Let's talk about single-shot .22 rifles,,,

Hello mattL46

My best friend was a shooter,,,
She was on her high school rifle team in the late 60's.

Her Father was a WW-II vet who loved target shooting,,,
Her brother grew up around rifles,,,
But never caught the bug.

When my friend passed away a few years back,,,
I offered to store her firearms for him.

He lives in California and was a bit leery,,,
He didn't want to take anything home that was illegal.

So the night before he flew back west,,,
He shows up at my place with several blankets of rifles,,,
One of those rifles was a heavy barrel Winchester model 52 of some ilk.

This gun was definitely set up for bench shooting,,,
It weighed a ton and had huge peep sights.

I cleaned it up a bit and took it to the range,,,
With Remington mil-surp LRN ammo,,,
I shot a 1-hole group at 25 yards.

I have never been so tempted to steal a gun as I was with that rifle.

In actuality I could never do that to anyone,,,
So I did the next best thing and offered him a lo-ball price of $500.00,,,
I wasn't trying to steal the rifle though as I told him that it was probably worth twice that at least.

In a later conversation he told me he sold the model 52 for $1,800.00.

He did decide to gift me two others from her collection,,,
He gave me the two guns she always took out when we went shooting,,,
They were her nickel-plated 4" Model 34 and her Mossberg 340-KC target rifle.

That Model 52 would have been wasted on me,,,
The Mossberg and the S&W and I get along very well,,,
So I have two fine guns to remind me of my dear departed friend.

Aarond

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Hello cliffhangernlv,,,

Those old Mausers are very collectible right now,,,
You have a very desirable rifle my friend.

If it's one of the Sporter style models,,,
I've seen them go for well over $500.00 on gunbroker.

I must admit I'm a bit envious,,,
Oh heck, I'm downright jealous of it. ;)

Aarond

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Hello BumbleBug,,,

Your ROTC rifle team was very well equipped indeed.

The rifle team at my HS didn't have good equipment at all,,,
In fact most of us used our own rifles in competition,,,
My uncle loaned me his Remington single-shot,,,
I can't for the life of me recall the model.

We did okay in competitions though,,,
In my two years we never won a state level match,,,
But what we could always do was keep the winning teams honest.

I do remember having a great time competing,,,
Like I said, we rarely came out on top,,,
But we were far from the bottom.

Aarond

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I'm looking at another older single-shot on gunbroker,,,

It's a GECO Karabiner Model 1925,,,
It was listed previously with a starting bid of $125.00.

It didn't sell or even get a bid,,,
The seller re-listed it with a starting bid of $115.00.

I really don't know much about this rifle,,,
But it has that old-world look that I like so much.

If I saw this in a store I would have bought it for $125 then and there,,,
But when you add $35 for shipping and $20 for the transfer fee,,,
That's $180 and it's more than I am comfy spending.

The thing sure has caught my eye though.

I sent the seller an e-mail offering $100 shipped if the gun fails to sell again,,,
I doubt he'll take me up on it as I realize it's a low-ball offer.

But you never know,,,
Maybe I'll get lucky with it.

Aarond

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Thank-you for your interest. Aarond. I have another. A Winchester 85 low wall. It's a centerfire 22. An odd K hornet variant. Probably my prettiest rifle. Great thread.
 
I'm just glad to see I'm not alone,,,

In my affinity for single-shot rifles.

I have friends who just aren't happy,,,
Unless they are burning 30 round mags in 15 seconds.

Don't get me wrong here,,,
I enjoy a fun mag dump as well as the next person,,,
But for the most part I'm much more pleased with a slow succession of hits.

It's also how I "test" a new range buddy,,,
The first time we go out I only take single-shots.

If they seem to be having fun and are enjoying the shooting,,,
I'll bring some semi's out for the next trip.

If they seem bored with single-shot,,,
I know we have different shooting preferences.

I'll still take them shooting with me,,,
But I tell them they have to scrounge their own ammo. ;)

Aarond

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I found a pristine Western Field M815 today,,,

I found a pristine Western Field M815 today,,,
And by pristine I mean the metal of the gun is flawless.

The stock has one "smudge" in the finish,,,
It looks like it transferred gray paint from somewhere,,,
The butt plate and the plastic trigger guard are also in great shape.

The rear sight has the proper "elevator" on it,,,
The barrel is very clean and shiny,,,
And the bolt is slick.

According to a reference at Numrich,,,
The rifle is a Mossberg 320.

The Evil Pawn Shop Guy has a $129.00 price tag on it,,,
I'm certain that he'll call that the out the door price to include tax.

