I find I keep hearing the same thing over and over again in this section of the site and feel we need a "resort to thread" for rimfire basics. Please people lets cover as many basics here to help out the new shooters so there arent new threads everyday about the same questions that have been answered a million times. PLEASE NO BASHING and valid points please
LETS BEGIN
RIMFIRE BASICS
* .22 L(ong),LR(ifle), and S(hort) ARE REAL GUNS, they are able to kill and should be handled with respect and care
*THERE IS NO ONE BEST AMMO FOR ALL RIMFIRES, try many different types/brands of ammo to determine which brand/s your gun/s like
22 action types: general attributes only, exceptions exist as always.
Bolt-action - most accurate out of the box compared other types, slow follow-up shots, easier to strip and clean, a bit more expensive than semi-autos, available with box or tube magazines. Single shot models are still available for training younger shooters.
Semi-auto - a little less accurate than bolties, quickest follow-up shots, a little more complicated to dismantle and clean, cheaper than bolties, available with box or tube magazines.
Lever - has pretty much cult following (Marlin 39), can be as accurate as some bolties, quick follow up shots, tube magazine, most expensive type to buy used or new.
Pump - follow-up shots almost as quick as semis, good accuracy, tube-magazine. I don't think they make this type anymore.
Box Magazine (yes technically they are magazines, not clips) Vs. Tube Magazine:
Box - faster reloads, usually 5 to 10 shots for stock mags, some rifles have accessory 50 rounders available, good reliability when the magazines are in good shape.
Tube - faster reloads (yeah, proponents of either type claim they can do faster reloads), speed loaders are available or you can make them out of arrow shafts, plastic tubing or straws, typical mag capacity is 14 up to 19 long rifle rounds, reliable.
Other Commonly Available Makes:
Savage:
Makes great accurate bolt-actions which many declare to be the best value in bolt-action rifles. The Accutrigger is one reason for their accuracy. Their semi-autos are decent little rifles. Made at the old Lakefield factory in Ontario, Canada. Magazines are cheap, 10 round blued are 15 bucks @ shipped, if ordered directly from Savage Canada.
Marlin:
Makes great accurate bolt actions and semi-autos which many declare to be best buys. They make box and tube mag rifles. Marlin Firearms has produced 11 million semi-auto Model 60s since the 60s. Microgroove barrels are to Marlin as the Accutrigger is to Savage. Made in Connecticut USA now, moving to a southern state in the next 18 months.
Savage and Marlin are in similar price range, starting at around $200, meaning affordable and inexpensive in their basic models, going into mid-price range for their premium models.
CZ:
Mid-priced bolt-actions around 5-600 dollars, but for this money you get excellent design, materials like the walnut stocks can be exquisite, workmanship, looks, fit and finish. Accuracy could be better than the Noth American brands, but I would not bet on it.
Set trigger models available for a hundred bucks more. Bolt action can be smoother but easy to remedy although at this price, you expect the factory to do a better job. FWIW, CZ452s can be dry-fired safely. A semi-auto, the 511 was made and might be found if you are lucky.
* It is a debate still whether you should clean or not clean your rimfire rifles, both methods seemed ok for me, rimfires are durable and the rifling is not as weak/easy to damage as some people say.
* There are many different types of rimfire rifles, bolt, semi automatic, lever, pump, single shot, and etc, there is no one better rifle, they all do there jobs well and choose one or multiple depending on your preferred purpose.
* .22 LR can be shot past 100 yards
* .22S are still being produced and sold, you just have to search/call different shops to find it
RUGER 10/22
* There is a "break in" period thats why they jam also called "stove piping" the break in process usually is between 500-1000 rounds before operating smoother without jamming.
* A Volquestrian extractor helps stop the "stove piping" issue if your 10/22 still keeps jamming after the break in process, such sites as rimfiresports is where you can get Volquestrian parts and other rimfire parts.
*10/22's are picky with ammo such as many rimfires THERE IS NO ONE BEST AMMO FOR ALL RIM FIRE RIFLES, try out as many different brands as you can to determine which brand your gun likes.
597 Remington VS Ruger 10/22
* Both are good guns and one is NOT better then the other, both do need some love and care to work well, the 10/22 does have more aftermarket parts for it
.17 HMR VS .22 MAG
* Both are excellent .17HMR although smaller still is very accurate and is a fast round, while .22 MAG has more terminal velocity, while slightly slower it hits harder. The only real difference to me is .17HMR is a bit more expensive then .22 MAG
Here are some peoples/mine as well review on ammo
Winchester high velocity: excellent price, paid $19 for 500, no duds every round was shot, I did not like the hollow point the tips kept getting smooshed against the bottom of the barrel, round burned pretty clean .
