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I have a Marlin .22 for varmints around my house. It's a nice little rifle, except it won't shoot 22.Shorts. It shoots longs fine. I would like to start using shorts instead of the high velocity stuff, because I don't want bullets flying around a mile away. I can't spend a fortune, but I don't need anything fancy. I have a single shot Rossi, that I can use, but I'd like to buy a semi-auto if there is one around. Thanks.


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The one that comes to mind is the Remington Model 552. http://www.remington.com/products/firearms/rimfire_rifles/model_552_speedmaster.asp

It is a very good rifle. There is also the pump action Remington 572 that looks similar. I believe Rossi makes one that is similar.

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Several of the guys around here are using subsonic's. The low velocity and heavier weight of the bullets keep it quiet and I believe they really affect the long range danger.

I've got some Remington subsonic's but haven't had a chance to try them yet. Rain, snow, mud, ice, repeat cycle, is keeping me in.


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Originally Posted by rondrews
I would like to start using shorts instead of the high velocity stuff, because I don't want bullets flying around a mile away. I can't spend a fortune, but I don't need anything fancy. I have a single shot Rossi, that I can use, but I'd like to buy a semi-auto if there is one around. Thanks.


High Velocity shorts are not any slower than High Velocity long rifles and Standard Velocity shorts are not any slower than Standard Velocity long rifles in general. They simply use a 29 or 27(HP) grain bullet instead of a 40 or 38(HP) grain bullet.

Actually, the best cure for ricochets is to use hyper velocity hollowpoints like CCI Stingers. They tend to be more likely to fragment rather than glance. I have found the CCI CB Longs and Shorts with their very low velocities to be quite ricochet prone (they are flat out bouncy). If ricochets are a big safety concern for you, then you may need to rethink your tactics. No offense please. I just remember an uncle's cow having to be put down after a 12 gauge slug from a distant dear hunter ricocheted into her. The slug was quite mangled but the damage was done.

As to the subject of semi-autos that feed all three cartridge lengths (short, long, and long rifle), the Remington 552 is the last remaining production model that will still handle the chore (quite pricey). Savage made and sold a semi-auto tube repeater that fead all three for decades and it was marketed under Savage, Stevens, and Springfield brand names. These sale at gunshows for $100 to $150.

A good alternative would be the Henry Lever Action. I have a friend that shoots nothing but CCI CB Shorts in his Henry and it operates without a hitch.

Last edited by sheffieldshooter; 02/13/09.
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There were several different brads made, but you're going to have to scour the used gun inventories of gunshops or onine to find them.

The older Marlin 60's did, IIRC, and I know the Mossberg Models 50 & 151 did, as did the Winchester M-74 & M-190/290, the Savage Model 6, and the Remington models 24/241, 552 (as posted above) & 550.

I have also ran across several imports whose barrels were marked for all three .22's, from Italy, Spain and the Philippines.

.


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Thanks for the tips, Guys. I never thought about the lever action idea. That might be the ticket. Or the Rem. 552. If I can mount a scope on a Lever Action, I might buy one.
My problem is although I live in the woods, I am only 1/4 mile from a state highway. I am extremely careful where I aim, but I sure don't want a ricochet to hurt anybody. My road is private, but the tree huggers and berry-pickers from out of state use it for their walks. I use CCI shotshells in my single shot Rossi whenever I can, but I have tree rats (Gray, red, black and Fox) by the hundreds and if I don't keep them and the ground rats (Chipmunks) under control, They tear up my house and garage. Not only that tree rats taste good!


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Savage .22 autoloaders had the floating chamber invented by Carbine Williams. He licensed it to several manufacturers.

The Savages of the 1960s would feed shorts, longs, or long rifles from its tube magazine. Subsonic LR and CB caps probably will not work. The LR is too long, and the CB too weak.

I would try the subsonic short loads. I used them a lot in rifles for rats and pigeons in town. Out of a long barrel, like on a target rifle, they make very little noise.

