Thread: What .22lr to buy

Get mudgripz to do you a norinco special and be forever happy and not scared you use it where it may get scratched.

Originally Posted by Tentman

Ive had both the Bergara BMR and Tikka T1x, dont have either anymore and wouldnt bother trying another of each. Neither are especially smooth in the action, a bit "click clack". Neither if the examples I had would really shoot, so any purchase is subject to the "barrel lottery". The Tikka has issues with ejection and breaking firing pins (mine was OK).

I also sold my CZ457 but it was an excellent rifle, very good trigger, reliable and extremely accurate. And with a 457 if you do happen to get a barrel that wont shoot replacements are readily available and dead easy to fit. Id have another CZ 457 in a heartbeat.

Im more then happy with the BMR i brought from you enough accuracy for me 1" at 50m take it spotlighting when deer are about accuracy is enough to headshot at 75m while nailing possums, rabbit and hares

Its about price and functionality if its a first rifle can do it for 300$ or 2000$ if it were me get something second hand to take advantage of the market being so fucked at the moment , for 1200ish can get a decent rifle then get a vixen scope then a decent suppressor or buy the whole package. Got my BMR from @Tentman for 700$ plus 100 for dpt suppressor and 250$ scope from @ANTMAN bloody awesome setup for all my rimfire needs for 1050 all up

Originally Posted by Carbine

Im more then happy with the BMR i brought from you enough accuracy for me 1" at 50m take it spotlighting when deer are about accuracy is enough to headshot at 75m while nailing possums, rabbit and hares

Its about price and functionality if its a first rifle can do it for 300$ or 2000$ if it were me get something second hand to take advantage of the market being so fucked at the moment , for 1200ish can get a decent rifle then get a vixen scope then a decent suppressor or buy the whole package. Got my BMR from @Tentman for 700$ plus 100 for dpt suppressor and 250$ scope from @ANTMAN bloody awesome setup for all my rimfire needs for 1050 all up

Bloody good that its going well and a valuable lesson that each of us have different needs, different hunting/shooting scenarios and especially tastes. One mans and all that.

Ive had at least 12-15 22s through my hands in the last 10 years or so, none of the really bad (although someone tried to foist a Mahally? on me and I drew the line at that!

A well sorted 10-22 or JW15 etc etc is a great game getter and fun plinker!

See if you can pick up a good second hand Brno Mod 2 or a CZ452. Hard to go wrong.

Originally Posted by blip

When I had that kind of budget I bought an annie. More accurate than I will ever be.

Anschutz rifles are very good, but they are pushing Vudoo .22 prices, and parts availability and cost are biggies (making the Vudoo look like a bargain).
For the price of a new Anschutz you can buy two CZ 457s, ammo test them and keep the best one.
Therefore your best value opportunity for a good 22lr bolt action is a CZ.

Originally Posted by MB

I have a CZ 452 chopped to 15" with a Yo-Dave trigger upgrade. I also treated it to an over-barrel suppressor for no good reason other than I wanted one. It's a laser! The only thing I don't like is the back-to-front safety. I'm not overly keen on the wooden stock either. I put a Limbsaver on it to increase LOP and it's functional. In an ideal world, I'd get a chassis or at least an adjustable stock for it, but that boat has sailed.

Unfortunately there aren't too many chassis options for the older CZ/Brno rifles.

Boyds is pretty much the only option which I guess isn't bad but you'll have to import it.

Originally Posted by Hermitage

Anschutz rifles are very good, but they are pushing Vudoo .22 prices, and parts availability and cost are biggies (making the Vudoo look like a bargain).
For the price of a new Anschutz you can buy two CZ 457s, ammo test them and keep the best one.
Therefore your best value opportunity for a good 22lr bolt action is a CZ.

The other thing i should mention is Im left handed and there aren't many options for them in rf. I had a lhd lakefield as well which was pretty good after I modded the trigger

at the moment my go to rf is an old slazenger its old cool and very accurate.

Originally Posted by Micky Duck

Get mudgripz to do you a norinco special and be forever happy and not scared you use it where it may get scratched.

