Author Topic: Favorite .22 Rifle and Hangun Plinkers? (Read 1538 times)

FX1 · « **Reply #30 on:** September 15, 2006, 12:25:00 PM »

Good purchase! A 10/22 is one of the best auto's on the market. What like is that you can always build on the gun and make it shoot better for less $. I have a red dot on one and its a great steel gun and shooting rabbits around the yard. When you look at mags buy the best. I bought some cheap mags and it would jam sometimes. The more $ mags you will never have a problem at all.. Green mountain makes a barrel for around $100 and it makes would of difference from stock.

Halo · « **Reply #31 on:** September 28, 2006, 09:33:48 PM »

Well ... hmmmm ... after raving about the new Ruger 10/22 rifle, I'm getting disenchanted. Beautiful gun. Shoots fine.

However ... I hate the bolt lock complexity. I don't remember that on the older 10/22 Ruger carbine I had. The lever is a royal pain. In front of trigger guard, thin edge tough on fingers, unnecessarily tricky action: push back to lock open, but push up to close.

Nice manuever when you get the gist of it, but not remotely intuitive.

And the magazine requires a strong thumb pry to get it to drop out after you press the button. I don't remember that being so difficult either in the older 10/22 carbine.

The rotary magazines are okay, but I'd just as soon have a simpler easier tube, like the Marlin Model 60. Bought an Adco "Super Thumb Speed Loader" for the rotary magazine and it broke trying to load the first shell. Duh!

And I much prefer having the bolt lock open after the last shot, the way my Browning Buck Mark pistol does, the way the Marlin Model 60 does, and not the way the 10/22 does not.

Storch and Seagoon, I'm looking for a Marlin Model 60 tomorrow.

Pongo · « **Reply #32 on:** September 28, 2006, 10:29:03 PM »

I only have a Brno, its nice though.

eagl · « **Reply #33 on:** September 29, 2006, 06:15:11 AM »

Halo,

You're right, the bolt not locking back after the last shot is definately a design flaw. I also agree that the goofy rocker mechanism for the bolt lock/release is kind of dumb, but believe me you get used to it. I don't even know how it's SUPPOSED to work, but it never takes more than a second to get it to do what I WANT it to do so although slightly annoying, it's something that I simply quit worrying about. If the bolt is back, pull the bolt back a bit then wiggle the switch while releasing the bolt. If you want the bolt locked back, pull it back and wiggle the switch while letting the bolt come forward. No big deal

Your problems with magazine release however is not normal and you should have the gun checked out and possibly repaired or adjusted. Using the magazine release should result in the magazine simply dropping out freely. The only magazine I ever have to pull out of the gun is a large non-standard 30rd "hot lips" magazine, and even then it's just a little tug and it pops right out. Both of my original 10 rd rotary magazines drop right out, so something is wrong with the fit/finish of your gun or magazines.

Excel1 · « **Reply #34 on:** September 29, 2006, 06:58:58 AM »

There's an inexpensive and easy to fit after market bolt catch available for the 10/22 that takes the hassle out of the factory catch. It wont lock the bolt back after the last shot but it removes the need to fumble with the catch while pulling back on the bolt to release it. I put one on my 10/22 and it works well.

You can also get an extended magazine release catch if your having problems with the factory catch. I prefer the flush mounted factory catch cause it secures the mag in the rifle better. I've lost a few magazines from different rifles in the past when the mag catches have been bumped while I've been spotlighting pests at night from an atv.

Mustaine · « **Reply #35 on:** September 29, 2006, 08:35:44 AM »

the one I bought yesterday?

http://www.taurususa.com/products/product-details.cfm?id=385&category=Revolver

serious, pick it up sunday

first handgun

Makarov9 · « **Reply #36 on:** September 29, 2006, 10:37:25 AM »

After reading about all the fun that can be had with a 10/22, I decided to add one to my rifle collection. It's a stainless steel carbine model. I'll change out a few internal parts to improve the trigger and function. I'll scope it and may, later on, add a new stock and barrel. I'm really looking forward to a "project" rifle to tinker around with.

Phaser11 · « **Reply #37 on:** September 29, 2006, 11:00:52 AM »

Browning Buckmark,
Shoots real nice and a lot cheaper to shoot than my 44's

Phaser

Maverick · « **Reply #38 on:** September 29, 2006, 11:03:02 AM »

Makarov,

If you want to make changes to your rifle, the Ruger is one of the easiest to modify and there are tons of accessories up to and including barrels for the darn things.

Halo · « **Reply #39 on:** September 29, 2006, 03:31:43 PM »

Eagl and Excel1, thanks for the Ruger modification tips. Excellent ideas and I may do both the auto bolt release and extended magazine release if I keep the 10/22 RR.

Today I bought a Marlin Model 60 with the tubular feed and bolt lock open after last shot. I really like these features.

Put a hundred rounds through it at the indoor range and it shoots great. Just a very nice rifle, and for less than $200.

