What's a good first non-restricted long gun - semi and cheap

FabienCast said:
Thanks for all your replies, really cool to see so many people willing to help! I'm not sure 22lr is really the caliber I'm looking for though. I get that I probably shouldn't start with the biggest caliber available, dislocate my shoulders and miss every shot, but when I tried 22lr in a pistol (while supervised since my licence is only non-restricted for the moment), it didn't feel as exciting to me as the other calibers, so I can't imagine it's more exciting in a rifle config that lowers recoil... I might just be a turd but I want to feel some recoil!

Anywho, I don't know how to say this without triggering anyone but what'd you recommend as a long gun for "beefier" calibers?

Thanks!:)
Click to expand...

Honestly I didn't start out with a 22LR, actually it was my 3rd gun I bought. My first was a 45ACP, then second a M1A ( 308 ) then I bought a Marlin 22. My father never owned a 22LR in his life.

We can list tones of firearms you should get, but if you cannot afford to feed them, what is the point?

I would say get a 9mm rifle, due to cost of ammo. But then again, you wont feel much recoil. The down side of a semi, is many don't learn how to shoot them well, and just want to mag dump.

milsurpo said:
FabienCast: Allow me to suggest going for a good refurb Mosin 91/30. If you take the time to locate one with an excellent bore it will have the accuracy potential to satisfy you for a long time and allow you to develop some good marksmanship skills using relatively inexpensive ammo. I've had a few SVT 40's, and enjoyed them, but they're all gone now, as few had serious accuracy potential.

milsurpo
Click to expand...

He might develop a flinch with it. I caught my M38 in the collar bone and took me several years to want to pick it back up. But I started to wear a shoulder pad under my jacket that nobody can see, and solved my problems.
 
milsurpo said:
Yes, $400 or $500 will get you a good refurb.

milsurpo
Click to expand...

$400 seems to be starting prices, I'm not sure you can get a "good refurb" for that but I could be wrong. I've seen some less than stellar examples going for $450+ lately... Which is not cheap unless you value the historical aspect. The trigger sucks, the bolt sucks, the recoil sucks... and the OP specified a semi. Nothing wrong with a Mosin if that's what you want, but they're hardly a good option for a first gun IMO, especially at their prices now compared to all the options in that price range - Mausers in 6.5mm and 8mm, used Husqvarnas in 3006, hell I'd suggest a Savage Axis or mossberg 4x4 or patriot over a Mosin, at least then you can easily mount a scope.... all possible with $500 or less, but again, none of those are semi auto.

The only thing I can really see going for the Mosin these days is the ammo is still relatively cheap... But that ammo cost doesn't outweigh the downsides to me at least.

OkayShooter said:
Honestly I didn't start out with a 22LR, actually it was my 3rd gun I bought. My first was a 45ACP, then second a M1A ( 308 ) then I bought a Marlin 22. My father never owned a 22LR in his life.

We can list tones of firearms you should get, but if you cannot afford to feed them, what is the point?

I would say get a 9mm rifle, due to cost of ammo. But then again, you wont feel much recoil. The down side of a semi, is many don't learn how to shoot them well, and just want to mag dump.



He might develop a flinch with it. I caught my M38 in the collar bone and took me several years to want to pick it back up. But I started to wear a shoulder pad under my jacket that nobody can see, and solved my problems.
Click to expand...

More reasons to get an sks. Low enough recoil that a flinch is unlikely but enough to know you're firing a real gun, and perfect for mag dumping. Bonus points if he wants to play dress up with his rifle, as aftermarket doodads are common and affordable.

Then he can get a bolt action 22lr to learn how to shoot a gun properly. Lol
 
Last edited:
Hey everyone, I'm back! Sorry for the wait.

First of all thank you for all your time and careful and instructive responses! I agree that I should've given more info like budget and desired use for my first buy. I'm just new here (in the forum and the gun sphere) and I don't really know how to ask the questions in a way that makes them easy to answer, my bad!

