Why No .22 Rimfire Interest?

Well said Jimbob86, well said.

Ever since this thread opened up, I had some idea of saying something about the waning skill of shooting while standing on one's hind legs (or however Col. Cooper put it). Regardless of caliber or case type, to know your firearm and to shoot it well- and to be able to pass those skills on- is indeed quite a manly and noble thing.
 
I took a quick count. I have four .22s, three of which are definite shooters, and one of which I haven't decided if I'm going to shoot it yet. (It's a Ducks Unlimited edition Marlin Model 60.) I've also decided that I'm in the market for another. This time I need a .22 bolt gun. I don't have one of those yet.
 
most

I'd speculate that .22 lr is the caliber I shoot most......informal practice here at the house, mostly these days with scoped rifle. My .22 shooting ebbed a bit when the ammo crunch hit, but we're back in business now.

We have a cow bell target up at 100 yds, and two rifles zeroed specifically "on" at 100 yds, one scoped the other not. The bell is in much less danger these days from me with the peep sighted Moss 44US, but I still manage some hits.
We've also worked out how to hold "on" with the picket post of a duplex reticle and a 2-7x variable scope on a Ruger 77/22. Although zeroed on at 50, at about 4.5x, the picket post yields hits at 100 if held on the bell. We occasionally take the bell over to the neighbors hay field, and set it out 200 yds plus. That is a hoot as well.

Those cowbell targets have jumped in price, but they are fun.......
 
SM said:
The CZs certainly look nice, but they’re also considerably pricier than the RAR or the Savages I’ve been eying.
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The CZ 452 could shoot some shockingly small groups. I have no first-hand experience of the 455, but I understand the trigger to be inferior. I have a BRNO 2500, a CZ 452 variant, and it isn't the sort of thing I would take out in the rain. It's too nice. Maybe it's like that Marlin you don't know about shooting.

I don't regard the RAR I bought for my daughter the same way. It's waterproof (plastic stock), replaceable, has a good trigger, is less accurate than the CZ but much more accurate than I shoot offhand. My only gripe is the stiff bolt operation. CZ bolt can be a bit stiff too. The last savage I shot was easy and quick.

I think Ruger got a lot right on the RAR. Good luck deciding.
 
The CZ has great quality no doubt but either of my Savage 22 bolts or my Marlin 17 HMR will hang with anything for accuracy.

A CZ is of course on my wish list, I like the combo set. Nice rig.

J
 
I have two, a Ruger 10/22 target model which serves the Appleseed "Liberty Training Rifle" role, and a Mark IV target pistol in stainless with threaded barrel, which I use to introduce friends to shooting.

.22 is cheap, and is the way to go with starting new shooters.
 
I have a Ruger 10/22 vintage 1970 that has taken a fair amount of game and provided countless hours of plinking pleasure. A Marlin .22lr carbine from the late 80's. The I moved into .22WMR with a Marlin 883SS bolt action which is a flat shooting wonder that has become my favorite varmint slayer. And of course my LCR .22WMR which I'm thinking of trading for a LCRx 3" in the same caliber.

.22 is a fun caliber.
 
zukiphile said:
The CZ 452 could shoot some shockingly small groups. I have no first-hand experience of the 455, but I understand the trigger to be inferior. I have a BRNO 2500, a CZ 452 variant, and it isn't the sort of thing I would take out in the rain. It's too nice. Maybe it's like that Marlin you don't know about shooting.

I don't regard the RAR I bought for my daughter the same way. It's waterproof (plastic stock), replaceable, has a good trigger, is less accurate than the CZ but much more accurate than I shoot offhand. My only gripe is the stiff bolt operation. CZ bolt can be a bit stiff too. The last savage I shot was easy and quick.

I think Ruger got a lot right on the RAR. Good luck deciding.
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My wife’s CZ455 has an obnoxiously stiff bolt when using CCI branded ammo (Quiets/SV/Minimags). It goes in hard and comes out even harder. It’s like butter with Federal ammo though. No idea why, but it just gets Federal now.
 
