Why are bolt-actions so much more expensive than autoloaders? Are they *that *more accurate? Say, Ruger 77/22 vs. 10/22
With a bit of trigger work done my 77/22 became a compitition grade tack driver. My 10/22 is also accurate as all get out, but not quite as much. If you’re making pop cans dance at 20 yards then it doesn’t matter. If you’re shooting at 50 yards and will be eliminated by a flyer outside the 10X ring it does. Different tools for different jobs.
Plus the 77/22 is nice to play with because it’s the mini-me of my M77 .30-06.
The two most popular semiauto .22LR’s are the Ruger 10/22 and the Marlin Model 60, many firearms enthusiasts give the Marlin a slight edge in accuracy, the Ruger is far more customizable
I can shoot 1/8" groups at 50 yards with my 10/22 and it’s 3-9X scope
I know you said you didn’t want a single-shot, but a break-barrel .22LR like the Harrington and Richardson (New England Firearms) is much quieter than a semiauto, on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being a .22LR from a 4" barrel Ruger Mark II pistol (one of the noiser .22 handguns) and 1 being still, calm air, the guns rate thusly;
Federal Bulk-Pack .22 ammo -
Ruger 10/22; 7.5
Marlin 60; 7.0
H&R Single-Shot; 4.5
CCI CB-Long CB caps (low-power primer only subsonic ammo);
10/22; 4.5**
Marlin 60; 4.0**
H&R; 1.5 (all you hear is the click of the hammer falling and striking the firing pin, and the thump of the bullet hitting the target)
Aprilla Super Colibri .22LR (primer-only rounds, very low power, risky to use in barrels over 12" long due to the bullet stopping in the barrel, that said, they’ve worked fine in my .22’s, but I check the barrel for obstruction after every shot)
10/22; 3.0**
Marlin 60; 2.5**
H&R; 1.2 (Click-thump)
the H&R is the quietest because the .22 cartridge is fully enclosed and surrounded by the breech and firing chamber, the semiautos have an open bolt area that allows sound to escape
the H&R can also shoot .22 BB Cap, CB cap, Primer-only rounds, .22 Short, Long, and Long Rifle rounds, very versatile
**using CB Longs or other primer-only rounds in a semiauto will not cycle the action, you’ll have to manually clear and reload the gun, it becomes a single-shot with these rounds
That would be the Model 24. There’s one for sale here. I don’t know if they make them anymore. My sister has one in .357/20 ga.
If you’re not married to a .22 might I suggest a .17 HMR? I was nailing paint balls on a golf tee from 250 yards with my friend’s scoped Remington.
Another vote for the Ruger 10/22.
I’ve had one of these with a 3x9 for as long as I’ve been shooting and it’s ridiculously accurate and durable. I do though love Ruger and am sure the aforementioned 10/22 is a beaut.
This though… “but nothing useful when it comes to slaughtering hogs or…”
In what manner? Are you talking about simply dispatching a penned pig with a shot to the skull or taking down a big feral in the woods? If the latter, I think I’d choose something with a lot more punch.
Yes, I definitely would be pulling out the Mauser or Mosin Nagant for that, but we don’t have ferral hogs around here. I’m just talking about slaughtering a few hogs a year with a shot to the head. I had to have a friend bring his rifle over last year. My rifles are just too powerful to be popping a hog in the head with at point blank range. The only thing I have that comes close to weak enough is a Nagant pistol, but they don’t give the rounds away for those. (Though I just noticed on the wiki page for the Nagantthat it’ll fire some more common .32 rounds, but we’ll ignore that, because otherwise I’ve got no excuse for buying a new toy.)
Thanks for all of the great info folks!
I took it to mean slaughtering hogs, rather than hunting them.
IIRC there’s a scene in Southern Comfort where a Cajun dispatches a hung hog with a .22 rifle. A .22 revolver (which is less prone to jamming) might be more handy, unless the extra muzzle velocity is needed from a rifle.
Question:
I really like the looks of the 10/22 International:
Could a gun store or outfitter store get this model for me? Ruger doesn’t have it listed with the other 10/22 models on their site?
That stock was a very rare model offered briefly in the 1960’s and again for a short time in the 1990’s. You can hunt around and find the stocks for between $150 and $300 from time to time. It’s a simple drop in job to change out the stock, er, stock and swap to that Mannlicher style one.
Thanks for the info. That probably puts it just out of the range of an impulse purchase for me. I might have to save up for it.
Actually, check that.Here’sa place that does them for $160 plus shipping, but they say that they’re on back order.
ETA: And check this place out. Damn it, I’m supposed to be saving for an engagement ring.
Rem Nylon 66
Been shooting then since Custer was a kid… (almost anyway)
Find a used one someplace if they will part with it and enjoy for 50 - 60 years…
I have a Ruger 10/22 and it’s a great gun but my favorite .22 is a Marlin 39A lever. Accurate, accepts shorts or long rifle ammo and with that long barrel subsonic rounds are very quiet.
Nylon 66s are quite available. Only they’ve become collector’s items and they’re getting rather expensive. Around the $500 range.
Now that we’re just talking .22 rifles, which I adore, can I just say that I’ve always coveted a Winchester model 61 or 62 pump gun? They just look like snap shooters, somthing you could take out a rabbit with at a moments notice. They only ones I’ve ever seen for sale were at Cablela’s Gun Library and fetch $1200+. and I’m not spending that kind of money on a .22 unless it has another digit following, like a .223.
Cluricaun: How about a Rossi 62 for $395?
You must have missed the post about the saving for an engagement ring. 
That’s perfect and I fully intend to have one of those in the locker before the end of the year, thanks man.
Keep an eye out for military Training Rifles- most of the major militaries of WWI and WWII had .22 calibre versions of their service rifles (or something near enough) for teaching new recruits and cadets how to shoot.
Generally, they’re single-shot affairs, but they’re usually very accurate, solidly built, and, of course, many of them look like a full-size military rifle (because they were converted from same).
Not sure how common they are in the US, though…