Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Small Game Looking for a .22LR $600 budget - what should I buy?

No real good reason but I’m planning on picking up a new .22 and would like to hear suggestions. It’ll be used primarily for woods hunting rabbits with my Beagle on our daily walks. I try to stay 1 notch above the deeper value guns in favor of something with more soul.

I’ve already got a 77/22 Mag so primarily looking only at a 22LR.

For reference - have a soft spot for the BL-22

Can get a bl22 for that if you can find one, sounds like you are into the wood/blued guns, if thats the case, check out the cz 457. If plastic doesn't bother you, the tikka t1x is the bad boy on the block right now. Love mine.

CONTENDER - add Bbls as needed............

I thought maybe you were just looking for ammo on a $600 budget.

I'd look for a nice pre-lock Marlin 39A. If you've never handled or shot one you will be pleasantly surprised.

BL-22's are alright if you don't mind a 10 pound trigger or putting time/money into a trigger job and still not having a particularly accurate rifle. My BL-22 had absolutely the worst trigger of any .22 I've ever owned and also had the distinction of being one of the least accurate. My Henry out shoots it by a bunch and had a crisp, 3 lb. trigger out of the box.

$200 for a 10/22.

$200 toward whatever stock moves you, use the difference to buy ammo.

$200 for a CPC full tune job.

Close, shipping has gone up so CPC will be a little more. I'd pull money from the stock budget for better sights in the woods.

I sold a '73 deluxe model 10-22 yesterday for $450...............

CZ 457 American.

My latebrother had a Grade II BLR. Very pretty, but only a so-so shooter. He sold it when he bought a Kimber 82.

For the use you describe, I’d be tempted to buy a Browning SA-22, which should come in right about $600, last I looked, unless you insist on a Belgian.

I agree with Pappy the SA 22 was built for rabbit hunting. Lighting fast and a dream to carry.

I love my Ruger 10/22 T best small caliber rifle I ever owned.

There is a very nice one FOR SALE , RIGHT NOW UNDER THE CLASSIFIED SECTION.

Great suggestions! I’ll have to dig into the models I’m not familiar with. Thanks fellas!

CZ 452/455 is awful hard to beat for the money.If you get lucky a Anschutz 64 action could pop up.

Marlin lever action. Pairs well with beagle on walks. Has a lot of soul bing wood/blued/lever action

A classy and interesting one in your price range.

https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...-24-semi-auto-22-lr.cfm?gun_id=101629794

Different strokes for different folks, but I would only recommend one of those miserable bottom ejectors to someone who I didn't like.

My brother bought one of the Brownings and didn't like it for that very reason. He quickly tired of hot, empty brass raining on his forearm/going down his shirt sleeve.

My ex was shooting my old Browning SA22 and it spit a hot into her low cut shirt. Other than her dropping the rifle it was a pretty funny deal.

They are a pretty neat little rifle, easy break down and very lightweight. Just got that nasty bottom eject thing going.

Semi? You might find a tricked out TC/Bergara/MR 10/22 clone and be ahead of a Ruger. I like my Ruger 10/22s, but others seem to build better 10/22s than Ruger, lately. For a bolt gun, as others have said, CZ.....or Tikkas ‘seem’ nice to me, and shoot good. Haven’t gotten my own yet, as I tripped over a limited run T-Bolt first.

I’m thinking a Marlin might be perfect.

Thanks for the BL22 trigger warning & the collection of thoughtful responses!

I may have to buy two - the CZ/BRNO options looks interesting & Classic too.

The T1x might just need to be added fir no other reason than it adds to my growing T3x collection - they share the same platform I learned.

I may have to edit the title - what would your ultimate collection of .22LR look like for under 6k.

Just picked up a sweet CZ 455 with nice figure in the wood - now if I could just find a sweet little Marlin 39...

Thanks again fellas

pints ya done good with the CZ. let us now how she shoots. imma czech fanboi btw for a reason.
good luck,
Big Ed

The OP typed, "a .22lr with soul." I dig that, but "soul" is in the heart of the beholder. If I wanted to chase rabbits with a rifle that made me smile, I would carry my Marlin 39A most every time! But, my old Glenfield bolt I got from Santa Claus some 4 1/2 decades ago has as much soul to me as anything - even though it might fetch less than $100 at an auction. A Ruger 10/22 has little soul to me in most configurations, but they're awesome and I still own a takedown for the great tool that it is. Now a walnut-stocked 10/22 RSI, that's a different story.

