Rifle Newbie Here

L

Leslie88

Inactive
Hey everyone,

So, I'm totally new to rifles. Fairly new to firearms in general. I have my Sig p320 compact and Sig p938 scorpion for carry. Looking for some help in my first rifle selection. It's just recreation, not hunting.

I love rifles, and long range shooting. Its way more intriguing to me than pistol shooting at the range. I want to purchase my first rifle. I have a few ranges near me in CT, but since I feel shooting a rifle indoors just doesn't feel right the one range I can go to is outdoors with a 100 yard rifle range.

Do I go with a simple .22lr, like the Savage Arms Mark II or Ruger American? Or something bigger like the Remington 783, in .270 or .243?

Thanks everyone, I look forward to your input.
 
Obviously starting out on a 22LR will afford you with WAY more trigger time on the gun due to the low cost of ammo. My opinion is that every man and woman should own at least one 22LR rifle at all times. You may as well start now.

Are you just going to shoot the rifle at the range or do you have other plans for it? 22LR maximum range is 100 for practical purposes. Accuracy will start falling off at 100 yards and beyond fairly quickly. 50 yards is the sweet spot for most 22LR rifle shooting.

You can shoot 500 rounds of 22LR for $40-$60 and you won't feel a thing. You can shoot 500 rounds of 270 for $400-$500 and your shoulder will start getting sore at about the 100 round mark, sooner if you're skinny or a little later if you're thicker in the torso area.
 
I think everyone should start with a 22. Once the basics are mastered you can move up to a center fire. Actually a 22 fired at 100 yards or farther is fun and challenging. Even though I own center fire rifles and shoot at ranges of 300+ yards often I still enjoy shooting the 22's.

Without knowing how much you're willing to spend making specific suggestions is difficult. But an accurate bolt gun with a decent scope is never a bad choice.
 
I'd buy a good 22 for a starter just because everyone should have at least one 22 rifle, and in a couple of months when all the hunting seasons are over you should be able to find good deals on used larger caliber rifles, often with optics installed.

Then Spring will come along and it will be pleasant for shooting outdoors.

I'd stay away from the "intro models" of most new guns since they are seldom all that good.

Get one you like and one that feels good to you.

Any recommendations will just be what works for others, but won't necessarily be the right one for you.
 
I own and shoot a lot of 22 rifles. If you want a classic walnut stock, you can't beat the CZ 455. Beautiful wood, excellent quality, and highly accurate. If you prefer polymer stock, then it's hard to beat the Ruger American right now. If you like lever actions, then you should look at Henry rifles. For automatics, the old Ruger 10/22 is the go-to.

Now there are certainly other routes to go, but those are my recommendations after owning probably over 100 different 22 rifles (I'm a dealer).
 
A .22 is the inexpensive way to learn about the sight picture. To work on coordination between brain and trigger finger. IMO, the learning curve effort is one of deliberate thought until all the pieces come together and become reflexive.

Easy enough to move up to centerfire after the basics are all built in.

Mindset leads to skill set--and there are multitudes of choices about tool sets.
 
I practice technique with a 10/22 LR than pull out the REM Varmint 308 or SPS 30-06 it really does help there are endless utube videos on bench shooting.Yes 22LR is much cheaper for practice and will help a lot it has me.
 
Thanks everyone. One of the ranges I go to, I know has a ruger american .22lr I can rent and try out. I'm going to do that on Wednesday afternoon.

What do you suggest for a target, just paper? When I fired AR's with my friend, his guns obviously we shot at clay targets down field. Is the .22lr too weak for that?

I appreciate the advice everyone.
 
22 will break clays. This is fun, so are metal hangers if range allows it. Plus you don't need to walk down range to change targets. Paper , shoot n c, etc are all fun too! Shooting anything is fun...
 
Leslie88 said:
Thanks everyone. One of the ranges I go to, I know has a ruger american .22lr I can rent and try out. I'm going to do that on Wednesday afternoon.

