Most popular? No way, Jos�! But my favorite by far is my newest .220 Howell rifle. Bench-rest barrel-maker Greg Richards put a 26-inch barrel on a Nesika Model K single-shot action and bedded 'em in an H-S Precision Pro Series stock (with that long aluminum chassis inside, from under the nose of the comb out nearly to the front sling swivel). Al Talbot very precisely fitted it out with his great QD mount and four sets of rings.
Yep -- four sets of scope rings. I've tested far too many variable scopes and found too many of 'em unreliable for precise long-range shooting, while Talbot's mount always returns scopes to zero after any number of removals and replacements. So I have four fixed-power scopes for this rifle, each zeroed at a different range -- an old 12x Redfield, an old 20x Weaver, a new 24x Sightron, and a new 36x Weaver. (Hope to add a fifth when -- if -- Doug Phair comes-out with the 42x VarTac that he's considering.)
My .220 cartridge was specifically designed for long-range shots at small targets on the windy northern plains. (You can read about it in the current issue of The Accurate Rifle.)
For the smaller targets and shorter ranges on this side of the Divide, my favorite .22 LR rifle is my very-low-number Kimber of Oregon -- but I'm trying to get a well known maker to offer my recommended version of a Mannlicher-stocked bolt-action .22 LR with a sharply tapered 18-inch barrel. If he does, and it shoots as well as it should, it'll likely become my favorite for gophers and close-in prairie dogs. On our last 'dog shoot, I popped several with my 12-inch-barrel Taurus .22 LR revolver -- one at a measured 87 yards, some farther -- so the .22 LR with high-velocity hollow-points is still in the running for small varmints at short ranges. A light, short .22 LR rifle with a stiff barrel ought to be great for walk-around shooting. I missed far more than I hit with the revolver with open sights, but the walk-around carbine with an 8x Leupold should guarantee a much better batting average.
At a testimonial dinner in his honor, "Double-Nothing," an old college or high-school athletics trainer (nicknamed for his jersey number, 00), thought long and hard before answering the request that he name the school's best-ever team. Then he brightened and said "Next year's!" Isn't that also the way with our favorite rifles?
