Differences between Bolt and Semi-auto for .22LR
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Caddisflied
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If you don't have a preference on which action you want to buy.
You should go with the most accurate rifle you can afford.
It's more fun to hit a target once, than it is to miss it 10 times real fast.
You should go with the most accurate rifle you can afford.
It's more fun to hit a target once, than it is to miss it 10 times real fast.
Caliper_Mi
Member
As others have pointed out, that only holds true so long as you have the cash to buy bunches of magazines. Working with only one mag, I can feed 18 rounds into my Marlin 60 faster than my g/f can load 10 into her 10/22. I can easily pinch 2-4 rounds between my thumb and forefinger and load them one after another while a box bag forces one-at-a-time loading.
I will concede, however, that a tube mag can be a PITA if you are shooting from a bench or prone. Having to completely break position to extract the mag plunger and reload can be a nuisance that is avoided with a detachable box.
To the OP: many autoloaders specify not to use hypervelocity ammo. Another + for bolt guns.
Idaho Dana
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Wow what huge differences in opinion. I for one shoot casual NRA competitions in a league. That is not the kind where you see Olympic class rifles with electronic triggers but just about everything under the sun. What most of the top shooters use are variations of the Ruger 10/22, bull barrel, custom triggers and stocks w/ optics which are allowed in some matches. You see very few bolt guns.
In a caliber as small as a 22LR, I don't think that you can prove that a bolt gun is more accurate than a semi auto in the kind of shooting that most of us do. If you want to talk real Olympic Bulls Eye competitions, even those are now mostly shot with semi auto's or single shot rifles.
No one can shoot better than a tuned rifle can shoot. The gun is always better than the shooter. I have seen hundreds of .5 MOA groups shot with semi auto's at 50 yards. I don't know how much better anyone would need.
In a caliber as small as a 22LR, I don't think that you can prove that a bolt gun is more accurate than a semi auto in the kind of shooting that most of us do. If you want to talk real Olympic Bulls Eye competitions, even those are now mostly shot with semi auto's or single shot rifles.
No one can shoot better than a tuned rifle can shoot. The gun is always better than the shooter. I have seen hundreds of .5 MOA groups shot with semi auto's at 50 yards. I don't know how much better anyone would need.
Fastcast
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Interesting stuff gentlemen. I would have naturally thought the bolts would be more accurate. I don't own a bolt .22 so can't comment on that but my stock (except extended mag release) Ruger 10/22, with iron sights is plenty accurate for me.
It will easily whack any small varmint I've ever had to dispose of, out to 50-70 yards. I also, have a little prop setup out back and can regularly whack 7-Up cans at 65 yards offhand, with the 10/22. That's plenty good enough for me with a .22......If I need to reach out farther than that, I'm grabbing a bigger rifle anyway.
Don't need no high dollar scopes and fancy barrels to do what I use a .22 for!....Fun and small varmints.
It will easily whack any small varmint I've ever had to dispose of, out to 50-70 yards. I also, have a little prop setup out back and can regularly whack 7-Up cans at 65 yards offhand, with the 10/22. That's plenty good enough for me with a .22......If I need to reach out farther than that, I'm grabbing a bigger rifle anyway.
Don't need no high dollar scopes and fancy barrels to do what I use a .22 for!....Fun and small varmints.
Caddisflied
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Nice looking rifle Fastcast!
I've always been a bolt-action fan but,
I'm going to own one of those 10/22's someday.
A lot of good shooters are saying a lot good things about those rifles.
I've always been a bolt-action fan but,
I'm going to own one of those 10/22's someday.
A lot of good shooters are saying a lot good things about those rifles.
Dulvarian
Member
I've found that my CZ 452, stock, shoots awesome. A little slower on follow-up shots than a semi, but it shoots as well as any other .22LR's I've ever shot.
Personally, if I want to dump .22 size holes as fast as I can, I use my 5.56.
As far as people say .22LR is not an accurate round, 100+ yards in the wind hitting bottle caps and the rims of shotgun shells is pretty good. Golf balls aren't even a challenge.
Semi's can be picky on ammo, with feeding issues particularly. Some are picky about all brands of ammo except a single one. Some are just as reliable as a bolt. And they vary, serial # to serial #.
Do some research. Decide if you want to shoot irons or scoped, semi (magazine or tube), lever, pump, bolt. Decide how much you want to spend. Savage and CZ get compared a lot. The fit and finish on the CZ is nicer than many rifles, while Savage spends all their money on the barrels. I prefer a blend of both, so I went with a CZ. I couldn't find the perfect scope, so I ended up with a Nikon Omega, with BDC no less. But it has worked out perfect, for me. And then buy a handful more, just to 'check' to make sure that you have made the right choice(s). I'm looking forward to sitting down with my son and my father and uncle and playing with a dozen or so different .22's this summer, both pistols and rifles.
