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Can anyone recommend a good rifle? Something for a beginner since I’ve never shot a rifle before. I like the aggressive look of the PSG1 but I think I can find a better way to spend $5,000 to $10,000 dollars. Any suggestions?
Depends on what you want it for - how will it be used? Target practice? Hunting? Hunting what?
Time Traveller
01-06-2005, 21:03
Depends on what you want it for - how will it be used? Target practice? Hunting? Hunting what?
Good point....the PSG is a nice weapon...but not the most practicle for hunting Deer. It's an excellent hunting weapon...but it prey is generally two legged.
I suggest a nice Holland and Holland in 500 Nitro Express...on the oft chance you need to down a Rhino...or a charging Elephant.
kennethm3
01-06-2005, 21:14
Savage 10P Tactical in .308, 20" barrel, with the short action. Harris bipod and and a Springfield fixed 10 power scope and you'll have a decent 1/2" MOA rifle for under a thousand bucks.
If you've never fired a rifle and want to develop good fundamentals, why don't you try something like a Ruger 10/22. Sure it's not sexy but it's a good way to start since there is low recoil, ammo is cheap, and you can shoot it just about anywhere. Laying down $$$ for a rifle that out shoots you is IMHO a waste. Spend the money on a class instead that will teach you how to shoot a rifle properly.
If you've never fired a rifle and want to develop good fundamentals, why don't you try something like a Ruger 10/22. Sure it's not sexy but it's a good way to start since there is low recoil, ammo is cheap, and you can shoot it just about anywhere. Laying down $$$ for a rifle that out shoots you is IMHO a waste. Spend the money on a class instead that will teach you how to shoot a rifle properly.
What he said. Great post by the way.
Great post on the Ruger 10/22. Hell, you want to learn to walk before you run with something like a sniper rifle. DM
cpwclarke
01-07-2005, 00:25
I've had my 10/22 for probably 10 years now. Still puts a smile on my face when plinking away at cans.
You can also move up to a Ruger Mini-14 for a little more bang later on.
jts' post is on the money. I cut my teeth on an M1 rifle, which was probably not the smartest thing in the world considering it fires a .30-06 cartridge. :p
I want to use for it for target practice. I know an outdoor range were they allow rifles and they also do skeet shooting. I want to get myself familiar with a rifle. Maybe in the future when I'm good enough I'll lay down some cash for a good one. Anything that can start me off will do. I just don't want to go to a dealer and have them try to sell me a rifle that's above my skill level.
FastDak911
01-07-2005, 07:17
I want to use for it for target practice. I know an outdoor range were they allow rifles and they also do skeet shooting. I want to get myself familiar with a rifle. Maybe in the future when I'm good enough I'll lay down some cash for a good one. Anything that can start me off will do. I just don't want to go to a dealer and have them try to sell me a rifle that's above my skill level.
If you just want ot for target shooting then go with the 10/22. They are awesome little guns to mess around with. They also don't cost a ton of money.
This might be considered old school, but I suggest a bolt action .22 rim fire with a detachable magazine. Shoot 10,000 rounds of rim fire through that and see what kind of muscle memory develops operating the bolt and getting back on target. I realize there are agencies out there using semi-autos in limited situations, however, my guess is that there are still more bolt action rifles in use than semi-autos. Regardless stick with a .22 rim fire to begin with to learn trigger control.
As someone else already said, take some classes learn to shoot from every position from prone unsupported to kneeling unsupported to standing. Become proficient using sandbags, shooting sticks, etc. What it takes is practice, practice, and more practice.
Shooting fatigue is just that, when a shooter physically and mentally tires of shooting a firearm. Every shooter is effected by fatigue, however it strikes every shooter at different times, etc., depending upon many things such as the shooters physical strength, mental strength, and experience to name just a few. I shoot a .338 Winmag, Model 70 that I use elk hunting. 40 rounds out of that pushing 225 grain bullet is all that I can handle before I start losing focus.
Some people might be able to shoot 100 rounds before they lose focus; there are 2 points to my rambling post.
1. Center fire cartridges are a lot more expensive than .22 rim fire cartridges.
2. One can achieve fundamental mastery of basic shooting positions, target acquisition, and general gun handling skills QUICKER by using a .22 rim fire auto or bolt gun because one will be able to financially, physically and mentally shoot 10,000 good, steady, non-rushed shots out of a rim fire before a center fire.