Remington Thunderbolts: decent price, paid $22 for 500, a lot of duds, burned very dirty all the powder did not burn, solid tip was better then the hollow point.
Remington Yellow jacket: price was a bit expensive for the quality, $9 dollars for 100, burned very dirty, did not like the hollow point, smooshed against bottom of the barrel, no duds at all
CCI Stinger: price was a bit steep 8 dollars for 50, excellent round, led sat firmly without wobble in the case, solid point had no problems, no duds, burned really clean, hard hitting round. Worth paying more money for
Here's my experience, but your results may vary due to the gun:
Winchester 333 - Clean, accurate, reliable, cheap. Cycles perfectly in my MKIII. Bulk high velocity doesn't get much better than this.
Lapua Standard + - Moderately priced good quality target ammo. No fliers (yet) and I get sub 1" groups at 100 yds with my bench rifle.
Fiocchi Standard - Good, accurate, consistent and cheap. This is all I use for 50 yd shooting in my Savage BV.
Eley Sport - Good target ammo but hard to find. My 10/22 really liked it. For longer range use I've switched to Lapua.
American Eagle - Good, accurate, fairly cheap. I used to use this in my MKIII until I found that 333 was easier to find. The solid point is good if your gun hiccups on HP.
Winchester Wildcat - Don't know if they're still making this. Good bulk ammo that worked in all of my guns but very dirty.
Remington Target - Cannot get consistent results with this in any of my .22s. 50 yd groups were in the 3" range. I only use it for throw away rounds to warm up the barrel.
This is quoting "CanadianGunUser" I think his review is very good as well and covers a lot of ground.
So I just recieved 3 new BC Steel lips 25 rd mags, and I wanted to test them out vs the 3 Hot Lips that I already have (but haven't used much). I also wanted to see what would feed and shoot reliably in my 10/22 with the few add ons that I have. First off my 10/22 is just a standard model with a barrel band and iron sights and has only a few mods; 1. Tuffer Buffer, 2. Volquartsen Extractor, 3. Volquartsen Mag Release, 4. "Recoil" Pad (just to extend the length of pull some).
I bought up several types of ammo from the local CT and cycled through them in full and partial magazine loads. Point to note, I was not really looking at group size. The first run of every type was a 25 rd full mag at a 50m target to see how it cycled. The group sizes are generalizations based on 5 and 10rd groups fired later. And as a rule different ammo runs differently in each rifle.
1. I started with the old stuff that I was using at 25 rds in all 6 mags to see how they compared. This was Winchester Dynapoint GT 500 rd cheapo 40 GR HP Plated. Just loading this crap in the steel lipped mags was a problem. In short it is GARBAGE with terrible tolerances and FTF and inconsistent sizes. Really not a surprise. It cycled basically alright through the Hot Lips which apparently have looser tolerances, but had at least 2 stoppages per mag. I will have to finish the box off in the 10/22 factory 10 round mag as it's the only thing that will feed this garbage well. Don't waste your money unless you like to practice clearing stoppages.
2. Federal 40 GR Solid I fed this through a Steel Lip and had feeding issues with the first two rounds, BUT I then reseated the mag and it fed fine. Actually running very consistently throughout with decent groups.
3.Federal Champion 525 RD Value Pack, 36 GR HP Plated 1280 FPS Absolutely no issues or stoppages at all through any mag throughout the day. Looking at a case side on it has a noticeably wider primer and a narrower nose which feeds quite well in my mags. It is not competition grade for grouping but does well for 525 rd boxes.
4. Winchester Super X Power Point 40 GR High Velocity 1280 FPS Plated (100 rd box stuff) I expected better performace out of this stuff as it is more expensive and comes in a fancy box. Unfortunately although it groups decently it has about a 1 or 2 in 300 Failure to Fire and doesen't always feed well when shooting rapidly. I won't buy it for BC mags anymore.
5. Federal Game Shok 38 GR HP Plated High Velocity This fed perfectly and was consistently decent in grouping. It had no issues feeding with a steady rate of fire. It also grouped well even in 25 round groups.
