Looking for a fun rifle

I've only ever seen one wood stocked Weatherby Vanguard rifle. Don't remember the cartridge but I loved it! I also couldn't afford it at the time! Never did get a chance to shoot it, would have liked to. You really need to get out and see what's there you like. Don't go so much by photo's in a book, they are supposed to help sell it!
 
It would be interesting to know what state the OP was from and where he is shooting. That aside.

A fun gun for careful accurate shooting in a wood stock at 100 and 200 yard range is the CZ 527 in 223. For off the bench they make the Euro Varmint. For off hand and general shooting there is the American. And a very handy gun to carry all day is the 527 carbine. The CZ comes with rings.

There are a lot of "plastic" options. I would look at Tikka in that space. The Tikka is available in a wood stock with a plastic trigger guard. The wood costs runs higher. Apparently the American consumer has spoken and rings no logger come with Tikka.
 
I have a lot of rifles, and a lot of FUN rifles. But one I've been playing with lately is the Ruger RAP in 204 Ruger.

I have a Ruger #1 in 204 and its a great rifle, but I kind of got hooked on the cheap Ruger American Predators. I picked up one in 204, and put a muzzle brake on it. Now I know there isnt much recoil or muzzle whip with the 204 but we did say "fun" didnt we.

With the brake the muzzle doesnt move at all, its like shooting a laser. You can see it hit which is great for PDs where you dont know if you hit them or they jumped in their holes during the recoil. With a Braked 204 there is no question.

I even picked up a Ruger RAP in 223 and put a brake on it. Its a lot of fun but you can sure see the difference in the recoil of th 204 and 223, in the same rifle w/the same brake.

The advantage of the 223 is the cheaper ammo if you dont reload.
 
Yup, a .223 would be a great fun gun. I have a Rem 700 SPS Tac for similar purposes. I don't hunt, but simply use it as a range gun. Was just out shooting 100 yds and 200 yds this past Sunday. Was making 1" groups on paper at 200 yds and clanging steel at 220 yds.

.223's are cheap to feed (cheaper if you reload, which I do), have great availability of ammo at reasonable prices (Hornady 75 gr. BTHP Match ammo for $21 per 20 rds) and negligible recoil.

The rifles suggested would all be good to go - RAR, Savage, CZ 527 (nice wood on those), etc. If you reload, the 45-70 actually isn't a bad recoiing rifle if you download it. I shoot 300 gr. 45-70 rounds at around 1100 fps and they're a hoot to shoot, make giant holes in paper and really make steel plates "clang"!

Let us know what you decide! Cheers
 
Lots of fantastic suggestions already, I'll add a suggestion that is quite different.

Ruger 77/357 bolt action rifle in .357 Magnum.

Cost-wise, it cannot be purchased as cheaply as many of the entry level bolt guns, I'll admit that right away. But there is a lot of FUN to be had, consider all of these reasons:

--it is short and light, that means it feels like handling your 10/22, it is the epitome of "handy!" and it is the exact opposite of heavy, bloated, gangly and unwieldy. Whether you want to try (difficult!) standing/offhang shooting, prone or the typical fare at a gun range (rested from a bench), this rifle is enjoyable to handle. This size and weight also adds to the pleasure of hauling it to & from wherever you shoot and the short barrel even makes cleaning more enjoyable

--has sights but is better with an optic and super simple and easy to add one with included rings that mount directly to the rifle. You need only choose a scope, all the rest of the hardware is ready and included

--factory ammo is absolutely easy to find everywhere and there is extreme versatility in using the lightest .38 Special possible AND the hardest-core .357 Magnum available and every point along the spectrum in between those two

--if you handload, EVEN BETTER! If you don't handload but you have always wanted to learn... okay, get ready for reckless use of a superlative! (discussion forum post police love to attack superlatives because they are typically easy to pick apart) but listen -- there may not exist a BETTER or safer or more stout platform for using/testing handloads ever invented than a 77/357 rifle.

--also for handloading or learning to handload... .38/.357 is sooooo much more enjoyable at the load bench than any/every bottle neck rifle round ever invented, ever. Bullet selection is huge and low cost, less money spent on powder, published loads available almost to infinity, preparing the brass is light years more enjoyable too. In every facet, .38/.357 is more enjoyable to handload than bottle neck rifle in any caliber

--you said that you would have more fun with a little leas or manageable recoil, the 77/357 has that area cornered! Even heavy .357 from mine isn't at all nasty on the shoulder like some of the .30-cal and beyond high pressure bottle neck rifles.