So - a .22 with soul for $600 or less:

- An old and used Marlin 39A if you're lucky enough to find a good one for a good price
- I haven't priced the CZ's in a while, but as a lefty a 452 would be up on my list
- Henry Small Game rifle - a very cool and smooth lever with peep sights to-boot
- A Ruger 10/22 RSI, or one of the older pieces which sometimes have some cool old wood on them
- Find anything you like, but produced the year you were born. That automatically adds cool points to your choice
- And finally, ask Santa for a .22. That will bring a smile to your face every time you carry it.

AZ I ended up buying a sweet CZ 455 but with the comments and suggestions made I’m looking for a 39A to go with it.

Thanks for chiming in & I won’t forget about Santa!

My BL-22 has a decent trigger pull. (maybe 4 pounds). Accuracy at 50 yards with Federal blue box and the open sights isn't great but I have yet to try the CCI red tip stuff that I bought.

Unlike Henry lever .22 rifles (which are decent enough) the BL-22 has a substantial and solid blued machined steel outer receiver, which unlike the Henry, has the barrel screwed solidly into it. The Henry outer receiver is a painted cover that is made of ZA-5 (ZAMAC) zinc-aluminum alloy, which is about 92% zinc as I recall. The Henry has the barrel pinned to a hole in the inner receiver.

The inner receiver on both rifles is alloy. ZA-5 again for the Henry, and aluminum for the BL-22.

A scope fitted to the dovetail on the BL-22 is solidly connected to the barrel.
A scope fitted to the dovetail on the Henry is attached only to the receiver cover.

Removing the Henry outer cover by removing four screws will alter the zero of your scope.

The Henry is easier to put back together than the Browning, because of the fiddly ejector and spring that must be positioned in the BL-22 when sliding the barrel and outer receiver back on.

Both rifles have ingenious and reliable actions and can use .22 short, long, and long rifle.
Both have walnut stocks and decent usable open sights.

Check out this BL-22 review video by mixup98:
(The actual review starts at 1:00 if you want to skip the preamble,)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kif9TEJuwaQ

Some of that is true and some of it isn't. The Henry does indeed have a zinc alloy receiver and receiver cover and the barrel is pinned to the receiver. I have had the Henry for two years. In that time I've had no trouble with maintaining zero. I have taken it apart for cleaning several times with near perfect return to zero. Was just shooting it again the other day and averaging 5/8"- 3/4"groups at 50 yards. The best I've ever got with any ammo out of my BL-22 was about 1" - 1 1/4" groups at 50 yards.
The open sights absolutely suck on both models. Due to the much longer receiver, it is substantially easier to mount a wide variety of scopes on the Henry.

My 39A was nothing to brag on accuracy wise either. I have 5 Marlin .22's at present. Three semi auto's and two bolt actions. Every one of them is more accurate than my 39A was.

Silly rabbit, you can't hit a barn from inside with one of those things.

You already bought a CZ, so I guess you don't care that a LGS has a CZ 457 Jaguar. Looks like an old time safari rifle, with hogback stock, 28" barrel, and tangent sights. $609

Your CZ is easy to scope (talley rings are great), but if you buy a lever, think about adding Skinner aperture soghts with a post front. Makes a handy rifle to carry that is astonishingly accurate compared to the factory open sights, especially if your eyes are a little older.

Still looking for that 39A - might have missed my window price wise.

Not sure what the prices are these days…but I’ve enjoyed my REM 572 Fieldmaster. In my home growing up it was Wingmaster’s for rabbits, Gamemaster for deer/bear, so it only made sense to use Fieldmasters on squirrels.

c

Pump guns aren't that popular where i live, so Remington 572s aren't over-priced when you find them. I bought a minty 572 for $288 a couple of years ago as an understudy to my pump action centerfire rifles. I bought a Winchester 270 for $208 in 2014. Not a bad rifle, but not the same solid feel as the Remington 572.

The 10-22 is kind of the easy button for sure..

I LOVE my old, Walnut 10/22's, but there's not a .22 rifle made, that will out shoot my old Marlin Model 60, '85 vintage. It took shooting that rifle, to realize Micro Groove rifling wasn't a gimmick.

I bought a CZ 452 when I was asking myself the same question. I don't regret it.

$600 budget? My best advice is to buy two!

A Remington 572 was my first 22, still have it and have seen very few for sale but wouldn’t hesitate to buy one again if the price was reasonable.

I shoot lotta snowshoe hare in the cold with hand gun and rimfire.

22 lr is finnicky in below zero weather from semi autos, they jam.

The velocity loss is significant when you combine the cold and further velocity loss of a semi auto. I will usually only use stinger ammo in semi autos in the cold.

During target sessions, working a bolt action for 300-500 round sessions gets obnoxious.

This leaves the pump and the lever. I dont care what model, I'd take any of them, over a bolt action or semi auto 22lr.

