Best Older (1975 and previous) Semi-Auto .22

Drachenblut

Drachenblut

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Hello,

I am a milsurp collector, primarily, but also have a love of older .22's. After reading through the Shooter's Bible circa 1973, I notice that there were a LOT of tube fed, 15-or-so round .22cal rifles availiable, from the cheap Mossbergs to the the expensive Nylon 66's. I am interested to start a forum thread here, discussing the older semi-auto .22's, and finding who likes what and why.

Criteria, please feel free to expand on this:

-Speed of Fire
-Types of Ammo Utilized (LR, L, S, Subsonic, High Power)
-Aiming/Accuracy
-Known Problems
-Wood/Synthetic Stock
-Open/Closed Bolt

Cheers,
Drachenblut
 
of all my .22's i think my fav is the Browning auto .22.
Mine only chambers .22 lr but will feed any brand I have tried without any issues and as fast as I can pull the trigger.It is a tube fed semi that loads through a hole in the side of the wooden buttstock.
For a little take down it is super accurate and surprises me each time I take it out.
Because the gun is so light and compact it is easy to get a good sight picture and hold it on target.
That I know of they are not prone to any problems and I have not experienced any with my gun.
Mine is a standard grade,has a nice walnut stock on it, not much figure in the wood but I have seen higher grade guns with beautifully figured stocks and engraving.
I currently own about 12 or 13 rimfires and this remains my favorite.
 
I've had a soft spot for the Winchester Model 63 ever since I first read Unintended Consequences.

3.jpg


The "old-school" construction of walnut and forged and machined steel does it for me, as well as the association with trick shots like Herb Parsons.

The Browning would probably be my second favourite.
 
hicaliber said:
of all my .22's i think my fav is the Browning auto .22.
Mine only chambers .22 lr but will feed any brand I have tried without any issues and as fast as I can pull the trigger.It is a tube fed semi that loads through a hole in the side of the wooden buttstock.
For a little take down it is super accurate and surprises me each time I take it out.
Because the gun is so light and compact it is easy to get a good sight picture and hold it on target.
That I know of they are not prone to any problems and I have not experienced any with my gun.
Mine is a standard grade,has a nice walnut stock on it, not much figure in the wood but I have seen higher grade guns with beautifully figured stocks and engraving.
I currently own about 12 or 13 rimfires and this remains my favorite.
Click to expand...

These are a great little semi, and I concur with most of the praise. However, they have a couple of "achille's heels" from my viewpoint.
Since they are takedown units, they are not ideal to mount a scope on, due to the fact that the scope mounts on the receiver. I had one for years, and found it annoying that I amost always had to "tweak" the scope adjustment after taking it apart to clean or whatever. :bangHead:
If you are using the barrel-mounted open sights, this is a non-issue.
Tired old eyes hate those open sights, lol.
The other thing is where it ejects those hot empties. My shirtsleeve gobbled up one or two of those every time I shot it, and I didn't like that very much. :mad:

I am going to put a plug in for my 151M Mossberg. This unit has fired literally tens of thousands of rounds of 22LR ammo of many types, with very few "hiccups"
It also has the tube magazine in the stock, but ejects the empties out to the side, so no hot brass in my sleeve. :D
Regards, Eagleye.
 
Winchester 490. Walnut & steel, man sized proportions. Great trigger, very good accuracy right out of the box. 22 LR only. The factory recall had something to do with the rifle firing again and again with one trigger pull. As long as the brass did not disintegrate in unsupported discharge, this was not usually a show-stopper for a little bit. Once you had the barrelled action out of the stock, there was alot of small parts fully interchangeable, with the Cooey Model 64.
The biggest advantage the Ruger 10-22 has over it, is considerably longer shooting sessions between cleanings, and a plefora of accessories. (of course the Winchester is no longer in production)

Edit: The Best of 40 Years of Gun Digest edition has an excellent article on early 22 rimfire semi-auto rifles IMO.
 
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Cooey model 64 with its detachable magazine. Not sure if the 64 refers to the year of design or not, but they have been around for a long time.
 
Can I "cheerlead" for the Remington 552 Speedmaster ?...:redface:

Speed of Fire

Fast: one of the fastest-cycling .22 semi-automatics.....:cool:

-Types of Ammo Utilized (LR, L, S, Subsonic, High Power)

LR, L, and S.....:D...and the Remington 550 can easily cycle the Remington CeeBee's, too ! :evil:

-Aiming/Accuracy

Spooky accurate...I can coax performance from Winchester 555's that rivals that of standard-velocity loads from far more expensive rifles....

-Known Problems

Um.....I'm at a loss as to "problems"....but I will say that the left-side bolt can give the unprepared some "surprises" !

Edit: It turns out that some folks experience jams with the more well-worn 552's....

-Wood/Synthetic Stock

Your choice :yingyang: , but the older ones are with wooden furniture.
 
