Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Rimfires Help me pick a nice .22 rifle

I need a nice .22 rifle (no really I do)

What's your pick? Price is a factor.

Leaning heavy toward a CZ 455 American. What others should I look at.

Who has experience it a Remington 504? How hard are they to find?

Browning T-Bolt

Order a Cooper built exactly how you want it and sell off a few other guns to help pay for it. It might take a year to get it so you have the chance to save more money to help pay for it.
You will have no regrets and a rifle that will stay with you until you die.

Since you wrote that price is a factory, I think the CZ will be your top choice. It will most likely shoot better than anything in it's price range.

The 504T I owned didn't impress me accuracy wise.

As much as I like my 453, that's not a bad idea.

You can use the year to acquire some decent ammo.

Get a cz 453 American if you can find one. IMO the set trigger is worth it. If not the 453 then a 452-455 wouldn't do anything short of impress. Just so you know that on a cz the bolt throw is retardedly high and requires mounting of the scope rather high, the safety is backwards and the mag well should be immediately replaced with a aluminum DIP unit. (Stock one is a POS)

Have to agree with the CZ recommendation. I have a 452. I have no experience with the 455. Go to rimfire central and check the CZ page for further information, or any other dedicated brand page they have there.

The required high scope mounts on the cz does concern me. I like a nice cheek weld.

You need a Marlin 39A (no, really you do). Accurate and fun to shoot!

Bryant, I have several Rem. .22's mostly older models and they are accurate.. But I have picked up a couple CZ's.. One in a .22 and the other a .22 mag.. I am impressed.. If I were buying a new .22 tomorrow, it would be a CZ.. I am not sure of the model I would select.. But that is the brand I would choose.. You can spend a lot more money, but I doubt you will get much better quality for the $...Mine are excellent accuracy wise...

Check this out.

http://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/8944334/CZ_453_American#Post8944334

Order a cz 455, the dip mag well, dip extended mag release, a good set of rings, and some decent rimfire glass and watch the magic happen. So far Stoney's cooper has outshot my cz, but only barely and I have yet to install my yo Dave trigger kit. Everything but winchester HV has shot Moa out of it. Eley subsonic hollow points and norma have shot ragged holes. Spend te extra money on a bunch of good ammo and extra mags. You won't regret the cz, unless your looking purely at aesthetics.

If you want a really nice .22, find a used Winchester/Browning 52 repro. Should run you in the neighborhood of $600-$800. Sometimes you can find one for that price with glass/mounts, etc..

It will be better looking than just about anything else you can find for twice the price (except for a used Cooper), it will out shoot just about everything, has a great trigger, and most of them have great wood but it is sometimes covered up with their factory stain and finish.

Bob

https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbth...Shooting_the_Cooper_and_CZ_#Post8938188. Just some reading material

What cw says!

donsm70

Bryant, I am a Winchester guy, have been for 55 years, it all started with my great grandfathers model 67 that butchered more cattle and hogs,killed more varmints than 5 semi tractor trailers could pull. I have been very blessed with many Winchesters since that time. If you can find a Zanders HB modle 52 R or repo. buy it, mine is almost benchrest accurate using Wolf MT ammo. They are fantastic, well made , beautiful guns with a centerfire feel! You will not be disappointed. They also hold and keep resale ,in fact they keep going up. I have one and it is every bit as nice, shoots as well as my 56' mod 52 sporter that cost many thousands more! very best WinPoor

The CZ 453 if the set trigger is something you want, have not heard anything bad about them. The CZ American 452 if you want a classic style walnut stock, The 452 Trainer (less money) has a Euro style hogback beech stock (but it has an excellent set of irons).

The CZ 452's need some trigger work, you can do it yourself and the yo-dave kit only runs around $18. There are other sears and replacement triggers avail. but I can not tell the diff. from a $65 repl. sear and a yo-dave kit.

Other CZ upgrades can wait till you can swing them and aren't necessary but add a bit of class to the gun; the triggerguard is stamped metal, DIP has a milled replacement. the magazine housing is plastic (you can not see it without taking the action out of the gun), again DIP has a metal replacement.

