Like probably everyone here, I have some nice firearms. I also have some inexpensive ones. What firearms do you have that give a lot of value, without a lot of expense?

My list:

Yugo Mauser, $200. Perfectly serviceable as a hunting rifle that I don't mind loaning to my teenage grandkids. Adding a Mojo sight system.

Savage bolt action 30-30, $165. I did add the Williams peep sight, which cost half as much as the firearm. It's a 2 MOA machine, pleasant to shoot, and very cheap to feed with cast bullets. I can go through 50 rounds and be wishing I had brought more ammo. Also excellent for grandkids.

M69 22LR training rifle, $69. The stock was in sorry shape and needed some TLC, but the metal was good. Dang accurate, with fold down leaf sights.

My two favorite inexpensive firearms are what I would say of much higher quaility than some of todays expensive rivals. They are a Remington 511 and a Winchester 69A. Both shoot lights out and are "all there" in the construction side of things. I have just a little over $300 in the pair.

$99 Albanian SKS, although the demise of $80/1000 commie ammo lessens the appeal somewhat..

$350 SS boat paddle Ruger in .270, 99% condition, shoots like a dream. Feels like I stoled it..

My two are H&Rs. One is a single shot 20 ga., the other is a .22 sportster. Both were under $200. They are my go to guns for squirrel hunting.


maddog

Those 69A's are some fine old 22's. I learned to shoot on one.

Now days I would have to go with a 10-22, or a Henery 22.

TIKKA rifles, glocks and Ruger 22/45. Great value for the money.

I've probably gotten more bang for the buck out of Ruger 10/22's than anything I own.

DJ

Gotta go with the NEF/H&R single shots. Don't currently have one but have had 5-6 in the past. Looking for a .243 for my daughter now. New they are around $150-$165 & with a trigger job & a little tweaking they are a fine little rifle.

Little Marlin model 60 Glenfield K-Mart special 39.95 back in the 1977. Do you guys remember these?

1949 Remington 721 '06.

$90.00 in 1969, including Weaver KV 2-5 variable scope.

My Remington Nylon 66 22 LR

I have 2 Savages, 22-250 and 300 WSM. Both have the Accu-trigger. They're highly reliable and very accurate...and quite inexpensive. I don't care about pretty. A gun is a tool made to do a job and Savage does the job.

That would be my Kodiak 22 mag. autoloader. It was the first gun I bought. Second one down.

Under $500 is my definition of inexpensive. I have a couple of Marlin MR7s (.30-06 and .270); a Sig SHR 970 (.280); an Interarms Mark X (.243); and a Remington 798 (.300 Win Mag).

Mine is '71 vintage, my first rifle, I still have it, and it still outshoots any factory 10/22 I've owned (about a 1/2 dozen). If it were more reliable, it would be a world-beater.

I agree with you on the Yugo Mausers, but I'd also add the Mosin�Nagant carbine in 7.62 Russian.

I paid 60 bucks for my Mosin, kicks like a mule but is fun to shoot.

+1 on the Marlin 60. Got mine when Grandad passed about 1966. Mine says Western Auto on it. My 10-22 is fine but....

I have a marlin 336 I bought when I was 18, with tax and everything it came to just a tad over 200 bucks with a box of ammo IIRC. its been through hell and aint worth what I paid for it now, finish is wore off in many places, couple spots of rust and the wood is in BAD need of refinishing. but I wouldn't trade that rifle for anything in the world. killed a LOT of game with it. just wish it shot cast bullets worth a crap

Turkish Gew98 in 8X57 - $50
Remington 788 in .308 Win - $300
Winchester 1300 XTR - $150
1975 Winchester 94 - $300

I remember paying $125 for new Winchester 94's at Gemco in the mid 70's.


Alas, all were lost in that boating accident. Woe is me.

Rem 788. Our .222 is still about the most accurate rifle I've ever owned/shot.

Jeff

Marlin 336 30-30, fairly inexpensive, well made, shoots well enough a joy to carry. Looking for one right now. I come to believe that for my current deer hunting it would be the perfect rifle and cartridge combination.

Mine is a Browning take down .22, Belgium made.

Sporterized 03-A3. A gift from a relative, I then spent about $112 on a Fajen stock and about $40 to have a gunsmith bend the bolt handle to clear a scope, put a low-swing safety on it, and drill and tap the receiver. I have less than $200 in it and even with the original 1943 2-groove barrel, it's still plenty accurate for hunting.

Mossberg 640-K Chuckster in .22 magnum. A Christmas 1966 gift from my late father. It still shoots as good as the day I got it.

