newbie looking for opinions on 22LR semi

V

vtham

CGN Regular
Rating - 100%
138   0   0
Location
SW Ontario
Hi all,
Been reading the forums for a while and have finally decided to enter my first post as I will be receiving my PAL shortly.
I know this is a great forum full of very experienced and knowledgeable gun owners so i wanted to solicit some opinions on what type of rifle i should buy first.

Couple of my parameters:
- I'm new to this so based upon a bunch of reading, a 22LR would be most appropriate as a starter
- would prefer a semi auto
- my intentions are not to hunt, just target practice
- I would like my 9 year old to learn how to shoot and get him involved in the sport (anything to get him away from his iPad!) so the rifle should be light and easy for him to manage
- something very reliable and frankly won't frustrate the heck out of me with problems!

I would really like the S&W M&P 15 -22 but i know these are restricted in Canada.
So i have been reading about and researching the following:
- GSG 15
- CZ 512 Tactical
- Kel-Tec SU22
- Ruger SR22
- Mossberg 715

There's only so many reviews you can read online but I would love to hear from people that actually shoot these guns and their recommendations.

Thanks
Vay
 
Had a Mossberg 715T, cheap junk. Sold it and got a S&W M&P 15-22. Great rifle, never had a problem with it. But they are restricted.
 
i have read some mixed reviews on the Mossberg... thanks for your comment. That one's off the list!
Sadly you have confirmed that the restricted M&P15-22 is a great rifle.
 
The Marlin 795 is decent, as is the Remington 597, which I have. 30 round Remington mags are available for the 597, not sure about the Marlin. But if you want a "forever" gun that will always have aftermarket support and parts available, you can't go wrong with a Ruger 10/22. Including readily available and affordable short barrels, unlike almost every other 22 LR. Dlask Arms makes a lot of them in Canada. You can assemble a 10/22 with zero factory Ruger parts; aftermarket receivers are common. My Remington has a custom made 10" barrel - I actually bought the barrel blank from Josef at Dlask. Bad news on the Ruger is that the RCMP is claiming that the mags double as handgun mags so are limited to 10 rounds. I don't think it's been tested in court but I guess most people are leaving their 25 round magazines squirrelled away.

Btw, while short barrels are good for young shooters for better balance, don't go too short or it's easier for him to point the muzzle at his own body parts.
 
Owww newbee?
Still in dependiths?
Flat bill awn reverse/bowt/face?
Bawlzs hang'in frum yer rear bumper?

Young kid you wish to introduce to shewt'in, stray away frum them 10-22 crowd.
Maybe a RAR youth with an adult rear stawk spacer pour toi?

Old Winchesters are great......ie 69's or 69A's.
Single 67/68's are great shooters too.

Cooey's in their single form are nostalgick.

CZ's in 452's with the single shot adapters.
The CZ Scout would be something to be proud of for a youngster.

Budgitt............Savage ?

Welcome abrawd.
 
Or if you will be on a CFO approved range exclusively, you can buy an AR15 and use a 22LR conversion kit in the centerfire barrel. A bolt carrier and magazine swap will switch you back over to centerfire 5.56 NATO. The conversion kits tend to cost as much as dedicated rimfires rifle, which is why I haven't bought one.

I got a Savage Rascal on sale/rebate for $160 shipped. My boy is only three but he will use it soon. Just a single shot with a peep sight but at least once he fires off his round you know he can't spin around in excitement and sweep you with a loaded and chambered gun like can happen with a semi auto.
 
rifleman762 said:
The Marlin 795 is decent, as is the Remington 597, which I have. 30 round Remington mags are available for the 597, not sure about the Marlin.....
Click to expand...


I've been pleasantly surprised with the Marlin 795, which I partially "switched to" after the RCMP 10/22-magazine nonsense. :yingyang:





The Marlin 795 is fairly lightweight (okay, maybe a bit more front-end heavy than some would like), likeably accurate, reliable, and indeed has "hi-cap" magazines available from Promag and - before the inevitable questions comes - yes the Marlin 795 Promag magazines are reliable, and yes the Promag feed-lips are plastic... :wave:



Oh yes, forgot to mention: the Marlin 795 is non-restricted and is a semi-automatic.... :stirthepot2:
 
I'm biased (I really like the 10/22 platform, and like to tinker).

