# Hunting > Varminting and Small Game Hunting >  Need some opinions on a couple of guns

## JessicaChen

Hello, 

I want to buy a decent .22 rimfire rifle , preferably a bolt action single shot , for under 500 dollars. 

I found a Marlin XT22 with a scope and mediator for 450

There was also a mossberg 802 (no scope or mediator) for 349

Anyone have any experience with these rifles? Are there better options? 

I just want a nice simple .22 for bunny and hare shooting.  :Have A Nice Day:  

Thanks a lot in advance.

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## kiwijames

No shame with secondhand 22s. 
http://www.trademe.co.nz/sports/hunt...-769045432.htm
The Norinco JW is a good copy of the Brno/CZ and the Marlin semis are pretty good I understand as well.

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## Ryan

I found the Mossberg 802 to be complete crap. They are made in Brazil (this in itself isn't a bad thing, just saying) and the machining is very rough in places. Earlier productions had problems with extractor claw breaking.

I got rid of mine almost as fast as I'd bought it. My Marlin semi is better in every aspect. A friend owns the XT22 bolt-action and it's very satisfying to shoot with a good, smooth action. It is also very accurate.

My 2c.

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## jakewire

Of your two choices  I would choose the Marlin.

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## chrome

Zastava is another


Sent from the swamp

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## JessicaChen

> No shame with secondhand 22s. 
> mauser 107 22 5 shot | Trade Me
> The Norinco JW is a good copy of the Brno/CZ and the Marlin semis are pretty good I understand as well.


I dont mind secondhand as long as they can shoot straight. Problem with that one is that the shipping may cost a fair bit, since i live in Dunedin and the seller lives in Auckland.




> I found the Mossberg 802 to be complete crap. They are made in Brazil (this in itself isn't a bad thing, just saying) and the machining is very rough in places. Earlier productions had problems with extractor claw breaking.


thanks for letting me know. It did look quite cheap and crappy, but wasn't sure if it was really bad.

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## GravelBen

Savage, Marlin, Zastava good from my experience. CZ nice too but generally more expensive. Norincos are hit and miss, some are ok and some are rough as guts.

Marlin kindof copied the Savage accutrigger design for the XT, but the Savage one is still nicer to use.

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## sakkaranz

get a .17 rimfire  .22 is so yesterday  :15 8 212:  :Fighting:

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## sakokid

Hey Jessica, .22 is good stay with it you can't go wrong.  Marlin is your best bet. Nice practical rifles, I have one.

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## Spudattack

Be patient, you may pick up a cz or brno for that, that would be my first choice!

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## Beetroot

I would certainly keep an eye out for a second had CZ/Brno. A mate has the Marlin and it leaves a lot to be desired.
If you can't pick up a second hand CZ I think I'd go for a Savage over a Marlin.

Shipping is usually only around $20-30 so I wouldn't get to worried about that.

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## longrange308

+1 on above two posts

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## veitnamcam

> Be patient, you may pick up a cz or brno for that, that would be my first choice!


yep that if you want a "decent" 22

Jw 15s are cheap and cheerful copys but some can shoot very very well and some pretty badly.
I got lucky and got a good one,two of my mates didn't  :Grin: 

Sent from my GT-S5360T using Tapatalk 2

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## Spudattack

http://www.trademe.co.nz/sports/hunt...-770640052.htm

I think this might go for more but keep an eye on it!

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## possum_shooter

+1on the marlin, they can be worked into very fine shooters for a cheap rifle. Jw15is a very cheap Chinese made rifle that can shoot very well. Both can be easily worked on and plenty of guys on here and nzrimfire know heaps about them.

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## res

I paid $550 for a unfired cz on tardme a year or so ago-so keep your eyes pealed and nice things come along,unfortunately it's normally because someone else is in a bind. 

That said it's not really much better than the worked norinco jw15 that it replaced

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## JessicaChen

Thanks a bunch for the helpful pointers and the trademe links too ! Really appreciate it a ton.

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## gadgetman

I'd go Marlin or older wooden stock Norinco. I do have both.

Norinco .22 | Trade Me

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## Dougie

Might be barking up the wrong tree here but if you can only afford one rifle at the moment may pay to consider that you can't shoot your 22 on DOC land so you'll be legally limited to any private stuff you've jacked up.


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## Kscott

Yup, that's a valid point.

I have the Marlin XT, shooting with CCI standards and RWS ammo, for silhouettes target shooting out to 100m. Can hit a ram target (which is roughly the size of your hand out at 100m) consistently from the standing position, so the rifle is pretty good for the cost.

If you can pick up a CZ or similar for a similar price, go for it. But my experience with the XT is that it's a great rifle, will easily group well for rabbits, hares, possums, or general plinking with cheap CCI SV (@$55/500 rounds).