So, after the whole thread and after picking up lots of possibilities and doing a bunch more research, my .22 plinkers of choice are a Marlin Model 60 semi-auto rifle and a Browning Buck Mark pistol.

Thanks again to all threadees, and happy shooting!

eagl · « **Reply #40 on:** September 29, 2006, 07:27:15 PM »

Yea I like the buckmark too. Only gripe is that you can't decock the thing without pulling the trigger. That's always bothered me.

If there's a single gun I'm concerned about shooting myself with, it's that buckmark. There is no easy way to tell if there is a round in the chamber or if it is cocked just by looking at or holding it.

I'm neither a child or a raw amature with guns but it still bothers me. I am a bit paranoid about gun safety, but unlike other guns with exposed hammers, decock levers, and big red pins that stick up when the gun is cocked or there is a round in the chamber, the buckmark simply does not add ANYTHING to the safety equation. When you first load it, you can't put a round in the chamber to make the gun "ready to go" without cocking it too. So if you want to carry it in a holster with a round in the chamber, you have to explicitly use the safety. The trigger is too light for safe holster carry with a round in the chamber. Having to carry out a specific act to prevent a gun from blowing a hole in your foot just from putting it in in a holster goes against basic safety principles. The gun should be reasonably safe without any user action at all.

That doesn't make it inherently "unsafe" since if used properly it will function as advertised every time, but it does mean that it's easier for even an experienced shooter to make a dumb mistake. The scenario that worries me is firing 9 rounds, having something distract me, and holstering the gun with the safety off and a round in the chamber. That's "safe" to do with every other gun I have and that's even standard procedure with a revolver since many (most?) don't even have a safety, but it'll result in a leg or foot wound (at best) with the buckmark because you can't decock it and it's single-action only.

I don't even own a holster for my buckmark because of this. It's a terrible gun for the field IMHO, so I carry it in a gun case.

I like the buckmark for target shooting because it's really accurate, but I really prefer a nice .22 revolver for teaching someone how to shoot and for carrying a .22 in the field while varminting. That's why I'm big on the K-22. It's almost as accurate as my buckmark and unlike the buckmark, I can holster it without worrying about setting the safety or shooting a hole in my foot.

Dago · « **Reply #41 on:** September 30, 2006, 12:15:32 AM »

Chuck Norris doesnt need a pistol or rifle, he can shoot walnuts out his arse.

Halo · « **Reply #42 on:** September 30, 2006, 11:23:00 AM »

Good points, eagl. I'm super cautious too with firearms. I agree with your concerns. The only time I use a gun is shooting at an indoor range or plinking at a farm. I never carry a gun with a round in the chamber, and never have a gun loaded in the home.

Single action semiautos like the Buck Mark also make me the most uneasy. Its safety is logical and functional, but not foolproof. Since I'd rather shoot light pull semi-autos than anything else, I load their magazines with the action closed so a round is not chambered until I pull back the slide.

The decocking issue is not only less safe, but eventually damaging for rimfires. Seems like all guns would allow safe and easy decocking, like airbags in a car (how's that for a kinda stretched analogy?).

Halo · « **Reply #43 on:** November 12, 2006, 08:52:47 PM »

Much as I like the Marlin 60, the Ruger 10/22 Rifle is so sleek I couldn't stand to part with it without trying the Volquartsen Auto Bolt Release and Extended Magazine Release recommended by quite a few Ruger users.

These modifications fix the only two gripes I had about the 10/22 and restore it to a pleasure to fire rather than an ordeal. They make all the difference in the world. Amazing Ruger doesn't offer these modifications on its entire 10/22 line.

Only $28.35 and fast shipping from Rimfire Sports and Custom.

However, I must admit to having a much tougher time installing these parts than most of the quotable customers claim. Took me about four hours of learning how to mess with gun innards. I don't remember the last time I ever had to drift pins out of anything.

My main mistake was in missing the bottom connection on the Auto Bolt Release. If you ever do these mods, be forewarned. Doesn't help either that some of the pictures are not the way the pieces are put into the rifle.

So, flunked my initial apprentice gunsmithing big time, but finally seems to work. Will find out for sure at the firing range this week.

Nice thing about mechanical tinkering is that with enough patience and trial and error, eventually everything seems to get put back the way it came out. Just work in a well lit area with nobody around so none of the wandering little pieces get away.

I gotta say, though, everything considered, the Marlin 60 is my favorite .22 rifle. Does everything pleasantly and easily right out of the box. There are many other good choices too, but the Marlin 60 and Ruger 10/22 seem to be the top sellers.

Golfer · « **Reply #44 on:** November 12, 2006, 09:31:23 PM »

One more vote for the Marlin Model 60.

Hits the apple every time at 100 yds.

All 18 rounds in the 'smooth' of a paper plate on rapid fire at the same distance.

Fired tens of thousands of rounds through it. Clean with Q-tips dipped in solvent and keep a drop of oil and she's good as the day she was new.