# First Rifle



## CMike

I have am pretty proficient with handguns, and I have some experience with a shotgun.

However, I have no experience with a rifle. I don't think I even ever shot one.

What would you guys suggest for a rifle type gun? I don't hunt.

My use would be for fun.


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## Sunni Man

Start out with a .22 cal.

The ammo is cheap.

Great gun for shooting varmits.

And plinking cans can be alot of fun.


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## Ernie S.

No! Buy yourself a .460 Weatherby magnum. If you still like rifles after shooting 20 rounds out of that, then buy a .22


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## Swagger

Get yourself something like .22 Savage. It won't break the bank, the ammunition's cheap and the recoil's very low compared to a full-bore rifle. In short, it's a good entry level weapon. And as Sunni Man said, plinking cans or taking small game is good practice, not to mention fun.


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## Mr. H.

Pellet rifles are cheaper yet. Well, they can be expensive too but almost as fun.


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## Swagger

Mr. H. said:


> Pellet rifles are cheaper yet. Well, they can be expensive too but almost as fun.



Only the single-shot variety that you cock by breaking over your knee. Pellet guns that are more advanced than that (such as CO2 or pre-charged pneumatics) are often more expensive than a mid-range rimfire. Besides, I prefer to have a piece of brass ping from the breech on cocking, instead of having to break a comparatively weaker pellet gun (ballistically speaking) over your knee. Hang the expense and go for the .22 rimfire, CMike.


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## Mr. H.

I've got a Winchester Model 63 that belonged to my pop. It holds 10 rounds that are fed thru the buttstock. Semi auto and no cocking.
Cockless buttstock of a gun.


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## Ernie S.

Get a MAN'S gun, for Christ's sake!


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## HUGGY

I agree with most on this thread.  I'll go one farther and suggest a single shot bolt action with a decent scope. That was my first firearm at 9 years old.  It'll teach you the importance of making every shot count.


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## Moonglow

CMike said:


> I have am pretty proficient with handguns, and I have some experience with a shotgun.
> 
> However, I have no experience with a rifle. I don't think I even ever shot one.
> 
> What would you guys suggest for a rifle type gun? I don't hunt.
> 
> My use would be for fun.



Browning 22


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## tonystewart1

.22 is the way to go.

Just remember that when you go to a higher caliber (30-06) the experience will be a little different


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## del

boys .55


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## Ringel05

The ISSC MSR Mk22 SCAR






Fully customizable at around $400 base price, fires 22 longrifle.


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## tonystewart1

Here you go


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## Ringel05

tonystewart1 said:


> Here you go



Let's not scare him off right away............


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## sparky

HUGGY said:


> I agree with most on this thread.  I'll go one farther and suggest a single shot bolt action with a decent scope. That was my first firearm at 9 years old.  It'll teach you the importance of making every shot count.



one shot one kill

and if you're looking to eat

it carries wieght


~S~


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## C_Clayton_Jones

> I have am pretty proficient with handguns, and I have some experience with a shotgun.
> 
> However, I have no experience with a rifle. I don't think I even ever shot one.
> 
> What would you guys suggest for a rifle type gun? I don't hunt.
> 
> My use would be for fun.



A price range would be good to know as well. 

A .22LR bolt action would be best, with iron sights to learn with. Scope later.


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## Douger

Steyr AUG.


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## CMike

I'm not sure I would have have as much fun with a .22.


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## Ernie S.

tonystewart1 said:


> .22 is the way to go.
> 
> Just remember that when you go to a higher caliber (30-06) the experience will be a little different



That's why I suggested a .460. After that, a .30-06 is a puppy.
A .460 has approximately 20 times the recoil of an ought six.


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## koshergrl

30-30...


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## Ernie S.

Hell if you want power, the guy down the street has a fully functional  .50 cal machine gun. It comes with 500 rounds of belted ammo for 12 grand.