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## gadgetman

Very valid point Dougie. If you do have places lined up with heaps of little pests then the 22lr is the best by far. Cheap to run and very good for racking up heaps of trigger practice. If you have access to possums and pluck the fur you could use a 22lr as a tool to fund more gear.

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## JessicaChen

> Might be barking up the wrong tree here but if you can only afford one rifle at the moment may pay to consider that you can't shoot your 22 on DOC land so you'll be legally limited to any private stuff you've jacked up.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Nope, I have been to the doc office and got a permit for shooting small game with a .22 rim fire at tepapanui rock and pillar hunting block.  :Have A Nice Day:

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## Dougie

Oh sweet, never heard of that. You're away then!


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## JessicaChen

I bought my rifle today too. Went to a new shop and fell in love with the Marlin 925. Felt much better than the marlin XT22. Hopefully I will be putting it to good use sometime this week.

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## Nick-D

> I bought my rifle today too. Went to a new shop and fell in love with the Marlin 925. Felt much better than the marlin XT22. Hopefully I will be putting it to good use sometime this week.


Great choice. The 925's were the last of the Marlin made Marlin 22's (so i believe should say made in Conneticut on the barrel). Dont have the newer trigger but are better finished.

I have a 980s which is just the stainless version of the 925 and its a wee shooter, 1/2 inch at 50 easy with CCSV. 

The triggers are creep free but pretty heavy as you will find out. Easy fix with a new trigger spring and a seer return spring shim. Mine went from about 8 lb's down to 3 1/2.

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## gadgetman

> Great choice. The 925's were the last of the Marlin made Marlin 22's (so i believe should say made in Conneticut on the barrel). Dont have the newer trigger but are better finished.
> 
> I have a 980s which is just the stainless version of the 925 and its a wee shooter, 1/2 inch at 50 easy with CCSV. 
> 
> The triggers are creep free but pretty heavy as you will find out. Easy fix with a new trigger spring and a seer return spring shim. Mine went from about 8 lb's down to 3 1/2.


+1

The trigger fix is a quick easy and cheap DIY job with a pen spring.

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## C404

I think a gunsmith may be a better option for the average person when tinkering with triggers sears etc. I gave myself a bit of a shock years ago trying to be too clever , much better and not expensive, to take it to an expert imo

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## mudgripz

+1 Nick-D's comment on marlin 925.

Model 925 and 980 would be pick of recent marlin bolt actions. Sound wee rifles with very good barrels, they do the hunter job well. I had several 925s go thru the cupboard in recent years and they particularly impressed me in benchrest testing on the range. Well under 0.5" at best and one 925 dropped into the 0.3"s for 5 shot groups at 50m. Found they could comfortably outshoot more expensive makes. Good performance and reliability for the $$.

CCI subs, CCI standard velocity solids, CCI minmags and Winchester powerpoint all worth trying.

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## Nick-D

> I think a gunsmith may be a better option for the average person when tinkering with triggers sears etc. I gave myself a bit of a shock years ago trying to be too clever , much better and not expensive, to take it to an expert imo


You dont actually tinker with the sear at all, All you do is put a 1.5 mil shim into the hole in the action where the sear return spring rests. You dont have to take the trigger group apart at all, just drop it away from the action. No danger of the safety not working as if you over shim it you wont be able to get the bolt in or out. so it gives you an easy indicator as to how much shim your trigger needs.

The return spring mod is an addon to the trigger spring which gets the majority of the lightening done and again is very easy to do. The trigger spring alone got me down to about 5 lbs and the sear return srping netted anoth 1 & 1/4 or so.

Any sear surface polishing or mods that will effect safety, then yeah I absolutely agree, take it to a gunsmith. But both the above mods are super easy to do and pretty hard to get wrong

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## gadgetman

> You dont actually tinker with the sear at all, All you do is put a 1.5 mil shim into the hole in the action where the sear return spring rests. You dont have to take the trigger group apart at all, just drop it away from the action. No danger of the safety not working as if you over shim it you wont be able to get the bolt in or out. so it gives you an easy indicator as to how much shim your trigger needs.
> 
> The return spring mod is an addon to the trigger spring which gets the majority of the lightening done and again is very easy to do. The trigger spring alone got me down to about 5 lbs and the sear return srping netted anoth 1 & 1/4 or so.
> 
> Any sear surface polishing or mods that will effect safety, then yeah I absolutely agree, take it to a gunsmith. But both the above mods are super easy to do and pretty hard to get wrong


With mine I just did the trigger return spring and that probably took it down from 6lb to 2lb. Didn't even bother with the sear spring. Did the old bang, thump, slap test to make sure it was all good afterwards.

