Suggestions on first rifle purchase

On a bolt-action center-fire rifle, I prefer a 24" barrel, but 22" is quite common and acceptable as the minimum length for me. Shorter barrels are noticeably much louder......

P.S. I did exactly what Wyosmith did in post #14 above. Even the rifle and caliber were the same. Except I was 17 at the time.
 
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I'm going to give you advice in a different direction.

Haunt your local shops (and the want ads, too), and look for a used rifle in decent mechanical shape. Forget about the finish. Lots of deer rifles got carried a lot, and used very little. Consider it a "trainer", something you can learn on, and not worry if it gets a little dinged up.

Save up for the dream rifle, get a cheap beater to learn on.

ALSO, beware of getting "too much gun".

My (at the time, future) wife got talked into getting an 06 by a family friend who was one of the .30-06 for everything crowd. She had no real experience with centerfire rifles. Nothing bigger than a .22. I told her she wouldn't be happy but she didn't listen to me. ONLY time (ever) she didn't take my advice about guns. She would up getting a Savage 110CL (she's left handed) in .30-06. The "helpful" clerk sold her 180gr RN Remington ammo.

TOO MUCH, TOO SOON!!!
I don't think she ever did finish the whole box. After a few shots, she had a terrible flinch. I shortened the stock and put on a recoil pad, and while it did help a bit, she still had a very bad flinch. Simply put, the rifle scared her.

Since she's not a very enthusiastic shooter, it literally took me decades to get her over it, to where she could shoot a .30-30, without being scared of it.

One of the easiest ways to ruin a new shooter is to shoot too much gun, too soon.

I agree, Mannlicher stocks do look cool. They have their drawbacks, but they look grand. Mannlicher hunted in the Alps. Lots of steep slopes. He often used his rifle as a aid to climbing, or a walking stick. His stock design gave him something more comfortable to hold on to than the bare barrel when doing this.
 
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What caliber would you recommend for the 550 Mannlicher if you were to only own one rifle, and deer would be the largest game you would likely ever hunt?
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6.5x55 Swedish Mauser. Any of the 6.5s (6.5 Swede, 6.5 Creedmoor, .260 Remington) are ideal for deer-sized game. You won't likely find the ammo at your local Walmart, but it's not all that rare, either.

The 6.5 Swede has legions of fans, and would be a classic and highly effective cartridge in a classy rifle like the 550 Mannlicher. A friend had this exact setup, and it was a fine combo, to be sure.
 
I think the .243 would be a great choice. I have 3 of them. A Browning blr,Remington 7600,Winchester m70. I have shot quite a few deer with them and they always dropped or gone 10 yds. I like the 243 because of the light recoil so that I can practice more(I practice with a 44mag for deer also but because of the recoil I never shoot many more than 5 rounds compared to a box of 243s). I think that the 243 would be great for your target practice and then if you get to hunt,it will be great for that too
 
30-06 is good for everything, including giving new shooters a sore shoulder...

Still have a little scar above my right eye from when my dad handed me his 3006 for the first time haha.

I agree with the used gun first, you can find a very good shooter for around $400 used and really find out if what you've bought is right for you.

Jumping to a 30-06 or another large caliber from a 22 is going to be a huge eye opener. Something like a 243, might be more enjoyable. It is still a great deer cartridge and you can find the ammo just about everywhere, including my local gas station!

I'd even look at the 223, That'll be the cheapest caliber to shoot, and as a result can really get good at shooting with it.
 
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CZs are great

If a 550 tickles your fancy in 30-06 then buy one. You can always add another rifle later. While it may not be a light kicker it's not much different than a 308. You can do a lot worse than a CZ in terms of performance while you can find cheaper alternatives, few will be as classy as a full stock CZ.
 
The .243 Win is a cartridge that I never used until I wanted to re-barrel a seldom-used .22-250 Rem 700 that was once used for woodchuck hunting and turkey shoots, but needed to find a rifle for grand-kids to use for deer hunting.

After getting the now .243 Win rifle back, I used it for coyote hunting. I'm very impressed with its power and accuracy with minimal recoil. I liked it so much, I bought a Tikka T3 Lite in that chambering and absolutely LOVE the rifle and the .243 cartridge.

So far, the two .243s I have killed 6 deer in 4 years, including a nice buck I got with the T3 at 200 yards, when carrying my pop-up blind up to our regular stand a couple years ago for the kids to use.

I'm using handloads and been using Hornady GMAX bullets in three cartridges. They've worked especially well in the .243 Win.
 
If deer are the largest thing you'll be hunting then I'd definitely get the .243 as others have suggested. Mostly because it's more fun shooting a gun with lower recoil.

For game or varmints smaller than deer many hunters would agree a smaller caliber than .30 or even .270 would be more "appropriate". (But this statement could cause a minor caliber war so disregard it.;) )

One thing you should be aware of is that CZ puts 'set triggers' on a lot of their rifles. On their models with this feature if you do a normal trigger pull you get a normal trigger pull weight BUT if you first push the trigger FORWARD you engage the "set trigger" feature and then the trigger will break at a MUCH lighter pull weight when you pull it. Neat for target shooting and if you have the time and inclination to make a really accurate shot while hunting. CZ is one of the few manufacturers I know of that routinely puts this feature on there rifles. I suspect others don't because of liability issues.
 
