Rimfire Rifles

If we are talking accuracy, then this is the .22 I will put up against any other. At 50 yards, it will routinely shoot cloverleaf groups.

This is the famed Winchester Model 75 Sporter. While many talk about the Model 52 Sporter, this one is a lot lighter for field work, and is fully the equal of its big brother as far as accuracy is concerned. The chamber and the rifling are exclusively for .22 LR, and the bolt is hand-headspaced and marked with the serial number. These are rare today, and I was very happy to find this one before it came on the floor at a gun show back in 2003. I did some of my best negotiating to obtain it.

I call it my "flea flicker" for being probably able to flick a flea off a dog's posterior! My only modifications have been to lighten the trigger pull to about 3 pounds and limit the trigger overtravel with a trigger shoe.

It will go toe to toe with any other .22 on the planet for placing precision shots, and is one of my personal favorites.

John

Some really good looking rifles. please keep 'em coming.

Thank you for your assistance, I bought my first 22 rifle last night, the Henry Model H001. Not a pretty as the Golden Boy, but as capable.



Next will be a Ruger 10/22. I like the woodsocks, but I also like the chrome (?) barrel. Any expertise on the difference between the models of Ruger 10/22 are welcome.

Took my new Henry to the range. It was great shooting .22 lr out of that gun.

I have not seen any of those nice looking bolt action 22s around, but much of the fun is in the hunt. Thank you.

I have developed a taste for bull barrel target guns, but ones that have a somewhat normal stock. I have a Remington 40XB that I love. I put a 40X scope on it. I can go to the range with less than 100 rounds and be tired by the time I'm through them. Appreciate every shot. I have a yearning for a CZ455 Varmint.

By the way, I will rant that I am tired of watching German guns and German .22 ammo out performing American stuff. Disgraceful. Nothing against the German products, but we are the shooting nation, the gun nation. Our companies need to rectify this.

not my best shooter, but shoots good, looks and feels good and a little rare. TL2

bentcam said:

not my best shooter, but shoots good, looks and feels good and a little rare. TL2

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A left handed one, too! Very pretty. I have the right handed version and have no complaints about the accuracy with CCI Green Tab.

J.C. Higgins 44DL-AKA Marlin Model 57 LeverMatic

There are quite a few great .22 lever action rifles, the Winchester 94/22, Browning BL-22, Marlin 39A, the Henry .22 however none of those can boast the 22 degree lever throw of the late, great Marlin 'LeverMatic' models 56 (box mag) and 57 (tube mag).
These overbuilt, adult size and weight rifles were eventually chambered the .22 WMR, .356 Winchester and .30 Carbine. The centerfire versions are rare and very expensive as the standard .22 LR models are fetching $350 to $550 when they pop up online.

Several years ago, I happened upon a rather homely looking example of this fine rifle in the form of the J.C. Higgins Model 44DL at my favorite gun store. The finish was peeling from the walnut stock like skin after a bad sunburn. The rear sight was damaged and the bluing looked a bit splotchy. Her action was slick and the bore looked fine so I asked for his best deal on the gun. $115 out the door, tax and all.
One trip to the range was all it took for me to realize the Levermatic is a keeper. Typical Marlin accuracy with blazing lever speed, nearly as fast as my 10/22 since you just flick the lever with you bottom two fingers. A good detailing of the metal and strip/oil refinish of the stock was definitely in order.
The finished rifle is pictured below. Forgive the ugly scope mounts.

Ahhhhh, those were the days, when we could walk into Sears and buy a nice rifle. I had a Winchester 94 when I was young, (still have it), but I remember going to Sears with a buddy who bought the Sears version of the same rifle. I can't remember, but I think it was made by Winchester, but marked Ted Williams or J. C. Higgins one or the other.

Those were certainly the days, and I applaud your very nice .22 version.

Best Regards, Les

I like my 10/22, though not a huge fan of the zinc receiver and plastic bits. Someday I'll build one up with better materials.

Highly recommend the Rimfire Technologies charging handle/mag release kit.

This is outstanding .22 porn in this thread. I tend to go old school in my rimfire choices and I still prefer bolt action and relatively slower shooting. While I too will sing the praises of the CZ-452 line, do not overlook the Savage Mark II G series. For about $200 you can get into a drilled and tapped wooden stock accurate bolt action with a free floating barrel. The G series also comes with Savage's patented Accu-Trigger, which easily allows (and encourages) the novice layman to safely set their own trigger pull weight anywhere from 1.5 to 6 pounds. Both the CZ-452 and the Savage Mark II G bolt action rifles are offered in left handed versions for all us wrongsiders.

