Advice on buying a rifle?

WallysWorld

Im looking for advice on getting a rifle, itl be used mainly for hunting vermin and the odd session of plinking at cans down the bog.Apologies if the following questions have been answered in some thread but i dont have time to read through them all! I have done some research and a friend has a .22 hornet so hopefully im not too ignorant!

• .22lr/.22 magnum whats the difference between these rounds is it just power and can they be chambered in the same rifle?
  
• What is the maximum effective range of.22lr
  
• Can .22lr humanely kill a fox and at what range?
  
• Obviousley .22lr is the cheapest ammunition to buy but can you give me approx prices on .22 hornet .22magnum etc.?
  
• Suggest a good calibre of rifle for a begginer to rifle (but not shotgun) shooting?
  
• What am i gonna pay for all this kit including accessories scope bipod etc.? (this is the bit thats scaring me!)

Thanks in advance for any advice given!

scout

1 lr is a shorter less powerful round but will take a rabbit at 100yds with a good shot.

2 125yrds

3 close range yes but not ideal

4 not me anyway

5 .22lr cheap acc enough for a beginner easy to get licence

6 well from 300 for the gun 15 for the scope bipod 30~ up to well,, anything

WallysWorld

Thanks, cheaper than i thought, still ill prob have to wait a while in college at the moment and funds are tight! leaning towards the .22lr as im on a budget and prob wont be doing an awful lot of fox shooting. Would you reccomend a semi-auto or bolt action, i know a guy with a semi auto with a 25 shot magazine, great craic for firing at targets but what is the legality surrounding hunting with this much ammo loaded, is it the same as for a semi auto shotgun, supposed to be 3 rounds only?

Umiq88

Scout pretty much covered it a .22magnum is just a longer bullet and slighty wider case than a .22 lr. Muzzle velocity for a .22wmr is around 1900 while the standard 22 is around 1100 if i remember correctly basically a magnum has another 40 yards on top of the .22 accuralty and it will have a flatter tradjectory also better for shooting foxes with as packs more of a punch

effective range i would have thought around 100 a .22wmr is around 150

foxes with a .22 wanna be within 60 yards id say and a head or neck shot

.22 i think is around €9 for 50 .22wmr is €12 for 50 and id say hornet is €9 for 20 but i've no idea on the last one

.22 or .22wmr are prob the best to start out on get a good idea of shooting at different ranges and compensating for bullet drop shouldnt have a prob licencing either a .22 would be a better choice than hornet in my opinion you can always change later

i got my magnum for €300 scope was €50 bipod €50 although everything can be bought cheap but of you buy something half decent it will do you for ages once you look after it the most common best value for money .22 out now it the cz 452 info is all over the web on it and pretty much every dealer stocks them available in lots of different versions

EDIT
.22 and .22wmr will cost the same also now that i think of it dont leave out the .17hmr fairly recent on the market but its an excellent callibre its pretty much a .22wmr round with a smaller bullet again shouldnt have a problem licencing it advantages of it are it can be shot to about 200 yards im not sure on suitability for foxes but with its higher degree of accuracy at longer ranges dont thin it should be a problem

a bolt action gun would be my choice they're more accurate and overall better gun a semi auto can jam but down to personal preference i guess i think there may be a limit of 10 rounds but its treated as a different application to a shotgun

TomBeckett

Hello Wallysworld.
Just a note Do not shoot at a fox with a .22lr he will only turn around and laugh at you:D
no sceriously you will only wound him and the poor thing will only eventully die a slow and very painful death!!:(
If you plan on shooting foxs i strongly suggest that you go for at the very least a .22 hornet the ammo for them is not that expensive when i had one they were £30 for 50rds im not sure what they are now in euros i would imagine €30-35 for 50..

Happy Hunting:)

scout

>22lr is not a fox round unless you can see the whites of his eyes situation.

this idea of the semi being less accurate is bull i have a mossberg semi in .22lr and will take a rabbit at 100-125 yrds no prob and will cycle 3-400 rounds before a jam and at that all you do is pull the bolt and it pops right out.

Umiq88

k well i know farmers who use em but they prob have shotguns with them as well

i think the semi auto is less accurate as regards target shooting its prob a very little difference but on a score sheet but for hunting should be fine. and yeah i guess it like everything as long as you clean it it will work fine i get miss firing with me rifle i cant figure out whether its the rim fire and the "rim" not being complete or whether its the spring might try replacing it

i see your from cork as well i might be moving there for college was wondering what the super is like down there

scout

never meet him the FO in ballincollig is not to up on the whole law side of things;)

Clare gunner

Would you reccomend a semi-auto or bolt action, i know a guy with a semi auto with a 25 shot magazine, great craic for firing at targets but what is the legality surrounding hunting with this much ammo loaded, is it the same as for a semi auto shotgun, supposed to be 3 rounds only?

