Let’s talk rifles...

[Nick Fury]

Don’t listen to the commandos. Get a 10/22 and put in the range time without any distractions. Consider things like cost of both ammo and platform. Less range options. Ease of use. There is a reason grandpa started us off small...

 

[92G]

OP-

1) what distances will you be shooting? this pretty much determines the answer to step 2 which is...

2) choose your chambering

then

3) choose your rifle

--
i'm not sure why everyone here is nutty for AR or AK. these are fantastic semi-auto rifle platforms but for someone getting into rifles for the first time I would not start with a semi auto. you can tell who those people are on the range because they shoot way too fast and talk about "minute of man".

 

[mstearns49]

Define "not looking to break the bank". The MA thing kinda throws a wrench into it. And buying accessories for any rifle can empty the wallet real quick, e.g turning a $200 10/22 into $1,000 rifle.

Don’t really have a figure, but where as a rifle is what I have the least experience with I don’t feel I should dump a lot of dough into something that may not fit me well.

 

[sigfanboy13]

Define "not looking to break the bank". The MA thing kinda throws a wrench into it. And buying accessories for any rifle can empty the wallet real quick, e.g turning a $200 10/22 into $1,000 rifle.

Yea but that can be done in waves according to budget and tricked out 10/22s are some of the most fun you can have with your pants on.

 

[mstearns49]

OP- what distances will you be shooting?

While I definitely would love to shoot long range at some point , for what I currently would have access to would be between 100-200.

 

[92G]

for 100-200 yards, you can tinker with 22lr but the round is deceased beyond 150 yards. personally i would look into something in .223/5.56. the ammo is cheap and plentiful which means you'll actually shoot it. 7.62x39 would also be a great choice.

do you want a semi-auto or are you cool with a bolt action? below are some fantastic first rifles, but i would suggest budgeting at least $300 for your glass and another $50 or so for decent rings. also consider cost of magazines

bolt action
-ruger american ranch in either 5.56 or 7.62x39. i own one in 5.56. it ran ~120 rounds today. fantastic shooter
-CZ 527 in either 223 or 7.62x39
-tikka T3 in whatever chambering you like, probably .223

pump action
-Troy pump action rifle. I am told these are quite accurate but haven't shot them. people get all butthurt that it's a pump that looks like an AR. that's a separate issue. those who own these seem happy

semi auto
-SKS, either yugo or norinco can be had decent prices. my yugo M59/66 SKS is a blast to shoot. you're limited to iron sights (for the most part)
-AR, AK, ACR, SCAR, Tavor, Robinson XCR, whatever the list of auto-loading 5.56 rifles is endless but depending on the budget especially in MA can be prohibitive

 

[mac1911]

Don’t really have a figure, but where as a rifle is what I have the least experience with I don’t feel I should dump a lot of dough into something that may not fit me well.

This is where you must be careful.
Lets say you go 22lr and you buy a basic 10/22 for $250
Mind you i find the base 10/22 carbine to be one of the most ill fitting stocks for just about anyone for anything but plinking.
Now you need a few mags $x average ok ammo is .05-.08¢ per round The iron sights on rugers are shit.
Another few hundred on rings,base,scope and you settle in and lay down groups of 4moa ish. You going to be ok with that.?
Marlin model 60 stock fits adults better IMHO. I also like tbe heavier barrel on tbe marlins

If your going for inexpensive just go buy a used 22lr bolt action i a local gun shop for $100 or less that does not look beat to shit. My buddy just picked up a 80s vintage sears branded savage bolt gun and a old school bushnell sportview for $70 bucks hes dumping some 40 year old 22,lr his dad gave him a while back. Having a blast on the 2" spinner atat50 yards.

 

[frenchman]

It really depends on what kind of shooting you plan on doing. You can get a decent long range stick out of the box with the Ruger precision rifle. For a couple hundred more, Bergara offers a good option. Or you can go the route a friend of mine took. He purchased a Howa 1500 barreled action, stuck it into a chassis from MDT, and done. Buy a cheap Savage 10, rebarrel in the caliber of your choice, get an XLR Element chassis or a McMillan stock, scope it, zero, punch paper.
Or, you could purchase one of those gay 10/22s, buy some little girl ammo, and shoot at kiddy distances with some cheapass BSA or Simmons or UTG scope. Your choice.

