First gun?

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MistaSmith

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Hey guys,

This summer i'll be turning 15 and im looking to get myself a rifle. I've shot about a million rounds of 22 lr in the past and im comfortable with them, but i feel like i want somthing a little bigger. My friend in the armed forces took me out to the range for the day and he brough his Glock chambered in 9mm, and that was a dream to shoot. Finally he pulled out his Remmington 700 chambered in 6mm, which kicked a little too hard for my likeing. Mind you, there was no recoil pad and we were shooting benchrest, so that could be a factor, but im looking for some other opinions.

Cost is also a factor, because while i'd love to get a semi auto MG34, four grand is about $3600 dollars too high. :cuss: Somthing in the range of 100-400 would be ideal, but id be willing to scrape together a little more money for a quality gun.

Plan A was to get a Savage Mk II BSEV, or possibly the same rifle in .17HMR (BSEV93r17)
Now im starting to think that i should save for a garand, but i dont know if my shoulder/wallet could handle 30-06.

Thanks in advance :D
 
22 is always going to be the cheapest to shoot. My choice would be a Marlin 60. If you wanted something a bit more powerful my choice would be the Marlin 1894c. I use it to introduce rimfire shooters to centerfire rifle. Shoot .38 special and the recoil is very pleasant. Move to .357 magnum when more thump is desired. I bought a Hi Point carbine last winter, what a hoot. They are cheap $200-300, semi auto and you can choose a caliber (9mm, 40 or .45acp). The 9mm would be cheap enough to not break the bank.Check out the Hi Point Forum...
http://www.hipointfirearmsforums.com/Forum/index.php

Welcome to the board.
 
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What are you looking to do with it? What sort of budget do you have for ammo? (.22 being much cheaper than .50 BMG, for example).

Savage makes a few rifles that shoot .223 in a bolt action, amazingly accurate, not a lot of recoil, not terribly expensive, ammo cost isn't bad at all, hard to beat.

I'm not sure if you can get an AK variant for $400, but they are fun - 7.62 is not enough recoil to make you regret shooting it, but enough to leave a grin on your face after the first few rounds.
 
If you are wanting a cheap shooter, a .22lr gun is the best option. Get a Marlin or a Ruger. I can't say anything on Savage, as I've never owned or used one, but Marlin's and Ruger's are great. I currently have a 10/22, and I haven't looked back. You might look into buying two cheaper rifles in different calibers. You could pick up a cheapish .22 and a larger surplus rifle such as a Mosin Nagant, Mauser, or Enfield for under $400 depending on where you live. Or you could save up for something bigger, like a good AK or something along those lines. A Garand, however appealing, is a pain to feed as surplus 30-06 is drying up, and new manufacture is expensive as all get out. But if you're willing to pay for it, they're a kick (no pun intended :D) to shoot.
 
Yeah, if you plan to shoot a lot, like every weekend, then you should probably stick to something that shoots affordable ammo.

You can shoot a brick of 22 for the cost of a box and a half of 308.
 
Another good choice for inexpensive is an AK in 5.45x39, just get a chrome lined model, and put boiling water down the bore and gas tube, or use USGI bore cleaner.
 
First off, welcome aboard. Unlimited room in the playpen. :D

Probably the least-cost centerfire ammo is the .223.

But tell us more about what you plan to do. Mostly target shooting and plinking at tin cans? Hunting? (I would assume small game from your mention of the .17.)

Kick it around some with the family. At age 15, the law has them involved in any purchase from a store.

I was just a year older when I graduated from a .22 to a .30-'06 and started reloading. That was several years back, of course. :D

Don't be in a hurry. Money goes out a bunch faster than it comes in...
 
Thanks for all your replies guys;
Mainly i'd be using it for shooting paper. I don't think i'd ever really get into hunting, i have no need for the meat, and the only time i'd kill stuff would be when i use the whole animal. The .17 was mainly just an idea to get a little more range and accuracy out of the rifle without moving into centerfire.

I was thinking the exact same thing as one of you guys suggested, after i got my first rifle, i'd get somthing milsurp like a moisn-nagant or somthing.

The other thing is that i love mechanical stuff, and probably 2/3 of the time i spend with the rifle would be disasembling/reasembling/cleaning the rifle. I've never fired an autoloader before but i think they're much more complicated to disasemble (correct me if im wrong?)
The whole simplicity of a bolt gun really appeals to me.

The other variable is my mom, who would not like to have an assault rifle in the house/garage. I think im gonna be stuck with your basic bolt/semi auto rifle, no pistols or AR's :banghead:

I really like the 10/22's reputation and all the aftermarket parts available, especially the boyds 22 evoloution stock.

Thanks again for your input
 
Actually to add on to what i just said, I'm also really in love with the Savage BSEV, but what i might have to do for the sake of cost is buy a used Mark II, and then just order the new stock from boyds. (SS evoloution stock, ambidexterous thumbhole stock, very cool)

Again, the bolt action simplicity really appeals to me, plus i love working a smooth action after every shot.

So essentially for me its down to the 10/22 with the boyds stock, or a Mark II with a boyds stock, chambered in .22
After i pick up one of those and put about 50 boxes of ammo though them, ill try to get my hands on a russian sledgehammer and make it shoot bullets.
 
Welcome to the boards:

I'd go for something small bore. Like everyone else said .22 is CHEAP, both the ammo and the rifle. If a 6mm recoil bothered you I would not consider a mosin/enfield/mauser. A .22 is a great rifle to learn the basics on and shooting several thousand rounds through it will train you to be accurate with any rifle. Good luck, everyone has a soft spot for their first gun.
 
