Rifle Advice

[EODgunner]

So while I was in the Marine Corps I would do rifle coaching on and off so if nothing else I have some experience in teaching people. A lot of lefties and some right handed shooters will have eye dominance problems. (this mostly comes from parents forcing there kids to be left or right handed when they are not) So if you are going to force yourself into shooting your off hand (which isn't that crazy) you'll find the biggest problem is looking down the sights/scope. I forced many left handed shooters into shooting right but only the ones that were right eye dominant. Its easier for them to learn to grab the gun with a different hand then close the "wrong" eye. This might all me going right by you but in short I think you'll do just fine shooting right handed and may find that you prefer it. Given the time it has been since you first posted you might have already seen this. Let us know how it's going.

[Taypo]

So while I was in the Marine Corps I would do rifle coaching on and off so if nothing else I have some experience in teaching people. A lot of lefties and some right handed shooters will have eye dominance problems. (this mostly comes from parents forcing there kids to be left or right handed when they are not) So if you are going to force yourself into shooting your off hand (which isn't that crazy) you'll find the biggest problem is looking down the sights/scope. I forced many left handed shooters into shooting right but only the ones that were right eye dominant. Its easier for them to learn to grab the gun with a different hand then close the "wrong" eye. This might all me going right by you but in short I think you'll do just fine shooting right handed and may find that you prefer it. Given the time it has been since you first posted you might have already seen this. Let us know how it's going.

Exactly how I ended up left eye dominant and right handed - Dad didn't want one of those lefty weirdos for a son

It worked out pretty well though, I'm ambidextrous on rifle and shoot pistol with both eyes open.

[ShootDontTalk]

I'm a little different here. I've been shooting since the 1950's and while others might disagree, I've not really noticed any muscle memory associated with shooting precision bolt action rifles, either from the bench or in the field. In my view it is more about technique; natural point of aim, trigger control, breath control, shooting between heartbeats, proper cheek weld, grip pressure etc. Those things can be learned with any rifle.

Choice of center fire rifle is pretty much up to you and what you intend to use it for. I have a couple of very high dollar Ruger 10/22's (they don't even look like 10/22's) but my favorite 22 is a CZ 452 Varmit. My gun has a 20 MOA scope base, a Mueller APV scope (you don't need a $4,000 scope on a rifle that will never go beyond 200 yards), a trigger kit, and shoots match ammo into .25 inch at 50 yards. It duplicates the real essential things you need to learn to shoot a centerfire rifle - windage and elevation. The CZ is not cheap, but it is cheaper than what you'll spend on a 10/22 to get the same performance.

[Topbuilder]

"The CZ is not cheap, but it is cheaper than what you'll spend on a 10/22 to get the same performance."

452's are scarce, even if you have to go with the newer 455 you will be miles ahead of a new 10/22 in accuracy and quality.

[The Annoyed Man]

So while I was in the Marine Corps I would do rifle coaching on and off so if nothing else I have some experience in teaching people. A lot of lefties and some right handed shooters will have eye dominance problems. (this mostly comes from parents forcing there kids to be left or right handed when they are not) So if you are going to force yourself into shooting your off hand (which isn't that crazy) you'll find the biggest problem is looking down the sights/scope. I forced many left handed shooters into shooting right but only the ones that were right eye dominant. Its easier for them to learn to grab the gun with a different hand then close the "wrong" eye. This might all me going right by you but in short I think you'll do just fine shooting right handed and may find that you prefer it. Given the time it has been since you first posted you might have already seen this. Let us know how it's going.

A friend of mine was medically retired out of the Marine Corps after several tours in Iraq and two in Afghanistan, after he got his right hand blown up by a land mine. He was a recon marine at the time. He remains a heck of a long-range shooter today and both competes and instructs others in that art. I have benefitted a little bit from his advice. He also competes in hardcore run and gun and 3-gun events. In any case, after having his right forearm and hand rebuilt, he had to teach himself how to shoot left-handed. His right hand is only semi-functional, including his trigger finger being all jacked up, and all it's good for now is cradling the fore-end of a rifle. So he learned to shoot lefty (including handguns), and he's pinging steel at crazy long ranges with all kinds of rifles. So a confirmed righty shooter can definitely learn to shoot lefty if necessary.