Their latest offering the CZ 455 I have no experience with... main advantage is you can switch barrels (22 LR, 22 Mag, 17 HMR & i the think the 17 mach 2).

Was looking at getting a Rem. 504 when they came out, but in a wise moment waited until others reviewed them... There were complaints regarding the accuracy and I skipped getting one.



Me too... pic of my CZ Trainer in an American Stock with a Weaver 2-7 rimfire scope and low B-square sport utility rimfire rings. Works fine.



Jerry

p.s.

Take a look at the CZ 452 FS (full stock), my idea of a classic rifle, don't own one though. AND contrary to what others here have said; Stay away from the rimfirecentral.com CZ subforum... Those folks are the biggest enablers on the internet.

I bought a CZ455 as I wanted to try the 17HMR. It came with a .22 bbl. I have other 22's.

It's very accurate with the 17. The 17 has more range than a 22 and is legal in CT state forests.

The Winchester M75 Sporting's action is not nearly as thick or heavy as the 455 however the CZ's stamping of it's name etc. is course and not ground and polished smooth.

The 455's plastic magazine sticks out at the balance point.

Bought a 452 Varmint ... didn't care for it one bit ... new owner loves it! Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Good Luck with whatever you decide. Maybe you'll like the taste of CZ kool-aid. If so, enjoy!

FWIW, I did shoot the set trigger, didn't like that much either, broke clean and light, but the 1/4" of over-travel after the break IMHO robbed the CZ of some of it's accuracy potential.

OP Assuming you want a bolt action 22. I have owned a 504. I really wanted to like that rifle. It looks beautiful. But they just don't shoot. I got rid of mine and would not recommend them to anyone.

My dad has a 52 repro very nice rifle. A little heavy for a 22 but I could definitely live with it. Might have to look for one.

What's the deal with the kimber of America (Yonkers ny) 22 rifles. I always wanted one and now they are discontinued and I I never see them on the used market. I quess everyone is hanging on to them.

The Kimbers are very nice rifles and come up quite often on the used market on gunbroker.com and other auction sites. The Yonkers models seem to have a mystique about them, but I've seen the Kimber of Oregon, Yonkers, and others and for my money the Kimber of Oregon are the best of the bunch, followed very closely by the Yonkers versions.
I wouldn't have an argument with anyone who reversed that order as they are very close in overall fit, finish, and capability. They run about the same money as the Win 52 Repros.

Bob

This is very true about the set trigger function. As much as I like the set trigger function, I have to agree with you.

Although,I must admit, if I could find a 453 varmint, I'd probably give it a whirl mainly because I like that the front action screw being on the action and not tugging on the barrel. We have 100 yard 3-position rimfire shoots. Regardless of my perceived short comings of the CZ it was perfectly balanced for that event. Mine was decent at 50 yards, but at 100 I could not get decent groups regardless of ammo selection.

There is one for sale on RFC but I'm don't think I'll roll the dice for $600. If it was a ggod shooter I don't think it would be for sale!

CZ's are nice, I like Winchester 52's and Anschutz 54's more. If you want just one really nice 22, skip the CZ. They're great for the money, but not a "once in a lifetime" rifle.

Kimbers of NY are worth the effort to find.

have you seen this one?
http://www.gunsinternational.com/Winchester-52-Custom.cfm?gun_id=100434100

I've got 4 CZ's, had several others in the past. What they are/were (as the cost has gone waay up in the past 14 years) is the best rifle in it's dollar range, that is considering quality & accuracy. But I have to agree with Oregon45 that I don't feel they are a "once in a lifetime" rifle. For me that probably(?) would be a Yonkers Kimber 22. I (We?) have several guns and it seems to me I often wish I had just one good one... spend more than you feel you can afford and buy your "once in a lifetime" rifle the first time.

Jerry

Anchutz 64, none better for the price.-Muddy

Just picked up a 455... Looks really nice. We shall see how she shoots.

Just got back for shooting the brand new 455...I think I'm gonna like it

A few observations, with leupold rifleman rings and my 4 x 32 Nikon the bolt does rub the scope. It will work but I will probley change rings and or scopes in the future

Shot a little over a half an inch at 50 yards with cci sub sonic and stinger. I'm sure it will do better with match ammo and some barrel brake in.