My favorite Old School tube fed semi is my Winchester Model 77. Right eject, but cocking handle on the left. Eats any 22lr I have fed it and accurate as well.
 
My favorite 'older' 22 semi...

1. Browning Auto-22

Semi-Auto-22-Grade-I-MID-021001-m.jpg


-Speed of Fire: As fast as you can pull the trigger...
-Types of Ammo Utilized (LR, L, S, Subsonic, High Power): LR
-Aiming/Accuracy: Minute of squirrel, nice balance
-Known Problems: None really... other than empty shelves sometime making it down your sleeve...
-Wood/Synthetic Stock: Walnut and blue steel... like it should be :D
-Open/Closed Bolt: Close bolt, tube fed from the but-stock.

2. Remington Nylon
634452045313656852mz0o1nnz.jpg


-Speed of Fire: Fast enough
-Types of Ammo Utilized (LR, L, S, Subsonic, High Power): 22lr
-Aiming/Accuracy: Minute of pop-can
-Known Problems: Putting the darn thing together again after a good cleaning :owned:
-Wood/Synthetic Stock: Nylon
-Open/Closed Bolt: Close, tube fed from the but-stock
 
Some very nice choices folks! So far, I like the looks of the Mossber 151M with it's Mannlicher style stock (it would fit in perfectly with my milsurp collection!) How much does one of these go for these days, low and high end?
I also like the Browning 552 Speedmaster. It is very interesting in it's design, it has a blurb about it on Remingtons actual website... is it still in production? How much for a wood and steel version of this, low and high end?
 
Drachenblut said:
Some very nice choices folks! So far, I like the looks of the Mossber 151M with it's Mannlicher style stock (it would fit in perfectly with my milsurp collection!) How much does one of these go for these days, low and high end?
Click to expand...

They seem to go for $200-$250 depending on condition. I missed a nice one for $200 because I hesitated and ended up with one for $225 in lesser condition. I keep meaning to strip and refinish the wood on mine, but it never seems to be a priority. Mine has the orignial Mossberg aperture sights which I really like, as well.


Mark
 
I'm with you on the 552 Speedmasters as I have a pair of them in the Deluxe version. Accurate, full size and interchange with S, L and LR. - Great gun.

Had a Browning semi .22 and while it was reliable it outlived it's time to introduce the kids to shooting a semi and just to small a firearm for a 6'3" shooter.

cyclone said:
Can I "cheerlead" for the Remington 552 Speedmaster ?...:redface:

Speed of Fire

Fast: one of the fastest-cycling .22 semi-automatics.....:cool:

-Types of Ammo Utilized (LR, L, S, Subsonic, High Power)

LR, L, and S.....:D...and the Remington 550 can easily cycle the Remington CeeBee's, too ! :evil:

-Aiming/Accuracy

Spooky accurate...I can coax performance from Winchester 555's that rivals that of standard-velocity loads from far more expensive rifles....

-Known Problems

Um.....I'm at a loss as to "problems"....but I will say that the left-side bolt can give the unprepared some "surprises" !

Edit: It turns out that some folks experience jams with the more well-worn 552's....

-Wood/Synthetic Stock

Your choice :yingyang: , but the older ones are with wooden furniture.
Click to expand...
 
Drachenblut said:
Some very nice choices folks! So far, I like the looks of the Mossber 151M with it's Mannlicher style stock (it would fit in perfectly with my milsurp collection!) How much does one of these go for these days, low and high end?
I also like the Browning 552 Speedmaster. It is very interesting in it's design, it has a blurb about it on Remingtons actual website... is it still in production? How much for a wood and steel version of this, low and high end?
Click to expand...

You just have to watch. A very nice all original one should be able to be had for $250.00-$275.00 including peep sight. The 151M is not uncommon. I have 3 of the 151M variations and didn't pay over $225.00 for any. In fact, a little while ago a nutz member gave me a number of a fellow who was selling a 151M not too far from me. It's one of the nicest condition Mossbergs that I have, all complete with swivels and peep and perfect bluing. The fellow sold it to me for $150.00 plus he sold me an extra peep sight he had for $25.00. So that's why I say you gotta watch. But generally, an average condition gun will run you $150.00, give or take if it is complete. It is not cheap to buy missing sights or swivels for these guns. (if you want it original)
 
No one has mentioned the very well built early 1965-66 Weatherby semi, top of the line the ones made by Berreta in Italy for Weatherby, also Berreta made a very well built semi in the earlt 80`s that is one of the best I have ever shot, stupid me never bought it at the time, due to cash restraint! So there are 2 more choices if you are looking for top end Semi, cheers Dale Z!
PS also a nice BRNO 581 would be the other choice!
 
Very cool! Soooo who wants to sell a Mossberg 151M or Remington Speedmaster 552 to a young, avid collector/shooter intent on spreading the shooting sport and continuing it for life, by getting other young shooters involved? :)
 
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