In fact, get a copy of "Feerless" by Eric Blehm. It's the story of SEAL Team 6 member Adam Brown who was KIA in Afghanistan in 2010. Brown had already been blinded in one eye during a training accident not long after graduating from BUD/S (he dropped his guard a second too soon at the conclusion of the training scenario during a dynamic entry, and caught a simmunition round right in the eye). He graduated from the SEAL sniper school, and deployed to Iraq. During the Iraq deployment, while waiting to hear if he had been selected for Team 6 training, he was involved in a catastrophic high speed roll-over accident in a humvee. The fingers of his right hand were crushed in the roll-over and mangled. He had to have his hand rebuilt, and never recovered full function. So then Brown had to learn to shoot both handguns, carbines, AND sniper rifles left-handed in a very short time so that he could still qualify for Team 6. Long story short, he still made it into Team 6, and he apparently remained an outstanding shot with both long and handgun.

Still, having owned right-handed guns and having to adapt myself to them, and having owned left-handed guns that worked perfectly for me right out of the box, I'd rather the latter than the former. Ever since having purchased that Remington 700, whether a gun was either left-handed or at least ambidextrous has driven pretty much most of my purchasing decisions, for both handguns and long guns. So I've become spoiled. Sure, I can adapt if I have to, but I don't have to, and I don't want to.

[VMI77]

I'm a little different here. I've been shooting since the 1950's and while others might disagree, I've not really noticed any muscle memory associated with shooting precision bolt action rifles, either from the bench or in the field. In my view it is more about technique; natural point of aim, trigger control, breath control, shooting between heartbeats, proper cheek weld, grip pressure etc. Those things can be learned with any rifle.

Choice of center fire rifle is pretty much up to you and what you intend to use it for. I have a couple of very high dollar Ruger 10/22's (they don't even look like 10/22's) but my favorite 22 is a CZ 452 Varmit. My gun has a 20 MOA scope base, a Mueller APV scope (you don't need a $4,000 scope on a rifle that will never go beyond 200 yards), a trigger kit, and shoots match ammo into .25 inch at 50 yards. It duplicates the real essential things you need to learn to shoot a centerfire rifle - windage and elevation. The CZ is not cheap, but it is cheaper than what you'll spend on a 10/22 to get the same performance.

My old Remington Nylon 66 my father bought me when I was in HS is still just about my favorite 22. It's the most reliable semi-auto 22 I've ever shot.

[ShootDontTalk]

My old Remington Nylon 66 my father bought me when I was in HS is still just about my favorite 22. It's the most reliable semi-auto 22 I've ever shot.

I thought someone told me a while back that the value of the Nylon 66's was increasing because they had gotten scarce. I shot one when they first came out. Very nice little rifle.

I have an old Remington 514 single shot that I take out at times. Great accurate shooter. I also had a 512, but gave it to a family member who was "rifle poor." I've always been on the lookout for a 510 Match version....and one of those Russian Olympic rifles....and one of those.....oh forget it!

[VMI77]

My old Remington Nylon 66 my father bought me when I was in HS is still just about my favorite 22. It's the most reliable semi-auto 22 I've ever shot.

I thought someone told me a while back that the value of the Nylon 66's was increasing because they had gotten scarce. I shot one when they first came out. Very nice little rifle.

I have an old Remington 514 single shot that I take out at times. Great accurate shooter. I also had a 512, but gave it to a family member who was "rifle poor." I've always been on the lookout for a 510 Match version....and one of those Russian Olympic rifles....and one of those.....oh forget it!

I haven't kept up with the prices, but even without increasing scarcity, I'm sure the nominal value is much higher than what it cost over 40 years ago. I don't know what it cost back then as it was a gift from my father. My father had an FFL and sold ammo in his grocery store but I was really the one that had an interest in guns. However, when I look back on the choices he made every gun he bought was good quality and most are still in production today. Those that aren't in production, like the Nylon 66 and the Colt Woodsman, still have a following.

[winters]

im lefty and all of my rifles are righty. I don't understand why people think shooting a right handed rifle left somehow makes it totally different. most left handed people are very ambidextrous since the world is made for righty's.

[Abraham]

One thing I don't think was mentioned: The bolt handle on a .22 cal bolt action is significantly smaller than on a .308 caliber.