That being said I read all your advice and one gentleman told me to go to a gun shop to hold some weapons in my hands. Well I went to Dante Sport (basically the only gun shot in Montreal) and I got the chance to talk to an employee there that made some pretty convincing points about 22lr. He said it's better to start with that rather than with a big caliber because ammo's the cheapest (which he said is perfect for the enthousiasm of the start) and the low recoil allows to better develop trigger pull and other techniques. That really resonated with me and I think my recoil thing is just immaturity.

Anyways he suggested a bolt 22lr, the Ruger American Rimfire (I think it was around 500$), with a scope on it. I checked some reviews and some said it was less accurate than the 10/22, which is around the same price range and semi-auto...

So (sorry for the long story), which one should I pick, Ruger American Rimfire or 10/22? Or should I go a different route?

N.B. I should say my budget is around 500 to 750$ before tax, and that I only intend to do target shooting at a range for now. Also, I'd rather not buy used or anywhere that's not a physical shop because I'm worried my inexperience might get me scammed:)

Thank you all again for your time!
 
Another rifle that might be worth looking at is a tikka T1x. Might be a bit out of your price range though.

Or you could buy a cooey 600 to get basic practice and then save up for a more expensive rifle?
 
For a bolt action 22 I would suggest Savage over Ruger. Even better would be a CZ - they can be had for about $600 on sale :https://www.rangeviewsports.ca/product-category/cz-sale/?orderby=price

My experience with the 10/22 is limited, but it's not been great either, my buddy has one and it's just not reliable enough for my liking. They are extremely popular due to their robust aftermarket support, but unless you plan on making use of that aftermarket support there are better options IMO.

Sadly the Marlin 795 or 60 isn't made anymore, I would be recommending those but you're worried about buying used.
 
Last edited:
FabienCast said:
MilitaryCollectorMark said:
I'd probably go 10/22. Tons of aftermarket out there.

Yeah, that's what my gut says as well. More modularity so I can make it last longer before buying something else. It just seems strange to me that a semi-auto would be more precise than a bolt action. Kind of counter intuitive.
Click to expand...

Or you can go with a CZ rimfire. 10/22 if nice because it's a semi.
Click to expand...
 
If you want a semi auto I'd recommend:

1) Ruger 10/22. They have tons of aftermarket parts from barrels, trigger groups, bolts to stocks and springs.

2) SKS. It was the cheapest semi auto centrefire rifle back in the day. It fired cheap ammo and was generally a hoot to use.

3) Ruger Pistol Carbine 9mm. Semi auto. 9mm. Uses glock magazines. Fairly cheap to shoot. Reliable.

Now if you're talking bolt actions, I'd recommend:

1) CZ 455/457. Bullseye London has a nice CZ455 Varmint for 579. That will save you some cash for magazines, scope, rings, and ammo.
2) Tikka T1x
3) See 1 or 2.
 
ReverendX said:
If you want a semi auto I'd recommend:

1) Ruger 10/22. They have tons of aftermarket parts from barrels, trigger groups, bolts to stocks and springs.

2) SKS. It was the cheapest semi auto centrefire rifle back in the day. It fired cheap ammo and was generally a hoot to use.

3) Ruger Pistol Carbine 9mm. Semi auto. 9mm. Uses glock magazines. Fairly cheap to shoot. Reliable.

100% agree with this list but id go in reverse
If you can only afford 1 gun right now id get a Ruger PCC9.

Then id buy a cheap 22 bolt action

it bumps your budget up to prob $1k all in if you buy on the EE

lots of stock PCC9's for $800 and $200 on a bolt 22lr
Click to expand...
 
ReverendX said:
If you want a semi auto I'd recommend:

1) Ruger 10/22. They have tons of aftermarket parts from barrels, trigger groups, bolts to stocks and springs.

