Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Rimfires CZ or Ruger American .22 for 4h

My son shoots in 4h cmp rimfire. Last year was his first year. He practiced with a little savage rascal but had to borrow a ruger 10-22 last minute to compete with because his savage was messed up. He’s getting a gift card at a sporting goods place for Christmas to put towards a gun. The other day they had a CZ (455 I think) and a Ruger American. They had a 10-22 takedown but not regular one. I hear good reports about CZ. Is it really much more accurate or easier to find load than the Ruger. Are the RAR .22 pretty accurate out of box. I don’t plan on doing anything but mounting scope, trying different ammo, and letting him practice. Let me know your thoughts if you have experience with either or both.

I would say the CZ 452 or 457. Some Ruger RAR's shoot well, some don't. The CZ's pretty much do out of the box. Trigger work on both perhaps. Neither are a true target rifle. The 10/22 can be made into what ever your pocketbook can afford.

They don't teach kids to shoot iron sights anymore? Whats this "mount a scope" bs? Find a Savage mk1 with a set of good irons and teach the boy about the fundamentals of marksmanship...

Yep, a scope on a 4h 22? Not what I remember.

I have wnough exoerice with both to say that with equal ammo- the CZ is about 1/2 MOA on average more accurate across the board.

Meaning with good quality Standard velocity ammo each gun likes, the CZ will most likely shoot under half inch at 50 yards and the Ruger will shoot under 3/4".

At .25 yards, it will be the difference of about 1/8 of an inch- 1/4" goups for the CZ vs 3/8" for the Ruger..
You might gwt a stella rout of the box Ruger that would do better but that is what I have seen.

The Ruger's tang safety will be much easier for you sin to deak with conpared to tge baxkwatds aafety on tge 455. The Ruger trigger is easy to adjust to gwt a much cleaner break than the 455 as well.

Ruger stocks arw also cheap- you can cut downnd Bondo up tge thing to fit him better at your heart's content without costing you much.

The Ruger would most likely be the cheaper. You get what you pay for. If you get a good one then you will have won. The CZ is perhaps is the better bet. If you son gets serious about this neither will be the final rifle.

I’m not familiar with the cmp format but would think Anschutz would be the way to go. Of the two rifles that that you mentioned a CZ generally has nicer walnut if you have a wood stocked model, a little bit nicer deeper bluing, cleaner checkering and overall fit and finish. None of that is likely to be noticed by a young kid just getting started.

+1 for the above posts. The CZ may save you a step in the ladder as he progresses. The Rugers seem to work but I won't be trading my CZ 457 for one. Anschutz is the final step on many .22lr target rifle ladders.

be very careful with CZ rimfire rifles as you will get bit by the CZ bug.i did about 10 yrs ago looking for my son an affordable "kids" rifle i stumbled upon a site called rimfire central and the chase was on. i researched and concluded my son needed a CZ 452 scout and that lil darn rifle shot an honest .5" 5 shot group at 50yds with multiple ammo................then the hook was set as i've bought several more CZ rimfires since then. you have been warned that CZitis is a thing.also, the CZ can grow with your kid. just buy a fullsize stock and you are set for a lifetime.
have fun and buy the CZ,
Big Ed

In my experience of four CZ 452's at 50 yds they will hover around 1/2" groups at 50 yds. With four RAR's they were nearer 1" groups at 50 yds - in both cases the ammo tried was mostly CCI Std Vel but I did also try some mid-grade target ammo in both and there was no measurable difference. The RAR's are gone and I still have a 452.
Don't overlook the Tikka T1X if you can find one at a reasonable price - they perform better than either the RAR or CZ in my experience. Also they have a vertical pistol grip available which is more conducive to target shooting and if needed a thicker pad is available to lengthen the pull. I also still have a T1X and it is my most used 22 at this time.

drover

FWIW, the CZ 457 has a “correct” safety, and the trigger is, on average, better than the 455’s. Also, the 457s are nitrided, not blued, which is a superior finish.

All told, the 457 is a major upgrade for the CZ rimfire line. I’ve owned a 453, still have a 455 SS, and just got a 457 Varmint MTR. The new action is a winner.

Had a RAR, and while folks seem to like them, I’ll never buy another one with the plastic stock. Might consider the wood ones.

Yes scopes are allowed up to 6x and most every kid competing has a scope on their rifle.

How times have changed!!

You will not go wrong buying a CZ rifle.

Thanks for the replies. We aren’t looking for an Anschutz. There were about 15 kids in our local 4h and one made state. Most kids are just shooting whatever .22 they have. The 4h cmp is made so you don’t have to have a high dollar target rifle to compete. However a decent rifle that is accurate is desired and will allow him to be more competitive as he improves. We had practices but only one district shoot. The CZ seems to be the better bet, but I’m going to let him handle both and decide.

The CZ455 is not perfect.
IMHO it doesn't measure up to the hype on another forum.
However, it is decent.
Trigger job and scope, and go.

Mine does half an inch at 50 w match ammo.
Its getting a Yo Dave trigger kit.

Swapped the hog back beech standard stock for an American plastic.
Kids shoot the pizz outta it this summer I reckon.

There are lots of kids just shooting Ruger 10-22’s, and I thought about going that route because it would be fun gun to use for other stuff than competition. However, I doubt the rifle would be as accurate without a lot of mods. I’ve just about convinced myself to go towards a .22 bolt gun.

For the prices I see CZ rimfires going for, I'd also have to take a look at the Tikka T1X. I went that route and have been very pleased with the rifle.

I';ve spent >25 years as a shooting coach/club leader. I would still be coaching a 4-H club is PSU hadn't ruined everything for leaders and volunteers, but that's another story for another time.

We started the kids off with Daisy/Crosman air rifles (8 yr olds) all outfitted with aperture peep sights. The older kids advanced to 3-position, small bore rifles. We used a Savage Mark I FVT bolt gun, again outfitted with peep sights. Teach the fundamentals to new shooters at 10M using iron sights and you'll develop a much better shooter as they mature. The Savage rifles allow for scope mounting down the road.

Glad to hear your son's shooting at a young age - keep him having fun and interested. They are the future of our sport!

Best wishes and Merry Christmas!

If you go to the CMP website they have the Savage Mark I FVT mentioned by Davelefty with a Williams peep sight for $257. I don’t know if that’s a good price or not but I would think it would be better suited for what your looking to do with it than either the CZ or Ruger.

I have a 455 Vamint and until I finished my Shaw barreled 10-22 with Kidd trigger group and various other parts it was my most accurate 22. I vote CZ.