but it shows, especially some of the imported ones. There are a myriad of lever and pump action imports replicating 19th century rifles, and some are quite good rifles. The Rossi's are particularly well-made and inexpensive.

I would recomend getting the best .22 you can afford. The Ruger 77/22 bolt-action, the higher end Remington bolt-action, the Thompson-Center semi-auto, the Browning lever or semi-auto or, if you feel like blowing a really big wad, the Kimber bolt-action. These are all great guns and will last several lifetimes of regular use. I love my 77/22 as a great mid-priced bolt gun.

Truth be told, anyone who calls themselves a "rifleman" that doesn't shoot his .22 more than everything else combined is suspect. If you are serious about shooting, or see yourself spending a lot of time with your .22, you deserve a good one. A fine, accurate, well-made .22 is one of life's simple pleasures. Decide which action suits your fancy - bolt, lever, semi-auto, pump, or whatever, and get the best one you can afford. You won't regret it.

True enough...they are fun...the old so called Gallery Guns....short stroke pumps. The older Winchesters are expensive now but Taurus makes a repro for not that much money new. It shoots short, long, and long rifle ammo. Good fun gun for the family.

The 'auto loaders' (semi automatic) are fun but can burn thru ammo in heart beat.

Here's mine:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1162441229.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1162441238.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1162441247.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1162441260.jpg

Winchester model 9422 XTR CLASSIC. Fires 22S, L and LR

Dave

I shot a gopher today with a .22. Kilt it dead.

Heed the advice of Jeff Higgins...I have both semi auto and bolt action .22's. My favorite? The one dad gave me when I was 12. A 1940's vintage Remington "targetmaster" single shot bolt action. No serial number...not filed off or anything, they just didn't number 'em back then. By single shot, I mean single shot...you need to eject the spent casing before inserting another round. Iron sights. Has a crowned barrel, and is very accurate. My dream .22? An old time Kimber bolt action, made when Kimber was still in Oregon. Just can't justify the current prices being asked for them though.

And yes, I shoot my .22's more than my other guns. The human mechanics of shooting are the same regardless of caliber. So when you see me at the range, I'm usually plinking away with my Browning Challenger (an old 1969 made in Belgium model) semi auto hangdgun or the old remington single shot rifle. Trust me on this one...a box shot through my Ruger 7mm Rem. Mag Elk Rifle is NOT fun shooting. It's more like having a buddy pop you in the shoulder 20 times...I usually shoot it only before hunting, to be sure the scope is zeroed where I like it.

i have a nice .22 rifle.....auto loader ( i think it holds 19 rounds).
it was my grandfathers, he used it to hunt squirel and other small furry creatures :D
it always worked great but i decided to tear it down for a thorough cleansing. what i found was about 30 years or so of grime (not sure how old it is) as it appears my father/grandfather only cleaned the barrel :D
have a small scope on it and it shoots pretty damn accurately :)
i'll take some pics tomorrow so someone can tell me what i have :D

Does it have a tube magazine that inserts through the butt? Don't get too mad at Grandpa...those early semi-autos weren't all that easy to tear down & clean...

During WW2 gunners were trained with a .22 rifle. They shot at small metal disks thrown up in the air and became very good at hitting moving targets.

They are fun, cheap and easy to shoot. Good rifles...

Same gun I got, also for $75, when I was about 11 and my mom almost divorced my dad over. I haven't shot it in years, but it's a beauty. Back in those days we were able to boresight the scope in our front yard in TX. Those were the days.

Ruger 10/22 is what I would buy for myself if I needed another .22.

I bought my daughters each one of the standard Marlin semi auto under the barrel tube fed .22s. I had the Glenfield version as a kid and shot thousands of rounds thru it back in the day.

The Marlins are pretty common and are cheap. The Rugers are common and cost just a bit more. Both will work for your plinking missions, but the Ruger 10/22 is probably your best bet. Google "Ruger 10/22" and I am sure you will find lots of info and pricing. Every gun fancier I know personally owns at least one Ruger 10/22.