I love my Henry Golden Boy. Not only is it a great shooter, smooth as glass, but it's a looker to boot! Also, I can shoot anything from high velocity hollowpoints to CBs and BBs for use in my back yard.

PALADIN85020 said:

Here's one you will not see every day. It's a Ruger 77/22 RSP made in 1990. The 77/22 has rear locking lugs and has a very fast lock time. This particular model combines the composite stock of the stainless guns with a blued receiver and barrel, which I prefer in the field. It will accept 77/22 or 10/22 rotary mags, and the banana magazines made for the 10/22. Its 20" barrel gets the most out of hi-speed 22LR rounds.

Not liking the 1" dangly swivels it was equipped with, I substituted 1.25" QD swivels - these fit my preferred GI sling arrangement.

I'm not sure if this variation is made any more. I picked it from a large batch being sold at a large gun show in June of 1990 as the one having the best trigger pull. Great gun, and extremely accurate.

John

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I'm not usually a composite stock fan, John, but that is one sleek outfit. I think it looks tremendous just like it is.

HOUSTON RICK said:

Next will be a Ruger 10/22. I like the woodsocks, but I also like the chrome (?) barrel. Any expertise on the difference between the models of Ruger 10/22 are welcome.

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As far as my sense of esthetics goes, I think the Ruger International model (full-length Mannlicher-style stock) is far and away the most elegant of the bunch. This one has an absolutely beautiful stock with a polyurethane finish, and was a special run for TALO distributors in 1995. It was produced in November of that year.

To tell the truth, I was worried about accuracy, because the bedding of that full-length stock would be absolutely critical. I should not have been worried. The target pictured with the gun was fired from a rest (my shooting bag) at 25 yards, rapid fire with Remington Golden high-speed hollow point ammo.

John

Anyone have a review of the CZ99's being sold by J&G sales? Thanks in advance.

Zastava CZ99 Bolt Action Rifle, 22LR, 22'' Barrel, Yugo Import By CAI, New.

HOUSTON RICK said:

Anyone have a review of the CZ99's being sold by J&G sales? Thanks in advance.

Zastava CZ99 Bolt Action Rifle, 22LR, 22'' Barrel, Yugo Import By CAI, New.

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I like my CZ 453 American and CZ 453 Varmint a lot, but they were both $450 rifles. In comparison, the CZ 99 Precision (the "other" CZ, made by Zastava) is an excellent bang for the buck - probably the least expensive good shooting adult sized .22LR I've ever found.







Remington imported them for quite awhile with a laminated stock as the Remington Model 5, and this particular CZ 99 Precision has a laminated stock from a Remington Model 5 on it. I got the stock when Stocky's sent me a Model 5 stock rather than a Model 799 stock (for a Zastava M85 Mini Mauser) I'd ordered, and just told me to keep it since they never knew they had one (they bought all the new old stock Rem 798 and Rem, 799 stocks from Remington when they cleared them out, and they apparently got a Model 5 stock mixed in with them). Since I had a nice stock for it, I went looking for a CZ 99 Precision and got one for $199 new in one of the local gun shops.

The CZ 99 Precision receivers are thick walled and very stiff, giving the rifle very good accuracy potential - not CZ 452/453 accuracy, but still very good - on the order of 1.5" to 1.75" 5 shot groups at 100 yards with SK Standard Plus ammo. It would no doubt do better with a higher end match ammo that it liked as some shooters have reported 1/2" 50 yard accuracy their CZ99s, but 1.5" at 100 yards and 4" or so at 200 yards has been plenty good enough for the field and 100-200 yard steel plate shooting I do with it.








The metal polish and blue on the CZ 99 Precision is very nicely done, however, the stocks on the current CAI imported CZ 99 Precision rifles have a rather flat finish and the checkering pattern has a partly unfinished appearance. That's a trait shared by the CAI imported Zastava M70 Mauser and M85 Mini-Mauser rifles as well, and reflects CAI's specs rather than Zastava quality overall.

In addition to being sold as the CZ 99 Precision, the rifle has also been imported and marketed as the Remington Model 5, the Zastava MP22, the USSG Z5, and the Charles Daly Superior II - all were basically the same rifle, but with different stocks.

However, the CZ 99 Precision's stock cleans up well and a few coats of Tru-oil on top of the original finish gives them a much more finished look, and you can knock the gloss finish of the Tru-oil down to a nice semi-gloss or satin finish with 0000 steel wool and then a rubbing compound. If you have the tools and a little practice, you can also finish the cut checkering.

