Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Rimfires .22 Mag

In the market for a .22 Magnum rifle. Budget is about $1000 including a good scope. I have a really cool older custom Mauser single shot .22 Mag that has been misfiring more and more lately. Been to two local gunsmiths with no positive results. I love that rifle. Dad gave it to me when I was 18. Lots of ground squirrels, tree squirrels, and jack rabbits have been taken with it and I’d like to get another rifle like it. Any suggestions?

Tikka T1x would be my first choice.

I do not own any of these, but I have read enough to be confident in them giving good service.

CZ Varmint: https://www.sportsmans.com/shooting...tion-rifle-22-wmr-22-mag-205in/p/1542879

Bergara: https://www.sportsmans.com/shooting...-bolt-action-rifle-22-wmr-20in/p/1688520

I doubt someone willing to spend 1K would settle for a Savage Heavy barrel, but they will perform right there with the above 2. I have owned one of these.

I own a Ruger America Predator 22 magnum. It's good with its favorite ammo but does have some FTE issues.


If I am spending your money, I am spending it on the CZ Varmint.

I didn't know they were making one in 22 magnum. If so, it surely deserves consideration.

Might give a thought to a T/C Contender chambered in .22 Hornet.

Winchester M94 22mag is an excellent choice in my experience

I'd suggest looking for a used CZ 455, if you can find one. Mine shoots pretty good, WAY better than the Ruger American Predator I had, and doesn't give me extraction issues like that RAR did. Just a nice little rifle. I've also got the CZ autoloader, which shoots equally well. Much fun with either or both of them.

Ruger American with SWFA 6MQ sets you back around $700. Mine does just barely over 1" for 5 at 100 yds with Winchester 40 gr HPs. No ejection issues.

CZ would absolutely be my first choice.

Thanks everyone for your input.

My Hornet, along with some mediocre performance from a couple of .22 mag rifles, is keeping me from further pursuit of that notion. OTOH, I'm taking the plunge with the latest .22 mag autoloading pistol from S&W. We’ll see how that works out.

That's curious Pappy. I shoot 4 different barrels/cartridges from my carbines and none required modification to shoot like this:

.22 Short, 25 yards. It's my go to hog whacker


.22 LR, 50 yards:


.30 Sneezer, 50 yards:


.30-30, 100 yards

I sold this one a few years ago and it shot quite well for me and the buyer as well.

I suggest a BRNO ZKM 611. I gave $800 for this one a couple of years ago with two magazines (critical). It shoots.

I'll give the nod to a Bergara BMR in.22 WMR. Bought one last November and love it! I've only run Remington 40 gr. softpoints, but shooting right around an inch at 100 yards. I've had a few groups I could cover with a nickel.

This may seem like a far left field suggestion, but an H&R Model 700 is a fantastic 22wmr rifle. It is smooth to shoot. And beautiful. Accuracy, at least in my example seems to be very good at about quarter size groups out to about 50y with most ammos I've tried, on a junky no labels 4x(?) scope, plus my astigmatism.

Box magazine fed, and additional mags are readily available (usually).

The action is just ultra smooth, and also just a handy rifle. They typically sell around 500 lately, so you get to put q bit of extra money towards a scope. I suggest a nice old gloss blue or silver Weaver or such. But a modern scope will obviously be better just not as "classic" looking.

I own a Marlin 883S 22 WMR that is a solid 1 MOA (or UNDER) rifle with almost any brand of ammunition I feed it.

Tube magazine gives plenty of ROH and can never get misplaced.

You can put a really nice optic on it and come under your price point.....


Frog---OUT!

Had a 94/22M for a spell that shot well. It had a distinct preference for WW ammo, perhaps because it used lead bullets rather than the jacketed version used by CCI. That said, the CCI ammo was more than adequate for hunting, averaging around 1" at 50 yards. The WW ammo's smallest group at 50 was 1/4" for 5 rounds.

My mags were a 9422 and a CZ 455. Shot okay, but not up to what I’d hoped. This was after I’d read Mule Deer’s praises of his 9422. Apparently he got very lucky with that one, though IIRC someone wanted it more than he did and he let it go. Now I think he has a RAR, also a standout. One of those in SS has tempted me a bit, and I’m on a notification list for a CZ barrel for my 457, but my Browning Low Wall Hornet is just outstanding in every way, with handloads anyway. I have loads worked up for 40gr VMaxes, 30gr Varmint Grenades, and the latest, a 46gr Speer Flat Point. With hundreds of cases and a few thousand of those bullets on hand, with powder and primers to match, adding yet another rifle would probably be excessive (did I actually just say that?😱). Rather than acquiring another gun what I really need to do is load up a bunch and shoot ‘em up, rinse and repeat.

Really up to you....bolt, lever?
I have found that rimfires tend to be Individuals so far as an ammo preference for max accuracy. I have a Savage 24 that also does really well with Winchester sub-sonic. Not so hard on squirrels nor as expensive as 22 mag ammo