I have a little Jennings 22 auto pistol, one reviled by many. It works perfectly. It took about 10 minutes of playing with the magazine to get it functional at all, but now it never misses a beat. I paid $20.00 plus the Brady for it.

Chinese SKS $80

1896 Swedish Mauser $90

1895 Chilean Mauser $95

Mosin Nagant M44 $100

I have more fun with the SKS than any others, and have spent more on aftermarket sights than I did on the entire rifle.

An early New York built US Arms Abilene 44 Mag I bought at a pawn shop in 2004 for $160 OTD. Bluing well worn with some pitting and ugly azz rubber Pachy's (since replaced with Ruger SBH wood). It locks up like a FA, a glass smooth action, perfect throats and cylinder to bore alignment, a crisp 2 1/2# trigger and shoots as one would expect assembled as such.

Rem 600 6mm purchased for $99.95 back in 1963.

Of the ones I have bought for myself I must say that the Kel-Tec P32 & P11 are my favorite AND most carried. I have less than $500.00 in the pair.

Guns I got as a kid, a Winchester 37 in .410 and a model 62A .22, both have more rounds through them than I would care to count and I still shoot small game with both. The .410 I believe my grandad paid $29.00 at the hardware store for my 8th birthday and the 62A Dad bought for $39.00 right before the war and passed it to me when I was 6.

I love my man-sized Marlin Glenfield bolt action .22 lr that I got for $65. It shoots well enough, and was my first experience in refinishing a rifle. Topped w/ an El Paso K4 sporting a regular crosswire, it is PERFECT:



I love Savage 110s, too. Building my boys a .243 Win for $90 right now, and I'm sure it'll shoot as well as some of the Rem 700 customs guys around here rave about. Can't wait... its a surprise for my 7 & 9 yo boys...

Yeah, but that was back when money was real, with paper backed by gold and silver in circulation.

For reference, when I bought that SKS back in 1990 it was 6.5 grams of gold. I bought another SKS last month identical to the first one, and it cost 6.6 grams of gold. It seem that guns and gold do hold their value through the years, and are a good store of value.

Savage/Stevens .22/.410. First one ran me $100.

most of my inexpensive guns were top notch weapons, bought used. Top quality at a reduced price.

In 1970, on my 12th birthday, my father took me to the sporting goods store in town to get a .22 rifle. I had several rifles in mind, most of them semi-autos...

The store owner sold me on the qualities/benefits of the remington 581 bolt gun...
I owe the man a debt of gratitude...

It was $40 brand new...

That is a sweet looking Marlin.

Stevens Model 94 single shot shotgun , or , if more than a single shot is needed , Stevens 311 double barrel



Mike

Great thread! I'd agree with SKS's and sporterized Mausers too (I have them, but no photos). I also like a British Enfield (.303 Brit.) that I bought for $99 years ago. The thing carries like a log, but it's accurate.

Below are my favorite rifles that are (relatively) cheap to buy, and cheap to shoot, with the exception of .410 ammo, I can't believe how expensive that stuff is, and I don't reload shotgun ammo. Anyway......

Top to bottom:
Remington 510 single shot bolt action .22
Remington 511 clip fed bolt action .22
Ruger 10/22 (wife and 16 year old sons FAVORITE) .22
Marlin .22 Magnum (forget model name/number, but it's a "take-down" in that the stock unscrews from the action
Premier .22 (I paid $20 for that in the 80's at a long since defunct gun shop on 45th street off 5th ave in Manhattan..... seems hard to believe it was there)
and lastly,
Excel single shot .20 shotgun, that has been joined since taking this picture by 2 .410 guage "brothers", see 2nd pic. -TomT

PS. oops I forgot the .22 Magnum AMT 6" pistol was even in the pic. fun to shoot, but doesn't reliably feed all types of .22Mag ammo

My dad bought me one at a police auction for $20, and i have shot 1000's of rounds with that gun

+1 and the Marlin/ Glenfield

my other favorite is my polish mauser, i paid $100.00 and have one of the most accurite rifles I have ever owned.

Bought a 1949 edition of an Ithaca 37 20 guage for $150 a couple years ago. Refinished the stock and cleaned it upa little. Its a joy to carry all day.

Man, I could go on about inexpensive guns that have turned out to be fantastic, but currently I just have a few.

Rossi Model 62 (Copy of a Winchester 62A): Bought it for my little boy, probably paid a touch more than it was worth, but it was exactly what I was looking for, so I plunked down. True to form, it's an excellent rifle, and a take-down to boot.

Ruger MK III Standard: Picked it up brand new for $269 with two mags. Again, bought it for the kids, but man it's a shooter. Will nearly cut the groups from my K-22 in half.

