I have been thinking about maybe getting a 22 bolt gun to do some inexpensive target shooting with however my local range has fixed target berms of 25, 100, and 200 yards.

What kind of accuracy can I expect at 100 yards? Is that a reasonable distance for a 22lr or is the bullet too light weight to do that consistently?

The gun will be more capable than the owner.

If you buy a good bolt gun like an Anschutz 54 and shoot good ammo you can expect 1/2" 5 shot groups @100 yards. Of course no or little wind and a good scope.

This. On my first outing with my CZ 455 it would put a couple of shots into a group about 1.25" until I'd get excited and throw a shot.

Subsequent outings produced under an inch.

Remember the ammo counts a lot. I've been using SK Match lately and loving it.

This.

Like anything else, glass and ammunition selection play a huge role.

Last time I had my CZ452 out, it put down a .68 and a .62 MA 5 shot groups at 100yrds.

Wolf match and a Vortex PST make it easier.

Well that's good to know I'm not crazy. Guess I can persue my concept.
This might stray the topic to a different place but I was looking at CZ 455s but my dealer has 452s lying around and I had a friend tell me I should look at the Savages.

Given the option of 452, 455 or a Savage where should I go?

Also where do I start with ammo? What is considered accurate ammo for a 22?

Sorry if this is all covered somewhere else, feel free to link me to somewhere.

Ammo - start with inexpensive standard velocity ammo. This will be a 40 grain lead bullet at about 1050 fps.

I say this because I ran a test of many ammo types and given my lack of skill in shooting and wind doping, the groups were all the same size. This test included inexpensive Winchester T-22, Eley Green Tag, RWS 50, RWS 100, several Eley types,... It did not include any hyper-velocity anything or bulk pack fodder. Then you'll know it's you and not the ammo.


How To - Start at 25 yards and have some fun. Try the Rimfire Challenge (see thread on this board). Depending upon your Range's Rules, consider buying some metal rimfire targets just for fun - they're cheap, last forever and are small (transportation and storage). Work your way out to 50, 100 and 200 yards as your skills improve.

Rifle - It's really hard for me to say, I have no idea of your budget, your goals, etc.

From what I've read, the Savages are inexpensive and don't look as good as they shoot.

CZ rifles look like real rifles but seem to have hunting-oriented stocks, rather than target shooting stocks.

My favorite are older generation rifles. I have a Remington Model 37 made in their first year of production (1937). I also have an Anschutz-based target rifle.

I think if you buy a better quality rifle you will be happier in the long run because rimfire is fun, accurate and inexpensive*.




* Consider the case where you avoid shooting 5,000 practice rounds thru a centerfire rifle and don't have to rebarrel the rifle. You've probably avoided spending about $2.5k to $5k. Instead, buy a top-notch rimfire rifle ($1.5k) and shoot 5,000 rounds of match-grade ammo thru it ($1k). You will only spend $2.5k total and you still have an awesome rimfire rifle and your centerfire rifle will not need a new barrel. By the way, you'll be a better shot after 5,000 rounds of rimfire, too.

Here is a link to some targets.

http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_16_18/89_-22lr-Tack-Driving-range-game.html

If you do your part, you should hit most if not all of them.

Post pics of your new rifle when you get a chance.

I looked at and handled the 455 and Savage. When I picked up the CZ455 I was in love. IMO a much better built rifle. I've heard great things as well about the 452's. Handle both and see what you think.

As far as ammo selection I would start with a known pretty good ammo like CCI standard velocity 40gr. Its not match ammo but its consistent, not too expensive, and pretty accurate for non match ammo. Its also usually easy to find. The main difference I found going from CCI standard to a premium ammo like Wolf Match was the groups stayed more uniform and shrank considerably.

The other factor is decent glass. Without dishing out a ton of cash, Ive been very happy with the SWFA SS scopes. A lot of very clear glass for the money.

Are there good places to get some CCI or Wolf Match online in bulk?

The guys on rimfire central are telling me the CZs are a crap shoot in terms of accuracy which is really offputting.

As a starting point, look at Champion's Choice. They have top quality, match grade rimfire ammo in stock in all the important brands. They offer ammo by the box (50 rounds) or by the case (5,000 rounds) or whatever you want.

They managed to have stock at normal prices even during the depths of the "shortage".

Good people, good products. What more could you ask for?

Noted. I'll keep them bookmarked.

This.

Follow what Trollslayer has said, words of wisdom there, nothing more I can add except I prefer the cz over the savages. Get a 455 instead of the 452 and then later you can upgrade to their mrFly two stage trigger if you wish.

I've started down the 22 road earlier this year to train and save my match centerfires. I went with a CZ 455 varmint, put it in a Boyd's Pro Varmint (Tacticool) stock and did a bedding job on it. It shoots pretty well to me. I want to spend more time with it then I have, I've probably on shot about 5-600 rds through it so far. I'm fortunate enough to be local to Champions Choice and I highly recommend those guys. I went by there and bought a box of just about everything they had. Wolf Match shot excellent and its only about 60ish bucks a brick. It also really like Center X so I've bounced between the two of them. I really feel like its helped me in positional stages in PRS because I built a couple of barricades and got in really junky positions and just kept at it until I started making hits. The 22's have a place in my opinion. Not to mention its a different kind of fun too.