Let's see the .22 rifles that make you smile

No photo because I’m too lazy to dredge it out of my overcrowded safe, but my CZ452 has never been anything but a pleasure to shoot. And, since I only paid a $150 for it, a bit of a wonder. It’s a gracious adult-sized tack-driver wrapped around a .22 chamber.

Here are my 25’s.
The top two are Glenfield 25’s and the bottom one is a Marlin 25.


I have always liked 22 bolt action rifles. But one may ask why three of the same type of rifle. That’s easy, they all take the same magazines.
Really, I bought the one in the middle for a good price a few years back. Then during the 22 ammo shortage l came across the one on the bottom for under $125. Then the one on the top was found in a pawn shop, missing the magazine, dirty and priced at $99. I ended up giving a lot less for it because the shop had not had any 22 ammo for a while and 22 rifles were just not selling.
But the top Glenfield is a project rifle. There’s nothing wrong with it, but the plan is to reshape and refinish the stock to look like a fancy Sporter. Just a fun project.

Mr. Gunny's description of the Romanian training rifle caused me to remember this WZ-78 Polish trainer I had tucked away and almost forgot. A dealer friend had a bunch of these a few years back and gave me this one to test. So I mounted the scope you see here, and tinkered with the trigger a bit, and gave it a pretty thorough test. Accuracy was nowhere serious target level but pleasantly surprising, and prices so agreeable that I decided to buy a dozen or so donation to local gun club for jr marksmanship programs. But by time I got back to dealer with my proposal they were already sold out. The nice looking stock on this one was after the original finish had been removed with paint thinner..

Do like this Erma single shot conversion. Lets you take your 8mm 98. You pull out the Bolt and insert the conversion unit into the rifle like it is bolt and you can train with your rifle shooting cheaper 22 LR. Then when your done remove the conversion unit and barrel & replace the original bolt and you shoot your original 8mm ammo again. It takes maybe 10 seconds to do this.

I received a misbehaving Belgian made Browning recently for cleaning/repair/tweaking/whatever it takes to make it run properly. Completely tool-less disassembly, very ingenious yet simple design, and incredibly unique in the modern era. Since it is mis-feeding, I have been spending quite a bit of time test shooting it, and despite my long-lived disdain for takedown rifles, it’s really grown on me. Just an absolute joy to shoot.

Considering the high cost of the current production, Japanese made Browning SA22’s, and naturally the silliness of hauling a nicely blued, wood stocked rifle as a backpacker, instead I plan to get one of the Magpul Ruger 10/22’s with the compartment stock, with a micro RDS on a QD base to fit in the stock, and stick my SiCo Warlock II out front for backpacking this summer with my son.

Offfhand said:

Mr. Gunny's description of the Romanian training rifle caused me to remember this WZ-78 Polish trainer I had tucked away and almost forgotten. A dealer friend had a bunch of these a few years back and gave me this one to test. So I mounted the scope you see here, and tinkered with the trigger a bit, and gave it a pretty thorough test. Accuracy was nowhere serious target level but pleasantly surprising enough , and prices so agree that I decided to buy a dozen or so to donate to local gun club for jr marksmanship programs. But by time I got back with my proposal they were already sold out. The nice looking stock on this one was after the original finish had been removed with paint thinner..View attachment 888345 View attachment 888346

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Offfhand
That would be a Polish Wifama wz 78 22 Military Training Rifle. I to have one tucked away in one a gun safe. They are great shooters, but very finicky about the ammo they like. I haven’t shot mine in over 10 years.
Do you still have the original sights?

This thread did remind me - I have my grandpa’s/dad’s old Marlin 99M1 which is just a ball to shoot for me. My dad lost the rear sight while he had a scope on the rifle (both dovetail mounted, so either/or) while he was in high school, and the front sight (not lost) fell off while I was in high school some ~25 years later. I’ve purchased a replacement original rear sight, and can easily slip the front sight back on, and intend to someday when I’m ready to permanently hand it over to my son, but for now, shooting this old rifle at bunnies or pop cans or hedgeapples walking through my property brings me great joy. I simply do not do it enough these days.

CZ 452 American 16 with a SilencerCo Sparrow 22.