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## Missourian

Ruger 10/22

They are inexpensive but quality constructed,  if you ever have a problem with it,  Ruger will repair it for nothing.

They are fun to shoot.

22 ammo is cheap.

Lots and Lots of aftermarket accessories.

It will take a 25 round magazine.

I have one and I guarantee,  I shoot it more than any other firearm I own.


Here's mine.


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## 9thIDdoc

Have to 2nd Ruger 10/22. Wouldn't be without one.


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## Missourian

Ernie S. said:


> Hell if you want power, the guy down the street has a fully functional  .50 cal machine gun. It comes with 500 rounds of belted ammo for 12 grand.




How about one of these:


The .950 JDJ cartridge drives its aforementioned 3,600 gr bullet at approximately 2,200 ft/s. 

This yields a muzzle energy of *38,685 ft·lbf*.

For comparison, the 5.56x45 cartridge, used in the M16 rifle, produces approximately 1,2001,300 ft·lbf.

The .308 Winchester, a favorite for hunters and medium-range  police/military sniping, produces between 2,0003,000 ft·lbf  depending  on the load used. 

In a 110 lb rifle, this will develop well over 200 ft·lbf  of free recoil energy if an efficient muzzle brake is not used. 

This is far beyond the shoulder-firing capacity of nearly all humans,  even without considering the difficulty of shouldering such a heavy  rifle.

















*Overall, depending on options, the rifles weigh  between 80 and 110 pounds and are therefore only useful for shooting  from a bench rest or heavy bipod.*

*The rifles cost $8,000, loaded cartridges are $40 each*.

The McBros .95 caliber rifle​


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## uscitizen

When I wuz a kid I got one of those newfangled percussion cap rifles.


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## Ringel05

These are always fun besides they are gorgeous firearms.  Get a mold and make your own bullets.


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## uscitizen

Those are flintlocks.  Hard to keep yer priming pans dry with those.


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## Ringel05

uscitizen said:


> Those are flintlocks.  Hard to keep yer priming pans dry with those.



They're flintlocks??!!  
(I never would have guessed.......) 



Howabout the Model 55 (1858) Springfield percussion musket?






Happy now?


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## uscitizen

I am always happy.


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## BoycottTheday

How about some kind of lever action winchester type, i like the 22mag version i have...


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## signelect

I agree with almost everyone including Huggy who I seldom agree with.  A 22 is perfect and don't start with a semi-automatic.  A single shot or bolt action will teach you more.  My first was a very very old Remington Wingmaster pump, it has a long barrel and is very accurate.

good luck, do a lot of practicing until you are comfortable.  I bought a 7mm magnum once and after firing 20 rounds I want to sell it.  It was beating me to a pulp. I put a muzzle brake on it and now I love it.


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## tinydancer

I'd run with at .22. It won't overwhelm. It hugs. And most importantly it will give you an excellent jumping off point for lessons in how to handle a weapon without seemingly overreaching but still with the full effect of having a long gun.


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## AquaAthena

Sunni Man said:


> Start out with a .22 cal.
> 
> The ammo is cheap.
> 
> Great gun for shooting varmits.
> 
> And plinking cans can be alot of fun.



That was my first and last one. Shooting cans was so fun. I like a quote about guns..lol

"It's been said that guns have two enemies  rust and politicians. Rust never sleeps, and neither do those who would seek to restrict our constitutional rights."


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## Missourian

signelect said:


> I agree with almost everyone including Huggy who I seldom agree with.  A 22 is perfect and don't start with a semi-automatic.  A single shot or bolt action will teach you more.  My first was a very very old Remington Wingmaster pump, it has a long barrel and is very accurate.
> 
> good luck, do a lot of practicing until you are comfortable.  I bought a 7mm magnum once and after firing 20 rounds I want to sell it.  It was beating me to a pulp. I put a muzzle brake on it and now I love it.




I understand the logic behind recommending a single shot or bolt action...but from a financial standpoint, I feel the semi-auto will be a better long term investment.