I went straight to the Model 5 stock with mine, but below is a picture of a Remington 799 (right) and a Zastava M85 (left), both in .22 Hornet, showing the Zastava stock after a few coats of Tru-oil and some rubbing compound. The CZ 99 Precision stock lacks the rollover comb, but the finish and lines are otherwise similar, as is the end result with just a little sweat equity:



Now...the semi-bad news is that my CZ 99 Precision was by no means perfect as the left and right side extractors were identical with both being sharply hooked. The end result was that it did not want to eject the spent case.

It was however a simple fix as I just had to take a file and re-profile the left hand extractor a bit to shorten and round the sharp point on the hook so that it would release the case when it contacted the ejector. Once that small bit of metal work was done, it functioned like a champ.

Great little sporter

PALADIN85020 said:

If we are talking accuracy, then this is the .22 I will put up against any other. At 50 yards, it will routinely shoot cloverleaf groups.

This is the famed Winchester Model 75 Sporter. While many talk about the Model 52 Sporter, this one is a lot lighter for field work, and is fully the equal of its big brother as far as accuracy is concerned. The chamber and the rifling are exclusively for .22 LR, and the bolt is hand-headspaced and marked with the serial number. These are rare today, and I was very happy to find this one before it came on the floor at a gun show back in 2003. I did some of my best negotiating to obtain it.

I call it my "flea flicker" for being probably able to flick a flea off a dog's posterior! My only modifications have been to lighten the trigger pull to about 3 pounds and limit the trigger overtravel with a trigger shoe.

It will go toe to toe with any other .22 on the planet for placing precision shots, and is one of my personal favorites.

John

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John,
Your choice of a 75 Sporter is a good one, I have shot one, and the othet rifles that you compared it to, but I only wish we lived close, so that I could let you run a fiew rounds through one of my Anchutz 54 1410 match rifles, or a 54 Sporter, or even my Cooper Mod. 36 Classic, for a little wider field of comparison. It sounds like you are really satisfied, and impressed with your 75 Sporter, so it probably would not sway your opinion at all. Good choice!
Chubbo

Besides the CZ 455 Combo rifle and the Remington 552 I posted earlier in this tread I also have two more 22LR rifles.

Ruger 10/22 with a 1.75x4x Bushnell scope


S&W 15-22 with a Bushnell 1.75 x4x scope.

My "favorite" .22 rifle has to be my Model 62A. It is just like the one my old man used during the 30's and 40's to feed the family. He would go hunting with it and come home with a trunk full of anything he could get. Mom would figure a way to prepare whatever he had!!




When he died in 1991 I found out he had sold it years before. So I went on a quest to find one just like it. Mine is a 1946 model.

I have many .22 rifles but this is my Favorite one.

62-A

Road Rat said:

My "favorite" .22 rifle has to be my Model 62A. It is just like the one my old man used during the 30's and 40's to feed the family. He would go hunting with it and come home with a trunk full of anything he could get. Mom would figure a way to prepare whatever he had!!




When he died in 1991 I found out he had sold it years before. So I went on a quest to find one just like it. Mine is a 1946 model.

I have many .22 rifles but this is my Favorite one.

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Road Rat,
I admire your choice of .22 rim fire rifle. Many years ago I set out to acquire one of every model .22 hunting rifles that Winchester made, and got most of the ones that I truly admired. back then if you had a Mod. 97 shotgun the Mod. 62 rifle, was the companion to it. The style, and actions being exactly alike no change of shooting style was required, when using one or the other.The 62 is one of the few that I never acquired, as The mod. 97 shotgun that I have came along a lot later in my life. It was promised to me when I was around three years old, by my favorite uncle. Because of it I learned to spell my first word, Gun. My uncle, said that when I became 21 yrs. old the 97 was mine. Well, by that time I had acquired my own shotgun, a mod. 12 Winchester 20 ga. , and a mod. 61 Winchester rifle, as it's companion .22 rifle. When I became 21 yrs. old my uncle was still an active hunter, that I hunted with regularly, and I told him to use the mod. 97 as long as he still hunted. When he passed away, my aunt could not bear to part with the mod. 97, and I didn't get the gun until she passed away many years later. I still have that old well used mod. 97, used by many family members. I never did acquire a mod. 62 rifle as a companion to this old favorite shotgun, something that I really regret, now that I'm to old to do it. Pardon the long winded, true story. It brought back many old memories from around 1933.
Chubbo