Wondering why they were so popular back in the day ? Must have been less expensive back in the Depression ?

They're great starter guns for a kid. Makes em' concentrate on the basics instead of blasting away.
And yes, cheap, but usually accurate.

Well, I got mine when dad thought I was wasting ammo with that Win. 1906 pump. They certainly slow you down. I was 11, and I still have it.

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James L. "Jim" Rhiner

Many single shots sold for less than $3.00 at the turn of the 19th century. These guns were very simple, and even by the standards of the day not much steel or labor was used in their manufacture. A single shot is not much of a handicap when shooting a rabbit or ground hog. You learn to make that one shot count.

The better guns. The repeaters, like a Marlin 1897 lever action .22. Those were always expensive. Even back in the day they were like $20, which is equivalent to $600 today.

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~ S&W aficionado in training ~

Thanks Guys ! figured it was $$$

Lots of parents felt that learning the basics with a single shot was mandatory before moving up to a repeater. That's why there were a ton of single shot 22's and 410's out there. Most of my hunting buddies started out that way.

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Why duck?? It's a 9mm!

We were better shots, didn't need more than one.

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Don

Early 1900's up thru 1950's or so people used these guns
to put food on the table and money in the pockets from
trap lines. There wasn't much if any Trophy Hunting.
The single shot rifle was merely a tool to use.
And just how many of us started out with guns shooting
a .338 ?
Most all kids start out with a .22 or .410
Great little guns to teach basic firearm safety with as well.

Chuck

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They hold no Quarter

You'll notice that as time went on---many cheapy 22's were made and the sights were not important.

The rifles (if you could call them that) were made to sell----not really be useful ---except to send the kid along with a lot of ammo until he came back wanting more ammo----and he would learn nothing of marksmanship.

Remington-Winchester-Mossberg- Savage- Stevens were over built single shot rifles. One with peep sights will do an easy 1 1/2 10 shot group at 50 yards. My son hits rocks in the air with his. Easy to convert to 22 mag. They have excellent triggers. I gave my last 22 Ruger away. I know they shoot good but they don't shoot better than my 513s.

My father bought a JC Higgins single shot in 1936 for $8.00. He gave it to me when I was a kid in 1960s. He told me that a single shot would make you a better shot. He was right. I still have that JC Higgins. I will put it up against a Ruger 10-22 any day,

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Have Gun Will Carry

I respectfully disagree, because I don't think this was the case at all. For one, ammo was considered expensive. It wasn't wasted. No one went out with a brick of 500 and blew thru it in the afternoon. That would be an unimaginable luxury.

Farmers bought a box of 50 and shot that one box all year. A kid might scrap together 15 cents, or what ever it was for a box of shorts, and shoot that. Go down to the local hardware store and put their money on the counter. But they made it last. They made every shot count.

The sights on some guns were rudimentary. But they worked. And you know what? Kids have EXCELLENT eye sight. If nothing else, most have that.

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~ S&W aficionado in training ~

My first rifle about 1960 was a turn of the century Steven's Favorite... single shot falling block...the first outing with my oldest was with the same gun.....currently hanging on my home office wall as I type.

Edit: following up on KC's comments a 50rd box was good for both Dad and I for a whole weekend; at the camp site that is now the Cabin

By 1963 I'd got the safety stuff down and got a Remington 511-X Scoremaster with a 4X weaver scope for Christmas...... currently hanging on the wall at the Cabin!!!!!

I have a 511x like new.

My first rifle was a Montgomery Ward WesternField .22 bolt single shot. My dad gave it to me on my eleventh birthday. The rifle had a heavy barrel and was extremely accurate with the open sights. A few years later I got a .22 pump and gave the single shot to my younger brother and he eventually gave it to his son. Maybe my nephew will one day pass it on to his son or daughter. That rifle is getting some of family history attached to it.

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A gun has no brain.. use yours

Dad taught us marksmanship on a .22 bolt action single shot.

We used to hit D cell batteries at 50 yds with iron sights.

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USAF 1981 - 2001

My first was a Marlin/Glenfield single shot. Load it and pull
The cocking knob. I wish I would have kept it.
I was really proud of that shiny, chrome loading ramp, I think $32 gun.
Many a rat met their doom at the dump with it and plenty of squirrels on the dinner table.

I have a single shot .22LR and there is nothing inexpensive about it at all (Anschutz 2000 series).
I believe both Remington and Winchester made very high quality single shot rifles that were and still are pricey.

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Ipsis Rebus Dictantitbus

I had a horrible experience with single shot .22s and I'm not likely to get one. You lay a cartridge in the groove and close the bolt, right? In Boy Scouts with the leaders watching me close mine jammed three times in a row and necessitated poking them out with a cleaning rod. I never got to fire a round that day. And for a kid, that's BAD.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

I started out with a J. C. Higgins myself. It was second hand when I got it but was in good shape. I earned to shoot with that little rifle and later bought a Browning auto but never liked an auto. I guess growing up with that little bolt gun spoiled me.

