Premium 22LR Hunting Rifle

[Alex Wheeler]

You know you have to build one.

 

[Dan V.]

I like the older Marlin 39a's. I have not shot any of the newer ones.

 

[Alex Wheeler]

Pierce rimfire actions

 

[Jud96]

You know you have to build one.

Haha I saw yours and it is impressive! I really want a nice .22 for hunting with a classic look, I really don’t want to get carried away and go down the rimfire rabbit hole with benchrest or anything like that. I know next to nothing about rimfires, so I’ll have to do some research on availability of actions or the possibility of rebarreling and possibly restocking a factory action.

 

[Jud96]

Pierce rimfire actions

Haha don’t get me down another rabbit hole . Jim would love it if I got us making making another action.

 

[1Merlin]

CZ 457 American. Sub MOA at 50 with multiple mid priced ammo and with good ammo mostly MOA at 100. Classic looks, good trigger and a ton of aftermarket and growing. $500.00 or a touch more and you have a good rifle at any price point and a Really good rifle at what you can buy one for. Shoot it for a year and if you don't like it sell it for a few buck off and do whatever. Buy one for every day of the week or go ahead and get that high dollar whatever... And edit to add. The mags cost 40 bucks and work flawlessly.

 

[Squirrelhunter17]

What are your guys thoughts on the Kimber K22 rifles like the Hunter Silhouette? I talked to my Uncle and his is a Kimber Hunter Silhouette and I adore that rifle. I really like the looks of it with the walnut stock, Model 70 style safety, and fluted barrel. His shoots really well from what I remember. Thanks for the input!

Love my HS. I had two and sold one. It’s an absolute hammer. Classy appearance. Rock solid action. Crisp trigger. Can’t go wrong IMO.

 

[ATFIV]

And hits 54:18 & midas + in summer
Polar b in the winter
Buy once Cry once

 

[webfoot56]

I like that comment, and if I wanted a bench rest rifle that would be the one I would pursue. But the OP wants a rifle around 1500 dollars, a sporter. Springfield Armory just announced a new sporter with a accuracy guarantee in wood and composite stock. I would never sell my cooper rifles for 1500 dollars. You might be able to search out a 1712 or a 1710 for 1800-1900 dollars.

 

[justinp61]

Sporter, it just happens to shoot well off a bench.

 

[webfoot56]

nice 1712! Really hard to shoot those rifles off of a rest for me anyway, you have to have the right set up . The 1710DHB is so much easier for me to shoot.

 

[Hippy]

Kimber 82s are generally good rifles but they had their problems through the years, depending on cash flow at the factory the quality tended to vary a bit. If you do consider one take a good look at it before committing.
Ruger 77/22 have never had an appeal to me plus they generally do not shoot as well as the price would indicate that they should.

an Anschutz sporter or a Cooper sporter can both be found within your budget if you are willing to have patience and do a lot of searching.

CZ 457 sporter - IMO this is a real sleeper. I bought one a year around $600 with beautiful fiddleback wood, 24" sporter contour barrel and it shoots outstanding. You have to look at the wood on these carefully because the finish they use hides a lot of the figure which may require a bit of work to bring it out so that it really shines.

CZ 452 and CZ 455 - there are some of those around with great wood if you are willing to pay a bit extra. The downside to them is the "backwards" safety that some folks don't care for, the trigger requires a bit of work generally. The biggest issue with them is bolt handle interference with the scope bell, it takes a bit of searching for rings that allow low mounting without the the bolt handle hitting the scope.

Summary - I recommend the CZ 457 as the most likely to fill your want at a reasonable price. Also take into consideration that they do have factory support for parts and repair, something that is no longer available with Kimber and Cooper.

Good luck on your search

drover

edited to add -
I have shot a lot of 22 LR rimfires throughout the years and while some may be slightly more accurate than others all of the ones listed below easily placed 5 shots into 1/2" or less at 50 yds.
I have owned 4 Kimber of Oregon, 3 Cooper 57M sporters, 2 Tikka T1x, 5 Remington 541, 6 Anschutz sporters (4 ea. 1700 series and 3 ea. 1400 series), 1 Sako P94S sporter, 1 Winchester 52B sporter, and numerous other 22 rimfires of various grades.

I would suggest that if you can find a CZ 457 with a piece of wood that suits you then purchase it. If you find another rifle that you like later on chances are that you can sell the CZ 457 for as much as you paid for it. But after shooting and handling it for a while I would not be surprised if you found that it suits your wants just fine.

If U R not set on a current production rimfire there R several that would fit UR budget and Accuracy expectations
Remington541's
Remington 541 T Make sure you get to shoot it B4 purchasing Some shoot some Don't
Sako P- 72 or 74
Sako P-94 Finfire
Mauser 201/ Kliengunter 201
Annie 54's

I am sure there R others the above one's I have owned or still do

Good Luck

Jim

 

[justinp61]

nice 1712! Really hard to shoot those rifles off of a rest for me anyway, you have to have the right set up . The 1710DHB is so much easier for me to shoot.

I can relate, just about any sporter is hard for me to drive from a bench. They are like a woman, but once you figure out what they like they can be a lot of fun.

 

[MarkS]

My hunting gun is a Tikka T1X. A $10.00 trigger spring gets you a 1lb trigger and replace the butt pad with a rubber one.
What about a Kidd SuperGrade 10-22 complete barreled action in a nice stock. super accurate

 

[leakeyjohn]

I like the older Marlin 39a's. I have not shot any of the newer ones.

I have one of the older pnes have not seen a new one

 

[foxguy]

Pierce rimfire actions

Alex, do you know something about a new Pierce rimfire action coming out?

 

[dbaird]

Hey guys, I’ve been thinking about getting a really nice 22LR rifle in the future. My budget is preferably $1500 and under. Since building custom rifles for myself, I’ve had the urge to buy a high quality 22LR. My Uncle has a Kimber 82 with a fluted barrel and beautiful walnut stock and that rifle is what got me wanting a nice rimfire for myself. Having said that, it doesn’t seem that Kimber makes their rimfire rifles anymore and the same with Ruger’s 77/22, that I also like. I don’t know much about rimfires and if the Kimbers and 77/22 Rugers were accurate and reliable. For those with experience owning, shooting, and handling the Kimber 82s and Ruger 77/22s give me your thoughts and opinions on those rifles please. Also, what other premium rimfires would you recommend in my price range? I see that Cooper makes a beautiful 22LR, but the price tag is a little more than I'd like to spend on a rimfire, but other than Cooper, I don’t see many classic, higher end rimfires currently available. Thank you!

If you can find a nice Remington 541-S - they are very nice and super accurate!

 

[xr650rRider]

If you can find a nice Remington 541-S - they are very nice and super accurate!

Remington 547, even nicer and more accurate.

 

[iShoot17]

I am slightly surprised to see that no one has mentioned the Steyr Zephyr II yet. While production and import has stopped on the Zephyr II, they can still be had - especially in the Full Stock variant.

22LRs can also be found in a few other configurations: 19.7” non-threaded, 19.7” threaded, and 25” non-threaded (extremely rare).

While I don’t have a Cooper or Kimber (yet), I do have many, many other rimfires to choose from. The Steyrs are quickly becoming my go to.

 

[jepp2]

If you want one that will make you smile every time you work the bolt, consider an Anschutz 54 Sporter. Some have much nicer wood than mine. Some real craftsmanship on it.