Recommendations for a .22 that can handle .22 LR and .22 short?

you ever think of a pellet/bb gun for squirrels? I've used .177 for rabbits & smaller... very quiet

 

My Henry shoots them all.
Long rifle, long, and short.
100% American made and can be bought on sale at Bi Mart for $227.
Henry Repeating Arms | Fine Rifles Made in America and Priced Right

 

Take a look at the Marlin 39A. This will handle short, long and long rifle ammo and is tough as they come. Also the 39 is a take down design and accurate as heck too!

 

I'll vouch for the Marlin 39A. I've had one since I was a kid, and it is a very accurate little gun. Being tube fed and a lever action, just makes this gun a breeze to use.

 

Virtually any rifle that will "handle" a .22 long rifle will handle .22 long or .22 short. If it's autoloading or otherwise "repeating" a tubular magazine would likely work better than a "box" magazine. The shorts will probably not cycle the action of an auto so you'd have to do that by hand in any case.

What recommends agains the practice is that the chamber is designed for the "long rifle" Continued use of short cartridges in your rifle will eventually cause a build-up of leading in the chamber. The chamber diameter is sized for the case, not the bullet so there is some inevitable lead buildup as the bullets "scrape" by the end of the chamber on their way out.

Also some folks believe that the burning powder inside the chamber can cause "fire cutting" inside the chamber (i.e. increased wear inside the chamber). Prolonged shooting of the shorts, and the accompanying lead build-up will eventually make it hard if not impossible to chamber the longer 22 LR cartridges. The first hint that this is happening might be the LR's begin to be more difficult to eject.

To avoid this problem, you'll need to be sure to thoroughly clean the lead out of the chamber after firing which, unless you're extra careful, can in and of itself cause extra wear in the chamber.

Or you could decide like I did that it's too much trouble and just shoot cheap LR's when you don't need the good stuff....

 

Marlin 981T. I have one and love it.

 

Old Mossberg

I've got an old Mossberg tube fed bolt action chambered for short, long & long rifle. The tube magazine holds 20 LR and 39-40 shorts and it makes less noise than my .177 cal air rifle when loaded with Remington CB shorts or longs.

My late father had two Mossberg .22's one a bolt action with a European style stock the other a semi-auto. My sister got the bolt action and my brother got the semi-auto. I bought mine in the mid 1980's for $50.00. Best $50.00 I ever spent.

 

Any bolt action or single shot 22 rifle can handle shorts. But keep in mind that teh price of shorts is now double the price of long rifle. There is no cost saving by shooting shorts. You will pay a premium for those less common cartridges.

 

The question is

The question is where can you find 22. shorts

 

I found some at my WalMart.

 

Have you ever thought about getting sub sonic .22's also at walmart, they are quite quiet... and quite effective...

 

Single shot cricket.

 

Very few autos will cycle with shorts or any reduced power long rifles. You can load them single shot in your auto but that is a pain. If you want to shoot quieter loads get a bolt, lever, pump, or break action. Pick a gun with a longer barrel and it will shoot a little quieter also.

 

:2thumb:

Cute, can't beat it.

 

Went by wally world, .22 short and subsonic rounds are 3.17 per box...
NW FL

 

Another vote for the Henry.

My Henry will also eat anything, including the very cheap stuff. It doesn't choke on anything. It's fun too!

Max

 

I bought a henry and it is great. I had no idea it shot 22 short cause all I use is 22 LR. 2 thumbs up for the rifle.