I learned on a 308 bolt action Winchester model 70.
That being said, after getting my Ruger 10/22 Stainless Target model and spending a winter indoors at 20 yards (without a bunch of other people also shooting) well that's when I really learned to concentrate and my accuracy went up significantly. Especially for shooting 5 round groups. The 22LR really shows you quickly and cheaply how much of a difference the ammo and other components make. The only mods to that 10/22 that I made were a one piece Leupold scope base, the trigger worked on and a scope that can parallax down to indoor 22 ranges.
That Spring I went out with a 308 Remington 5R milspec. The groups I shot were sub .4 moa Centre to Centre. 100 yards, 5 round groups. Everything you learn shooting the 22LR translates perfectly to the 308. The push/recoil on the 308 is fairly slow so the follow through you learn on the 22LR still works well. Sight picture, trigger control, matching ammo to the rifle, breathing etc all work the same.
The Savage rifles have great reports for accuracy and price. I'm not a huge fan myself based on the fit/finish. The mag release for instance bugs me, and the overall bolt design while it works doesn't really do much for me. That being said Savage has started to really up their game the last number of years. I don't think you would do wrong with the ones suggested.
CZ 452 etc. Nice rifles. Would also work and excellent fit/finish. You can go all the way to Anshutz, Walther, Kimber, Suhl etc etc. The sky is the limit.
Now for the semi auto debate. I don't agree you need to learn on a bolt action. I think that's the FUDD talk based on 10 years ago semi autos accuracy. Today's semi autos are fairly accurate and more so than many of the bolt rifles 10 years ago that would have been recommended to learn on. Keep the 10 round mags in. Let the person every once in a while get the spray and prey out of their system, then back to precision work.
If you can find one, I highly recommend the T/C R55 Benchmark semi auto. It's everything the 10/22 should have been. Solid steel receiver, screw on accurate bull barrel, decent although a bit heavy trigger, and last shot hold open. Oh and I've shot a few of them now that will hold 1mo or slightly below at 100 yards. 5 rounds, with fairly inexpensive CCI standard. These rifles shoot like a CZ452 or comparable bolt action right out of the box.
The main advantage of the 10/22 are it's ability to be modified, and frankly that 10 round rotary mag. The mag really makes the rifle. With those mags I don't get fail to fire or other issues.
Any of these solutions with some time put in will work for you. Look at what you want and your budget. Also keep in mind you will probably shoot your 22LR the most out of any gun you own. So why go cheap? Same with optics. You will likely change the optics and keep good optics for an exceptionally long time. Save up and get something good rather than something cheap.
That being said, after getting my Ruger 10/22 Stainless Target model and spending a winter indoors at 20 yards (without a bunch of other people also shooting) well that's when I really learned to concentrate and my accuracy went up significantly. Especially for shooting 5 round groups. The 22LR really shows you quickly and cheaply how much of a difference the ammo and other components make. The only mods to that 10/22 that I made were a one piece Leupold scope base, the trigger worked on and a scope that can parallax down to indoor 22 ranges.
That Spring I went out with a 308 Remington 5R milspec. The groups I shot were sub .4 moa Centre to Centre. 100 yards, 5 round groups. Everything you learn shooting the 22LR translates perfectly to the 308. The push/recoil on the 308 is fairly slow so the follow through you learn on the 22LR still works well. Sight picture, trigger control, matching ammo to the rifle, breathing etc all work the same.
The Savage rifles have great reports for accuracy and price. I'm not a huge fan myself based on the fit/finish. The mag release for instance bugs me, and the overall bolt design while it works doesn't really do much for me. That being said Savage has started to really up their game the last number of years. I don't think you would do wrong with the ones suggested.
CZ 452 etc. Nice rifles. Would also work and excellent fit/finish. You can go all the way to Anshutz, Walther, Kimber, Suhl etc etc. The sky is the limit.
Now for the semi auto debate. I don't agree you need to learn on a bolt action. I think that's the FUDD talk based on 10 years ago semi autos accuracy. Today's semi autos are fairly accurate and more so than many of the bolt rifles 10 years ago that would have been recommended to learn on. Keep the 10 round mags in. Let the person every once in a while get the spray and prey out of their system, then back to precision work.
If you can find one, I highly recommend the T/C R55 Benchmark semi auto. It's everything the 10/22 should have been. Solid steel receiver, screw on accurate bull barrel, decent although a bit heavy trigger, and last shot hold open. Oh and I've shot a few of them now that will hold 1mo or slightly below at 100 yards. 5 rounds, with fairly inexpensive CCI standard. These rifles shoot like a CZ452 or comparable bolt action right out of the box.
The main advantage of the 10/22 are it's ability to be modified, and frankly that 10 round rotary mag. The mag really makes the rifle. With those mags I don't get fail to fire or other issues.
Any of these solutions with some time put in will work for you. Look at what you want and your budget. Also keep in mind you will probably shoot your 22LR the most out of any gun you own. So why go cheap? Same with optics. You will likely change the optics and keep good optics for an exceptionally long time. Save up and get something good rather than something cheap.
, the .22 LR will still give you plenty of quality range-time...
