From my personal experience - Savage MkII FV, dirt cheap, decently accurate, humble stock but functional - I put it into a Boyds stock and did very well in my first PRS match. Most will need some TLC around the extraction and mags. Bedding is very important. I found this was not a great LR set up and swapping barrels is a huge PiTA. This would be a great rig for shorter distances and if all the TLC is done, functions really nicely. CCI SV shot decently but it came alive with SK rifle match.
My current fave is the 10/22 for rimfire PRS both short and long range. Swap in a barrel to the right specs and this set up will be right there with the mega dollar bolt rifles for a fraction of the cost. My first rig was built on a very old 10/22 that functions 100%.. eventually wore out the extractor and firing pin both of which are an easy and inexpensive replacement. My current uses a recent manf carbine... still using 100% of the factory parts. Really unsure why so many shooters rush to the aftermarket when the factory parts can work as well.
If there are rough spots or burrs, just resolve. Extractors are a possible weak spot but easy and cheap to replace. For triggers, definitely limited to the lightness but I prefer a heavier trigger for this game and the pull can be made to break crisply with little overtravel.
We got a smoking deal and bought a bunch of them. ALL have functioned 100% with HV bulk ammo (Blazer and fed) out of the box. To prove any 10/22, grab some 10 rds factory mags and machine gun a decent HV ammo. I would go 200rds full tilt as a min. As long as it functions 100% as fast as you can pull the trigger, there is nothing to replace. Yes, from brand new, there can be a break in but it hasn't taken much to get them running... and once they do, they go and go and go.
If you like the aftermarket, no rimfire is better supported with bling and whistles. You will absolutely drop a crap ton of $$$... but you most certainly do not have to.
As a bonus, due to the volume of match barrels sold, the 10/22 is the least expensive match barrel to swap vs bolt rifles.
Proper bedding is really the key to helping you get the most from the barrel and ammo. You have to make sure the barreled action is not rattling around.
But we live in Canada so the issues of bad laws continues... I started looking at bolt rifles as a back up. Tested a number of the Scorpio EM322As and have been blown away by how good they are. Yes, they will likely need some TLC and fitting of rails and bolt knobs but once done, the performance has exceeded expectations and right there with the mega dollar bolt rifles.
The factory stock is actually really comfy for positional shooting and I run it with min mods. This is a DIY rifle but the cost of entry is still dirt cheap. Some come muzzle threaded and respond very well to tuners. Accuracy with bulk HV is typically horrid... CCI SV can be ok... where you want to be is true match ammo.
I run SK Rifle match and Lapua CenterX and the accuracy out to 400m is fantastic and no issue competing in CRPS or LR rimfire PRS games. When you understand what this is a clone of, you will understand why it responds to match ammo so well.
Podiumed at the first match I took it to - Rimfire Rally at Joe Rich 2022
Had an optics problem but the rifle shot really well. 2022 CRPS Western Championships.
I am going to run the 10/22 this season since I can... but the Scorpio is my back up should we get some random bad news.
I have fully prepped Scorpio if anyone is interested... pm or email.
Jerry