6. Remington Thunderbolt High Velocity 40 Grain Lead Round Nose 1255 FPS In short, GARBAGE, I only fired 50-75 rounds and had 5 Failures to Fire. It generally fed well but didn't group well and anything that costs a little more should go bang when the trigger is pulled. Not going to buy it again.
7. Winchester Wild Cat 40 GR High Velocity Solid This fed reliably, but had a fairly large spread. I can't be sure about the accuracy though. I will have to try it again.
8. Blazer 40 GR Solid This also fed reliably but had a couple wingers in one or two of my groups. Although a gust of wind at 50m can cause that with a .22. The main group itself was decent, but I will have to confirm again.
9. American Eagle This fed reliably every time and held a decent group. It seems to be a good choice and I expect it will hold up well when compared to others for accuracy.
10. CCI Stingers These shot well when I had earlier compared them to the dynapoint garbage and winchester super X, but on this shoot there was a problem. Out of every 10 or so rounds, 2 or 3 of them would fail to load on cycling, as though the action cycled enough to re-#### the hammer but not enough to allow the round to be stripped from the magazine. This could be a size issue, or a filthy rifle issue. But when I made up 25 round mags of 5 rounds each of different types these are the only type that caused this problem. This only happened with two or three rounds previously so I'm not sure if it's an issue with the ammo, or if as I said they are only reliable in a cleaner rifle. That aside they generally group reasonably, but the groups were split due the cycling issue so I can't be sure.
In conclusion, the Federal Champion Value Pack ammo is going to be my pick for bulk ammo with this rifle, and the American Eagle I suspect will be the front runner for accuracy when I compare group sizes later.
Also, I can say that both the BC Hot Lips and Steel Lips seem to feed almost anything, with the Steel Lips seeming to be much tighter in tolerance. I also except that they will perform reliably much longer than the Hot Lips and that the Hot Lips will wear down much faster. When I got the Hot Lips they would not seat easily in the rifle, but it took little time to wear the plastic down to the right size just through use. This is good in that they now fit this rifle just right, but not good in that they worked in too easily. The Steel Lips are also easier on the thumbs to load.
Finally- I need to buy a mag loader, 5 hours of loading mags and shooting was ridiculous.
.22 action types: general attributes only, exceptions exist as always.
Bolt-action - most accurate out of the box compared other types, slow follow-up shots, easier to strip and clean, a bit more expensive than semi-autos, available with box or tube magazines. Single shot models are still available for training younger shooters.
Semi-auto - a little less accurate than bolties, quickest follow-up shots, a little more complicated to dismantle and clean, cheaper than bolties, available with box or tube magazines.
Lever - has pretty much cult following (Marlin 39), can be as accurate as some bolties, quick follow up shots, tube magazine, most expensive type to buy used or new.
Pump - follow-up shots almost as quick as semis, good accuracy, tube-magazine. I don't think they make this type anymore.
Box Magazine (yes technically they are magazines, not clips) Vs. Tube Magazine:
Box - faster reloads, usually 5 to 10 shots for stock mags, some rifles have accessory 50 rounders available, good reliability when the magazines are in good shape.
Tube - faster reloads (yeah, proponents of either type claim they can do faster reloads), speed loaders are available or you can make them out of arrow shafts, plastic tubing or straws, typical mag capacity is 14 up to 19 long rifle rounds, reliable.
Other Commonly Available Makes:
Savage:
Makes great accurate bolt-actions which many declare to be the best value in bolt-action rifles. The Accutrigger is one reason for their accuracy. Their semi-autos are decent little rifles. Made at the old Lakefield factory in Ontario, Canada. Magazines are cheap, 10 round blued are 15 bucks @ shipped, if ordered directly from Savage Canada.
Marlin:
Makes great accurate bolt actions and semi-autos which many declare to be best buys. They make box and tube mag rifles. Marlin Firearms has produced 11 million semi-auto Model 60s since the 60s. Microgroove barrels are to Marlin as the Accutrigger is to Savage. Made in Connecticut USA now, moving to a southern state in the next 18 months.
Savage and Marlin are in similar price range, starting at around $200, meaning affordable and inexpensive in their basic models, going into mid-price range for their premium models.
CZ:
Mid-priced bolt-actions around 5-600 dollars, but for this money you get excellent design, materials like the walnut stocks can be exquisite, workmanship, looks, fit and finish. Accuracy could be better than the Noth American brands, but I would not bet on it.
Set trigger models available for a hundred bucks more. Bolt action can be smoother but easy to remedy although at this price, you expect the factory to do a better job. FWIW, CZ452s can be dry-fired safely. A semi-auto, the 511 was made and might be found if you are lucky.
