IIRC some but not all .22 WMR will also shoot .22 LR??? I know my Ruger single six had two cylinders (.22 LR / .22 WMR). Will any repeating rifle fire both? I have never had a .22 WMR rifle to base any experience on. No, I don't work for Ruger, they just figured out how to do the .22 right.

Since the cases are different, I never seen one. Not saying there aren't any, just I've never heard of one. Some of the single barrel rifles may have different barrels for each, but not both in the same barrel.

I'm partial to the lever actions for .22's. But they would be above your desired budget ($250 for the basic Henry levergun, new).

Have you considered an air rifle? You can get a very nice one in your price range. You can take squirrels and rabbits with these easily. Ammo is dirt cheap, the most commonly found being .22 and .177 caliber. They can be dead-on accurate if you buy a reasonable one.

Yea, .22WMR and .22LR aren't interchangeable like .44mag/.44spl, .357mag/44spl, .45lc/.454casull, ect. This is because .22wmr isn't simply a lengthened .22lr case. Loading a .22lr in a rifle chambered for .22WMR could result in the case rupturing.

Therefore, you either have to buy a gun with two barrels/chambers or, in the case of a revolver, two cylinders.

I'd go with the .22 long rifle due to the the availability of cheap ammo. Some of the hotter .22lr ammo is close to the .22mag. I like CCI Stingers, but they are rather costly.

IMHO, in most areas where there are farms or out of the bigger cities, the chances of "finding" .22lr ammo is far greater than finding .22mag ammo should you ever have Scrounge.

Many rural "General" stores carry .22 ammo, but often don't have .22mag ammo.

Get a Ruger 10/22 and several extra factory mags and you won't be unhappy.

I'll jump on the 10/22 bandwagon as well.

Here is a thread you might be interested in Blast.

http://www.northeastshooters.com/vbullet...+training+rifle

Thanks for the link, Blitz. I've been wanting to do an appleseed shoot for a while and 10/22 come highly recommended for that. However, the question is when I'd ever find time.

I'm bummed to hear about he stovepiping of the Marlin #60. Most reviews I've found on-line for this rifle say only good things and the price is definately right. I don't need this to be a SHTF rifle (that's already nicely covered) so a dinged tube magazine doesn't worry me.

I guess I need to keep thinking. The pan shops around here seem to have a bunch of $300+ Henry lever action .22s but no cheap used poppers.

-Blast

Another vote for the 10/22.

Is there a range around that has .22s available to rent so you can try them out and compare on a one-by-one basis? I've never heard of a range that rented "mere" .22s, but that's fine I've never heard of a lot of things.

$0.02

another good thing 'bout the 10-22 is that yuo can add on butler creek accessories, like bull barrels, which reportedly turn them into tack drivers. i don't have one yet, but one of these days...

$300+ is too steep for a used Henry .22 IMHO. Even their most expensive .22, the Golden Boy, can be had for $375 new around here. The cheapest I've seen the basic model for is $239 new. The Frontier (octagonal barrel) model is $315 new. I'm ignoring the custom hand inscribed models which obviously can run hundreds and hundreds more.

Bass Pro Shops had a Remington 597 .22 with 30 round magazine and 3-9x32 scope for $150 on Black Friday. I don't think those sell for significantly more than that normally. I've never shot or held one, but I have a friend who says he really likes his.

I have an old, no longer made, Winchester 190 .22 (semi-auto tubular magazine). They are decent guns, so if you find one used it might be a nice purchase. I think they vary from $100-$200 used these days. Mine was bought for $39 about 40 (or more) years ago.