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I have an older Stevens that will, don't know the model. It's in my overflow gun safe at my folks' house. Haven't shot it in years, but just wiped it and the others in there down the other day.


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Originally Posted by Lee24
Savage .22 autoloaders had the floating chamber invented by Carbine Williams. He licensed it to several manufacturers.


I did not know that any Savage .22 autos used the floating chamber. I only thought the Remington 550 and 550-1 did. Do you remember the model number of the Savage that used Mr. Williams patent?

For those that may not know this, there are basically two ways to make a .22 autoloading rifle function with all three .22 rimfire cartridge lengths.

The most popular method is to simply install a recoil spring light enough to operate with .22 shorts. The .22 long rilfes and longs will actually "over" operate the spring. Some manufactures incorporated rubber or plastic buffers at the back of the receiver to help absorb this force from the longer rounds. The modern Remington 552 uses such a buffer.

The other method was to use a floating chamber. Carbine Williams patented this invention and one of the earliest firearms to employ it was the Colt Ace .22 autoloader pistol. It made a slide locking 1911 Colt auto function with .22 long rifles and simulated the bounce of a full .45 ACP round. The Army used these for training troops with cheaper ammo but many civilians purchased them as well.

The Remington 550 and 550-1 .22 autoloading rifles used a variation to enable a .22 short to make a .22 long rifle strength recoil spring compress enough to operate with shorts. The floating chamber incorporates a seperate inner/back part of the chamber. There is a slight gap/ring in the .22 long rifle length chamber that is located right at the case mouth of a .22 short cartridge. A bit of the short's gas bleeds off into this ring and this acts on the sliding rear portion of the chamber to increase the blow back force on the bolt face. Thus the weaker cartridge can still propel the bolt back with enough force to compress the heavy recoil spring. They do get dirty though and cause malfunctions if allowed to stay that way. My Remington 550-1 ran through about two boxes of shorts flawlessly and then in box # 3 it started to jam. The rifle actually began to sound different. Just some solvent and some judicious brushing with a bronze .22 cal. brush loosened mine right up. I assume the ring/gap fills with fouling and "freezes" after a while. These little floating chambers require some meticulous machining and would be cost prohibitive at today's rates.

Funny thing about the Remington 550-1. It is an exceptionally accurate .22 rifle (I mean scary accurate for a semi-auto). An old gunsmith (he passed a few years ago) once told me that there was actually a small cottage industry tasked with welding up these floating chambers. The owners wanted their rifles to work exclusively with the more serious and accurate .22 LR round. They did not have to clean the rifle as much and when they did it was easier. I think Remington would have had a winner if they had simply dropped the floating chamber (as neat a device as it was) and brought out a .22 LR only model 550-2 (sounds as good a name as any).

Last edited by sheffieldshooter; 02/16/09.
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IIRC the Savage was the Model 87. The Stevens 87 says "Long Rifle Only" but looks the same.


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Originally Posted by drducati
IIRC the Savage was the Model 87. The Stevens 87 says "Long Rifle Only" but looks the same.


That's two of the 87s. My first .22 rifle that I had my Dad buy for me with my newspaper route money was a Springfield 87. Still the Savage design with just another name for marketing indirectly through hardware stores and the like. My 87 would function well with all three cartridges. Later, I noticed that Savage altered the 87's design to accept LRs only. They shortened the barrel as well.

By the way, my 87 did not have a floating chamber. It used a short weight recoil spring and just took the punishment from the longer two cartridges.

Looks like there were two different looking versions of Model 87s. The older ones kind of have a hump back look, a button bolt handle, and distinctive venting cuts behind the chamber. My Model 87 looked like the ones in this Springfield ad. More slender with less pronounced venting cuts.

http://cgi.ebay.com/1963-STEVENS-MO...imsxZ20090123?IMSfp=TL090123111006r13556

Last edited by sheffieldshooter; 02/18/09.

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