new 22 cal rifle for small game

[tpaulos]

What bolt action rifle would you recommend for small game hunting,(rabbits )
I prefer that it has a clip magazine.
also would I be better off to look for a older used rifle.
thanks tony paulos

[Greywolf]

The re-isued (by Browning) Winchester Mod 52 sporter.
Hands Down. Though you may have to hunt hard to find one.

Second would be the Browning T-Bolt.

[snake river rufus]

What bolt action rifle would you recommend for small game hunting,(rabbits )
I prefer that it has a clip magazine.
also would I be better off to look for a older used rifle.
thanks tony paulos

You are in luck, most all the current crop are very good.
Do you have a price range in mind?

[dave-t.]

CZ 452.

[Smokey]

I like the 900 series Marlin bolt actions. Have several in 22LR and in 22WMR. All are very accurate. For he cost, I would buy new.

[Greywolf]

CZ 452.

Dave, I had forgotten those.
Yes probably the best deal going, and certainly easier to come by than the 52 or t-bolt.

[Gil]

For the money an excellent used Remington Model 581 bolt action is about the best production .22 rifle available at a reasonable price. Just my biased opinion. All the best...
Gil

[Altjaeger]

For the money an excellent used Remington Model 581 bolt action is about the best production .22 rifle available at a reasonable price. Just my biased opinion. All the best...
Gil

X2 except I will add the Remington 582. They are the same rifle except the 581 is magazine fed and 582 is tube fed. They have a unique six lug locking system leading to a strong, accurate rifle.

Yup, I am biased too.

[Greywolf]

X2 except I will add the Remington 582. They are the same rifle except the 581 is magazine fed and 582 is tube fed. They have a unique six lug locking system leading to a strong, accurate rifle.

Yup, I am biased too.

Trouble is, I never met a well built rifle I didn't like. At least, in my first life.

It's the reason that I'm standing here today, in my second life (:o)

And I have learned to Just Say No to rifles that beg me to
"take them home with me"

[Gil]

Good point on adding the Remington 582. I was able to find one last year on the used gun rack at a local gun shop. Fine rifle and I really like it. All the best...
Gil

[Don Wald]

I second the choice of the Remington M581. Best for the price. Can be had for $150.00 to $225.00 in excellent condition.

http://i231.photobucket.com/albums/ee86/DWald_photos/RemingtonM581.jpg

Don

[Herne]

I'm biased too.

Anschutz. Best 22 barrels in the world - no question. Beautiful rifles, and world class target grade accuracy, even in sporters. Of course Anschutz only make 22 barrels.

I saw a 223 Anschutz, and it was a rifle to die for, woodwork, blueing and action. And scoped with Swaro Nova 6x42, 10 rounds into the standard match 22 target bull at 100 yards. (though some shots wouldn't score 10 because they cut the line - even so that is not far off a 1/2 group for 10 rounds.

Their 22s LRs are better because the barrel doesn't heat so much.

Over here they are like gold dust. Your side you could well have difficulty finding one, but if you did, I imagine you could get a bargain. Still they are the best - even better than the Sako 22 and that is saying something.

[Altjaeger]

I once had Anschutz 1418 and 1618s. They were a matched set of full length stocked Anshutz in ,22 lr and .22 wmr. Unfortunately we were seperated in my divorce. I still regret their loss.

[Bayrat]

Anschutz. Best 22 barrels in the world - no question.

Having used a Match 54 for three years on Varsity rifle team, I agree 100% with that. And it wasn't just the barrels that were increadable - closing that bolt was as smooth as butter and could be done with just the right hand thumb flicked forward and down.

Although, it can get kinda boring shooting all day and only having one hole in the target to show for it ! ;)

Bayrat.

[Bill Gunn]

I've got an Anschutz 1422 Meister Grade (Now called a 1710), and a Model 64 Sporter Target.

Trust me, They shoot very well !!

The regular USED 1422's run from about $850.00 to $1300.00 now.
I never seen a Meister grade for sale.

[dave-t.]

Anschutz are well known in the US. You hardly ever see one for sale though.

US makes some awefully nice .22's also when you start getting into that price range.

I'd take a Cooper or older Kimber over Anie, but I'd have to pay the premium too.

[Herne]

Oops - sorry I didn't think they'd be so well known. I thought you might find one that the seller didn't really appreciate.

Oh well - but they really are that good, and the actions are like silk, as Bayrat said.

[Herne]

Oh BTW Bayrat, I didn't know it took target shooters all day to fire one round. ;)

[Sabre]

Anschutz are well known in the US. You hardly ever see one for sale though.

US makes some awefully nice .22's also when you start getting into that price range.

I'd take a Cooper or older Kimber over Anie, but I'd have to pay the premium too.