Century Sterlin Sporter: Not REAL cheap, but pretty cheap when you consider what you're getting. Built by Wiselite arms, they did a pretty decent job. Once again, it was a gun for the kids, especially my 8 year old by who is a HUGE Star Wars fan, and he clearly recognizes that the Sterling is the platform for the Stormtrooper's "Blasters". Anyhow, it's accurate and extremely reliable. It works perfectly with the Sterling or the STEN magazine. Man my boy loves shooting that little carbine. Back when I did Class 3 gunsmithing, the Sterlinig quickly became my favorite SMG, nothing's as reliable, nothing's as smooth. Probably why it's the most widely used SMG in history.

I SO NEED one of those... and I do mean NEED!

Swedish Mauser 96, too. Love mine. Truly awesome rifle. Made today the way they made them back then it would cost at least three grand. I believe I paid a couple hundred for mine back in the 1990s, and it's in nearly new condition.

+1

Even though I have a tricked out one, the base 10/22's are still one of the best bargains ever. Used to be the Ruger Blackhawks were pretty good deals but I haven't priced one out in a while.

I like the Mosin Nagnat's. I used my friends M44 with surplus ammo to kill rats on his dairy.

I want a SKS so bad! Cheap ammo, good little kick, can kill a coyote with no problem.

My Marlin 39A wasn't very expensive and it may be my favorite firearm regardless of price.

I have a Mosin built in 54 that is my throw in the truck or on the scooter rifle, Paid 60.00 bucks for it.

Also picked up a 30-40 Krag at a yard sale for 50.00, it was/is rough looking but functions great and is fun to shoot.

Got an early model 760 in .280 awhile back and gave 200.00 for it, looks brand new.

My biggest problem, is not enough room in the safe.........you can find great deals around here on a regular basis.

Marlin XL or XS7.


.

A savage model 187n semiauto. 39.95 in 1971. It loved Remington Thunderbolts. At 25 yards could shot the fired primers out of shot shells with a little four power scope.

Savage made SMLE No4Mk1* i paid $70 for with the cut down stock.....one of my favorite rifles period....

Hands down my Marlin 882 SS 22 Mag. Cheap and accurate.

Narrowed just to stuff I like to shoot:

$200 S&W 422

'round about '02 I nabbed a SS/Wood M-70 Classic Fwt in 270Win for $400 off the used rack. A year or so later I nab a Winlight, do the stock swapaloo and come out ahead $50. I bed it and rattle can it myself. This is a 600yd over my backpack from the Classic I kept:



Pretty sure my SS Mountain Guide 7-08 was $499 on closeout.

Mini MK X in 223 for $275 was a wise move.

Wholesale Sports closed in town last summer and I got a SS SPS ADL 308 package for $375 that shoots very well.

Savage/Fox B 28" Mod/IC 20ga for $349 late last summer.

The 270 FWT is the gem of the bunch.

Best 20.00 ever spent!!

I've got three M96 Swedes I like a lot. Two are full military as issued and all the numbers match. One is sporterized and only the action, barrel and bolt have matching numbers. All shoot well, have great bores and I paid less than $400 for the trio - the most spendy one was $180.

NEF Handi-Rifle in 357 Max.
Win Mod 69 in 22LR
Glock 17 found used in pawn shop for $350.
Rem 870 pump with 2 bbls bought new in PX in 1971

Coach

FR8 Mauser (308) for $125 a few years ago.

Several come to mind. I didn't see a single posting for the venerable 870. Keep your model 12's-the 37 is nice, but I'll still take an 870. Mine's had Lord only knows how many thousands of rounds run through it over the last 45 years. It never jams. Never, not once.

Another area that saw little mention here were .22 semi automatic pistols. Mine happens to be a High Standard Sport King. 'Cant go wrong with Ruger or a Browning either.

How many here started their deer hunting careers with a 30-30? Hard to beat the Marlins, and who hasn't had one?

There ought to be a law that every kid gets a BB gun when he turns 10. It just ought to be. I had two-an old Crossman clip fed bolt action CO2 job and a Sheridan Blue Streak. The Sheridan is scary accurate. It still graces my gun cabinet and will be my grandchild's some day.

Another "must have" should be one of the Marlin semi-auto .22's that K-Mart and everyone else sold by the gazillion. A kid just ought to have one.

Another must have for any hunting family is a Mec 600 Jr. shotshell reloader, or a Lee Load All. Kids can go through a bunch of ammo once they figure out that pulling the trigger is a lot of fun. I remember many late night's spent downstairs in the reloading room prepping ammo for the next days hunt. Back then, there weren't so many cheap imported loads on the market. If a guy had a couple hundred AA or Remington RXP cases, he was set.