What do you suggest for a target, just paper? When I fired AR's with my friend, his guns obviously we shot at clay targets down field. Is the .22lr too weak for that?

I appreciate the advice everyone.
Click to expand...
There are all kinds of 22 caliber targets to shoot. You can shoot paper for groups, you can shoot all kinds of different steel reactive targets, swingers, dueling trees, etc. You can also improvuse with golf balls, peppermint discs, butterscotch discs, smarties, etc.

Rimfire Central has all kinds of different paper targets you can print at home with different shapes and animals instead of just a normal bullseye.
 
If your intended use is recreation, then I would start with a Ruger 10/22 and just enjoy chasing bullseyes or cans for the duration.
After you learn the basics of aiming, breathing, shooting, you can start shopping in the fun and games section of your local internet site.
You can scope your rifle or put a red dot on it, or fancy dancy it with some aftermarket stock that lets you put on lasers and tacticool stuff and the ammo is relatively cheap.

If you have the yen to upgrade calibers in the future, you can do so with a solid base of practiced fundamentals and a lot of trigger time to build on.

Happy shooting.
 
Welcome to the range!!!

The 22lr is a great caliber! Even after shooting some of the bigger stuff, the 22 is still just great fun.

For targets, I went to the local bowling alley, and asked if they had any old pins. Get mine for 25 cents each. Last a long time with the 22..

Enjoy, be safe!!

Std7mag
 
+1 on the .22

Savage Mark II, Ruger American or CZ 452 or 455 are all good new rifles. If you can find a good used Mossberg model 44 U.S. military trainer, I would also Give it a hard consideration.
 
Do buy a 22 but realize that you will find yourself wanting to buy another rifle shortly thereafter. Not because shooting a 22 isn't fun, it is, but you will feel the itch / need to get a centerfire cartridge rifle as well. When you do, I would recommend a bolt action 224 or 308. Many options for factory ammo and reloading components for those cartridges.
 
I agree with all of the .22LR advice. I own most of the .22LR's mentioned, Henry Hoo1, Ruger 10/22, Ruger American(great rifle!), Marlin 795 (more accurate than the 10/22), Marlin 25N(another very accurate rifle), and a whole bunch of Marlin 60's.

With that said, I shoot my .223 rifles more than I do rimfire because I can reload it cheaper than I can buy .22LR ammo. And the .223 lets me shoot out to 300-400yrds with decent accuracy.

Something to consider on down the road, if you ever get into hand loading.
 
Go with a 22lr bolt of some kind first and then you can step it up to a semi auto. Work your way up to a .223/.556 NATO they are a lot of fun and there are a lot of upgrades and options for the rifle.
 
I agree with all those saying 22LR. I also suggest a bolt action rifle. Choose one based on your taste and budget. I like the Ruger American and the CZ 455 (or CZ 452 if you can find one).

I found the 10/22 out of the box was not accurate. A gun like that does not encourage the shooter to be the best he can be. Good for bang bang shootem up or if customized they can be great shooters. You are a newbie, so; forget that. Forget any semi, its a bad way to start.

You mentioned 100 yards. I do most of my 22LR at 50 yards. You can move out to 100 later. The 22LR requires more skill than a centerfire at a 100. Good practice, but; you really better start at 50 and stay there for a while.

You might want a gun that can be fired both with a scope and with iron sights. Not a big deal.

Shooting rim fire can be a stepping stone to a bigger gun. it can also be a life long pursuit. You might ask for some coaching to shoot from different positions. Clubs may want you to pass a safety deal, but there is so much more and it worth asking about it.
 
I think everyone needs a 22. I like 22 rifles and I don't have the need for a larger caliber because I don't plan on hunting big game. I have bolt actions and semi-automatics but the gun I like to shoot the most is my Henry lever action rifle. It is fun, accurate and you don't empty the magazine quickly like you do with a semi-automatic.
 
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