MY CZ hasn't minded any of the dozen or so brands of ammo I've fed it. The only issue I've had was when someone else was shooting it, they half-stroked the bolt (didn't chamber) and then pulled back without seating, then tried to stroke again. The only change with ammo was slight movement in POI.
And btw, I've found that tweaking the torque on the barrel and action lug does as much to change POI as changing the ammo brand. Something about barrel harmonics and the way the CZ 'cheats' on free floating the barrel.
Sorry for the wall of text. I've really enjoyed my .22's while recovering from surgery. As I'm still recovering a year later, I can see a strong improvement with both centerfire pistols and rifles.
Basics are basics, and there are few things like a .22 for working on basics. I've seen an improvement on all my own guns. I even got better on guns that I haven't ever touched before. Like a friend's 7mm or 1911. A few thousand rounds of .22 is a good deal cheaper than any other caliber. And, a few thousand rounds of .22 stores easier than uh... anything I can think of.
Personally, if I want to dump .22 size holes as fast as I can, I use my 5.56.
As far as people say .22LR is not an accurate round, 100+ yards in the wind hitting bottle caps and the rims of shotgun shells is pretty good. Golf balls aren't even a challenge.
Semi's can be picky on ammo, with feeding issues particularly. Some are picky about all brands of ammo except a single one. Some are just as reliable as a bolt. And they vary, serial # to serial #.
Do some research. Decide if you want to shoot irons or scoped, semi (magazine or tube), lever, pump, bolt. Decide how much you want to spend. Savage and CZ get compared a lot. The fit and finish on the CZ is nicer than many rifles, while Savage spends all their money on the barrels. I prefer a blend of both, so I went with a CZ. I couldn't find the perfect scope, so I ended up with a Nikon Omega, with BDC no less. But it has worked out perfect, for me. And then buy a handful more, just to 'check' to make sure that you have made the right choice(s). I'm looking forward to sitting down with my son and my father and uncle and playing with a dozen or so different .22's this summer, both pistols and rifles.
MY CZ hasn't minded any of the dozen or so brands of ammo I've fed it. The only issue I've had was when someone else was shooting it, they half-stroked the bolt (didn't chamber) and then pulled back without seating, then tried to stroke again. The only change with ammo was slight movement in POI.
And btw, I've found that tweaking the torque on the barrel and action lug does as much to change POI as changing the ammo brand. Something about barrel harmonics and the way the CZ 'cheats' on free floating the barrel.
Sorry for the wall of text. I've really enjoyed my .22's while recovering from surgery. As I'm still recovering a year later, I can see a strong improvement with both centerfire pistols and rifles.
Basics are basics, and there are few things like a .22 for working on basics. I've seen an improvement on all my own guns. I even got better on guns that I haven't ever touched before. Like a friend's 7mm or 1911. A few thousand rounds of .22 is a good deal cheaper than any other caliber. And, a few thousand rounds of .22 stores easier than uh... anything I can think of.
chicharrones
needs more ammo
That must be a manufacturer's CYA thing. Perhaps that makes sense in the little Crickett and Henry youth bolt guns, but modern designed adult sized bolt guns are plenty strong for hyper velocity .22LR (IMO).
Fastcast
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Thanks Caddisflied...I got lucky when I stumbled on that one!...The 10/22s are a bunch of fun and the aftermarket is huge if you want to accessorize it, like many do.
I'm sure you'd enjoy one either way, especially at their low selling price!
CraigC
Sixgun Nut
Pressures are all the same. The difference is that some, like the CCI Stinger have a longer case and may not chamber properly in tighter chambers like the Bentz. In some guns, there is a concern over the increased bolt speed. Far as I know, there are no concerns with any modern boltgun with a sporting chamber.
On a bolt rifle with a decent chamber the longer stinger case is a problem. I don't like to run a longer case into a chamber cut for a shorter case. I've also never seen any of the hyper velocity ammo group as well as similarly priced sub sonic ammo. I see very little point in the stuff other than to supply cases for .17hm2 to be made out of.
chicharrones
needs more ammo
I will admit I know nothing of a Bentz chamber, or the rifles that use it.
use2windsurf
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apples and oranges.
Saying that if you change the trigger, stock and barrel on a 10/22 that it will be as accurate as gun xyz with a bolt action misses the mark (no pun intended). its really no longer a 10/22 is it? thats like saying a Mustang is as fast as a Ferrari, if you put a new tranny, twin turbos, new suspension, etc.
Saying that if you change the trigger, stock and barrel on a 10/22 that it will be as accurate as gun xyz with a bolt action misses the mark (no pun intended). its really no longer a 10/22 is it? thats like saying a Mustang is as fast as a Ferrari, if you put a new tranny, twin turbos, new suspension, etc.
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