My Fox Savage Model B in 16 ga.
I dropped 3 Quail with 2 shots with it:)
Shortly after I sold both of my 1100`s. Gave $200 for it several years ago.

Damn!!

870 Wingmaster 12 ga. $157 with tax out the door brand new, seemed cheap then, even cheaper today

Rem 700 BDL, .338 $285 iron sighted only of course, still it came with over a half box of Fed Prem


Nylon 77 .22 $85

Colt police positive .38 $150

Colt gov't .38 super, $100

the last two are gone, the .38 miss a little, the .38 super what a dumbazz to let that go, it shot lights out for a handgun

M700 ADL 270.

Straight up killer.

I just got a Remington 511 Scoremaster, Rem Model 41 Targetmaster and a old Marlin Model 80 for $75 total! They are all in great shape and all shoot really well.

The Garands and M1 carbine I purchased through the CMP.

Crossman 760

I could find room for all of those!

Want to make a profit on the 511????

+1 on a super clean Norinco SKS. $93. If that's all I had I would be okay.

I'll mention a prewar Browning A5, which was well used, with a cut down stock, for $150, about 6-7 years ago. I put a tuneup kit in it, and it shoots quite well. I think at some point I will get the choke reamed to open up the patterns.

I bought a Ruger 77/22 about 17-18 years ago, and it is superbly accurate. It served admirably in the Texas Coon Wars, this past year

Norinco ATD new for $80- it shoots one ragged hole at 25 yards.
Remington 581L- bought new after being discontinued, plain as dirt but a real shooter
Savage 110ML used/rebarreled in .25-06 for $165 with a Charles Daly scope that I swapped over the counter for a new replacement.
NEF Sidekick for $140 OTD- great shooter with BH 209.
Mosin-Nagant sporterized carbine for $85-great truck gun.
S&W 686 for $240 new.

I was able to score two 'drop dead gorgeous' Dan Wesson revolvers (357 Mag & 44 Mag) ... for a song.

Also a CZ 40-P (Franken-Pistol) and a CZ 40-B (same as Colt Z-40), both pistols 'new' and 'uncataloged', for well under $300.

Recently, a NIB Ruger Single-Six, Stainless, Rosewood Grips, Adj Sights, 17 HMR ... $339.

Now I'm broke - but happy.

Savage 110, 243 paid 150.00 added a 140.00 barrel kit from Midway and it is now a 22-250AI.
New England handi rifle in 17HMR.

Glenfield model 30A an el cheapo 336. Paid $245 for it, threw a 4x buhsnell banner in weaver rings on a weaver base and the darn thing shoots MOA with 170gr Hornady FP factory loads. Love that thing and it really fits 90% of the hunting I do.

A gifted Weatherby Vanguard in .257wby mag.
All I did was add a 2 lb Timney & the B&C Leupy.

I yearn for a tricked out custom, but the way this thing kills I keep asking.....why?

East German Makarov.

16 ga revelation single shot (stevens 94)
Rem 514 22 bolt action single shot

$300 Remington 700 ADL in 7mm Express, from a gun show at the Mancos, CO Jr High.

Saw it in a Saturday, had to go back to NM that night to get more money, bought it on Sunday.

Elk slaying machine.

Sycamore

Brand new Browning Belgium T Bolt 22 $58.00 early 70's. Used Browning A5 Light 12 my Dad bought and gave me (he paid $50.00) Still have both of them. Butch

I have a Savage 23B in 25-20 that I paid $65.00 for. It had a Weaver "N" side mount and latter acquired a Weaver J2.5 that I paid $10.00 new in the box. The rig is good for head shots on squirrels with decent handloads. It's all about as much fun as you can have with a firearm.

Remington 870 pump I've had since I was 15, killed and killed and killed with that cheap shotgun. It has functioned flawlessly since the day I picked it up, and even shoots slugs very accurately with only a screw in choke. I've got a bunch of rifles but that shotgun left me with no other wants.

MM

Since posting at the beginning of this thread, I reread all the posts this am. Got to thinking about what's in my gun cabinet. With the exception of 2 ruger no. 1s, all my guns are under $350! Also, I love everyone of them.


maddog

CZ Scout 22LR

Gave $300 for it brand new, and put a $200. Leupold Rimfire 4X scope on it.

Picked up a Winchester 67 a few years back in a pawn shop for $100. It's a grooved forearm model not the 67A.

Virgil B.

Thanks, but not at this time.