One thing you should be aware of is that CZ puts 'set triggers' on a lot of their rifles.
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This is what is known as a "Single Set Trigger". "Setting" the trigger changes the pull from pounds to ounces. Canjar was famous for their version, where a little tab popped out of the trigger when set, and a few ounces pressure on the tab would fire the rifle. Lifting the bolt handle "unset" their trigger. Not sure if the CZ versions works like that, or not.

One sometimes sees rifles with two triggers (even muzzleloaders), most often European. These are called Double Set Triggers. Front trigger, normal pull (pounds), pulling the rear trigger "sets" the front trigger to fire with a pull weight of ounces. (aka "hair trigger")
 
recoil

Another vote for a modest caliber and be wary of the '06, especially in a carbine like the light, short CZ550 Bavarian. Certainly a quality item, to last your lifetime, your kids and grandkids too. But blast, flash and recoil, real or perceived, is pretty high in a short light '06. I've got a similar rifle in '06, and do not run it full power, it's just too darn obnoxious. And I've learned I don't really have to, as it kills just fine running about .300 Savage levels. As noted by others, the jump from a .22 to '06 is pretty dramatic, and in the carbine, even more so. I don't see '06 as a training or paper punching round for the most part either , high power match shooting excluded.

For punching paper now, and maybe deer in the future, and you are truly limited to one centerfire rifle, I would agree with the other recommendations of .243.

However, let me add that a bolt .223 is a great step up from .22 lr as a trainer, and ammo is plentiful and comparitivly affordable. There are a lot of price point .223 bolt rifles on the market these days that can give you centerfire practice and ballistics, without high cost, recoil and blast. You will be able to shoot a bunch of .223 for the cost of a good deal less amount of '06 ......or........ .243 for that matter. But I do not see the .223 as an ideal deer round.......which means you would need a heavier game rifle if the opportunity develops for you to hunt.
 
Thanks again for the replies everyone. I never expected to get this kind of response with so much helpful information. I will be sure to keep everyone posted, and of course post some pictures of what ever I end up with!
 
I too like the CZ. If I was not shooting so much I would have kept trying to get a heavy barrel one.

They tend to be more accurate than the norm.

The ones we get do not have the trigger set. They do offer that in Europe as well as dual trigger.

If its just deer, 243 or a 6.5 would do great.
 
The CZ 550 with the Turkish Walnut, Mannlicher-Style stock is a sweet rifle and a real nice classic hunting rifle. Were I to get one I would consider the rifle in 6.5 X 55 Swede or the 308 Winchester cartridge. Either is a fine cartridge for deer size game with the .308 likely offering a wider selection of bullets. There are other fine rifles as mentioned but the walnut is exceptionally pretty lending itself to a classic look. The CZ 550 has other caliber offerings to choose from including 30-06 Springfield, 270 Winchester, 243 Winchester and the 9.3 X 62mm. I just happen to like the 6.5 X 55mm Swede and the .308 Winchester.

Ron
 
Tikka T3 hunter. Check out eurooptics as the T3x is generation 2 and the original t3 is now heavily discounted and upgrades are minimal at best. I bought a 338 win mag for myself and a 300 win mag for my son. Most accurate rifle I've ever owned. I've got the 338 clover leafing at 100 yards. Bought both for $519 each. Free shipping. eurooptics.com.
 
while I don't have one yet, I would pick up a browning xbolt in 308. almost in the same class as the 06 with velocity and energy, with less recoil, Ive handled a few at gander and fleetfarm and like the way they shoulder. 308 ammo can be bought anywhere and with todays premium ammo there is nothing in north America you couldn't hunt, even African plains game.
 
You did not say what you wanted to do with the rifle, so if you are looking for accuracy without as much recoil and report as 30-06 or .308 can produce, consider a .223 Rem, if that caliber is offered in the model you like. You can get excellent accuracy from this caliber if you don't take it out too far, and you won't come home with a sore shoulder or dirty looks from your neighbors at the range ;). It's also an affordable caliber to reload, and once you dial in a load that consistently performs, it's just fun! Good luck.
 
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What about the AR-15 platform? Ammo is considerably cheaper and much more fun to "plink" with. You can always get a conversion top to .22 LR for cheap plinking or possibly going with 6.8 for hunting. Make sure you check the laws and get some capped off mags. ARs are great for a first rifle.
 
The 550 is a long action gun. CZ played games with the magazine to chamber in a shorter cartridge like the 243 (I owned one). It's pretty easy to short stroke the action and not load another round. If you go the 550 Full Stock route make sure you get one chambered for the long action 30-06 etc. I keep telling myself I will get another one some day in 9.3 x 62. One of the other members commented about using it on the bench. Not the best choice for that but it is a super design for field use and the iron sights that come on the gun work well.
 
Barrett M98B .338 Laupa Magnum, Badger Rings, 8x32 Schmidt and Bender Scope, Atlas Bipod, and 500 rounds of 300 Grain Sierra match kings.....then the OP is ready for deer at 100 yards and casual plinking.
 
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