.22 lr accuracy

C

coyote lance

New member
Hey, I was thinking of buying a .22lr, but wanted to know how accurate it would be. It would be mainly used for target practice, such as prairie dogs. I have a .243 and the ammo is a little too expensive to be shooting at prairie dogs. So my main question would be how close do I need to get to kill a prairie dog with a .22lr? And do I need a scope? Would spending an extra $75-$100 for a .22mag be worth it? Try to remember that this rifle would be more for fun than serious hunting (that is what I have the .243 for). Last but not least and brand preference. I have seen a few Merlins around for good prices, as well as the infamous ruger 10/22 (usually to expensive).
Thanks
 
A good .22 will group .5 inch at 50 yards using quality ammo that the particular gun likes. 100 yard shots can be good, it just depends how well you know your rifle. I usually take a practice shot at that range on a given day just to see how the current conditions affect the bullet. You didnt say what action you wanted. Also you mentioned that the 10/22 is expensive so I guess your price range is about 100$? Semi auto i would look into the remington597 wich is cheaper than the ruger, but looks almost the same. Some of the pump actions can shoot Great like Rossi or winchester.
AMMO IS CRITICAL! experiment to see what works best. Stay away from the hollow points. I have shot parka squirrels wich are like p-dogs with the .22. Only aim for the head, I have seen alot of them get gut shot and still make it down their holes.
22 wmr- Better choice but ammo costs more. Has better range than the .22lr
.17 hmr- If you think you might get a .22wmr then seriously consider getting the .17 hmr. This little round is a Blast. By far my favorite rimfire. Its a little less potent than the .22wmr but adequate for any thing you could humanely shoot with a .22wmr. Much more flatter shooting also! Plus you can see all the action through the scope, no recoil! As of right now Ammo is pretty hard to get and costs a little more than the .22wmr. That will change though, think about the .17, its fun and probably the best for your wants
 
I've never hunted Prarie Dogs in Texas, but I have in South Dakota - tried it with a 22lr and it just didn't kill them - using CCI Stingers and head shots - they still made it down the hole. The range was just under 50 yds. I think the magnum would have been much better. More ft.lbs of energy too. The 17 HRM sounds like it would be lots of fun - the hides on those prarie dogs are pretty thin. Not like the woodchucks up here. Dang they have the toughest hide I've seen on an animal. If you were looking for target practice a 22 lr is great - for hunting past 50 yds - you might go with the 22 magnum or the 17 hrm. The bigger the quarry - the larger the caliber.
 
coyote lance,
A Savage, Marlin or CZ would be very accurate, in a bolt action and the cost wouldn't be too high.

Taurus, makes a nice pump action in the high $100 to low $200 price range. I own a model 72 in .22 magnum and it's a great rifle for accuracy, quick follow up shots and it only cost me $240.

Ruger has some good bolt action rifles, but the 10/22 has too many things that needs to be changed on it to acquire the accuracy of other semi-autos....for what it costs you.

If it's a semi-auto action that you're interested in, then perhaps you'd be interested in a Marlin model 60. It's been around for a long time and it's still a good rifle purchase.

If you notice, I didn't mention Remington. There are too many quality control issues with them for me to take a chance on a purchase of one of their rifles or shotguns.

Good luck with your choice!
Good hunting, Bowhunter57
 
Consider the NEF sportster in .22mag. I bought 1 2 weeks ago for $125.00 out the door,with a box of CCI MAXI-MAGS. It also comes in .22lr. and .17hmr.

VERY ACCURATE! Light with a good trigger.
My son-in-law and I were shooting tangerines off fence posts today at around 70 yds. with the new Rem 35gr VMAX bullets. The tangerines just exploded into a big puff! You couldn't find a piece bigger than a pea!
 
22LR accuracy?

Not a real simple question. For several reasons.

It makes a BIG difference if we are talking about $100-$500 hunting, plinking guns or $1500-$3500 target rifles.

No rifle is anywhere near as critical of how you hold it as the 22LR. To realize the full accuracy of any 22LR, it must be held exactly the same with exactly the same pressures everywhere you touch it for every shot.

For $500 and under rifles, 1/2" groups at 50 yards are good and more the exception than the rule. For a good target rifle, with an experienced competitor, 1/2" groups at 50 yards, will put you near last place.

And as others have said, the 22LR is very picky about what ammo shoots well. Almost invariably, the low velocity ammo is most accurate and least affected by the wind. That still makes for many brands, and many different lot numbers to test. The difference between lots can be as big as the difference between brands. You find a good lot, buy as much as you can find/afford.

Jack
 
Amen Jack,
I have one old Rem 552 that is probably my best non target .22 ever, with the right bullet.

Lucky for me it fell in love with those Rem 525 rnd. value packs, of all things. I bought 10 boxes @ $8.99 ea. so at my age a lot of these will be shot by my grandsons, I bet.

Like you said, on the sandbags its a .50"@50yds., if everything is just right, if not about .75", plenty good for squakers and bunny out to 50.
 
I have a 22LR in the Henry Lever action it shoots 3/4 in groups at 50 yards and about 1 1/4 at 100 but that is with no scope. I have killed some pretty good sized coons with it at 100 plus some. Head shots! Also have a marlin mod. 60 semi-auto that shoots very well!! Neither one are real particular between Remington and Winchester Ammo 40 Grain. I have never been P-Dog hunting but I thought you had at least 300 yard shots and that to me seems out of range for the .22! Hope this helps.
 
I would honestly go with a 22 mag or the .17 hmr

I bought a 22 mag about 4 years ago and have never looked back. I dont hunt prarie dogs, but I do hunt crows, and the 22 mag is great for 100+ yard crows, I havent shot the 17 yet, but can imagine it to be better yet on smaller varmints.
 
I would tend to think that everything being equal, that a bolt gun will give you better accuracy than the semi-auto. I'm not talking about super customized 10/22s either, just box stock guns. I've got a 10/22 semi auto and a 77/22 bolt gun and the 77/22 will outshoot the 10/22 hands down. The fun factor goes to the 10/22 though. The 22 Mag is nice, but the ammo is more expensive. That being said, I bought one of those too. I'm sure if you shop around, you'll find some good buys on 22 LR rifles this time of year. The local Gander Mountain has a Savage 22LR bolt gun for $129, so good buys are out there. MI VHNTR
 
I got 1 2years ago a Henry is a great gun you can knock down alot of animals the Henry is a lever action gun you can knock down crows squirrels fox or two maybe a bobcat and maybe get lucky and drop a coyote hollows points are best
 


Write your reply...
Back
Top