LETS BEGIN
RIMFIRE BASICS
* .22 L(ong),LR(ifle), and S(hort) ARE REAL GUNS, they are able to kill and should be handled with respect and care
*THERE IS NO ONE BEST AMMO FOR ALL RIMFIRES, try many different types/brands of ammo to determine which brand/s your gun/s like
22 action types: general attributes only, exceptions exist as always.
Bolt-action - most accurate out of the box compared other types, slow follow-up shots, easier to strip and clean, a bit more expensive than semi-autos, available with box or tube magazines. Single shot models are still available for training younger shooters.
Semi-auto - a little less accurate than bolties, quickest follow-up shots, a little more complicated to dismantle and clean, cheaper than bolties, available with box or tube magazines.
Lever - has pretty much cult following (Marlin 39), can be as accurate as some bolties, quick follow up shots, tube magazine, most expensive type to buy used or new.
Pump - follow-up shots almost as quick as semis, good accuracy, tube-magazine. I don't think they make this type anymore.
Box Magazine (yes technically they are magazines, not clips) Vs. Tube Magazine:
Box - faster reloads, usually 5 to 10 shots for stock mags, some rifles have accessory 50 rounders available, good reliability when the magazines are in good shape.
Tube - faster reloads (yeah, proponents of either type claim they can do faster reloads), speed loaders are available or you can make them out of arrow shafts, plastic tubing or straws, typical mag capacity is 14 up to 19 long rifle rounds, reliable.
Other Commonly Available Makes:
Savage:
Makes great accurate bolt-actions which many declare to be the best value in bolt-action rifles. The Accutrigger is one reason for their accuracy. Their semi-autos are decent little rifles. Made at the old Lakefield factory in Ontario, Canada. Magazines are cheap, 10 round blued are 15 bucks @ shipped, if ordered directly from Savage Canada.
Marlin:
Makes great accurate bolt actions and semi-autos which many declare to be best buys. They make box and tube mag rifles. Marlin Firearms has produced 11 million semi-auto Model 60s since the 60s. Microgroove barrels are to Marlin as the Accutrigger is to Savage. Made in Connecticut USA now, moving to a southern state in the next 18 months.
Savage and Marlin are in similar price range, starting at around $200, meaning affordable and inexpensive in their basic models, going into mid-price range for their premium models.
CZ:
Mid-priced bolt-actions around 5-600 dollars, but for this money you get excellent design, materials like the walnut stocks can be exquisite, workmanship, looks, fit and finish. Accuracy could be better than the Noth American brands, but I would not bet on it.
Set trigger models available for a hundred bucks more. Bolt action can be smoother but easy to remedy although at this price, you expect the factory to do a better job. FWIW, CZ452s can be dry-fired safely. A semi-auto, the 511 was made and might be found if you are lucky.
* It is a debate still whether you should clean or not clean your rimfire rifles, both methods seemed ok for me, rimfires are durable and the rifling is not as weak/easy to damage as some people say.
* There are many different types of rimfire rifles, bolt, semi automatic, lever, pump, single shot, and etc, there is no one better rifle, they all do there jobs well and choose one or multiple depending on your preferred purpose.
* .22 LR can be shot past 100 yards
* .22S are still being produced and sold, you just have to search/call different shops to find it
RUGER 10/22
* There is a "break in" period thats why they jam also called "stove piping" the break in process usually is between 500-1000 rounds before operating smoother without jamming.
* A Volquestrian extractor helps stop the "stove piping" issue if your 10/22 still keeps jamming after the break in process, such sites as rimfiresports is where you can get Volquestrian parts and other rimfire parts.
*10/22's are picky with ammo such as many rimfires THERE IS NO ONE BEST AMMO FOR ALL RIM FIRE RIFLES, try out as many different brands as you can to determine which brand your gun likes.
597 Remington VS Ruger 10/22
* Both are good guns and one is NOT better then the other, both do need some love and care to work well, the 10/22 does have more aftermarket parts for it
.17 HMR VS .22 MAG
* Both are excellent .17HMR although smaller still is very accurate and is a fast round, while .22 MAG has more terminal velocity, while slightly slower it hits harder. The only real difference to me is .17HMR is a bit more expensive then .22 MAG
Here are some peoples/mine as well review on ammo
Winchester high velocity: excellent price, paid $19 for 500, no duds every round was shot, I did not like the hollow point the tips kept getting smooshed against the bottom of the barrel, round burned pretty clean .