A single shot bolt or lever action 22 LR,L or S rifle is the best training rifle possible for a young person or a beginner of any age. Put a set of peep sights on and they become a very practical and accurate small game gitter. I started with a Rem. 513, acquired a Rem. 540X, that became a Winchester M 52 B which became a Rem. 40X which is now accompanied by a Anschutz 54 and a Kimber 82 Govt. I think single shot 22s are just great in my experiences.

I bought my grandkids a Marlin Youth 22 when they were small. Great for teaching safety as well as marksmanship. It is beautifully made and extremely accurate.

The kids have out grown it now. I could use a few great grandkids.

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I like Ike.

I love single shot rifles, and this thread is begging for a photo!

When I was 14, my dad gave me his Ruger 10-22. It was my fourth rifle, and my first .22. We lived in SE Alaska at the time.

But this Savage was the one that I really wanted!

A few years ago, at my LGS, there it was. It was in perfect condition, and the price tag said $115. I couldn't get my wallet out fast enough!

It's accurate enough. It'll keep them all in 1" at 25 yards from a rest.

I've since added a new rear sight, a Marble's full buckhorn.

Besides shooting it myself just for the nostalgia, this is my trainer. I've taken several new shooters out, and this is what we start with.

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On another note I went shooting with my friend the other day and he had some boxes of 22LR that he inherited (along with a nice 22LR rifle) that a price sticker 0f .28 cents !

Norm

My first gun was a Stevens mod 15 bolt action single shot .22 rifle that
I got for Christmas when I was 13 yrs old. I still have it. The manually
cocked single shot market was a good sized segment of the market
back when most of these rifles were designed and most all guns were
made of machined steel. One reason for their popularity was that they
are pretty safe guns for inexperienced shooters. They were cheaper
than repeaters but are very accurate and many were used by adults
for hunting. I really like these old rifles and have bought several over
the last few years of Winchester, Remington, Marlin and Stevens
manufacture. Later models evolved into cock on opening designs and
some had aluminum feed trays that were prone to wear. The manually
cocked models were mostly very simple designs and were very durable
if taken care of. It's probably actually cheaper today to manufacture
a semi auto with an aluminum receiver and mostly stamped parts.
Thse days enjoyment of shooting seems to be measured by the
number of rounds fired and the old single shots don't get much
attention. But that just keeps the prices low for the older guys that
like them. I saw this Stevens mod 15 that is older than mine but in
very good condition on GB a while back. Cost me a whopping $92.00
to my door on my C&R license.

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"Dirt Poor Family" : First .22 was a used Savage Model 1904 bolt action single shot. $6.00 with a box of .22 shorts.
Yes, I still have it.

Back in the early 1960's we could pick up a brand name 22 single shot with an octagonal barrel and rolling block action for under $10 at the local pawn shop. All of us kids had one or two just for fun. Now I wish I had mine back.

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Dr. B

My first ctg gun was a Winchester 67 my great grandfather bought new the first year they came out. When he died it went to my dad, who gave it to me when I turned 12. Both my kids learned to shoot with it and it is now my daughters. However the first single shot I really liked was a Stevens Favorite a friend of my dads converted to 32 S&W Long. That was a good combination on groundhogs around farm buildings and got me interested in reloading. At 15 the local hardware store would not sell me ammo but would sell me reloading components. Go figure.

Some were inexpensive, others more deluxe. Looking at the prices these old SS 22s command on the auction sites I think they remain very popular and sought after. I have 3 that I like a lot.

Got online about 12 years ago. Refinished the wood at home. Got any tacks that need to be driven?



Paid $11.50 at a police auction and spent a total of $12 for parts and supplies to rehab and refinish wood and metal myself.



Cute little rifle that shoots much better than it should.

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No life story has happy end.

I bought a browning t-bolt in '67 when in the navy and still prefer to use it in the single shot mode. Very easy to load and teach gun use and safety. will still shoot groups size of a quarter at 50 yds.

............Remington single shot .22s since my earliest shooting days. They are a lot of fun at any age.

The current one was found in an antique shop.

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LEX ET ORDO

I wonder if the single shots were more popular then because there were simply more people who lived in rural areas. I wonder if the transition from family-owned smaller farms to corporate behemoth farms is a significant component.

I learned to shoot on a Savage 3B - which was in turn what my son learned to shoot on. I gave it to him for Christmas a number of years back. On kind of a whim, after my dad died, I grabbed Remington 511 that he had. We didn't shoot it hardly at all when he and I were shooting a lot - but it was always there. I figured it would be good to have a simple .22. HOLY COW that thing is a tack driver! If an EMP ever hits I'm confident I would be able to put food on the table!

OR

My first gun was an old Winchester 67 that my father handed down to me. It is very accurate having a 26 inch barrel and a bead front sight. I keep it by the back door and shoot it all the time.