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## Nick-D

> With mine I just did the trigger return spring and that probably took it down from 6lb to 2lb. Didn't even bother with the sear spring. Did the old bang, thump, slap test to make sure it was all good afterwards.


Nah I hadnt planned on it either but wanted a little more after the trigger spring.

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## gadgetman

> Nah I hadnt planned on it either but wanted a little more after the trigger spring.


I was planning on the sear spring but decided it was just right as it was. The Marlins are very good value for money in both bolt and semi.

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## Gunzrrr

I concur with Spudattack ... be patient and get a Brno/CZ secondhand. I've never owned one by my mates have and they are very accurate and reliable. Save up your pennies and get a Brno/CZ. You will never regret it. Remember - it is an investment which you will have for life ... cheers Gunzrrr

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## GravelBen

IMO what you get from the extra cost of a CZ isn't necessarily any improvement in accuracy or reliability, its fit+finish and perceived 'niceness'. How much that matters is down to personal taste.

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## mudgripz

I would agree with gravelben on this.

As a rimfire hobbyist I like buying/testing the full range of sporter 22s.  I like the CZs - darn good rifles - but they are not the only good option.  There are many very efficient hunter 22s which  do the job well, and from testing a huge number on the range I can confirm many makes/models will match and/or outshoot the CZs on the bench. 

Marlin 925/980SS great wee workers - especially chopped. Toz 78, Savage, Norinco, Zastava all capable - especially when you spend an hour or two to finesse action/trigger. And crazy as it may seem one of my favourite wee hunters for precision accuracy and ideal size/weight balance is a 16" chopped and action polished Norinco JW15 shorty.  We've done maybe 15-20 JW15 action/barrel jobs on them now and almost all will pop under 0.5" at best at 50m.  Deadly wee units with ideal size for truck or field. 

This is a Marlin 925 somebody has on trademe. Good sound wee rifle and very accurate - my last one touched 0.3"s for 5 shot groups at 50m. Its one example of an inexpensive setup ideal for for people wanting to get into bunny shooting:

Marlin 925 22lr + Leupold QRW Rings! | Trade Me

Models/makes of common sporters  that have performed well for me on the bench: 

*  Norinco EM332  - champ at longer ranges with best four group average of 0.6" at 100m.
*  JW15 - usually sub half inch at 50m and occasionally into the 0.3"s. A chop to 16" and polished action makes the ideal hunter
*  CZ/Brno - very nice units with no real weaknesses,. Good value at $500 or so secondhand as noted above. Usually 0.4s at 50m. 
*  Marlin 60 semiautos  - best of the semiautos - several shooting down to 1/4" groups at 50 and averaqing close to that. DLs and DLXs lovely wee rifles.
*  Marlin 925/980 bolt action - sound, basic, reliable, feed well, quite well made and v accurate - down to 0.3" at 50m.
*  Ruger model 96 lever - best of the 10/22 variants. No weaknesses - great wee hunter - 0.7s at 50m.
*  Toz 78 - good value package with the 4 mags etc. Benefits from an hour or to polishing. Good sound unit for NZ conditions. 0.7s.
*  Savage Mk 2 - basic, quite good accuracy, good trigger, mine popped 0.7 at 50m
*  Marlin 795 - basic, sound, benefits from a little polishing to action and trigger. Very accurate and reliable with right ammos and cleaning regimen. 0.4s at 50m. Marlins have very good rimfire barrels.
*  Winchester 94/22 - mmmmmmmmmm.....

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## smidey

I can vouch for the jw15, I bought it for my son to use as I had a 10/22. It turned out to be a brilliant gun and I ended up selling the ruger as I want using it, always grabbed the norinco. Its the shortened one with over barrel suppressor so lite, short and quiet.

 Sent from my work bench

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## Scouser

Same on the chinky JW15, got one off Tard me for $200....shortened to 16", 4 x 32 scope and a suppressor.......deal of the century.......also helps to get a 2nd hand one as the 'safety' is easier to use!!!!!!

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## smidey

i bought mine when the over barrel suppressed ones were new onto the market, was $450 new from memory. I saw one in the local shop last week, was priced at $750 so they have worked out how good they are and upped the price i reckon.

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## Land Rover

I have a Norinco JW15 and cannot fault it. $350.00 new with scope, suppressor and gun bag. Mine shoots good groups all day long.
Just added a scope and suppressor to my boys Savage rascal .22, should make it easier on the ears as it has a bark with the short barrel.
My favourite is my CZ452 Suppressed American Varmint .22, shoots bunnies a long way off.

cheers LR

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## scottrods

Yep. Tweaked jw15 is easy. And bunnies out to 160m in summer not impossible even with 22lr.

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