Mr. Longbeard

I want a good accurate 22 for squirrels... Which one???

devil dog

Rifle or pistol!, any older .22cal rifles are very accurate, I have an old Stevens/Savage M 80a that will shoot circles around what is being produced today, a lot of older 22s that I fix shoot better than new rifles, Winchester, Remington, etc. About the best out of the box 22 rifle today is the Ruger 10-22, after about 150.00 to 300.00 they are real tac-drivers, Ill stick to my old rifle though. As far as pistols go, I just ordered in a Ruger MKIII Hunter to tote during gun season for squirel bobcat and fox, Ive shot about 300 rounds through it so far, Im pretty impressed with the accuracy, fifty yds I can keep a five inch group offhand. Im getting ready to scope it so it should get the group size even tighter, factory sights are not very impressive with this pistol, the front sight is to big and the rear sight is more of a combat v type so finding a good hold is near impossible on small targets.

8mm/06

I bought a bargain priced Marlin 25N years ago that has proven to be worry free and accurate as hell. Unfortunaley the trigger is pretty rough. However, with an old Bushnell 3-9 X 32 scope it is really a great small game gun. I have used it for squirrells and it is light and comes to the cheek pretty nice. I'm not touting it as a dream gun, but I don't panic when I bump it around a bit, and it is pretty tough, .. it takes more than a little rough use and stays completely functional.
I think Marlin still offers the same basic bolt action with a 7 shot magazine but now calls it the 925.
I think I paid $69.00 brand new for it at an old chain store called Korvette's in Southfield Michigan around 1983. I ended up buying 2 aftermarket magazines for it to carry loaded in my pocket.
Hard to beat the Ruger .22 though.
If you have no limit on your budget go for a CZ!!!

hillbillyhunter1

Ridge Runner,

Do you find the .17 blows the squirrels up to much. I know,head shots don't matter, but if you shoot them behind the shoulder? My cousin hunted with us with one last year (opening day is always a tradition with us--hunted out in "rock oak") and he blew the heck out of the squirrels he did not shoot in the head.

I myself hunted with my grandfathers old winchester single-shot with open sights--that is a challenge--especially when the leaves are on.

Okie48

Do you find the .17 blows the squirrels up to much. I know,head shots don't matter, but if you shoot them behind the shoulder? My cousin hunted with us with one last year (opening day is always a tradition with us--hunted out in "rock oak") and he blew the heck out of the squirrels he did not shoot in the head.

I myself hunted with my grandfathers old winchester single-shot with open sights--that is a challenge--especially when the leaves are on.




With a .22 You cant kill a squirrel,rabbit,crow,prairie dog or coyote at 200 or 250 yrds like you can with a .17 cal.I myself would rather have a .17 cal. than a 22 anytime. A 17will destroy more meat at close range. If you are hunting in thick cover, with leaves on the trees, a .22 would be much better. Maybe even a 20 gauge, hehe

kdvollmer

MY .22 squirrel gun is a Marlin bull barrell, bolt action. Truth be told, do I really need that barrel, nope, but Ilike it. Fortunatly in a .22 it really doesn't amke it that much heavier. As far as what I would reccommend, if you are set on a .22 then I suggest the 10/22. hard to beat for the money. Hard to beat for anything for that matter. But that is my opinion. the 17's are great shooters. accurate and all that has been said above. The one thing Ihave seen though is that the ammo costs a little more then .22 I like my 22 because I can take it to the range all day and notspend a fortune, and use it for squirrels.A full day on therange with a .17 can get a litle pricy. Just a thought. I don't have a .17 yet. But, my next quirrel and small game rifle will be a .17.

nchawkeye

How much do you want to spend???

I bought a Remington 552 Speedmaster in 1961 when I was 16, put a Weaver 1.5 x 4.5 scope on a few years later, it was a fine rifle and I killed a ton of squirrels...I thought it was accurate until.....

A few years ago I bought a Remington 541-T with a blonde curly maple stock, put a Leupold Compact 3x9x33 on it...At 50 yards, it will group inside of a dime, its truly a squirrel rifle...

Never cared for the Rugers, have to do spend as much to make them shoot as you do up front....

dmurphy317

I bought my 14 year old a Savage Mark II with accutrigger in 22cal this year. I mounted an old scope I had on it so he could practice for shooting his scoped muzzleloader. First time at the range (before I had a chance to check the sight in) he set up some clay pigeons on the 50 yard berm and proceeded to blow them up one at a time. I have yet to shoot it, he won't let me, but its obviously doing well for him. I picked it up from Sportsmans Warehouse for around $140. It's not to fancy but it sure seems to shoot well.

Narient

Wow... I'm shocked that nobody has brought up the venerable Marlin model 60. I can't even begin to explain how many squirrel I've taken with this rifle. Eats anything you throw at it, is cheaper than a 10/22, is acurate as all getout, and doesn't have the attrocious trigger the 10/22 has. It's what I have and will continue to use.

I still believe that given a few more years, the HM2/HMR will die out. Due to the competition of these rounds, companies are revamping the .22 LR. Aguila has a .22 LR round that is close to the HM2 in speed and beats it for energy for half the cost of the HM2 ammo. I'll stick with my .22 thank you very much. And, if I'm looking to take a squirrel at 200+ yds, I'll take my .223.

hillbillyhunter1

Ridgerunner,

I'm sorry to profess my ignorance as I'm not sure of the difference between the hmr/hm2. Having been keeping abreast of the new .17 craze