[/QUOTE]
No problem with the ammo amount ,so long as it is vermin,or wabbits not game as it is illegal to shoot game birds with a rifle here.{dunno why}
Semi autos can be as good nowadays in accuracy as a bolt action.A good 2nd hand bolt action shouldnt cost you over E200.Put a good scope on it for E100 and you are good to go.Ditto for a Ruger 10/22,maybe a bit more in cost.But INMHO it is the BEST 22 semi you can buy.

recipio

WallysWorld wrote:

Im looking for advice on getting a rifle, itl be used mainly for hunting vermin and the odd session of plinking at cans down the bog.Apologies if the following questions have been answered in some thread but i dont have time to read through them all! I have done some research and a friend has a .22 hornet so hopefully im not too ignorant!

With an attitude like that I'd respectfully suggest you find time to educate yourself about lethal firearms before you hurt someone.
Hunting rabbits and foxes demands skill and fieldcraft.
Using a .22 rifle in the field will demand stealth, discipline and plenty of common sense.Forget about taking a fox with a .22 round, they don't sit nice and still while you put a crosshair on them you know.
As a beginner I'd humbly suggest you start with a bolt action .22lr which will teach you accuracy and skill. The ammo is versatile -you can use .22 shorts for plinking and subsonics for hunting. ( you will want a silencer on the gun if you're serious about hunting ) After that you can consider .22wmr and hornet ammo but their use is very limited in my view.

Vegeta

He is finding time, by coming on here and asking questions, give him a break. We don't all magically know everything about guns the day we pop out of our mothers. You had to ask questions sometime too.

I respect the original poster for coming on here first and asking these questions rather than buying a rifle and learning the wrong way.

Rew

recipio wrote:

With an attitude like that I'd respectfully suggest you find time to educate yourself about lethal firearms before you hurt someone.

Go easy on him he is finding time to educate him self by come here and asking!

jimbo 22

An ideal all round vermin Rifle.

Knocks foxes at 100 yrds

With a good shot you can hit magpie or even better a grey at 150 yrds.

Bullets are a little more expensive than the 22 wmr bout 13Euro for box of 50

They also claim theres less drop off to compared to the wmr.

If you want to pick of the occasional fox DONT go for the 22 lr...

Check out the Horandys website if your serious about it:D

Quillo

17HMR is an excellent vermin round.
2400 fps - very flat tragectory.
About 240ft/lbs energy at the muzzle.
Just bought the Remington version at €17.50/50 in Cork.

I also have a .22LR and it's great with sub-sonic ammunition for close in work with a silencer....

Some great reviews and sugestions on "Varminting" guns and ammunition at:
www.chuckhawks.com

recipio

O.K. maybe I was a little hasty, even I was young and enthusiastic once.
I think this guy is making the classic mistake of thinking one gun will do everything. A wmr or hornady .17 is great fun and exciting but unless he shoots over rolling countryside for hours on end every rabbit , rook and rat will have disappeared with the first supersonic ' craaaak '
Foxes can be taken but I'd only attempt it at night by lamping with an absolutely secure backstop.( remember the child who was shot in the head in Fermanagh last year ? )
A .22 lr is his best bet unless he has the funds to blast off 50 .17 rounds in as many minutes. Better still an airgun -just as much fun for less dosh.
I just wanted to introduce a note of caution as a ' John Wayne ' attitude to guns will usually end in tears.

scout

recipio wrote:

remember the child who was shot in the head in Fermanagh last year ? )

how did that turn out i heard no more about it?

Vegeta

recipio wrote:

O.K. maybe I was a little hasty, even I was young and enthusiastic once.
I think this guy is making the classic mistake of thinking one gun will do everything. A wmr or hornady .17 is great fun and exciting but unless he shoots over rolling countryside for hours on end every rabbit , rook and rat will have disappeared with the first supersonic ' craaaak '
Foxes can be taken but I'd only attempt it at night by lamping with an absolutely secure backstop.( remember the child who was shot in the head in Fermanagh last year ? )
A .22 lr is his best bet unless he has the funds to blast off 50 .17 rounds in as many minutes. Better still an airgun -just as much fun for less dosh.
I just wanted to introduce a note of caution as a ' John Wayne ' attitude to guns will usually end in tears.

yeah i agree, always ask lots of questions first rather than find out for yourself cos a) if you buy a gun which will never do the task you want it for and just wound animals and b) which is more important guns are not toys.

On a side note the thing i hate most about hunting is when i shoot an animal and it is not dead when i retreive it.

