first .22LR bolt gun

[AKmud]

A friend of mine is looking to get a bolt action rifle in .22LR for his teenage sons for Christmas. He was hoping to keep it in the $200+/- range. I haven't looked at bolt guns for years and am out of the loop for a full sized .22 (been shooting my 10/22 since about age 7). Any recommendations for a decent bolt gun fitting the bill?

[Snowwolfe]

Any of the newer Savage bolt actions would be perfect. Just make sure he buys one with there Acua Trigger.

[George]

22 bolt gun

My first choice would be the Marlin 22lr bolt gun with tube magazine. 2nd choice maybe a CZ 22lr bolt- but I think most or all their models are clip magazine. Quite a few choices out there and lots of opinions. just .02

[Snowwolfe]

I think a person first gun would better be served if it had a clip and not a tube. A clip fed rifle is easier to clear in case of malfunction. The tube full of rounds could confuse a youngster.

[BucknRut]

I think a person first gun would better be served if it had a clip and not a tube. A clip fed rifle is easier to clear in case of malfunction. The tube full of rounds could confuse a youngster.

My ole man had me behind the sites of an old JC Higgins when I was 3 or 4 and that tube thing confused the heck out of me. Didn't figure it out for sometime...put the bullets in there, then shove a rod down there, dah umm, daaad, how are they gonna come out???? Thinking back on it, there were times when it would jam and dad got real nervous.

Personally, I would shun away from the marlin. They seem to be a little heavy for a kid to carry around and the tube is something to consider. If you go with the savage, I agree that you should get the accutrigger. The New Remington Model 5 looks to be a pretty nice rifle for just over $300. If you are really lookin to make him into a fly-killer, hook him up with an Anschutz...maybe he'll give you your money back when he wins that olympic gold medal!! ;-)

[RayfromAK]

Most youth rifles under $200.00 are single-shots, and only ideal for a small kid. The barrels are from 16" to 18" on most. They have a bolt, but can only be loaded a round at a time.

Just search for "Youth .22 caliber rifles" on the internet, and you will find names such as Chipmunk, Cricket, Papoose, etc. You can also find them at Wallmart. The cheapest one I saw was at the Sportsman Warehouse. The price was $149.00 or so, and comes with an interchangeable shotgun barrel as well as a .22 barrel. I don't remember the name of the manufacturer, however. Maybe Stevens?

[ak257]

I'm not sure why a tube magazine would be "confusing to a kid", especially since he's looking for a rifle for teenage kids. My 10 y.o. handles the Marlin 981T, a tube-fed, just fine. Nothing fancy about it - pull out rod, drop in rounds (14 or 15 .22lr), put rod back in, work bolt, shoot. I've never seen it jam.

[AlleninAlaska]

I'm not sure why a tube magazine would be "confusing to a kid", especially since he's looking for a rifle for teenage kids.

I was thinking the same thing. We are dealing with teenagers here. Tell him the get either the Marlin or Savage 22LR. IMHO the Marlin will probably be the better shooter. The Savage more than likely will be the more accurate one.

[WinMag]

Henry

Send him these links... Would be hard to go wrong with one of the these...

Henry Repeating Arms...

Acu-bolt:
http://henryrepeating.com/acubolt.cfm

Mini bolt
http://henryrepeating.com/minibolt.cfm

[Grizzly1]

The CZ 452 is one of the very best rimfire bolt actions available today, you would have to get into some spendy (over a grand) rimfire guns to get one that's a better shooter.

[BucknRut]

Oopsee...

I'm not sure why a tube magazine would be "confusing to a kid", especially since he's looking for a rifle for teenage kids. My 10 y.o. handles the Marlin 981T, a tube-fed, just fine. Nothing fancy about it - pull out rod, drop in rounds (14 or 15 .22lr), put rod back in, work bolt, shoot. I've never seen it jam.

Sorry, didn't realize we were dealing with teenagers. Must have gotten this thread confused with an earlier one when they were looking for 5yr old. In this case, I think the Marlin would be a good choice for the money. Joshua

[DuckToller]

CDNN in shotgun news has a charles daly bolt action 22 same as cz for $149.99 Nov 6 issue call 1-800-588-9500 for info.

[AKmud]

Narrowed it down to two....

We have his options down to these two -

The Marlin 980S - Stainless/synthetic magazine fed bolt.
-or-

The Savage Mark II (G or FSS) - wood/blued(G) or stainless/synthetic (FSS) magazine fed bolt.

He put has put his hands on both and said the Marlin felt sturdier and tighter than the Savage, but the Savage has the Accu-trigger.

Opinions?

[Crumm]

the Savage has the Accu-trigger.

Opinions?

A couple of months ago I purchased a Savage with the Accu-trigger for my 13 year old and he really likes it. At the same time I purchased a semi-auto for my other son and I could tell the first day that the single shot Savage was the way to go. With the single shot Savage he makes every shot count and with the Accu-trigger every shot does count. With the semi auto the other boy just seems to aim and unload while not really hitting his mark. My opinion: get the Savage..

[Snowwolfe]

Savage all the way. The trigger is awesome and the improvement in accuracy is well worth it.