Areoflyer09 said:
My wife’s CZ455 has an obnoxiously stiff bolt when using CCI branded ammo (Quiets/SV/Minimags). It goes in hard and comes out even harder. It’s like butter with Federal ammo though. No idea why, but it just gets Federal now.
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The CZ .22 bolt rifles are notorious for having ever-so-slightly undersized chambers and barrels, to the point where they can be impossible to clean with a standard .22 cleaning rod. I finally settled on a .17 cleaning rod with .20 jags for cleaning my 452.

I've never run into the "stiff-bolt" issue you describe, but given the cleaning issue, I can believe that some .22 cases might be a better fit than others.
 
That's an interesting problem I hadn't heard of so I thought I would see if any of my CCI .22's were slightly larger than other brands. I used a high quality micrometer (not a dial caliper) and found that CCI cases were at or slightly below the average size of the other brands I checked.

CCI (Stinger and Blazer) ran 0.2228 to 0.2231 in diameter.
Lapua Multi-Match was also in the 0.2231 range.
Federal Gold Match was the same - 0.2231
Various Winchester and Remington ran a bit larger with the largest being 0.2234.

Now, that's only measuring the ammo I have, not the ammo Areoflyer09 has, so the data is of the for-what-it's-worth variety. Maybe something else is going on with his CZ other than oversized .22 cases.

I would think that most manufacturers use the same case forming machinery for all varieties of their ammo.
 
I usually warm up with my Browning Buckmark just to focus on trigger control and to help my focus. I start new shooters on the Buckmark to build confidence and reduce flinching. I picked up ammo anytime I saw a deal so I am sitting on over 10,000 rounds of .22. If prices go through the roof, I might be tempted to sell some off.
 
It’s the only rimfire I have that has issues with CCIs. It’s happy with the Federals and prints about as well as I can manage with the Target Gold or Gold Match whichever the name is. If it had issues with everything I’d be more concerned, but it’s got an ammo it likes and shoots it well. Just an interesting data point.

The effort difference is needing to actually push the bolt up with your hand and just using your fingers. It’s bizarre and I’d probably contact CZ about it but it’s the wife’s and isn’t shot much. She’s happy with the Federals and would be less happy if it had to go back to CZ.

I may measure some of casings and see I just managed to get weird CCIs or if the Feds are just smaller.
 
Mal H said:
That's an interesting problem I hadn't heard of so I thought I would see if any of my CCI .22's were slightly larger than other brands. I used a high quality micrometer (not a dial caliper) and found that CCI cases were at or slightly below the average size of the other brands I checked.

CCI (Stinger and Blazer) ran 0.2228 to 0.2231 in diameter.
Lapua Multi-Match was also in the 0.2231 range.
Federal Gold Match was the same - 0.2231
Various Winchester and Remington ran a bit larger with the largest being 0.2234.

Now, that's only measuring the ammo I have, not the ammo Areoflyer09 has, so the data is of the for-what-it's-worth variety. Maybe something else is going on with his CZ other than oversized .22 cases.

I would think that most manufacturers use the same case forming machinery for all varieties of their ammo.
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So I’m out of the Federal, but my CCIs (SVs & MiniMags) measuared out between .2230-.2235.
 
I never got much out of shooting.22's. Been shooting pistols for years, and I have a Ruger Mark II. I'm more accurate with my Sig X-Five, even using crappy ammo, and each magazine holds 20 rounds. Cost of shooting crappy 9mm vs. good .22LR is not any big difference to me.
 
When we were little, Dad taught brother and I to shoot with a Ruger .22 revolver, and a Remington Targetmaster .22 rifle.

Now have a revolver and rifle somewhat similar to both, and enjoy them very much. The .22 ammo shortage era was very annoying.
 
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