Varminterror,

Make sure you hold on tight to that 99M1 rear sight! The rear sight alone is worth almost as much as the rifle (when you can find an original).

Varminterror said:

This thread did remind me - I have my grandpa’s/dad’s old Marlin 99M1 which is just a ball to shoot for me. My dad lost the rear sight while he had a scope on the rifle (both dovetail mounted, so either/or) while he was in high school, and the front sight (not lost) fell off while I was in high school some ~25 years later. I’ve purchased a replacement original rear sight, and can easily slip the front sight back on, and intend to someday when I’m ready to permanently hand it over to my son, but for now, shooting this old rifle at bunnies or pop cans or hedgeapples walking through my property brings me great joy. I simply do not do it enough these days.

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I always liked those!

You may want to replace the old two-peice feed throat with the more durable one-peice style while they are still available (if you havent already). Its not cheap or super easy, but there are y-tube videos that show how to do it if you are mechanically inclined. Sooner of later those Glenfield actions will shoot themselves loose......

On the bright side, the 99m1 versions used the aluminum trigger guard, instead of the stupid later plastic one which always cracks at the rear screw boss.

NIGHTLORD40K said:

On the bright side, the 99m1 versions used the aluminum trigger guard, instead of the stupid later plastic one which always cracks at the rear screw boss.

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On the “dark side,” then, I suppose, my dad managed to crack the rear tang of the aluminum trigger guard decades ago! Stronger wasn’t strong enough to stop him! I bought another years ago. Both my grandpa and my dad were rough-cuts, so they treated their rifles like tools, but both were fixers as well (as am I), such replacing what breaks when it breaks isn’t disrespectful for the old “heirloom.”

12Bravo20 said:

Varminterror,

Make sure you hold on tight to that 99M1 rear sight! The rear sight alone is worth almost as much as the rifle (when you can find an original).

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Yup. Unfortunately worse, I accidentally bought two replacement rear sight assemblies, as I had forgotten I had found one several years before and bought a second when I finally found it. My rifle is in pretty poor condition, certainly doesn’t grade highly, and even though I found great deals on both sight assy’s, the sum of the two is certainly greater than the value of my old 99M1!

I got lucky on my 99M1. I had a neighbor that wanted to borrow $60 and left the rifle with me for collateral and then never came back.

Varminterror said:

This thread did remind me - I have my grandpa’s/dad’s old Marlin 99M1 which is just a ball to shoot for me. My dad lost the rear sight while he had a scope on the rifle (both dovetail mounted, so either/or) while he was in high school, and the front sight (not lost) fell off while I was in high school some ~25 years later. I’ve purchased a replacement original rear sight, and can easily slip the front sight back on, and intend to someday when I’m ready to permanently hand it over to my son, but for now, shooting this old rifle at bunnies or pop cans or hedgeapples walking through my property brings me great joy. I simply do not do it enough these days.

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I think I have one of those in my safe.

I was wrong, it’s a Glenfield Model 75 carbine.

Offfhand said:

Mr. Gunny's description of the Romanian training rifle caused me to remember this WZ-78 Polish trainer I had tucked away and almost forgot. A dealer friend had a bunch of these a few years back and gave me this one to test. So I mounted the scope you see here, and tinkered with the trigger a bit, and gave it a pretty thorough test. Accuracy was nowhere serious target level but pleasantly surprising, and prices so agreeable that I decided to buy a dozen or so donation to local gun club for jr marksmanship programs. But by time I got back to dealer with my proposal they were already sold out. The nice looking stock on this one was after the original finish had been removed with paint thinner..View attachment 888345 View attachment 888346

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Offfhand
I went way back into the safe and pulled mine out today.


Mine is dated 1987.


The sights are nothing close to target sights. They look more like AK sights.


The importer was Williams Shooter Supply in Quincy, IL.