--your intended range is 0-200 yards? PERFECT for this rifle! Don't ask it to do things well beyond 250/300, it's not a player for longer range. But for 100 yard steel, this rifle is a riot

You could make serious use of this rifle for numerous hunting applications down the road even if you only buy it for FUN right now. And it likely costs more than many of the fantastic package deals they offer on budget combo rifle/scope setups in .223, .243 and .308 but the 77/357 really operates in a different place than those rifles. You might even consider the 77/44 instead, but you will deal with more recoil on the top end.
 
Sevens, that's actually not a bad idea since I own a .357 revolver. I don't handload but have been looking into it. Thanks for mentioning that rifle. I will be checking it out even though.
 
++1 for the Ruger 77/357. Found one by accident, bought it on a whim, I'll NEVER part with it unless it's to my son or son-in-law...then I'd go buy another.
 
Depends on the ammo. Initially I got 1" groups @ 50 yards with .38 special using Magtech 158gr LRN, Remington UMC 130gr JFN, PPU 158gr SJHP, Fiocchi 125gr SJHP and Georgia Arms 158gr LSWCHP +P. Not so tight were WWB 130gr JFN and Remanufactured Georgia Arms 158gr SWC. To my surprise, Tulamo 130gr JFN shot as good or better than the others, with the exception of the LSWCHP +P.
I haven't shot any .357 mag yet, nor have I shot @ 100 yards. That's coming.
AFTER I shot the above groups, I installed a .004 bolt shim (.005 was just too tight) and did a DIY trigger job which reduced my trigger pull from 6-6.5 lbs to about 3.5-4.0 lbs.
Sorry to say I haven't had the opportunity test my work yet.
When I get some decent .357, I'll move my targets to 100 yards.
 
I am still working on load development with mine and haven't done the small group work yet. As many who have worked with them consistently reported less accuracy with lighter bullets, I decided to cut to the chase and bought a bunch of oowder coated cast 180 grain bullets. I've built safe loads and chrono'd them but then... hahaha, bought a house and moved. Everything has been on the back burner since.
 
It definitely looks like a nice rifle. I'm just not sure yet. With 15 inch drop at 200 yards if sighted in at 100. I'm mainly gonna be shooting 100 and 200 yards. A .223 might be a better choice for that.
 
I would vote for the Weatherby S2 and having 3 of them they are real good shooters, I think the last one I bought with wood stock came from Bud's gun shop at around 600.00 , then of course you have to add a scope..To add, 2 of my Weatherby's have wood stocks.
 
I live in a heavily wooded portion of East Texas. 95% of my shots are less than 100 yards. If I were to be shooting 200-300-500 yard targets (good old days in the USMC), I would go with a 7.62 or, maybe 5.56. I just don't need (nor want) that range where I live.
Matched with my Ruger Blackhawks, I think the 77/357 meets my needs perfectly. Everyone's situation is different. Have fun dreaming and shopping!
 
Thanks, unfortunately I won't be shooting nothing but paper unless I hunt out of state which I probably won't ever do or if I move. I really do like that ruger and a few of the .223s. I just may have a hard time in this state finding alot of these rifles to try to hold and see how it goes me and check it over. I'll start making some calls. if I didn't have a waiting period to get a gun I would journey out of state and just go check out some good shops. But illinois is just getting more strict every year.
 
Justin, I own both a .223 bolt action and a .357 in a lever action (Marlin 1894) and both are a whole lot of fun to shoot! If you're thinking of 100 and 200 yd. shooting though, I would probably err on the side of the .223 which is what I shoot at those distances. When I'm shooting indoors in winter, my .357 rifle at 25 yds. is great fun and cheap to feed. At longer ranges, I stick to my .223, and break out my .22 rifle if I feel like a challenge at 100 yds (wind plays havoc with a .22 at 100 yds.! Helps with sharpening your wind call skills).

p.s. sounds like you're in Illinois? If so, there is a Bass Pro Shop in Gurnee Mills with lot's of rifles to shoulder. If you're near the southeastern WI area, you'd be welcome to try my rifles!
 
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