Anyone have any insight on which is better? I've shot my brother's 10/22 a lot but have never shot a 597. I've been looking for a decent .22 mainly just for cheap plinking and maybe the occasional squirrel hunt.
Another fan of the 10/22 here. You can accessorize, upgrade, and modify them until your heart is content. I have one that my father gave me in the early 80s that has seen time as a scoped hunting carbine, a tacticool rifle with a red dot, and is now set up as a liberty training rifle with a beautiful new walnut stock and open sights.
So many options.....that is something you won't have with a Remington.
I have 4 10/22s. Love them. Stick to Ruger Mags and try different ammo brands. I can shoot for hours with some brands (CCI for one) or get a jam every magazine with others. Love my Winchester 52, CZ 452, Anshultz 64, Henry Lever action, and others too. You can't have too many 22s, is my motto.
I own both and I would chose the 10/22 over the 597.
IMHO the Ruger is a little better made and as someone else stated it has more options for customization. With that said I do like the 597s looks and it is a little cheaper than the 10/22. Go with the one that you like best.
This has been asked so many times on so many different gun forums, I think I've read them all while I was researching. And I always saw about the same responses for each brand:
597 is a great rifle, very accurate, just adjust the guide rods, keep her clean and lubed, and a VQ extractor won't hurt. The mags are hit and miss depending on which generation. Make sure you use 3gen 10 round mags annotated by a circle with a "10" in it. You'll find it stamped on the side, those are the problem free ones.
As far as the 10/22 goes you see the same two responses; there are so many aftermarket products for it and it's because you need them to make it more accurate.
And then you'll see the third brand fanboy jump in with, Marlin 60; it's not pretty and you won't find anything for it but its the most accurate out of the box.
Kinda surprised no one mentioned including a Marlin 795 in your search.
They are cheaper than both, and more accurate out of the box.
If you plan to mod them, and put lots of "extras" on them, the 10/22 would probably be the way to go. If you are going to keep it as is, its going to be real hard to beat the 795.
MC Sports here had the 795 for $149.99 last week, though I got mine from Big R in Marion for $169 a few weeks ago.
I think the aftermarket is somewhat taking off for the 795, but will never be as large as the aftermarket for the Ruger...but for the $50 I saved over the Ruger, Im fine with that because at most, Id like to put a nice simple walnut stock on my 795, something Id have to do with the Ruger too....not a fan of the non-grain wood stocks on the basic 10/22.
MC Sports here had the 795 for $149.99 last week.
Im beginning to agree about never having too many .22s. Next on my list is a Ruger 22/45 and a 10/22....
That's too much work, sifting through threads and reading through countless off topic posts and researching and jotting down notes. How bout I ask and you just tell me everything you know and all I have to do is refresh this thread. Now and fast with little work on my part.
Someone's already said "C" and someone else said "The Search function is your friend!" so now all I have to say is "Get a Glock!" and we can put this thread to bed. I'm surprised it took all of fifteen posts.
Someone's already said "C" and someone else said "The Search function is your friend!" so now all I have to say is "Get a Glock!" and we can put this thread to bed. I'm surprised it took all of fifteen posts.
I'll throw another into the mix. The S&W AR 15-22. Out of the box accurate and you can add any AR-15 accessory or do-dad. 25 rounds and comes with a threaded barrel for suppressors. Love mine to death.