I love my 10/22. I was going to vote .243 until you said not hunting. 17's are supposed to be pretty accurate out to 100 yards for rimfire, but they are more pricy than a .22lr. If you want to get centerfire, I have another vote for .223/5.56NATO. If you don't already have one, a good .22 bolt action or 10/22, or Marlin 60 are all nice weapons, and perfect for keeping those pesky tin cans at bay.

An 06 to much?? Yea, they kick a little bit, if you are worried about recoil but would like a hunting caliber I would go with .243, just my two coppers
 
You mentioned working the action after each shot so let me suggest a lever action 22. Henrys are within your budget and the lever action is about as fun as it gets. Good luck
 
"An 06 to much??"
I figured that somone would say somthing like this :D
It's not that it was too much, i just found it to be a large jump from somthing like a .22

Im starting to think that maybe a 10/22 is the better way to go, has anyone here taken one apart? Are the parts solid and easy to put together?

I don't especially like the whole lever action setup, not for any particular reason. Most of the shooting that i've done was with a bipod or some sort of rest, and with lever action rifles it makes that hard to do. I just prefer the other two actions.
I'd even consider a single shot bolt rifle if the price was right :D
 
10/22 is pretty easy to break down. You need a screwdriver and maybe a small punch or even a small awl or screwdriver, pencap, or whatever to help you push out the pins on the trigger assembly (if they don't drop out on their own). Ruger has good instructions for taking it apart with the weapon when you buy it, and there are youtube videos at your disposal as well.

I didn't mean to be offensive with my 06 comment, sorry if I was, just a joke. The 06 has an intimidating reputation and maybe some of it is deserved. I know 100 rounds through mine will start to put some strain on my shoulder, and before I got my bipod, a lot of strain on my elbows when shooting off the bench. Most of it was poor positioning on my part I think.
 
Haha, no worries.
I didn't take it offensively at all.
;)

Well it looks like i've gotta scrape together 500 bucks to put all this together, I live in Canada so of course i need to pay 200$ just for liscencing and crazy tax/other miscellanious garbage.

Two last questions for you guys,
does the 10/22 come drilled+tapped for scope mounts, or with irons? (or nothing at all?) :confused:
and what ammo/magazines are best?:confused:
Thanks again
 
In Canada, later on a VZ-58 is a good gun to have, since you cant own AKs. Should have said something, and i would've provided you with something more useful.
 
I wouldn't give up on a Garand.

I understand there is a relatively strong Garand following in Canada.

I can't remember where I read about Canadian semi-auto rifle restrictions, but I believe the Garand is exempt. (Perhaps because John C. Garand was Canadian?)

Some shooters put a rubber recoil "boot" on the stock (which doesn't damage the stock like cutting it to add a recoil pad would.) Others use shotgun-style recoil pads that you wear on your shoulder. And another option is a SEI muzzle brake, which replaces the normal gas cylinder lock. Muzzle brakes aren't approved in most competitions, but they're fine if you are just shooting for personal enjoyment.

If you can't get one now, it can be something you plan for later...
 
Two last questions for you guys,
does the 10/22 come drilled+tapped for scope mounts, or with irons? (or nothing at all?)
and what ammo/magazines are best?
Click to expand...

Yep, drilled and tapped, see p. 30 of the manual, and all but the Target and Tactical models have open irons as well.

The different models: http://www.ruger.com/products/1022/index.html

The Ruger magazines work best. I've had good luck with the Butler Creek mags as well.
 
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You have good taste -- 10/22 is a great choice. I don't have one, but will correct that one of these days ;) They're fun to shoot, reliable, and the wazoo overflows with the aftermarket parts, etc.

Also consider, as it seems you are considering, a bolt .22 -- I have a Savage (model No. not to hand), stainless barrel, synthetic stock. Low-end, and came outfitted with a cheap scope, and far more accurate than is the shooter. I bought that one (8-10 years ago) because it was inexpensive and I liked the feel of the stock; now I'm very glad I did.

And though I don't have one of these, either, I would want to consider in your shoes a lever-action that can shoot .38/.357. Well suited to reloading ammo, and a good cross-over when / if you later want a revolver.

timothy
 
ooo, now you're talking!

10/22s are a ton of fun, but they can get to be a money pit with all the aftermarket stuff available for them (most of which you don't need, but frankly, some you do need).

They're hard to clean, and the affordable ones are too lightweight for my tastes. However, you can get your semi-auto kick on, and with enough $$, they can shoot tiny groups too. They can also fire out of battery, so don't try to shoot a 10/22 as fast as a SAW :/

OR you could go classic and get a CZ or Savage bolt gun. These things will shoot out of the box and offer more potential to the marksman. Go CZ for the expensive feel and accuracy, or go Savage for the simple accuracy and less $$.

Consider this: A Ruger 10/22 target (heavy-ish laminate stock and bull barrel), a tech-sights mil style sight set (you'll need the bull barrel adapter), and a good aftermarket trigger. Now there's a smart 'first gun'! Saw a college kid with one the other day at the local range, and very nearly got jealous of it over my CZ 452 FS... but no regrets the CZ is nice (CZ is hard to clean as well though).

A larger caliber is good to pickup eventually, but no particular hurry, and shot placement is key anyway :p
 
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Sounds like the 10/22 will do what you want, but of course there are lots of good quality bolt action .22's as well. Some are extremely accurate and all are simple to maintain.
 
Can't go wrong on the purchase of a .22. But I'm a fan of the lever .22's. Browning, Marlin being top choices.
 
For under $400 the Savage MkII is great, I got it as my first gun less than a year ago. I would recommend getting iron sights to start. You could also get a Mosin Nagant along with the savage and stay under $400 but the 7.62x54r has a lot of recoil. A 10/22 is really nice too but I personally don't have any experience with it yet. My .02 cents FWIW.
 
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