Thread: Best .22 value for money?

Some interesting choices possible here. If you're investing in a 22LR rimfire to do PRS shooting, or you simply want to enjoy owning a nicely engineered rifle then its entirely valid to spend $1000- 2000 on a 22LR - Bergara, Lithgow, Annie, VQ etc. But is it a necessity to spend this coin for effective field shooting - no.

One key point - the effective difference in the field between an accurate wee hunter 22 and a PRS 22LR rifle on bunnies is almost zero. The PRS rifle may shoot 0.25s average with match ammos, but we don't shoot bunnies with match ammos - with Tenex, Fiocchi Match etc. A PRS might shoot 0.3" repeatable groups at 50m with hunting ammos, whereas the sharp little hunter rifles (several JW15s, Marlins, CZ/Brno) in my experience will average around 0.5" at 50m - odd ones alot less. The difference on a bunny at 50m from a 0.3" group round and a 0.5" bullet is nil - both are close to minute of rabbit's eyeball. No difference in shoulder shot. At 100m there is also no real difference. In my experience it doesn't follow that the most accurate 22s at 50m are necessarily the most accurate at 100m. Example is Em332 - good at 50m but superb at 100m - while other sporter 22s (several) which were better at 50m could not match the EM332's 0.6" group average at 100m. One might reasonably expect both the PRS rimfires and the accurate hunters to be in the range 0.75 - 1.25" for consistent groups at 100m - easily inside 3" bunny chest/shoulder shots. No real difference on the bunny.

All of our Chch team have accurate hunter 22s and there are no rifles more costly than a CZ452 amongst them. Lots of chopped/polished Norincos, Marlins, Brno etc. Are they all deadly in the field - yes. In the north people tend to shoot less often and fewer rabbits. Even shooting 3-4 bunnies on a walk is alot of fun - often with time to bipod etc. But in the south - Canterbury/Otago etc - people often shoot alot bigger numbers in all sorts of terrain including alot from truck. Here you will find worker 22s are preferred - the inexpensive but accurate, durable, reliable units..

But...some day I would like to play with some nice high end PRS models - that would be a treat. No need for them at the moment but would be a pleasure spending some time with Lithgow, Bergara etc on the bench. Be cheaper than buying bloody sports cars every year or two....