But if your mind is set with semi-auto, Non-Restricted, and Tacticool. The SR-22 or perhaps a 10/22 with an aftermarket stock is a pretty good direction to go. You'll need to spend an extra $5 and 5 min to install a buffer tube, and depending on how lucky you are you might need to spend another $15 on a Volquartzen extractor. Resale value on anything 10/22 related is also really good.

The 597 I hear is a really good rifle straight out of the box, and unlike the 10/22 does not suffer the hit/miss quality issues. However it's really difficult to find an aftermarket stock to make it look Tacticool.

As for everything else on your list,
- GSG 15 - My friends got one, and he hates it. Cannot run subsonic ammo, cannot clean without some extreme gunsmithing, light primer strike, jams ALOT
- CZ 512 Tactical - Most people have good things to say about CZ's rimfire bolt action guns. Never hear people talk about the 512 much.
- Kel-Tec SU22 - Like all Kel-Tec products it's likely unavailable anywhere you go. And even if you do get your hands on one, you'll not get any service if things goes wrong
- Mossberg 715 - Jam...jam...and jam

However if I can do this all over again. I'll get a Bolt Action. They're inexpensive, reliable, accurate, and easy on the ammo. I got a Savage B22 and love it. I also hear good things about Marlin XT-22. And if you wanna go premium, the CZ455 got a really good rep.
 
Your first rifle should be an accurate bolt action 22 so you can learn how to actually shoot, not just spray ammo. Learn with the iron sights and then add a scope later.
 
Here is my SR 22, I will mill out when Dlask releases their Tuff 22 25 round mags. I have done some upgrades as these rifles have lots of potential without the requirements of a gunsmith. I did my barrel swap myself...one of my favourite 22s


20180727_142430_zpskqnwj9c0.jpg
 
Last edited:
I had a Mossberg 715T for a week. It was very light, looked nice and tacticool, was quit accurate and gave me nice groupings at 25 metres. Thats where the positive features end. It was cheaply made (plastic galore), very long to strip down and most annoyingly, it locked the bolt back almost 50% of the time, even if there was still ammo in the magazine.

I promptly replaced it by a GSG-15 22 and I was extremely satisfied with my choice. The GSG is heavier, but is just as accurate as the Mossberg at 25m, is made of metal, ate just about anything, accepts 24-rounds magazines (the Mossberg is limited to 10 rounds) and overall just a better quality rifle.

I'd spring the extra $200 and get the GSG without hesitation.
 
Last edited:
thanks.
I've read alot of good things about the reliability of the 10/22.

The Savage deal at cabela's looks very interesting. thank you for sending along
 
Remington 597- excellent accuracy, feels like a " real" rifle, best to upgrade to a Volquartsen extractor for reliability, high capacity mags are hit and miss, some function great, some are garbage
Ruger 10/22- small and light, by far the most aftermarket support available, great gun all around but the " Butler Creek" magazine fiasco basically limits you to 10 rounds
GSG 15- heavy, PITA to strip and clean, haven't seen one yet that didn't have problems with FTF,FTE, etc, but it looks cool :)
Marlin 795- great little gun, accurate and dependable
S&W M&P 15-22 - best of the best for a semi, accurate dependable, great training platform for an AR,,, but Restricted.
If you have your Rpal and shoot mostly at the range the M&P is the only way to go,,, other than that it's a toss up on what appeals to you and your boy
 
thanks for the feedback guys.
Absolutely we intend to practice with the iron sights first before getting fancy.

awesomealvin: thank you for the comments on each rifle

thats a mean looking SR22!
 
just get a 10/22 but try to find a used older one or maybe the dlask brand.reason being ruger went to a plastic trigger housing and the fit & finish is better than the newer ones.

make sure to get a "bolt buffer"(replaces the bolt crossbolt pin so it dosen't go "clack" when the bolt recoils--saves wear on the crossbolt pin holes and is much quieter)

with the 10/22 the scope mount has both grooves for a centerfire scope or a rimfire scope.
 
Ruger 10/22 gets my vote. You and your son can build one together to suit your exact preference of stock, barrel length ect..
Good way to get him into the sport.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom