What is the best .22lr autoloader rifle?

It really sounds like this is going to be a choice between the 10/22 and the Marlin. Does the Marlin stainless model actually have a stainless steel receiver, or is it nickel-plated aluminum like the 10/22? Has anyone had problems with the nickel plating coming off of the 10/22?
 
It really sounds like this is going to be a choice between the 10/22 and the Marlin. Does the Marlin stainless model actually have a stainless steel receiver, or is it nickel-plated aluminum like the 10/22? Has anyone had problems with the nickel plating coming off of the 10/22?

The 10/22 is not plates. It's just aluminum. The marlin has a stainless barrel and nickel plates receiver. He inside is not plated so you don't need to worry about that. The outside will never flake off
 
Idcurrie- that gun looks great! I will have to go to Wholesale tomorrow and check out the Rugers and the Marlins. I have to say that I am certainly considering the Marlin now, but I will know more when I've handled them both.
 
So I went to a gun shop and to Wholesale today to check out some .22 auto rifles. I have to say that I was very impressed with the Marlin that I saw (pickins are slim right now for all .22s). It was a 60 model in stainless. The heavier barrel that the Marlin has is sweet. The one I saw was a tubular magazine, which I would pass on for the box style if I were to get a Marlin. I have one question for you guys- are there larger-capacity magazines available for the Marlins? Rumour is that there are not. I got to check out a couple of Ruger 10/22s and I think that if there aren't 25 round mags for the Marlin, I might have to go with the Ruger. If I'm firing a semi-auto, given that .22 ammo is cheap, I'm going to want more than 10 rounds at a time between reloads. I am probably going to be doing some upgrades and alterations to the gun too,so the Ruger is a good choice. I will actually buy a butler creek 25-round mag the day I get the gun to go along with the included rotary 10-round that comes with it, which I have to say is a very sweet magazine on it's own. Of interest too was the Savage Arms .22 autoloader- it was one of the 64 series, but I can't remember the exact name, but for $299, it was a very solid-feeling good looking gun and it had an upgraded stock, but again, only 10-round mags are available. The one that came with it is also rock-solid and may be the best built magazine I've seen.

Are there magazines available for the Marlins that will hold more than 10 rounds? I'm looking for a 25.
 
Get the tube mag. It balances the gun out really well. It holds 14 rounds and no one can load a box magazine as fast as a tube. You just turn the gun upside down and ramped up in the air a bit. Then the cartridges drop in as fast as they fall out of your hand.

The box magazine can be faster if you have more than 1 but then when they run out you'll have to reload them all. 14 in the tube is plenty and the little time it takes to reload, well, you should let your barrel cool down sometimes!


Those butler creek 25 round magazines for the ruger are problematic. The steel lipped ones (which WSS doesn't sell) even have problems and require a modification to work properly most of the time. Enjoy your jam-o-matic!
 
I picked up a new SR-22, 2 25rd steel lip mags, and 2 25rd hot lips mags some time back. I've owned a few standard 10/22's over the years, in fact the first firearm I ever bought was a 10/22. They have all been very reliable and this most resent SR-22 is just fine to.

Zero stoppages with the factory mag, a few with the steel lips 25rd mags. The hot lip mags where horrible to start with and I was temped to bin them but after the first few loadings they started to work well. After over 2500rds all the mags are working with the odd stoppage, maybe once in 200rds or so. This is all with federal bulk 22lr.
 
Those butler creek 25 round magazines for the ruger are problematic. The steel lipped ones (which WSS doesn't sell) even have problems and require a modification to work properly most of the time. Enjoy your jam-o-matic!

Sorry but will have to chime in on this one, as I own 7 steel lips magazine, 5 of which came from wholesale sports (WSS).

would call these magazines anything but problematic, once worn in they have proven to be extremely reliable in my regular 10/22 and my SR.

Nothing againt marlin or anyone else, but my personal experience with the 10/22 and with the BC steel lips magazines has been extremely positive from a reliability standpoint, plus look at my name....;)
 
The two Steel Lips magazines I own run like clockwork. When I was in Wholesale in Calgary earlier today, they had lots of them.
 
Sorry but will have to chime in on this one, as I own 7 steel lips magazine, 5 of which came from wholesale sports (WSS).

would call these magazines anything but problematic, once worn in they have proven to be extremely reliable in my regular 10/22 and my SR.

Nothing againt marlin or anyone else, but my personal experience with the 10/22 and with the BC steel lips magazines has been extremely positive from a reliability standpoint, plus look at my name....;)

The ones in Edmonton don't have them anytime I've looked. They are very problematic. There is a flaw in the metal lips. There is an area which needs to be filed away for proper operation in most of them. If you got a good one, good for you but that's not normal. Just google it.
 
The 10/22 is hard to beat due to the plethora of aftermarket everything available for it. Mine eats all flavors of cheapo bulk ammo from Hot Lips mags since putting a Vq extractor in it.
 
I love my 10/22. Now that I have the BC loader to go with my steel lips magazines, shooting is much more enjoyable. The steel lips had some initial feeding problems, but after a few uses they are now extremely reliable.
 
I have shot a 10/22 and while it shot decently accurate i wouldn't say it was the most accurate, though it was stock. I have a marlin though in a bolt action with a tube mag and i have to say it is a breeze to load and takes much less time to load than a box mag, though of course with a box mag you can buy more than one and swap them which is definitely a plus.
 
I have shot a 10/22 and while it shot decently accurate i wouldn't say it was the most accurate, though it was stock. I have a marlin though in a bolt action with a tube mag and i have to say it is a breeze to load and takes much less time to load than a box mag, though of course with a box mag you can buy more than one and swap them which is definitely a plus.

You can buy a Spee-D-Loader for a tube magazine. You can load up to 15 rounds per tube, there are 8 tubes in every Spee-D-Loader, so that's 120 rounds available for quick loading into your tube magazine.
 
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If the savage 64 is $299 your getting hosed, the basic synth blued version is a $150 gun. And yeah the butler creek ones caaaan be problematic but that's a lemon, I had one bad, traded it and now the 5 I have all work fine. Your got plenty of options here, but if your interested in th rem nylon 66 don't get the CBC version, it's junk. Don't but the mossberg, even tho it's tacticool I've help squirt guns with better weight and feel. But it, the 10/22 and the Remington 597 are the only semi autos with availible extended mags. At the end of the day the 10/22 is the benchmark semi. Make one your own and ignore the haters haha
 
For the price Savage 64G , can beat the price, It is my first rifle and loving it :D

Savage64G.jpg
 
If you want to "build" a tacticool rifle and you are aware that after rifle, mags, extractor, trigger, stocks, whatever else you want to or have to upgrade, you will be into the project for north of $500... A 10/22 is going to give you the most options. But why they cost so much for a base rifle to start with I'll never understand.

If you want a better barrel, with better accuracy, and more consistantly reliable performance out o the box for half the price of a 10/22, get a 795ss. You can tacticool a stainless 795 with an ATI fiberfirce druganov stock for the cost of a base level blued 10/22, and you can buy 25 round mags for marlins from shooters ridge, although like most hi cap mags I've read they're crap. But demand is there for good ones so it won't be long before we see steel lipped versions on the market.
 
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