Remington Thunderbolts: decent price, paid $22 for 500, a lot of duds, burned very dirty all the powder did not burn, solid tip was better then the hollow point.
Remington Yellow jacket: price was a bit expensive for the quality, $9 dollars for 100, burned very dirty, did not like the hollow point, smooshed against bottom of the barrel, no duds at all
CCI Stinger: price was a bit steep 8 dollars for 50, excellent round, led sat firmly without wobble in the case, solid point had no problems, no duds, burned really clean, hard hitting round. Worth paying more money for
Here's my experience, but your results may vary due to the gun:
Winchester 333 - Clean, accurate, reliable, cheap. Cycles perfectly in my MKIII. Bulk high velocity doesn't get much better than this.
Lapua Standard + - Moderately priced good quality target ammo. No fliers (yet) and I get sub 1" groups at 100 yds with my bench rifle.
Fiocchi Standard - Good, accurate, consistent and cheap. This is all I use for 50 yd shooting in my Savage BV.
Eley Sport - Good target ammo but hard to find. My 10/22 really liked it. For longer range use I've switched to Lapua.
American Eagle - Good, accurate, fairly cheap. I used to use this in my MKIII until I found that 333 was easier to find. The solid point is good if your gun hiccups on HP.
Winchester Wildcat - Don't know if they're still making this. Good bulk ammo that worked in all of my guns but very dirty.
Remington Target - Cannot get consistent results with this in any of my .22s. 50 yd groups were in the 3" range. I only use it for throw away rounds to warm up the barrel.
This is quoting "CanadianGunUser" I think his review is very good as well and covers a lot of ground.
So I just recieved 3 new BC Steel lips 25 rd mags, and I wanted to test them out vs the 3 Hot Lips that I already have (but haven't used much). I also wanted to see what would feed and shoot reliably in my 10/22 with the few add ons that I have. First off my 10/22 is just a standard model with a barrel band and iron sights and has only a few mods; 1. Tuffer Buffer, 2. Volquartsen Extractor, 3. Volquartsen Mag Release, 4. "Recoil" Pad (just to extend the length of pull some).
I bought up several types of ammo from the local CT and cycled through them in full and partial magazine loads. Point to note, I was not really looking at group size. The first run of every type was a 25 rd full mag at a 50m target to see how it cycled. The group sizes are generalizations based on 5 and 10rd groups fired later. And as a rule different ammo runs differently in each rifle.
1. I started with the old stuff that I was using at 25 rds in all 6 mags to see how they compared. This was Winchester Dynapoint GT 500 rd cheapo 40 GR HP Plated. Just loading this crap in the steel lipped mags was a problem. In short it is GARBAGE with terrible tolerances and FTF and inconsistent sizes. Really not a surprise. It cycled basically alright through the Hot Lips which apparently have looser tolerances, but had at least 2 stoppages per mag. I will have to finish the box off in the 10/22 factory 10 round mag as it's the only thing that will feed this garbage well. Don't waste your money unless you like to practice clearing stoppages.
2. Federal 40 GR Solid I fed this through a Steel Lip and had feeding issues with the first two rounds, BUT I then reseated the mag and it fed fine. Actually running very consistently throughout with decent groups.
3.Federal Champion 525 RD Value Pack, 36 GR HP Plated 1280 FPS Absolutely no issues or stoppages at all through any mag throughout the day. Looking at a case side on it has a noticeably wider primer and a narrower nose which feeds quite well in my mags. It is not competition grade for grouping but does well for 525 rd boxes.
4. Winchester Super X Power Point 40 GR High Velocity 1280 FPS Plated (100 rd box stuff) I expected better performace out of this stuff as it is more expensive and comes in a fancy box. Unfortunately although it groups decently it has about a 1 or 2 in 300 Failure to Fire and doesen't always feed well when shooting rapidly. I won't buy it for BC mags anymore.
5. Federal Game Shok 38 GR HP Plated High Velocity This fed perfectly and was consistently decent in grouping. It had no issues feeding with a steady rate of fire. It also grouped well even in 25 round groups.
6. Remington Thunderbolt High Velocity 40 Grain Lead Round Nose 1255 FPS In short, GARBAGE, I only fired 50-75 rounds and had 5 Failures to Fire. It generally fed well but didn't group well and anything that costs a little more should go bang when the trigger is pulled. Not going to buy it again.