Whaddaya think gentlemen?

Should I jump on this rifle?

Aarond

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It was my first gun and I still shoot it. Extremely accurate. Received it for Christmas in the mid 70's. Can't remember the model without going to look. It's a bolt action single shot Winchester without the cocking lever/bolt. I wanted the clip version but my mom thought it unsafe LOL.
 
Hello Fjblair,,,

...but my mom thought it unsafe.
Click to expand...

Your mom and Mine were of the same mind,,,
When I bought my second rifle,,,
She hid the magazine.

But who knows,,,
Maybe they were right.

Even now when I take a newbie shooting rifles,,,
I always start them out on a single-shot,,,
Because I think it's a wee bit safer.

Aarond

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Even now when I take a newbie shooting rifles,,,
I always start them out on a single-shot,,,
Because I think it's a wee bit safer.

Aarond
Click to expand...

To me it's not safety so much as it is marksmanship over seeing how much lead you can spray downrange.
 
Hello Picher and B.L.E.,,,

That is one sexy rifle Picher,,,
What was entailed in making it a single-shot?

Was it just inserting a ramp/adaptor of some kind?


To me it's not safety so much as it is marksmanship over seeing how much lead you can spray downrange.
Click to expand...

That's pretty much why I have such an affinity for single-shots.

I'm no sniper quality marksman on my best of days,,,
But loading one round at a time helps me to at east try for the sniper mindset.

Aarond

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The deal was too good to pass up,,,

I went and took a second look at the rifle,,,
Because I always miss something on the first look.

I found a few tiny flaws in the blue near the barrels muzzle,,,
But nothing that steel-wool and some oil won't cure.

So I said,,,
Hey Mr. Evil Pawn Shop Guy,,,
Since I am your favorite customer of all time,,,
What's your best price for me out the door including tax?

He looked at the records and said,,
One hundred dollars.

I snapped it up like a hamster on a corn chip!

I'm going to the range this weekend,,,
I'll let you all know how it shoots.

150318-M815-web.jpg


Aarond

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Looks like you got a great buy on a rifle that appears to be in pristine condition. I'm wondering which Mossberg 320 variant (the 320B, 320K, 320K-A) that Montgomery Ward was selling or if they had Mossberg make a model 320 unique to their specs. Because the 320B came with an aperture sight, sling swivels and a Monte Carlo stock, my guess is that yours is patterned after the Models 320K/320K-A.
Anyway, congratulations on your find.
 
Hello dgludwig,,,

I went to that cross reference page again,,,
All it says is that the Western Field M815 is actually a Mossberg 320

My rifle has what looks like the standard rear sight and a brass bead front sight.

I've always wondered what the letter designations on Mossberg rifles meant,,,
Do you happen to have a reference that defines them?

Aarond

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The only references I have for Mossberg/Western Field .22 rifles are The Standard Catalog of Firearms, The Blue Book of Gun Values and the Gun Digest book of Modern Gun Values. Because your rifle has the "standard" stock (no Monte Carlo comb), no sling swivels and standard open sights, I'm pretty sure it is patterned after the Mossberg Model 320K (as I reported in an earlier post, the Model 320B came with an aperture sight, sling swivels and a walnut [not walnut-finished hardwood] Monte Carlo configured stock).
Others on the forum more acquainted with Mossberg .22 rifles will likely have more in-depth information about your nice Western Field variant.
 
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Thanks dgludwig,,,

So it's a Mossberg 320K.

Do you know of a reference that shows what the suffix letters denote?
I have another Mossberg rifle I would like to know more about.

It's no big deal for me,,,
I'll just call it a Western Field M815. ;)

You described the rifle perfectly though,,,
No cheek comb, sling swivels, or true walnut wood.

Just a very basic 24" barrel single-shot rifle.

I'm pleased as punch with it so far,,,
Tomorrow is supposed to be in the low 70's with mild overcast,,,
That sounds like perfect range weather so I'll be able to give this old gal a whirl.

I'll let you all know how she does.

Aarond

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I'll throw in a couple of others I still have. A Daisy model 8. Apparently Daisy built them finishing off a Iver Johnson contract with Kmart when I.J. went bankrupt. And a pink Crickett, yes, there are girls in the family.

And one I just picked up recently, a Winchester model 67A.
 
There ain't nothing wrong with a pink Crickett,,,

There ain't nothing wrong with a pink Crickett,,,
If I had a granddaughter she would own one.

Have fun with that little girl my friend.

Aarond

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