 

[fencer]

Even an entry level AR can reach out to 300 yards. Not going to do that with a .22. Get the AR and then a 15-22 for cheap training ( I love mine.) It would really suck if the proverbial shit hit the fan and you have a tricked out 10-22. And the AR offers a wide variety of ammo, whether you are forced to put food on the table or ward off waves of looters and ghetto goblins.
And green tips have their uses as well.

Cover the practical first.

 

[Lip]

Just don't run rem 22 through your 15/22 . The older ones go boom.

 

[Varmint]

You are missing the point. A pistol is sufficient for ‘home defense’ if we are talking one or two ill-prepared intruders. For defense against someone or some group intent on doing you or your family harm, and potentially equipped to do so, a pistol is a backup option.

Pray to god that you never need to be in a fairly lengthy fire fight, especially at or near home! But if that ends up being the case, you will want a rifle with the capability to throw lots of lead, quickly, and for a sustained period of time. AR is the cheapest and debatably best option for the most part. I have put together functional and very reliable ARs for under 500, but I am in NH. In MA, that same rifle will cost you about 3x the price if you can find one willing to be sold. They do get much fancier.

+1. The way this country is heading, I can totally picture someday a pickup truck coming down our street with a half dozen card carrying members of the FSA riding with handguns if you’re lucky, AKs if you’re not. A P320 is just gonna piss these guys off.

Get an AR and get some instruction, cause it won’t be paper targets coming to ruin your day.

 

[Varmint]

Donot forget optics. A .22 is a blast with a scope since you can see where the rounds hit. My Sig 522 has a $120 Mueller 4-14x scope on it and you can see the rounds hit at 100 yards so that is fun.

If your range has steel that’s also fun, though I can barely hear .22 hitting steel at 100 yards.

 

[92G]

If your range has steel that’s also fun, though I can barely hear .22 hitting steel at 100 yards.

with subsonic it's much easier to hear. the problem is the sonic crack muffles the sound of the impact. i suspect this is because it's just over the speed of sound. 9mm has a similar phenomenon at distance. anything faster like 223 is easier to hear, as are slower projectiles like 45acp. with electronic ear protection the less intense sound of steel impact is usually amplified, which also makes hearing it easier. at least that's been my experience.

 

[Come and take]

I’m trying to stay married lol

I tell the wife they all cost about $200.

 

[amm5061]

how about a M1 & bayonet

Bang*bang*bang*bang*bang*bang*bang*bang*tiiing! "Chaaaarge!"

 

[mstearns49]

I tell the wife they all cost about $200.

As far as my wife knows I only have a Glock 26 & it was a Poly 80 build so she’s under the impression it was cheap. I did not mislead her in any way, but I’m not about to volunteer more info than she’s looking for. She does know I’m about to get the Winchester.

 

[cjbenway]

Loving the feedback. I’m not so concerned about home defence since I have my p320 at the bedstand & the Winchester will be close by.

People often survive pistol fire, not so much with rifle fire, or shotgun.

 

[fencer]

Just don't run rem 22 through your 15/22 . The older ones go boom.

It likes Federal Auto Match

 

[ChevyGuy91]

Your first rifle should be a platform capable of defending yourself and your family from criminals and tyrants.

Worry about the .22 later...

This, all day and every day.

Or you can go the route a friend of mine took. He purchased a Howa 1500 barreled action, stuck it into a chassis from MDT, and done.

As soon as I get to zero and shoot sone groups out of that HOWAnda Civic of a rifle I am going to make a thread about it. I am into that thing for short, short, money.

 

[enbloc]

Depending on ones tolerance for risk and ability to think outside the box, an AR can be had in MA for just about the same price as anywhere else.

Or buy it Out-of-State and 'eff the Governments Permission Slip.

Risk = Living!

 

[M60]

Me 2 I only have 70

So, you're relatively new to collecting?

 

[M60]

If you're into the AR thing, I'd pick up a Smith and Wesson AR-22. Learn on it and take note of the things you'd like to add to it, while you're shooting up cheap, 22lr, ammo. Once you've got your head and ass wired together, then move into your AR 15. You'll already understand the AR by then.

 

[Nick Fury]

To round it all out in the near future I’ll be looking to buy my first rifle. It will be for target only... What rifles are your favorite for target.

Your first rifle should be a platform capable of defending yourself and your family from criminals and tyrants.
Worry about the .22 later...