7. Winchester Wild Cat 40 GR High Velocity Solid This fed reliably, but had a fairly large spread. I can't be sure about the accuracy though. I will have to try it again.
8. Blazer 40 GR Solid This also fed reliably but had a couple wingers in one or two of my groups. Although a gust of wind at 50m can cause that with a .22. The main group itself was decent, but I will have to confirm again.
9. American Eagle This fed reliably every time and held a decent group. It seems to be a good choice and I expect it will hold up well when compared to others for accuracy.
10. CCI Stingers These shot well when I had earlier compared them to the dynapoint garbage and winchester super X, but on this shoot there was a problem. Out of every 10 or so rounds, 2 or 3 of them would fail to load on cycling, as though the action cycled enough to re-#### the hammer but not enough to allow the round to be stripped from the magazine. This could be a size issue, or a filthy rifle issue. But when I made up 25 round mags of 5 rounds each of different types these are the only type that caused this problem. This only happened with two or three rounds previously so I'm not sure if it's an issue with the ammo, or if as I said they are only reliable in a cleaner rifle. That aside they generally group reasonably, but the groups were split due the cycling issue so I can't be sure.
In conclusion, the Federal Champion Value Pack ammo is going to be my pick for bulk ammo with this rifle, and the American Eagle I suspect will be the front runner for accuracy when I compare group sizes later.
Also, I can say that both the BC Hot Lips and Steel Lips seem to feed almost anything, with the Steel Lips seeming to be much tighter in tolerance. I also except that they will perform reliably much longer than the Hot Lips and that the Hot Lips will wear down much faster. When I got the Hot Lips they would not seat easily in the rifle, but it took little time to wear the plastic down to the right size just through use. This is good in that they now fit this rifle just right, but not good in that they worked in too easily. The Steel Lips are also easier on the thumbs to load.
Finally- I need to buy a mag loader, 5 hours of loading mags and shooting was ridiculous.
.22 action types: general attributes only, exceptions exist as always.
Bolt-action - most accurate out of the box compared other types, slow follow-up shots, easier to strip and clean, a bit more expensive than semi-autos, available with box or tube magazines. Single shot models are still available for training younger shooters.
Semi-auto - a little less accurate than bolties, quickest follow-up shots, a little more complicated to dismantle and clean, cheaper than bolties, available with box or tube magazines.
Lever - has pretty much cult following (Marlin 39), can be as accurate as some bolties, quick follow up shots, tube magazine, most expensive type to buy used or new.
Pump - follow-up shots almost as quick as semis, good accuracy, tube-magazine. I don't think they make this type anymore.
Box Magazine (yes technically they are magazines, not clips) Vs. Tube Magazine:
Box - faster reloads, usually 5 to 10 shots for stock mags, some rifles have accessory 50 rounders available, good reliability when the magazines are in good shape.
Tube - faster reloads (yeah, proponents of either type claim they can do faster reloads), speed loaders are available or you can make them out of arrow shafts, plastic tubing or straws, typical mag capacity is 14 up to 19 long rifle rounds, reliable.
Other Commonly Available Makes:
Savage:
Makes great accurate bolt-actions which many declare to be the best value in bolt-action rifles. The Accutrigger is one reason for their accuracy. Their semi-autos are decent little rifles. Made at the old Lakefield factory in Ontario, Canada. Magazines are cheap, 10 round blued are 15 bucks @ shipped, if ordered directly from Savage Canada.
Marlin:
Makes great accurate bolt actions and semi-autos which many declare to be best buys. They make box and tube mag rifles. Marlin Firearms has produced 11 million semi-auto Model 60s since the 60s. Microgroove barrels are to Marlin as the Accutrigger is to Savage. Made in Connecticut USA now, moving to a southern state in the next 18 months.
Savage and Marlin are in similar price range, starting at around $200, meaning affordable and inexpensive in their basic models, going into mid-price range for their premium models.
CZ:
Mid-priced bolt-actions around 5-600 dollars, but for this money you get excellent design, materials like the walnut stocks can be exquisite, workmanship, looks, fit and finish. Accuracy could be better than the Noth American brands, but I would not bet on it.
Set trigger models available for a hundred bucks more. Bolt action can be smoother but easy to remedy although at this price, you expect the factory to do a better job. FWIW, CZ452s can be dry-fired safely. A semi-auto, the 511 was made and might be found if you are lucky.
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Needless to say, it's long gone. I am exaggerating but you get the picture. 
