# .22 rifles



## J.R. (May 30, 2007)

im looking for a .22 rifle for shooting gophers. im looking for a semi 
automatic, and i would like to be able to put a scope on it .
if you have any suggestions please post


----------



## iwantabuggy (Feb 15, 2005)

http://www.marlinfirearms.com/Firearms/ ... /60SS.aspx

http://www.marlinfirearms.com/Firearms/ ... /60SB.aspx

http://www.marlinfirearms.com/Firearms/ ... g/60C.aspx

http://www.marlinfirearms.com/Firearms/ ... ng/60.aspx

http://www.marlinfirearms.com/Firearms/ ... 0S-CF.aspx

Tube magazines are the best IMO. Any of the above listed guns would be a good choice.


----------



## J.R. (May 30, 2007)

Hey thanks alot for those links, I really do appreciate them but the one problem is unfortunately they only hold .22 LR (or thats what it says). where I usually go shooting is out at an english riding stable and most people there are a little nervous around guns so i use the .22 shorts to keep the noise down and they wont bounce off something an injure a staff member or horse.
so thank you anyways please keep the recommendations coming.

P.S.

why do you say tube loaders the best?


----------



## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

The only American made 22 semi auto that will shoot 22 shorts is the Remington 552 speedmaster. The rest require the use of 22 LR's.


----------



## J.R. (May 30, 2007)

ok cool it looks like a nice rifle but i still dont see the advantage of the tubeloader. ive heard some good things about the ruger 10/22 but some people dont like the scope rails or mounts whatever you call them. do you know if they chamber .22 shorts? thanks again guys, keep em comming.


----------



## neb_bo (Feb 3, 2007)

if your not totaly set on semi auto, henry makes nice lever and pump actions that will shoot s, l, and lr.. i think remingtons pump will also handle all three. the rossi pumps will too, if i remember right, but you cant mount a scope on them. i have had a henry lever for about 7-8 years, and i couldnt be more happy with it.


----------



## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

All 22 autos will chamber shorts but you have to operate the bolt manually to eject and load. Only the Remington 552 will operate the shorts in semi auto mode. If you have to manually open and close the bolt to load and eject the short then there isn't any sense in getting a semi auto. In my experience the 22 LR subsonic are quieter than the shorts anyway and will operate fine in most semi autos. I shoot them in a Marlin 60 without any problem. If you want to really be quite then shoot CCI CB longs or shorts but then again you will have to operate the bolt manually in a semi auto.


----------



## J.R. (May 30, 2007)

oh ok yeah i guess you're right if your have to manualy eject the .22 shorts then theres no point in buying a semi-auto by the way thanks for telling me about those subsonic .22 LR but even though they are quiet how powerful are they? you see my biggest concern is a bullet bouncing off a rock and injuring somebody 1 Kilometre away


----------



## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

Powerful enough that they are all I use for squirrel hunting. They don't have the sharp crack a regular LR has so the squirrels don't seem as alarmed. Most subsonic 22's leave the barrel at or around 1000 fps. A 22 bullet of any rimfire type is not going to travel 1 Kilometer after ricocheting off something, however all 22 rimfire bullets are notorious for ricocheting no matter what speed they are traveling. Pick up a box of Remington Subsonics at your local store and try them out and if you like them you can get some of the better brands for accuracy although the Remingtons in my guns print .75 inches at 50 yards. Still good enough for squirrels.


----------



## iwantabuggy (Feb 15, 2005)

J.R. said:


> Hey thanks alot for those links, I really do appreciate them but the one problem is unfortunately they only hold .22 LR (or thats what it says). where I usually go shooting is out at an english riding stable and most people there are a little nervous around guns so i use the .22 shorts to keep the noise down and they wont bounce off something an injure a staff member or horse.
> so thank you anyways please keep the recommendations coming.
> 
> P.S.
> ...


When shooting in close proximity to people it is best not to shoot at all. Perhaps it is truely a benign situation, but it sounds like an accident waiting to happen.


----------



## J.R. (May 30, 2007)

Youre right and I couldnt agree more. even tho I am under aged i have taken my FAC for non-restricted and restricted fire arms and passed w/ flying colors, the stable is fairly remote and no matter the target I only shoot in a safe direction and only if I am sure of my target. Im not sure where you guys live but in saskatchewan this year over 200 million dollars of damage has been caused by gophers and Alberta isnt far off. and I have been granted permission by the facility's owner to shoot gophers and ive only been using shorts so i don't see what can be the big issue, I shot and killed 31 in about 1 hour with a 50 year old rifle we've already had 3 horses put down because of gophers and private clubs are even asking ranges to come out and kill gophers on there property and even at the range i usualy shoot at i counted about 18. killing gophers is more of a pest control thing than something I do for fun. though i do enjoy it

P.S.
again is there any advantage of having a tube loader over a magazine?


----------



## ac700wildcat (Oct 30, 2006)

I like a magazine better. You can have a bunch of them loaded instead of reloading every sixteen shots. If you want something quiet to shoot, try Aguila Super Colibri. They are 22lr, but don't operate off of a powder charge. They use a double primer load to shoot a 20 lead bullet. They are supposed to be no louder than a bb gun.


----------



## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

J.R., if the gophers are that thick and you have permission to hunt them, I would seriously take a look at the Hornady 17 HM2. Deadly accurate and plenty of power to kill gophers out to a 100 yards with a side benefit that they won't ricochet like a regular 22. When they hit something they fragment into many pieces. They do make as much noise as a regular 22 LR but you could sure raise hell with the gopher population. The Aguila Super Colibri are very quite but also very weak. You would almost have to be on top of a gopher for them to be effective. Go over to www.Rimfirecentral.com and browse around in the forums and you'll find a lot of information that may help you.


----------



## iwantabuggy (Feb 15, 2005)

Gohon said:


> J.R., if the gophers are that thick and you have permission to hunt them, I would seriously take a look at the Hornady 17 HM2. Deadly accurate and plenty of power to kill gophers out to a 100 yards with a side benefit that they won't ricochet like a regular 22. When they hit something they fragment into many pieces. They do make as much noise as a regular 22 LR but you could sure raise hell with the gopher population. The Aguila Super Colibri are very quite but also very weak. You would almost have to be on top of a gopher for them to be effective. Go over to www.Rimfirecentral.com and browse around in the forums and you'll find a lot of information that may help you.


I agree with this thought completely.

The advantage of a tube loader is that it is easier to load and unload. MUCH easier. A lot of people like magazines, but having owned both, I prefer the tubes by far. The only semi-auto rimfire I own is a Ruger pistol. I prefer SS or bolts. I like the HM2 so much, that I don't even own a 22LR any more. I have 2 HM2's instead.


----------



## ac700wildcat (Oct 30, 2006)

Sorry I mean to post the same thing about the super colibri that Gohon did. Guess i forgot. You would have to be fairly close to get clean kills with them. I agree that maybe you should go to rimfirecentral.com and start reading. Thats the next site I go to after spending some time on here. Great site and lots of knowledgable people on there just like here.


----------



## deadkenny (Jun 4, 2007)

If you want to shoot a variety of .22 rimfire cartridges, perhaps you should consider a bolt action rather than a semi. Just a thought.

For a semi I would recommend the Ruger 10/22.


----------



## J.R. (May 30, 2007)

ok great thanks for the imput, you really got my thinking on this 17 hmr cartridge IMO i think that magazines are best. i have no idea what a good 17 hmr rifle is so any recommendations


----------



## deadkenny (Jun 4, 2007)

Interesting round, however it will be more expensive to buy the ammo and it will significantly reduce your options as far as which rifle models are available chambered in it.


----------



## J.R. (May 30, 2007)

ok great i did a little browsing and it seems that no one makes a semi auotmatics .17 hmr rifle but i found a few nice looking bolt actions. please any imput on rifles that chamber .17 hmr would be appreciated since i dont know much about the calibre thanks again and keep em coming


----------



## deadkenny (Jun 4, 2007)

I have no personal experience with the .17, however, the Ruger 77/22 is a nice rifle and I assume that the Ruger 77/17 would be too.


----------



## Robert A. Langager (Feb 22, 2002)

CZ makes their 452 American and 452 Varmint in .17 cal. They are arguably the best shooting rimfires out their right now. Unless you want to go high dollar and get an Anschutz.

http://www.czusa.com/product_detail.php?id=1


----------



## clampdaddy (Aug 9, 2006)

Remington makes an autoloader in 17hmr. The HMR is a great squirrel/gopher round but if you plan on shooting around the ranch a 17 mach II would probably suit your purpose a little better than the hmr because it's not as noisy.


----------



## J.R. (May 30, 2007)

clampdaddy said:


> Remington makes an autoloader in 17hmr. The HMR is a great squirrel/gopher round but if you plan on shooting around the ranch a 17 mach II would probably suit your purpose a little better than the hmr because it's not as noisy.


ok im a little confused. is the .17 mach 2 a rimfire or centre fire. you say that the 17 mach 2 is quieter but is it as powerful as .17 hmr.

Are the .17 mach 2 and the .17 hmr the calibre so if i went and bought a ruger 77/17 could i use .17 mach 2 in it.( are they the same bullet?)

very confused

again thanks for the imput please keep them comming


----------



## ac700wildcat (Oct 30, 2006)

The mach 2 and the hmr are both rimfires cartridges. The mach 2 is a 22 long rifle case necked down to a 17. The hmr is a 22 magnum case necked down to a 17. You cannot shoot a mach 2 in a hmr. It is the same the other way around you cannot shoot a hmr in a mach 2. I believe they both shoot the same bullet. When i say bullet I mean the actual projectile not the whole bullet and case. I think that is maybe where you are confused.

The hmr is faster and has more knockdown because of that, but is also noticeably louder. I think prices on shells for the two are fairly close at around 7-8$ for 50. Someone correct me if I am wrong there.