A very longtime ago; when I was 12, I wanted a Ruger 10/22 carbine. Several of my friends had 10/22 and just had my dads old hand me down Daisy BB gun. For Christmas I wanted a .22 bad. My parents didn't come through with a Ruger or any rifle but did give me an envelope with $25 dollars to by the rifle of my choice.

The day after Christmas I convinced my mother to take me to the hardware store. I knew I couldn't buy the 10/22 and only a single shot. My dad had told me a single shot would be a great first rifle. He was a wise man.

I was darn jealous of my friends 10/22 when we hunted cottontails or Jack rabbits. I could watch their rounds kick up dust or snow as they marched their shots into their targets. I had to wait until the quick little bunnies stopped for a split second before I shot. I learned to shoot with that little rifle. At the end of the day my rabbits killed pretty well equaled my buddies but I often came home with enough shells to go do it all over again.

I still have that rifle. It is the rifle I start my kids and now my grandkids shooting. It has been used to pass a number of Hunter Safety classes. It sure has made lots of memories.

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Bill Bates

The story goes the boys would take them to school and shoot dinner on the way home from school. No bullying or school shootings in them days.

I have a few single shots, pumps and bolt actions. My oldest is a Hopkins and Allan 1894 single shot 22. Most of my old pump 22 are early 1900's.

Some of these older rifles came just after the era where the army used 5-shot bolt guns with a magazine cut off to keep people from wasting ammo. That, along with the disposable income available for ammo, might have driven the interest in single shot rifles. Today, it's common for us to shoot several hundred rounds of ammo (even centerfire) on one range day, but it was likely very rare then.

My late F-I-L's Hamilton 51 boys rifle. I doubt this was a costly piece back in it's day.

I started with a rusty pre war Stevens bolt action in the mid 60's..

I knew a couple of older men.A single shot .22 was more of a tool to them in their youth,than the toy it was to me.One used his to shoot pigeons in Brooklyn for food.The other,in a more rural area,to get a bunny for dinner.

My first rifle was a Rev-O-Noc falling block .22 saddle gun. No idea when it was made, but before 1912. Came from my granddad. Worn completely out. Casings would split and had to be knocked out with a rod. I was scared to shoot it then, would not even think of it now.

An old timer gunsmith thought it might have been reamed out for off-spec .22.

My Remington 514 I got at age 12 with........Green Stamps ! Still use it I am 59

Actually,every single shot .22,no matter how expensive it is,benefits from having the cartridge placed at least partially in the chamber,not just placing it in the bolt raceway.

When I was young you were thrilled at Christmas when you got those small heavy packages. You knew it would be a whole box of .22s just for you. We counted our hits and misses. My mother once took my Stevens Favorite to the neighbors to shoot a snake. She used most of my shells killing that one snake. I still can't get comfortable shooting a 30 round mag out of an AK or AR.

I am now a .22 addict that has been known to give $500.00 for a $5.00 .22 rifle. I have nearly all the Winchester .22 single shot models, lacking a model 58 and a 1899.

Now I'm chasing down those cartridge wasting 5 shot mag, bolt action .22 rifles.

I have a Winchester 67a that had some rust around the muzzle. It was a good enough excuse the have the barrel shortened down to 20", a target crown and bead front sight that centered easier in the Lyman peep.
Accuracy is no joke in this thing, it only needs one shot.

They are a great training gun. No matter if I'm shooting a rifle or pistol, I always shoot as if that is my last cartridge. Just old school I guess.

I've heard that back in the day, you could go into the general store, and buy single .22's like penny candy. I have a Winchester single shot, it didn't hold my son's attention long.

My father said in the late 20's early 30's he would trade 6 eggs for 10 .22 longs. He said if he didn't get 10 squirrels or 10 rabbits, he felt he had let his mother down.

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James L. "Jim" Rhiner

Single shot .22 rifles for yourh are still sold, they even come in pink. I had a stainless and camo synthetic Cricket rifle for my children that they found uninteresting. I am told that, at least here, the single shots are poor sellers. The same money, or less, buys a Mossberg semi auto with a flash hider and 25 round magazine. It does not even come with sights, the user being expected to add a scope or red dot.

I hated my bolt action .22 as a kid and almost lost interest in rifles because of it.

Back in my teen years, late 50s to early 60s, when I first
started hunting with my Stevens 15 I bought all of my .22
shells from a drug store. I think it was a Hooks if I remember
correctly. I always wanted Long Rifle high speed of course and
I think they were $0.78 a box for Remington. But later when
I got an old single shot 12 ga I never bought a full box of
shells. It was very common for someone going rabbit hunting
to go to the drug store and buy 3-4 shotgun shells. They
would sell them by the shell, however many or few you
wanted.

In the real world a single shot rifle or shotgun is all most people need to kill pests and get meat for the table. Larry

I was born in 41 and I very well remember the little country store selling single .22 cartridges and shotgun shells. Many people didn't have the extra money to buy a full box and for people that didn't hunt all they needed each year was two .22 shells to kill a couple of hogs and maybe a 1/2 dozen shotgun shells for pests. Larry