I'd take a Cooper over an Annie too, if someone else were paying the bill. Since that's unlikely to happen I'll just stick with my Marlin's. They're plenty accurate enough for the rimfire hunting I do.

[Bill Gunn]

Oh BTW Bayrat, I didn't know it took target shooters all day to fire one round. ;)

:p :p :p

That's like... "All my guns shoot one hole groups....
'Till I shoot that second round" :rolleyes:

[Bayrat]

Oh BTW Bayrat, I didn't know it took target shooters all day to fire one round.
:D:D:D

It gave us more time to savor those flyers. :D


One hole groups from prone with the match 54's were so common that no one was suprised when it happened. For the day's bragging rights, some of the smart-a$$ guys on the team, after putting one sight-in in the bull, would then put their other sight-in's into the angled steel back stop next to the target. A good spotter could tell by the slight differance in where the sand was kicked up in the bullet trap below the target.

Then they'd catch it !!!!:D

Bayrat

[Herne]

It gave us more time to savor those flyers.

Thats my kind of shooting. :)

[Bill Gunn]

most really important matches have moving backers to prove the required shots were fired at the target, and it's a real "Bug-hole" group.
http://www.mysmiley.net/imgs/smile/animals/animal0033.gif http://www.mysmiley.net/imgs/smile/fighting/fighting0007.gif

[Bayrat]

Nothing that fancy in indoor High School level competion back in the 1960's.

The NRA small bore targets we used had 11 bulls on them. Bull in the center was for sight-in, the others were for score.

When firing for score only one shot was allowed at each bull. Either each bull had a hole in, or near it, or it didn't count and you lost points toward your total. So no need to have anything else to prove hits. Either it was there or it wasn't.

One sheet for prone, one for off-hand, for a combined possable total of 200 points per shooter.

The one-hole bragging was only during checking sight-in and barrel warming. Under the rules we were allowed to shoot only three rounds into the sheet's center bull.

During competion, some guys (with their spotter in ca-hoots on it) would do one hole in the sight-in bull then two off the sheet to try and syc the other team. I never did because the match 54 did that for me, otherwise I was having a bad day and it showed with all the shots to follow. A bad day was only being able to shoot a 98 in prone. Most of the good shooters who were also using match 54's cleaned prone on a regular basis and shot in the 80's in off hand.

For many years I carried in my wallet a bull cut from one of my targets that only had one 22 cal hole, measured with a 22 drop gauge, from three sight in shots ....
while my buddies only had condums they never got to use in theirs. :D

Bayrat

[Sabre]

Nothing that fancy in indoor High School level competion back in the 1960's.

The NRA small bore targets we used had 11 bulls on them. Bull in the center was for sight-in, the others were for score.

When firing for score only one shot was allowed at each bull. Either each bull had a hole in, or near it, or it didn't count and you lost points toward your total. So no need to have anything else to prove hits. Either it was there or it wasn't.

One sheet for prone, one for off-hand, for a combined possable total of 200 points per shooter.

The one-hole bragging was only during checking sight-in and barrel warming. Under the rules we were allowed to shoot only three rounds into the sheet's center bull.

During competion, some guys (with their spotter in ca-hoots on it) would do one hole in the sight-in bull then two off the sheet to try and syc the other team. I never did because the match 54 did that for me, otherwise I was having a bad day and it showed with all the shots to follow. A bad day was only being able to shoot a 98 in prone. Most of the good shooters who were also using match 54's cleaned prone on a regular basis and shot in the 80's in off hand.

For many years I carried in my wallet a bull cut from one of my targets that only had one 22 cal hole, measured with a 22 drop gauge, from three sight in shots ....
while my buddies only had condums they never got to use in theirs. :D

Bayrat

My prone average was 99.5 and my offhand average 86 when I shot competitively. { NRA four position smallbore} My match rifle was a Winchester model 52C and together we whupped up on alot of Anie's at the 1978 state championship matches in Schenectady NY.

[Bayrat]

We only had two position back in the 60's. Prone and offhand. My average in comp was 99 in prone and low 80's in offhand.

Suffolk County regonals in 69 I shot 100 in prone, and with four bulls, a bunch of 9's and 8's, I was having the best match of my three years on varsity.

Last shot, all I had to do was hit the five ring to be in the top ten from our region going to Buffalo for the State finals. An eight, or above would put me in second place.

I relaxed, took a deep breath, looked back and saw a cute blond watching me from behind the spotters tables. She winked, I smiled back at her, turned, put the gun up....... and yanked a half moon in the edge of the paper. :mad:

When I turned back around my coach had his head face down in his arms on the spotters table......... and the cute blond was walking out arm in arm with her boyfriend -the guy who had won first place.

I got 12th place in the regonals and them wimmin's been trouble for me ever since !!!!!:D

Bayrat.

[Herne]

Other people's wimmin usually are. Still its not much fun, not learning the hard way.