Umiq88

i have an unsilenced .22wmr and dont have a problem hunting rabbits with it they dont seem to mind the bang that much i remember shooting 12 of them in one field in about 20 mins the field wasnt huge we went around it in the jeep and shot them out the window

and on foot i've shot about 5 from just walking around so a silencer isnt nesecary and i imagine a hmr would give about the same bang as a wmr

Sparks

scout wrote:

how did that turn out i heard no more about it?

Thankfully, the boy recovered. Details in this thread. Neither that incident, nor the earlier one in Boyle were caused by lamping, however; both happened during daylight hours.

WallysWorld

Thanks, this is why im here i dont want to make the mistake of buyin a gun that isnt goin to do what i want, or be too much for what i want either. Recipio i am not a newcomer to shooting and i am very aware of safety, more so when i handle rifles because im not as familiar with their operation. Anyway, how much do ye reckon it would be to get a rifle threaded for a silencer ive heard figures like 300e been mentioned, more than the gun was worth!
Just read the article about .17hmr on the chuck hawk site, how popular is the round over here? is there any likelyhood of it going out of fashion and the supply drying up?

scout

cost of threadind bottle of plonk /brandy given to some one with a lathe be carefull who you chose

Umiq88

no its pretty popular everywhere you shouldnt have a problem getting anything for it

i think the way it is for a standard .22 with subsonic ammo you'll pick up a silencer for €50 the when you go to a wmr or hmr your lookin at around €300
not sure on getting it threaded shouldnt be that hard i would have though any mechanical engineering place would do it for you i would have thought but im not sure all you would need is the right dye

if you gave a better idea of what you wanted to shoot people could get a better idea of what gun might suit ya as it stands

.22 - cheap - rabbit and small vermin gun - silenced
.22wmr - not much more - rabbits odd fox and that sorta thing - 300 to silence
.17hmr - bit more expensive - large range rabbits and od fox - 300 again

your also forgetting the .17hm2 its basically the dif between the .22 and wmr its a smaller hmr. i dont know much about them but would prob class them as an accurate little rabbit shooter prob cheap to silence id imaging and ammo would be a bit cheaper as well

Rovi

To do it absolutely by the book, don't forget the costs involved in getting the barrel re-proofed.


.

Clare gunner

Rovi wrote:

To do it absolutely by the book, don't forget the costs involved in getting the barrel re-proofed.


.

But not absolutely necessary here either.It is a UK requirement.Plus where do you get a gun reproved in Ireland???
Threading,make double damn sure the machinist knows what he is doing.I had one barrel screwed up by an incompetant machinist.It is best if you can strip the barrel from the action,and get the threading done on "live" ends.Cost should be no more than 40 Euros as it should take no more than 20mins.

Aid the Blade

does anyone know if a 10/22 standard barrel can be threaded for a silencer without losing the front sight in the process.

Clare gunner

Aid the Blade wrote:

does anyone know if a 10/22 standard barrel can be threaded for a silencer without losing the front sight in the process.

Yup,can be done no problem.As well as that the 10/22 came with already pre threaded barrels from the UK awhile back.

WallysWorld

Ive been thinking bout the type of shooting i mostly do with my shotgun and ive realised that its mostly duck/pheasant and the odd rabbit/crow these times, i do occasionally shoot clays, which i would class as the same as plinking at cans with a rifle, its pretty casual no competition involved but i spend far more time actually pursueing game or vermin, so I think really im going to want a gun thats going to give me the chance to cover the widest range of vermin possible and give me the chance to take an odd fox, eg. the .17hmr or .22wmr. I know a couple of competent machinists so if go for the silencer it shouldnt be a problem to get it threaded.

Aid the Blade

Clare gunner wrote:

Yup,can be done no problem.As well as that the 10/22 came with already pre threaded barrels from the UK awhile back.

yeah i thought my own 10/22 was pre threaded but on closer inspection the "thread" is far too fine so it must just be the finish, i have it about 4/5 years.
as for getting it threaded there is only about half an inch if that of barrel protruding from the fore sight, is there really enough metal to grip or would the sight need to be moved futher back up along the barrel.

Clare gunner

Hmmm,that is a good one Aid.
The last one I saw belonged to a mate of mine who was a fitter and he had done the job himself.I ASSumed he didnt move the front sight,or at least he didnt say to me if he did.Didnt look like he did,and the threading looked "short".If it is necessary,it shouldnt be too difficult to replace.All in all a competant fitter should be able to tell you if it is or isnt possible once he sees the suppressor and it's threading.If you want to go another way and not screw up[pardon the pun] the barrel.Parker Hale makes a nifty adapter that slips on over the barrel and tightens down on plastic sleeves.You then screw the modifier onto the adapter.A few twists and the whole unit is removed.I use one on my Anschutz,as I didnt want it threaded and possibly the accuracy ruined,as there was no way of removing the barrel from the action.Cost about as much as a thread job as well.20STG if I remember right.