Rem 33 and 504: Acquired the 33 several years ago and haven't shot it much. Gave it to a grandson. The 504 is a great shooter and isn't bad to handle and look at. It was part of the stock of a gun shop that had gone belly-up and purchased by Marden's, a salvage business located in several cities in Maine. I saw it in a rack with lots of centerfires and scoffed it up, along with the box and papers, about 20? years ago. Remington had lots of 504s with bad barrels and that affected sales, but this one has an excellent barrel and shoots great! The 33 was given to me by my dentist (who's since retired). It filled a "cavity" in my gun safe for a while, until I gave it away.

I have two .22 rifles that make me smile. The one with a Weaver 4X scope (Remington 511) is the first gun I ever owned given to me by my Dad over 50 years ago. The other originally belonged to my grandfather and then my Dad (single shot Winchester 68 with rear peep sight and front hood). Both still shoot great and both are quite accurate.

This thread gets my vote as the best rifle thread EVER.

Glad to see examples of two of my old favorites (Stevens 1915, thanks Gunny) and the gallery guns (like the Win. Model 62).

GunnyUSMC said:

Offfhand
That would be a Polish Wifama wz 78 22 Military Training Rifle.

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Yep, that is correct, it's a Polish training rife. It is rather curious, in that military training rifles typically mimic contours and other distinguishing features of the nation's actual service weapon. However, the wz.78, other than the sights, is styled more along modern sporting rifle contours. The cheekpiece being especially notable in this regard, indicating the designers and manufacturer had sales to the domestic market in mind. The rear sight comes off easily and the grooved receiver makes scope mounting simple. The original finish, best described as gutter scum, comes of fairly easily with mineral spirits and a felt rubbing pad, to brighten the wood and reveal some nice grain. It's a half hour well spent.

Offfhand said:

Yep, that is correct, it's a Polish training rife. It is rather curious, in that military training rifles typically mimic contours and other distinguishing features of the nation's actual service weapon. However, the wz.78, other than the sights, is styled more along modern sporting rifle contours. The cheekpiece being especially notable in this regard, indicating the designers and manufacturer had sales to the domestic market in mind. The rear sight comes off easily and the grooved receiver makes scope mounting simple. The original finish, best described as gutter scum, comes of fairly easily with mineral spirits and a felt rubbing pad, to brighten the wood and reveal some nice grain. It's a half hour well spent.

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The stock on the rifles are Beech and the original finish is Shellac. Denatured Alcohol works best to remove it.
Mine is still all original.

Beautiful stocks on both of your Wz trainers, Gunny and Offhand!

Here’s one I picked up for $35 a while back. It’s a Remington 514. The original barrel was bent just forward of the receiver and about a half inch high in the barrel channel at the front of the stock.
It’s a late model and has a Beech stock instead of Walnut. The stock was in bad shape. There were no cracks, but it look like mosquito repellent had eaten up the finish at the wrist and forearm.
I got an original late model barrel from Lee’s Gun Parts in Texas. I cleaned up the stock and stained it with Chestnut Ridge Military Stock Stain and applied an oil finish.
The buttplate was also damaged and I repaired it with Acraglas.

nitsa216 said:

Must be nice to be able to own one of a kind 40 X , you must be a friend of snotty chuck

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Actually, Snotty Chuick has no friends that I know of. We just tolerate him because he has some outstanding guns and occasionally picks up the lunch check. He also has a charming wife.
Though I'll never have .22 rifles as elegant and expensive as his, I try to stay in the game with modest entrys like this Remington M-37 I had "sporterized."

Some guns hold good memories. Some for things you’ve done with them, and others for what you did to them.
Here’s a Marlin 783 that I found in a pawn shop. The stock was in rough shape, someone had committed sins against it that were ungodly in nature.

I was in a kind mood that day and was allowed to take the rifle with me for the low sum o $98.


With some love and care and a few blessings from our good Lord, this little rifle was washed of the sins that were placed upon it.
And it’s a good shooter.

Offfhand said:

Actually, Snotty Chuick has no friends that I know of. We just tolerate him because he has some outstanding guns and occasionally picks up the lunch check. He also has a charming wife.
Though I'll never have .22 rifles as elegant and expensive as his, I try to stay in the game with .22's like this Remington M-37 I had "sporterized." View attachment 888687 View attachment 888688 View attachment 888689

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Now, I'm confused.

Is Snotty Chuck Snooty Chuck's brother?

Todd.