This x 1000. And actually, you need two rifles. A battle rifle capable of accepting a 30 round magazine, (AR -AK or similar) and a scoped rifle in .308 or larger.

First rifle Id say a 223/556 AR. functional as needed.

Get a GPR-15 (General Purpose Rifle) as Enbloc said.

.22 should be an after thought once the “5 priorities of work” are complete.

how about a M1 & bayonet

People often survive pistol fire, not so much with rifle fire, or shotgun.

Talk about operator thread drift...

 

[M60]

+1. The way this country is heading, I can totally picture someday a pickup truck coming down our street with a half dozen card carrying members of the FSA riding with handguns if you’re lucky, AKs if you’re not. A P320 is just gonna piss these guys off.

Get an AR and get some instruction, cause it won’t be paper targets coming to ruin your day.

You mean unless he puts a round in each of them right, cuz that would do a lot more than piss them off.

 

[M60]

People often survive pistol fire, not so much with rifle fire, or shotgun.

Where did you here that crap! There are plenty of people on this site, that have seen lots of guys wounded by rifle fire who survived. If you haven't seen what happens when a person is hit with just a plain, old, 230 gr., FMJ round, from a .45acp., you probably shouldn't post about it like this. Of course your mileage may vary, but then again, your odds improve dramatically when you move up from fmj, to some of todays very effective hollow points. Buckshot is fine for close range, but as soon as the "collective"power of those pellets dissipates as they spread out, it's no longer the hot set up.

 

[durask]

For semi auto centerfire your options are:
-Preban AR - $$$$
-fixed magazine AR - imho not useful for self defence, range toy only.
-Other semi-autos (for now) still legal in MA - Min 14, Tavor, Bushmaster ACR, M1A

My suggestion would be to get a currently MA legal centerfire semi auto because
-very real chance they will be banned in the near future
-will not be gimped like fixed mag AR or overpriced like Preban AR
-good for everything - learning rifle, shooting, etc.

Next on my list would be a 22lr semi auto because they may also get banned in the near future.

Bolts and levers - low risk of those getting banned in the next 50 years or so.

 

[mac1911]

Even an entry level AR can reach out to 300 yards. Not going to do that with a .22. Get the AR and then a 15-22 for cheap training ( I love mine.) It would really suck if the proverbial shit hit the fan and you have a tricked out 10-22. And the AR offers a wide variety of ammo, whether you are forced to put food on the table or ward off waves of looters and ghetto goblins.
And green tips have their uses as well.

Cover the practical first.

entry level ar ? My RRA base A2 does well enough out to 600 with iron sights. Not as well as my National Match set up with 77 and or 80 grain pills but well enough.
22lr can be shot as far as you can get the elevation a djustment to go. Challenging ? Very much so.
200 yards is not terrible but gou will need to know your wind.
Something im still working on.

One good thing is OP is looking for a target rifle. The AR can be a fun target rifle. i shoot mine at local 200 yard cmp match along with garands,mausers,springfields,enfields
Fun stuff. When i can i get out to 600 for prone matches with either my AR NM service rifle or my Varmint rifle with a 8x32,x54 sightron scope on it. Thats fun also.
I recently shot one of my better scores with my basic A2 and M193 by ppu. Had a decent off hand score which really helped.

 

[cams]

Talk about operator thread drift...

He did ask for opinions. Doesn’t mean we can’t have some fun with it does it? Some of us come here to be lighthearted and enjoy the site without all the OMG the sky is falling BS.

Preferring a particular rifle and giving reasons for that to someone who’s new to them really doesn’t equate to “operator” status. Though if it helps I did spend several years in the Rangers.
Have a hot dog and enjoy your day Sgt Fury. Irony?

 

[M60]

Bang*bang*bang*bang*bang*bang*bang*bang*tiiing! "Chaaaarge!"

It's more like: Bang hit, bang hit, bang hit, bang hit, bang hit, bang hit, bang hit, bang hit, ching, reload.

 

[cams]

As far as my wife knows I only have a Glock 26 & it was a Poly 80 build so she’s under the impression it was cheap. I did not mislead her in any way, but I’m not about to volunteer more info than she’s looking for. She does know I’m about to get the Winchester.

If you ain’t cheating, you ain’t trying. If you get caught cheating, you ain’t trying hard enough. lol