Winchester 1897 Black Diamond Trap

[Stepmac]

Originally Posted by Bill Zachow

All in all, .22s are my favorite guns, even more than Parkers, truth be told. Winchester made the finest, in my opinion. I have a large number of their guns and have never found one that was innaccurate. All are deadly, from the little bolt actions to their semi auto model 63, and all the pumps in between. Charlie, Winchester made the model 1890 in .22 long, but they are hard to find--.22short and .22WRF are more commob--.22 Long Rifle are scarce, too. My finest for pure accuracy is a 1935 model 52 with a Unertl 12 power scope. I have shot bugs on my target butt with it--off a bench, of course. Before I got as old as I now am, I would walk my farm with a .22 almost every day.

As a gun collector I have gone through several phases. First I collected only muskets, then Civil War carbines (most stolen), a few '73's and then I hit on 22's and I must have bought a dozen. One of my faves is that little Win. model 67 single shot. You load it and have to cock the striker. Pretty bad safety; using it makes the gun less safe! But a kick to shoot and it shoots fine! The safety is - don't pull back the striker. I've got a minty 9422 and have only shot it a few times. I like the 39A best when shooting a lever .22.

Shooting rats at the dump with a .22 just may have been my favorite big game hunting of all time. Prairie dogs too. My grandson loves to shoot and is 'into' airsoft. I am looking forward to handing him a .22. Doing so allows one to kind of relive one's youth.

[charlie cleveland]

bill bet you was a crack shot .i too love the little 22 it would be hard for me to pick my favorite 22...at the moment i shoot a remington auto rifle model 550 and secound i shoot a marlin auto of some model...but i shoot my ruger bearcat the most it goes with me on the farm a lot...yep 22 s are special to me too... charlie

[Stepmac]

Originally Posted by charlie cleveland

bill bet you was a crack shot .i too love the little 22 it would be hard for me to pick my favorite 22...at the moment i shoot a remington auto rifle model 550 and secound i shoot a marlin auto of some model...but i shoot my ruger bearcat the most it goes with me on the farm a lot...yep 22 s are special to me too... charlie

The day I turned 16 I bought a Ruger Bearcat. Cost was $36. It shoot where it was aimed and I learned to shoot a pistol with that little gun. I sold it and bought another that shot around corners. I hesitate to buy a new one, since they cost something like $575.

I found an NRA special Model 34 Remington at a pawn shop about 15 years ago. It had Lyman peep sights and extra fine wood. The little rifle was well used, but I love it and it is a great shooter. Has a tubular magazine, which I like. I found a regular one a few years ago and it is a grand little rifle too.

While sneaking up on 70 my bulbs are still hanging in there, so I usually avoid scoped .22's. Put a dot scope on my ancient Weatherby XXII and it's okay, but I can't warm to it.

I shot a zillion weapons of all kinds in the military, even 20mm canons from an A-4 Skyhawk, but I still get excited when I slip a magazine into a .22.

[Bill Zachow]

Of all the late model Winchester .22s. The 9422 was the best and off the highest quality. I have two, a .22 and a.22 magnum. The .22 is NIB, and I shoot the magnum. Got them both when an Ames Discount store in Southbridge, Mass went out of business. 1975--$100 each. My only complaint with the gun is the loading tube is a little undersize for the "holding" tube. It is easy to turn and get unlocked and slip out. I have had to retrace my farm walk more than once to find the darn thing. Still a nice gun and becoming more valuable as the years since discontinuance go by. Charlie, remember when .22 long rifle shells were less than .$50 per box and you could buy shotgun shells by the each? Time goes too fast....

[Dean Romig]

Originally Posted by Bill Zachow

Remember when .22 long rifle shells were less than .$50 per box and you could buy shotgun shells by the each? Time goes too fast....

I do.... am I showing my age?

[Big D]

Shooting bats with .22 birdshot out of a 510 bolt action Remington. Now, that was fun!

[Bill Zachow]

Did you ever hit one? I went through a box of .410 shells using a little single barrel shotgun at bats. I think i hit 3 in 25 shots. I am actually a fairly good shot but those bats were realy good at dodging!

[charlie cleveland]

i too remember the box of 22 s for 49 cents..bought many a box and plugged everything from a pebble toa minnow in the creek..never could strika a match togood withone but was death on birds withone... charlie

[Dean Romig]

When I was fifteen I used up a whole box of 20's at bats in the early evening. never touched one of them. I decided that it was a pretty wasteful endeavor and never did it again.

[Stepmac]

Originally Posted by Dean Romig

When I was fifteen I used up a whole box of 20's at bats in the early evening. never touched one of them. I decided that it was a pretty wasteful endeavor and never did it again.

LOL, that's funny! Did they "hear" it coming? We need more bats.

I knew a fellow who used to hunt bob white quail with a .22 rifle, shooting solids. He did pretty well at it too. We also shot cans thrown into the air. It's easy to hit a paint can, but tough to bag a frozen juice can. If you practice you can do it tho. My friend could hit a pebble... a biggish one.

In the Army for a while, during the VN War, they trained guys to shoot BB guns at BB's tossed into the air. They were trying to develop instinctive shooting. Some guys could hit a BB with a BB! I never underwent the training and I've always thought that the Marines trained shooters better than did the Army. I was in both services.

Today I shoot my 1911 and Hi Power at the 200 yd gong and hit it pretty regular. I enjoy long range pistol shooting. My shooting buddy and I have M1 Garands. We give the 500 yd gong fits.

It is kind of like the Zin of Shooting. You clear your brain of all problems and concentrate on the sights, the wind, the range, your spot weld, breathing and trigger control. Shooting is good for you. I love it.