Remember, you can always buy the high speed, low drag rifle in an elephant caliber later. Even for "seasoned" shooters, time behind a rim fire rifle, pistol, and/or revolver does nothing but help (unless one is reinforcing bad habits, which is an entirely different topic) with shooting skills.
I recommend checking into a CZ .22 bolt action rifle, although there are at least a dozen quality .22 bolts out there ranging from $250.00 and up.
Let us know what you decide and good shooting to all.
Browning
01-07-2005, 10:54
.22 is definitely the way to go starting out. And I agree that bolt action is probably the best to learn with. The bolt is easy to maintain and has a lot fewer parts to wear out when compared to an auto. I'm a big Browning fan but Winchester and Remington also make some fine rifles that would be great to start with.
Rimfire ammo is a joke money wise. You can buy 1000 or more rounds of .22 for less money than a single box of good target ammo for any .30 or bigger.
If you end up really liking it, wanting to upgrade to a larger caliber, and will shoot alot; then you can get into reloading to save some cash. I prefer handloads for my .30s because I can tune them to match the gun much better and don't need a round that is so hot that it hurts after firing a few boxes. The only drawback to handloading rifle or handgun is that it is time intensive and requires an upfront investment.
I've round it down to a few:
http://www.internetguncatalog.com/pics/sm/31193.jpg
CZ 452 or 513
http://www.internetguncatalog.com/pics/sm/78458.jpg
Savage Arms 111F
and the
http://www.internetguncatalog.com/pics/sm/70299.jpg
Ruger 77/22 Hornet
I am leaning towards the CZ or the Ruger. I might go to an open range by my house to see if I can rent any of these out to make a better decision.
Any of those will make fine rifles, but I do caution one thing, if going with the CZ then go with the 452 American version. The rifle stock is more "straight" if you will, then some of the other models. Remember the purpose of shooting the .22 is for preparation of bigger calibers. Almost any center fire rifle purchased in America is going to be an American style stock; even companies like SAKO have American stocks on their rifle, which suits the American market. I'm just trying to help you think about on down the line when you do jump into a center fire rifle, you will have more choices available to you with the "straight” American stock vs. some European thing. Of course one could always find some crappy European warped looking stock, but then one would ask "Why?" HA!
The above picture shows the difference. If I had to guess, I would say the CZ shown is a 513 because of the stock. Good luck.
Shasta69
01-08-2005, 00:15
and wasn't impressed with the all plastic rear site and all plastic stock that would flex and relocate your "zero" when you reassembled the rifle.
Although the rifle gave me 1 1/2" groups at 100 yards, it was more than adequate for factory loaded 30.06 ammunition.
I've owned a Ruger rifle KM77MK2 in 338 Win Mag (when I lived in S.E. Alaska). Not a bad rifle, but the lawyers had gotten involved and so Ruger rifles had/has a horrible trigger (My stainless 10/22 was horrible trigger as well). An aftermarket trigger assembly lightened the trigger to 4lbs (and 3lbs also for the .22).
Ask around at work. Chances are you'll know of someone that has several rifles... Offer to pay for ammo... sure they will be more than accomondating to let you shoot a couple of rifles to test before you lay down a whole bunch of money.
Regards.
-P
I'm kinda partial to a Marlin Mod.60SSK. 14 + 1 tubular magazine. Nice shot groups. Real easy learner and alot of fun to shoot. You can get one of these for under $200 and they hold their value pretty well.
Good Luck,
Jim
I'm too tired to read thru all of the posts.... But if you want a good cheap rifle, look no further than the "cheapo" Remington Model 700 Synthetic ADL. The local Academy Sports store has them listed at $338. Purchased a 22-250 with a "Cheap" Leupold Rifleman 3-9x40 scope and can use a dime to cover my group at 100yards. EXTREMELY ACCURATE WEAPONS at a po-boy price. No to mention you don't have to worry about scratching it up in the field like you would a $700+ wood finish stock rifle.
Sounds good. I'll check it out.
Remington also makes the 710, a 'beginner' rifle; comes in both .223 and 30-06, I think...complete package with scope. It's inexpensive, with good reviews (I was researching buying a rifle a year or two ago) and would probably be a good way to get into it shooting. However, if you KNOW you'll be doing a lot of serious shooting in the future, the 700 is probably a better choice.
Getting a .22, learning the basics, then transitioning to a bigger round also isn't a bad idea.
MD
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