About 5 years back, I held Annie Oakley's 22 pump action. She used the thinniest front partidge blade sight ive ever seen. Thin as utility knife blade.

She new what the fk a 22lr should be.......

Ive wanted a 22 pump ever since

More than happy with a recent CZ 457 acquisition. Ammo does make a difference.

I like my model 63 Winchester for roaming. If you look long enough you can find one in the $600 range or you could look for one of the Taurus copies . Any of the Remington pump rifles would be nice also , or a Winchester or Taurus clone . Martini's are neat too . I have one made by Piper in Belgium that weighs next to nothing that I'm thinking about having converted to .32 S&W L .

Where was Annie's rifle at when you saw it? I got to see it the other day myself!

I like older guns.I have a 1975 Marlin 39 that I've been trying not to shoot too much,so I was in the market for another 22.A few weeks ago I picked up a very lightly used 1980 model Remington 552 auto for $450.Great trigger,tube feed,shoots everything,short,long and long rifle{like I've seen short or longs for years).Ran a box of the cheap Blazer and Remington Yellow Jackets through it without one issue.Figured if it would shoot these OK,it would shoot anything.Remington model 572 pump is another good choice.These older guns hold their value and were well made.

beechwood stock bothers me, should have been walnut. I hate they are doing the ugly stamps on the side of the stocks also. Handled a Royal, Royal stamped in big letters on a nice stock. Crazy....

My old marlin mdl 60 is by far my most accurate 22 of them all. It has the micro groove(whatever that means). Anything I run through her is way more accurate than my other 22s. It aint the prom queen but she is a keeper for sure.

Yeah, the one I looked at the other day was kinda oogly. Not a fan of the stamps either, though I think my MTR might have one someplace.

I put a walnut stock on my 455 SS and it turned out pretty nice. That’s the one I’ll probably tote around the woods.

Bought a 39A last year, but the trigger sucked and accuracy was iffy. At least I got it out of my system.

Savage makes dozens of 22lr.
Savage rimfires tend to be accurate.
Savage rimfires tend to be economical.
IMO
Good luck

Henry leverguns shoot shorts, longs, and long rifle interchamberdly. - Sherwood

Yes.

I don't think $600 will do it but I've had the hot's for a 541S Remington since I saw my first one. What I never had was the money to buy one! Geeze it's a beautiful rifle!

Not gonna do it, 1200 might

I was waiting on this one to come up. It was my first .22

The guy wanted something to shoot game with, and walk around. The lighter the better. A Marlin Model 60 with irons sounds great to me.

I wish Marlin made one shorter, with a half magazine. I do think they made one non-tube bottom feeder. I need to do some research.

My bergara bxr is a shooting son of a gun with mini mag hps

Actually a good Remington 581/582 are usually VERY VERY accurate and won't break the bank. What I've found anyway.

Q: What is the gun used by the US Olympic shooters in small bore running boar competition?
A: Custom 10/22s with Leupold double reticle, double target knobs scopes.

Really interesting little rifles. The rifle itself could be duplicated, pretty easily x scope, using pieces and parts available.
The custom built scopes cost more than your total budget by multiples.

A used 10/22 can be tricked out by near anyone with minimal mechanical ability. There is 1001 mods for them, including match barrels, triggers, steel screw in barrel actions, walnut stocks, mags, etc. A 16" 22 barrel is your friend for hunting.

They do shoot regular high velocity ammo, like CCI Mini Mags well.

Never heard of 10/22’s in any Olympic shooting. The only running boar rifles I’ve seen and shot were bolt action Anschutz or Walthers. You only shoot once per 10 meter pass. The last 50 meter running boar event was in 1988 in Seoul.

There was a Remington 12c at the Charlotte NC Cabelas a few weeks back under $600. Maybe $400ish IIR?

Not much finish on it, but seemed mechanically sound and had a sweet octagon barrel.

Maybe find an older T Bolt around there.

It has probably been said but those tikka rimfires are worth considering.

They made the model 25, along with the papoose. I actually ran across a 25M about two weeks ago for 325, but it was gone before I got to the store. It would have came home.

If I were hunting rabbits in front of a dog with a rimfire, I would definitely lean toward the semi auto. But I’m not a great shot either so if you’re good, I guess a single shot would do. Personally the Marlin 60, Ruger 10/22 or Remington 597 are all good candidates in the used gun market.

Older 10/22 or Remington 572 as mentioned elsewhere

I can sell you a used/as new Ruger American with a near new Viridian 3x9 scope + rings for less than your target price. It will go well with your 77/22!

Use the leftover $ to buy more ammo!