Wow.... Rimfire discrimination

[GBA1776]

I was at the range last weekend and im the only guy who is out on the long rifle range shooting a rimfire (Savage 93 Package series mossy oak brush pattern 22WMR with 3-9x40 simmons) or a mossberg 42 WW2 training rifle and all the other guys at the least are using .223's I was asked why i even bother with my .22's and i should get a "Mans Gun" Now im shooting the same distance as everyone else 250 yds at an 8" steel circle or at 3" clays at the same distance now id say 9 times out of ten i hit the steel and maybe 4-6 out of ten i hit the clay (not bad if i do say so myself) much better than guys with "twice the gun" hitting half the targets

So i replied to the why bother question "that using a small caliber at this distance is makes me much better at the fundamentals of windage and elavation adjustments, So when i do buy my 308 i will already be good at windage and elavation adjustment, Not to mention the cost difference between rimfire and centerfire rounds" I couldnt belive how mad everyone got at what i had just said it almost caused a riot ( well not really) but noone shot for a good 5 min to yell at me about how absolutley wrong i was and the guys who do basically hit the same hole at that range said you get much more from what there doing than from my "screwin around"

To make a long story shorter i walked home $60 richer because the 3 guys who said they could hit anything out to 600 yard cant hit a clay with one at round @200yds when it counts. to make things fair we had the rangemaster adjust everyones scope a random amount under 5 clicks on both turrets and we all had 10 rounds to re-sight in. I guess all my screwin around paid off

what do you guys think about the value of shooting 22's out past effective range for long range practice?

 

[BillR]

Ya just got to love the nay sayer's. Put money in your pocket every time.

 

[winmag]

Savageman69, PAY NO MIND to those guys. Your on the right track!!! Shootin a 22 is some of the best practice you can get, and YOU were right about doping the wind and cost etc. Untill you get your ?308? (I think thats what you said) Your doing the right thing 100%!!!!!!!!
Congrats on the $60 bucks!

 

[GBA1776]

it is, im savin my pennies for a savave model 10 FLPCK with the accutrigger and accustock i dont have alot of extra money these days and from what i can figure thats the best out of box rifle under $1,000 in not sure if i will buy a .308 or a .223 because ammo cost is an issue for me but thats why i love my 22's,

Anyways thanks for your suppourt im glad to see im not crazy

 

[wgdii]

Gotta say hurrah for .22s! We shoot ours at 200yrds at shotgun hulls. We have a BLAST playing the wind and at the end of an hour we have blown $10-$20 (depending on ammo). Beyond the fun, it keeps us in great shape for centerfire work at a fraction of the cost.

 

[Kevin Thomas]

Savageman,

Any shooter who says something that stupid has just told the world he doesn't know the first thing about shooting. Rimfires are one of the greatest trainers around for centerfire shooters, of just about any stripe. I know a good many past National HighPower champions, and of them all, I can think of exactly ONE who doesn't have a very extensive background in smallbore competition. A few years back Nancy Gallagher was ranked as one of the top 100 US Highpower shooters. That same year she also made the list as one of the top 100 smallbore shooters. David Tubb went to college on a smallbore shooting scholarship, Alonda Roy (Flowers) started shooting career with smallbore, Troy Lawton still shoots smallbore in a variety of disciplines, and the list goes on.

Shoot all the centerfires you want, but that sure doesn't mean you EVER need to stop shooting your rimfires too. I compete with centerfires, and I compete with smallbores. The smallbore shooting makes me a better centerfire shooter, not the other way around.

Kevin Thomas
Lapua USA

 

[justgoto]

im savin my pennies for a savave model 10

Well, keep going to the range with your 22 and you'll have enough in no time!

 

[ZebDeming]

Good for you Savageman! I've never understood the folks who seem to think what they shoot is so much better than what another shoots. I have more fun with rimfires and air rifles anymore. My savage 17 hmr gets shot on every range outing and you just can't beat paying under 10$ for a tin of 250 .22 pellets for air rifles. A "man's" rifle is one you can hit what you aim for and sure showed them!

Zeb

 

[iggy]

Well Done Savageman

The range at which I shoot is a target rifle/F class range from 300 to 1000 yards. We are in the process of introducing a portable smallbore target frame for exactly the reasons you stated in your comments. If we can teach someone to shoot a 22LR at 100/150/200 yards the transition to a centrefire rifle is so much easier...all those wondeful wind reading / trajectory skills are very useful in whatever discipline you participate.

 

[GBA1776]

Ya i was very irritated at those comments but was smilin ear to ear when they "donated" $60 to my rifle fund all i need to do is win $500 more dollars and i will have a new rifle!

 

[eaglesnester]

The individuals that were strongly voicing their disapproval of your shooting the small bore are showing their ignorance of firearms and shooting in general. The small bore is the cheapest way to learn to shoot anything well. Lots of militry around the world use small bore to train their troops in marksmanship. Canada for instance has converted lots of SMLE Enfield 303 to 22LR to train their military.
You just keep on keeping on with your small bore and let the knowitalls shine it on.
I have a whole stable of firearms from 22/250 on up to 375H&H and I can tell you it is expensive to shoot them, even with rolling your own. I take the Marlin 39A to the range to shoot and save money and I can shoot all day if I like.

Cheers & Tighter Groups: Eaglesnester

 

[GBA1776]

Update: one of the guys who i took money off that day showed up today with a Savage 93 just like mine raving on how much fun and cheap and accurate it was he didnt even bring his .300
on the military's training with 22's note i have a mossberg 42 that was used in england to train troops for WW2, and its the best .22lr rifle i have ever shot super accurate and smooth shooting beautifull gun and and at 70 years old with the original barrel amazingly nice i have no idea how many rounds has been through it but im asuming alot.

 

[top predator]

some of my favorite reasons:

1. economical - even with expensive match ammo, still able get in more trigger time, and more QUALITY trigger time when taking the .22 lr or other rimfires seriously using Quality equipment and ammo.

2. low recoil - just like #1, can have more trigger time without abusing yourself.

3. easier to find shooting "flaws" in your shooting form, and correct them - because of #1 + #2 - easlily transfers over to centerfire.

4. better understanding of how wind plays a part in hitting targets - especially at 100 and 200+ yards.

5. easier to find somewhere to practice with the 22lr at 100 and 200 than a centerfire at 500+ yards.

6. taking #1 thru #5 into consideration, easier to experiment and see results of those trial and error moments to improve accuraccy, equipment, etc.

 

[FAL Shot]

The ignorance some shooters may display against rimfire is about x10 when you show up with a PCP air rifle. All the air rifles for sale around here have been those trashy springers, except for one Benjamin Discovery at Big Bear Sports. It was in .177 cal, not a good hunting caliber.

I prefer air rifles to shotguns for bird hunting. One neat hole through the bird. No need to dig out lead shot. Of all the birds and varmints I've shot with my .25 cal PCP, up to skunk and jackrabbit size, I have never recovered a pellet.

The Benjamin Marauder is a good PCP rifle made in the USA, and it comes in .22 and .25 cal for hunting. Should be able to get close to 60 fpe out of the .25 cal. The new Benjamin .357 Rogue has 250 fpe for big varmints like bobcats. Nosler makes a ballistic tip bullet just for it.

Air rifle discrimination may start to fade away, since you can now get good PCP rifles at affordable prices. BTW, the .357 Rogue is about $1000 less than an English Daystate .22 cal that has the similar adjustable electronic valving system. And the Rogue has 3 times the power. It runs with a .22WMR in the power department, but a big .357 cal for knockdown smack.