2) SKS. It was the cheapest semi auto centrefire rifle back in the day. It fired cheap ammo and was generally a hoot to use.

3) Ruger Pistol Carbine 9mm. Semi auto. 9mm. Uses glock magazines. Fairly cheap to shoot. Reliable.

Now if you're talking bolt actions, I'd recommend:

1) CZ 455/457. Bullseye London has a nice CZ455 Varmint for 579. That will save you some cash for magazines, scope, rings, and ammo.
2) Tikka T1x
3) See 1 or 2.
Click to expand...

The 10/22 is great if you want to upgrade a bunch of stuff. If you just want a stock configuration semi auto I feel like its lacking though - no last round bolt hold open and no high cap magazines thanks to the rcmp, no iron sights on the cheap models these days either...

Now, if you want to buy the gun then spend another $1000 upgrading most of the parts then you can't beat the 10/22... Really wish the Marlin 795 was still made though, it really makes a stock 10/22 look overpriced. Remington 597 is another decent option that's no longer made... Remington going under really ####ed the affordable 22lr semi market...

Another option could be a gsg 15 or 16 if semi is what you want. Not going to be as accurate as a bolt action but they look cool and have decent capacity magazines.
 
Yep, you can find good SKSs around $4-5, and a case of mil-surp will last a couple years (1400-1500 rounds @ 0.30-40/rnd) - about $600 incl tax & shipping. And you'll learn alot by cleaning off the corrosive cra-. 5-7 MOA accuracy but good to learn basics with. Hope you've got some friends to guide you along, too.
J.hancock is right about .22s, the accuracy challenge is a never-ending game.
 
ReverendX said:
If you want a semi auto I'd recommend:

1) Ruger 10/22. They have tons of aftermarket parts from barrels, trigger groups, bolts to stocks and springs.

2) SKS. It was the cheapest semi auto centrefire rifle back in the day. It fired cheap ammo and was generally a hoot to use.

3) Ruger Pistol Carbine 9mm. Semi auto. 9mm. Uses glock magazines. Fairly cheap to shoot. Reliable.

Now if you're talking bolt actions, I'd recommend:

1) CZ 455/457. Bullseye London has a nice CZ455 Varmint for 579. That will save you some cash for magazines, scope, rings, and ammo.
2) Tikka T1x
3) See 1 or 2.
Click to expand...

Yeah I would've loved a good CZ 455 but they're 800$+ weapons on their own (no scope or rings), same for the Tikka... The seller I talked to from Dante Sport offered me (what I think is) a pretty good deal : Ruger American Rimfire + Leupold scope rings + Vortex Copperhead 4-12x44 scope for 700$. So as a budget entry gun I'm thinking that's pretty reasonable. Then again I might be getting robbed, I would have no idea... That being said (like I mentionned in an earlier post) I'm not too down to go on the used market for my first because I only have passion at the moment, not experience.
 
FabienCast said:
Yeah I would've loved a good CZ 455 but they're 800$+ weapons on their own (no scope or rings), same for the Tikka... The seller I talked to from Dante Sport offered me (what I think is) a pretty good deal : Ruger American Rimfire + Leupold scope rings + Vortex Copperhead 4-12x44 scope for 700$. So as a budget entry gun I'm thinking that's pretty reasonable. Then again I might be getting robbed, I would have no idea... That being said (like I mentionned in an earlier post) I'm not too down to go on the used market for my first because I only have passion at the moment, not experience.
Click to expand...


A good idea is to find a club. That way, if they have a range day you could see what they're shooting.
 
Another vote for the Ruger PCC or the JustRightCarbine in 9mm.

Imo, .22 gets boring too fast unless it's in a handgun, or you are shooting stuff that does stuff (cans, steel, dirt clumps ect). 9mm is still pretty cheap, it has enough thump and you can still shoot with it pretty much anywhere a .22 will go.


Don't buy a rifle that needs proprietary mags, not in a universe where Glock mags exist.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom