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The Godfather · 03-01-2009, 03:39 AM

whats a good "first rifle"? durability and accuracy wise. and im not sure if i should go .22LR, .22WMR, or anyother variation... itd mainly be for small animals, like squirrels and bunnies, and target practice...and shooting in the range between 100-150 yards.

dont have much experience with rifles (most familiar with shotguns) and was looking for something around $200-$300. im gettin a Kimber 1911, and thought id pick up a rifle to go with it

cpttango30 · 03-01-2009, 04:50 AM

A 22lr can do it. But many try to keep the 22lr inside of 100 yards. If you want to make 100+ yard shots I would say go with the 22 mag or 17hm2 or 17hmr.

A rimfire rifle is what you want to spend on it. You can spend as little as $150 or as much as $3000 or $6000 on a full custom bench rifle.

In the $200 to $300 range you can get brand new or older used. a Remington 521t or 513 t are target rifles that are older and run around 2 to 3 hundred. New you have the Savage and Marlin rifles that will provide good accuracy and stylish looks like laminated stocks and thumbhole stocks.

big shrek · 03-01-2009, 07:09 AM

.22 Magnum Bolt-Action for your ranges, definitely

I'd suggest the Marlin 982VS for approx $249, it comes with a heavy target barrel, T-900 trigger group, and out of the box accuracy that nobody can touch until you get into the $600+ dollar range. It'll drop 'yotes at 125-150 with no problems

I also suggest the Rock Mount bipod ($39) & a good 4-12/4-16 scope. It'll help you choose between head & body shots on squirrels at 150

sgtdeath66 · 03-01-2009, 07:16 AM

yes for your ranges i would go with a 22 mag, .17 hmr or .17 hm2. but if you go with a 17 variant i would stay away from semi auto, they have been know to fire out of battery and do bad things. also the remington model 5 is making a comeback as well

jeepcreep927 · 03-01-2009, 01:03 PM

I'd have to agree with Big Shrek's opinion. For accuracy and quality as it relates to price, Marlin will get my vote every time.

I might opt for a .22 LR over the .22 magnum for the sake of ammo cost if you plan on keeping ranges around 100 yards and don't plan on anything bigger than rabbits.

The .17's RF'S are one of those "want to have" calibers, in my opinion. I have a 10/22 converted to .17 Mach 2 and I love it, but it doesn't do anything my .22 LR's won't (without pushing the limits of either cartridge). It does however, dispatch squirrels in a more spectacular fashion. For game animals like grays and rabbits that you would eat the .17's limit you to head shots due to meat damage. I believe there are controlled expansion and FMJ rounds for the .17 HMR that will limit that problem if you decide to go that route but again ammo cost is significantly higher. HM2 ammo is still limited to super frangible bullets that do a lot of damage.

h2oskikrazy · 03-01-2009, 05:19 PM

Like others, I could recommend .22lr for your first rifle. I will allow you to shoot many rounds to hone your skills with out worrying about the price of ammo. My experience has been is that I really did not have a clear concept of what 100 yard shooting was all about until I actually did it at a target range. 100 yards was a lot farther than I thought. Based on my experience, I would buy a .22 and get really proficient at 50 yards and then move to 100. You can shoot 100 with a .22, but if your going to hit anything smaller than a rabbit at 150 yards, you're going to need a lot of shooting experience.