Better yet, get a used EM-332!
Edit: it doesn't come in a wrong-handed option.

You need to buy the 22LR that suits the shooting you intend to do. Lots of answers above - they are not wrong. But you do need to define your purpose, then buy to that. Key questions..

What type of shooting will buyer do? Is it bench, is it competitions, is it predominantly game eg possums/bunnies - or a combination. What's the balance of target and field shooting? This will tell you what accuracy he needs to buy, what weight will be acceptable etc..

What are the field conditions he will shoot in? Will he do very light shooting i.e. something like 2-3 trips a year popping 4-5 bunnies each time. Nice strolls in paddocks with bipod etc, time to setup, shoot, have a coffee, then wander on to next one. For this a more expensive nicely wooded brand will be fine - no scars and scratches expected.

Or is his 22 intended to be a fun worker rifle. Out wandering hills, rocks, scrub, matagouri etc, then into truck, or onto quad for hours spotlighting. This is not the place for more expensive wooded pieces, and frankly you do not need expensive 22s for this job at all. The likes of polished Norincos, accurized 10/22s, Marlins, Savage etc can all do this worker job very efficiently.

Have had beautiful and costly 22LRs but for worker use they stayed in cupboard. After umpteen thousand bunnies, and about 100 22LRs of alot of makes, my two favourite bunny killers overall are a polished chopped JW15 Norinco with a Bushnell on it, and the lethal little Marlin 60 semiautos - deadly wee snipers to 100m. Would you beat them in the field with a Tikka or Annie - no.

Always fun to spend to buy something nice for ourselves, but with this 22LR rifle choice - go back to key questions. Define its purpose, its uses, its conditions - and what rifle suits these best. A last thought - you do not to spend alot on field 22LR optics. Good basic 3-9x or 4-12 in Tasco, Nikko, Bushnell, Simmons etc do this 1-110m job very reliably, effectively.

Happy hunting PS yes Norinco EM332 a wee gem!

What mudgripz said.
I got a model 60 deluxe and what a little ripper.
Accurate and reliable.
Wouldn't give you a tin of shit for a stock standard 10/22
Also running an early lithgow la101.
A quality build with a nice action and very good accuracy.
Trigger is a little bit heavy but adequate.
Owned a tikka T1x as well but chose the lithgow to keep as had a 55moa custom rail done for it.
I wouldn't hesitate to buy another tikka or cz.
Probably regret selling my 455 more than the tikka.
My 2cw

Sent from my SM-A556E using Tapatalk

Good morning.
Have had a CZ 457 camo with 20 inch threaded ss barrel for a couple of years and really like it. Accurate well made rifle.
They are about $1500 new now but you may possibly find a used one with rings etc.
Come with 5 shot polymer mag. I bought a ten shot steel mag as well.
Also have a 10/22 which is accurate too but pretty much my thermaling rifle as it has a pic rail
NRF

Value for money you wont beat a Mudgripz modded JW15.

If you want a rifle that you can hand down to your grandkids in 50 years time then buy the nicest BRNO number 1 you can find - but for an everyday use rifle - JW15 , hands down

My first choice for a Nice and new rifle would be the CZ. But as mentioned above, for a workhorse that needs to function, and be accurate a good Norinco can be every bit as effective and way under budget. Another one to watch for if you can find one, would be a second hand Bolt action Toz 78 but they are harder to find than hens teeth...They were also sold as a WInchester Wildcat (BA) but I see they also do a Winchester wildcat semi auto which is not a toz.

I think you are right about the Toz 78 Tim.

I remember doing a range test and review of one 10-15 years ago (for Gary I think) and liked it. It wasn't as well finished as a nice CZ 452 then, but it was a tidy, sturdy little unit. Shot about 0.7" groups at 50m from memory but I thought then there was more to come. After test my impression was it would be an ideal field worker 22 for NZ conditions - especially as it came with 4 magazines included in that fairly modest price. Was a step up from the basic Toz 17 which I've also had. Yes I saw them under the Winchester Wildcat label.

Its a pity the 78s are not around any more. Good reliable little hunters.