Good enough to shoot a squirrel in the head at 40-50 yards out of the box!

As money permits I would do the yo Dave trigger kit, dip mag well and mag release extension. Very handy items to add.

OOPS I missed the boat here. I just PM'ed you about my in the box Browning BL-22. I think it is a grade ll, has some engraving and very high grade finish etc.

Good luck with that 455.

The yo Dave kit seems a little hokey to me, but many have success with it. I liked the rifle basix replacement trigger in my 452 .... a bit more expensive, but delivers a great trigger, except for the over-travel, which you can't get rid of without a lot of effort.

Looks like I'm late to the game as you've already bought a fine CZ rifle. I was going to throw out that Sako is making the Finnfires again:

http://www.sako.fi/sakofinnfire2.php

Has anyone handled the new finnfire? I loved my old forester and having a sako 22 wouldn't be hard to justify.

To be fair I am a bit of a .22 rimfire slut.

CZ - I have 2 - One Mannlicher - One 455 with darn good wood. CZ represents the best value in .22 todays

A BL-22 with a Skinner peep on it. Ton of fun. Usually run Winchester CB match through it. Quieter than my air rifle and more fun.

An old Winchester semi-auto that was my grandfathers

A weird single shot German one I need to research some time.

A 10/22 because, after all, I'm an American. This one I bought in 1980 for $89 at Kmart. It was the first rifle I bought myself.

Cooper is the most correct answer, so much so I did it twice. The first one was an off the shelf that shoots great. This one they stocked with a piece of walnut that my Grandfather cut off our farm in KY 40 years ago.

I changed my rings on the cz 455 to a set of b square sport utility lows that I found in my gun parts box, I don't even know where they came from. They work great and seem to be about as low as you can go and still get good bolt cleaence.

For the money the CZ is the best rimfire on the market, bar none.

If not a CZ I really like my Winchester 52s and Remington 541s.

At the next level come the Kimbers and Coopers. And of course Anschutz.

Unfortunately for me, I had a Kimber that wouldn't shoot. My buddy had one that shot wonderfully.

Congrats on your purchase. My guess is it will quickly become one if your favorite rim fires.

Easy!

Ruger American...

CZ

Anschutz then CZ

Don't overlook the Browning T-Bolt. They are accurate and the straight, short pull bolt can be worked almost as fast as a semi-auto if that matters to you.

In comparison to my CZ 452 American the T-Bolt is lighter, better balanced and the forearm is slimmer. I also prefer the thumb safety on the Browning, the flush magazine that holds 10 rounds instead of five and the "normal" screw in scope mount system. Mine is the Sporter model and the stock is finished better and has very nice checkering.

All that said, I have no intention of giving up my CZ or any other rimfires as you can never have too many.

About ten years after Father-in-Law passed away, so did wife's brother. While cleaning out the store room, I found a Remington 510 Targetmaster, a single shot. Finish is pretty much gone, but the mechanics and bore are fine. It is boringly accurate.

A couple of years ago, I picked up a really nice repeater Remington 511 in a pawn shop for $40. It is essentially identical to the 521 Junior Target, except for the target stock and the receiver sight. It is also a tack driver.

Don't overlook the older Marlin 39 (without the rebounding hammer). Most of them just flat out shoot. Problem is, nice examples are expensive.

My older Remingtons and Marlins are not far behind the 54 spotters that I have had in the accuracy department. I bailed on the 54s because of the ,rollover stocks before the American style came about. Because of what I have, there is no need to return.

Good luck,

Jack

I have a CZ in 17 Mach 2. I'll never sell it, but it's not perfect. By that I mean, it's not a perfect field gun.

Remington 581 is plenty accurate and handles better in the field, IMO, than the CZ. I just picked up another 581, with a shortened barrel, which should be a dream to carry. I also just picked up a BRNO Model 1 and I suspect that it, too, will handle better than the CZ. I wish the BRNO was in worse shape, then I'd convert it to Mach 2.

Savage Classic. Plenty purdy and accurate, but the barrel is a tad long to be super handy in the field.

Remington 541 - real purdy and accurate as well.