.22LR brand for 4-H Shooting Sports

My son is going to be starting 4-H shooting sports this year in our county. I am leaning towards the CZ trainer with longer barrel. Should I consider other brands? I want an accurate, iron sighted rifle with potential for a scope later on. What are other 4-H kids shooting in .22?

I shot a Remington Model 41 Target Master. It is one of the most accurate 22lr's I have with open sights. Still have the gun, use it regularly to take squirrels and rabbits.

https://www.savagearms.com/content?p=firearms&a=product_summary&s=28800

Our program mostly use Ruger 10/22 or Americans

i hunt with the cz 452 trainer and you will have to spend big money to find one to out shoot it.

Bought 10 of these for 4H for our county program. And another batch for local boy scout camp. Savage gave big discount for these groups.

Most important part of the shooting is the ammo. Get some that is consistent. The brand best years ago was Target T22, >300m/sec used it in biathlon was a requirement for the speed issue.

The synthetic stocks of the Marlins were absolutely NFG in cold weather below 32F/0c

How old are u? T22's???

That CZ trainer with With Wolf Match Target ammo would be a real good place to start.

we have a mix of savage and Ruger.

the Savage MKII-FVT and the ruger all american with a Williams sight both actually have William sights , these are the program guns. our county is a bit unique in that we own quite a few guns.

my sons personal 22 rifle is a Savage MKII-FV and wears a scope. for the money I am not sure you could buy a more accurate rifle

one of my top shooters year after year had s Savage MKII they put it in a laminated stock and glass bedded it.

honestly in 4-H you don't usually need a special gun , until you might start heading to state level competition to get to nationals , a good fitting gun is important , but at the level most kids are at they can't tell CCI SV from a 22 match ammo.

I wouldn't spend extra on the ammo above CCI SV until the shooter was clearing a 90% score if they are shooting 90% or better of total then they may see a usable increase in the score.

the only think 4-H specific is don't go too light on the trigger I think nationals is 2.5# minimum.

I think 10X is the highest magnification allowed at nationals , state competitions tend to run on national rules but so long as it is safe we can run any rules we want for county shoots , so we could make an unlimited class for optics and weight. as long as we kept the trigger to the state/national standard.

a good cheekweld is important 0.125 kydex you can order it on amazon , then you heat and press it over the stock hold it with a bath towel for 3 minutes. then let finish cooling you can trim and sand then 2 strips of 2inch velcro on the stock and rough side inside the cheek riser. place a sheet of paper or cartridge box opened up over the velcro get the proper fit then slide the paper out and it stays stuck

a trick to making sure you have proper cheek weld is to drill a hole in your scope cap if your not seeing through the scope move your riser till you see perfect through the center

I used a Mossberg 44us when I was in shooting sports, still my favorite .22 and it seemed to shoot just about any ammo just fine.

Our 4-H club uses Savage MKII. I agree with those who have mentioned waiting until the student shows success before spending a bundle of money on a high end gun. Keep in mind the kid is going to grow in size as years go by, so a "bigger kid" will be a good justification to the wife why the kid needs a new gun.
One other thing is the barrel length. Shooting in the standing position requires a balanced rifle. You don't want it too front heavy, especially for youths. Counter-balance can be added to the stock, but then you have an even heavier gun for the kid to hoist and hold up.

Tikka just came out with a really nice 22 that shoots very well or if money isnt an issue Anshutzs(sp)

Just know that whatever one you get is the one that they are probably going to shoot the most rounds through of any gun they'll have for the rest of their life. I'd make it a nice one so 60 years from now when they are looking at it it isn't another WalMart antique. You mention a CZ Trainer. Probably hard to beat that one. I think those have a hooded front sight though. I might think of finding something that matched what they were going to shoot on other other platforms down the line. i.e. why get really good and comfortable with that setup if its the only gun you'll ever have like that? Maybe even get your names etched into a butt plate or something for a memento factor. You might want something with a threaded barrel too. I thought I read where the boyscouts shoot alot with suppressors. It'd just be a threaded cap on the end without one.

If I was in your situation I'd probably be looking at a Ruger 77/22 for the reasons mentioned above. They are bolt action, have open sites, scope mounts, and you can get threaded barrels. They have wood stock ones or synthetic stainless ones. I like open rings for open sites and a scope above. All the experts argue with that though. Then on down the line he can have a whole collection of Ruger M77 calibers. Ruger M77 22-250, Ruger M77 308, Ruger M77 7mm, M77 .243, etc etc etc...

These look interesting. Kinda go along with the theme but not sure I'd start anyone out on a lever/hammer gun though.
https://www.henryusa.com/rifles/salute-to-scouting-edition/

https://www.thegunvaultstore.com/ri...n-philmont-scout-ranch-rifle-lever-22-20

https://www.cheaperthandirt.com/hen...stock-blued-h004sts/FC-619835016348.html


Just my random thoughts this morning. Good luck.

We use all Savage in our firearms training. They are dependable, reasonably accurate, detachable magazine, and cost-wise are a good buy for the money.

I have that same CZ 22 rifle it's the best. I've had a few and always take that one to the squirrel woods