I like my 22's. They are cheap to shoot and I have a blast with them. You can buy 550 rounds for like $12 if you want. I usually shoot cci mini mags for plinking and I can get 100 of them for $5.00 After i get an AR-15 built I think my next purchase with probably be a .17 hmr I think for what you want a rifle for you would be fine shooting a 22. It will be cheap and you can find them anywhere. JMHO

Matt


----------



## coyote_buster (Mar 11, 2007)

have you considered a pellet gun? They are very quiet. I am not familiar with gophers but you could get one with a smaller velocity that would still get the job done.


----------



## J.R. (May 30, 2007)

yeah ive thought of pellet guns but ive been there i have a diana model 24 but due to firearms acts in canada you cant have them registered at high enough velocity for them to do any damage. the .22's are cheap to buy but they bounce off of stuff and dont seem to be as acurate as a .17 plus i would like a rifle with a little more range

again thank you this information is very important to me for my final decicion
thanks again keep 'em comming


----------



## squirrelshooter97 (Mar 20, 2007)

Sounds like you have made up your mind, if i was to pick one i would pick the 17 HMR over the mach II simply because of greater selection of loads, greater selection of rifles, greater velocity, only downside is the price and the noise but acually not much more than the mach II. Good luck snipin them gophers. might wanna try the CCI speer TNT loading i have found it to be accurate in my 17 HMR as well as the Hornady VMAX but stay away from the FMJ i had a horrible experience as far as accuracy goes.


----------



## CoyoteBlitz (Apr 11, 2007)

Try a Savage rifle a friend has one and its been through heck and back and still shoots accuratly. Savage has a pretty good slection in all those calibers. Hope its some help. 
:sniper:


----------



## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

> but stay away from the FMJ i had a horrible experience as far as accuracy goes.


No.... try them all. Each gun is different. The FMJ's shoot great in my guns.


----------



## NDTerminator (Aug 20, 2003)

17HMR is essentially a 22Magnum necked down to 17 caliber, while a 17 Mach 2 is a 22 LR Stinger case necked down to 17 caliber. The HMR is several hundred FPS faster than the M2. The M2 is pretty much a 100 yard round while the Hummer can take care of business considerably further out. Both are extremely accurate rounds. The 17HMR costs a fair bit more per box than the M2.

I have a left hand Savage 93 Heavy Barrel 17HMR with a 3-9 Truglo Illuminated Reticle Scope. I had the trigger cleaned up & set at 3.5 lbs but did no other accurizing. This rifle has absolutely no problem printing 5 shots in 1/2" or less at 50 yards, and 1" or less at 100 yards. It's the most effective rimfire round/rifle combo I've ever shot. First round hits on small targets out to 100 yards is virtually automatic.

I've made a one shot instant kill on a badger at 125 yards with it. Anyone who knows badgers knows how tough they are. Lord alone knows how many ***** I've shot with one shot instant kills being the norm. On *****, the little 17 calliber bullet (I use the 20 grain Gamepoint) almost never exits and the entrance hole is so small little or no bleeding results. It sure pulverizes them inside, though.

It simply disassembles stuff like gophers & skunks and with even a fair rest, they aren't safe out to 150 yards. On a calm day with a solid rest I can stretch that to 200 yards or more....


----------



## squirrelshooter97 (Mar 20, 2007)

my bad gohon it was late when i posted that, the fmj just may shoot good in your gun, but it may be taking away an advantage of the 17 HMR as far as the ricochet goes.


----------



## J.R. (May 30, 2007)

ok i went to a club and did a little bit of shooting saturday and i talked to a few guys behind the counter. they say that the 17 hmr is faster more powerful and more accurate than an .22 or 17 m2. at wholesale sports a box of CCI 17 grain is about 12 bucks. so i think the price is worth it from what im hearing. i did a little research and the 2 ive singled out as what seems to be the best are either a ruger 77/17 or a savage. i know very little about each gun. i dont want to end up buying something that dosnt work for me.
so please give me your imput. keepem coming guys and thanks


----------



## squirrelshooter97 (Mar 20, 2007)

you cany go wtong with either one if im not mistaken the ruger is more expensive though but is better built. But both will probably shoot similar so its ur choice. if you can afford it comfortably get the ruger, if not savage.


----------



## Almomatic (May 6, 2006)

J.R., if you want a semi--auto in .22 short, Volquartzen offers a .22 short conversion for the Ruger 10/22 action.

http://www.hornetproducts.com/ViewProdu ... ber=VC10SK


----------



## J.R. (May 30, 2007)

hey again, srry i avent been on for a while and ive read you latest posts ive talked to a few people and ive decided to get the savage 93r btvs with a burris 1.75-5 x 34 scope and maybe a bipod. any recommendations for a different scope? or anything else?

p.s.

ill be in a military institute in roswell new mexico for 2 weeks and i might not have access to the internet... allright cya l8r


----------