Is this an important consideration?

I don't know, but something to keep in mind.

P.S. I'm basing this on my knowledge of .22 caliber bolt action rifles I owned some 30 years ago. I don't know if rifle mfg's have increased the size of the bolt and handle in the ensuing years, but I doubt it...

[der Teufel]

Don't overthink the gun purchases. I've had several bolt-action rifles in my lifetime, and the basic difference comes down to where and how the safety operates. Yes, some (like my .303 Enfield) cock when the bolt is closed. My Browning A-Bolt cocks when the bolt is opened. Not a big difference when I'm shooting at a hog and working the bolt as fast as I reasonable can. The bolt release mechanisms are quite different, but when I'm cleaning the rifle I have lots of time to deal with that. The shooting part, aside from releasing the safety, is pretty similar.

I wouldn't worry about getting a .22 that's similar to your centerfire (and BTW I think .308 is a good choice — 'cuz I have that caliber also). Get a .22 that you'll enjoy shooting. I think the 10/22 is an excellent rifle — 'cuz I have one of those also. However, my usual .22 shooter is, as someone else already described, a Remington Nylon 66 that I bought when I was 16 years old (that was a looong time ago . . . )

The basic skills you want to develop are safety and accuracy. It doesn't really matter what rifle you use when you practice, just work on those things and you'll be fine. The differences between rifles is easily learned. Get the rifles you will enjoy shooting.

[The Annoyed Man]

im lefty and all of my rifles are righty. I don't understand why people think shooting a right handed rifle left somehow makes it totally different. most left handed people are very ambidextrous since the world is made for righty's.

All I can say is that, if you are a lefty and left-eye dominant, and you ever get to spend some extended time on a left-handed rifle, you probably will come to prefer that layout.

In my case, I'm not just left-eye dominant, but my eyesight is a lot worse in my right eye than in my left; and having cataracts on top of that, the cataracts in my right eye are worse than in my left too. But even with corrective cataract surgery, my right eye is a little smaller and set further back in my face than my left, and it has never been as sharp......even back when I was a young man and had 20/15 in the left and 20/17 in the right. In other words, I am so hopelessly left-eye dominant, that I would have to be in very desperate circumstances to try and operate and shoot a rifle right-handed.

With that in mind, I owned and shot a right-handed Ruger .308 bolt gun for years. It was my first bolt gun. And I shot a fair number of other right-handed bolt guns over the years whenever someone gave me the opportunity to do so..... from Remington 700 SPS .308s to genuine K98 8mm Mausers to Carcanos to Enfields, to cheap little .22 "catalog guns". Yes, I can and have adapted by necessity to operating a right-handed rifle. But the first time I ever handled a left-handed bolt gun was in a pawnshop, and the rifle was a R700 in .270. It was all so natural, right off the cuff and never even having handled a lefty rifle before, that I swore that I would someday own a lefty. It was an absolute game-changer for me.

So when I had the opportunity to buy my R700, I snapped it up, and I haven't looked back since. I can appreciate a lot of the really cool newer precision rifles, but I'll never spend a penny on one unless they are offered in a left-handed action. If you're ever up my way in Grapevine and we can put together a range day, I'd be happy to let you spend time on either my R700 or Gunsite Scout, and you can see for yourself why I'm so adamant.... for MYSELF.... about never buying another right-handed bolt rifle.

It is true that my attitude subjects me to having to pay a price premium of as much as $50-$100 or so over the exact same model of rifle in a left-handed version, but I rationalize that cost this way: with a .30 caliber rifle, I can spend that much on (commercial) ammo alone during an afternoon-long range day, and a quality bolt gun has a multi-generational life-span if well taken care of. So when I amortize out that $50-$100 over my remaining lifespan it is really small potatoes. So when I compare the satisfaction of ownership over a lifetime, against a price premium which I can absorb, it's a no-brainer for me. As far as my right-handed son who will someday inherit my rifles goes, he can either do what I had to do for years and adapt himself to a left-handed rifle; OR, he can learn to shoot lefty; OR he can sell those rifles to fund the purchase of the rifle he really wants. It will be his to do with as he pleases, as I'll be otherwise occupied in the afterlife.