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## chikenwing

22 Single shot bolt,by the time you go through your 1st brick you should be an ok shot,then by a semi they are fun also. after that so many different calibers and styles its like a candy store.


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## CountofTuscany

CMike said:


> I have am pretty proficient with handguns, and I have some experience with a shotgun.
> 
> However, I have no experience with a rifle. I don't think I even ever shot one.
> 
> What would you guys suggest for a rifle type gun? I don't hunt.
> 
> My use would be for fun.



22's are ok but step yourself up to a .223   It makes a big difference.  It all depends where you will be shooting and what kind of shooting you will do. Want to have a lot of fun go for a Mini 14 or an AR-15.


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## Ringel05




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## Mr. H.




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## keee keee

get yourself a ruger 10-22 a great gun and cheap to shoot!!!


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## CMike

I appreciate all the advice.

I will probably go with some sort of AR.


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## Lakhota

A .22 is a fine starter rifle.  Also, .22 Magnum is fine but a little more expensive to shoot.

I would also recommend a single-shot.  Scope optional.  Don't forget a cleaning kit.


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## Meister

CMike said:


> I have am pretty proficient with handguns, and I have some experience with a shotgun.
> 
> However, I have no experience with a rifle. I don't think I even ever shot one.
> 
> What would you guys suggest for a rifle type gun? I don't hunt.
> 
> My use would be for fun.



Wanna have fun?  Get a 1883 Springfield "Trapdoor".  They shoot a 45-70 and really doesn't have a bad kick at all.  My 30-06 has a real kick...the Springfield has more of a push.
Use a "cowboy load" where the ammo is a leadhead and not the brass. You don't want to scratch the bore.  You will have a great time with it.


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## PLYMCO_PILGRIM

CMike said:


> I have am pretty proficient with handguns, and I have some experience with a shotgun.
> 
> However, I have no experience with a rifle. I don't think I even ever shot one.
> 
> What would you guys suggest for a rifle type gun? I don't hunt.
> 
> My use would be for fun.



Ruger 10-22

Reliable, Inexpensive, Made in the USA, Easy to Clean, Cheap ammo, TONS AND TONS AND TONS of attachments/accessories readily available, and its very accurate.

Awesome gun for target shooting.

I really like the PTR-32 with extended (well 30 round is extended in my state) magazines.

Or a classic remmington 700.


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## WinterBorn

Get a Ruger 10/22.  Best .22 on the market for the money.  I have one and have never had a jam.  A friend has one and confessed he probably only cleans it once a year, so he guesses he shoot 5,000 rounds between cleanings and it still works every time.

Plenty of aftermarket items for it to turn it into a handy assault style gun, an accurate heavy barrelled hunter or a plnker extraordinaire.

I've owned several .22s, but none better than the 10/22.


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## tinydancer

Got back in here. 54 give me a Hawken. Now my dad, and don't laugh now, his real name was Daniel Boone. He set me off on percussion.

Sorry, I love the smell and will die to this day to fire a Hawken. Man I can smell it and I can taste it. Finally going to get laws changed up here. Guess what I'm going to buy.


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## lizzie

Sunni Man said:


> Start out with a .22 cal.
> 
> The ammo is cheap.
> 
> Great gun for shooting varmits.
> 
> And plinking cans can be alot of fun.


 
Or a really nice air rifle. Over the past year, I've really gotten into target shooting with air rifles, and it's a blast. Very cheap ammo ($5-$10 for a tin of 250-500 pellets), quiet, challenging, and addictive. 

There's also the collecting aspect of it that's great fun.


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## lizzie

CMike said:


> I have am pretty proficient with handguns, and I have some experience with a shotgun.
> 
> However, I have no experience with a rifle. I don't think I even ever shot one.
> 
> What would you guys suggest for a rifle type gun? I don't hunt.
> 
> My use would be for fun.


 
CMike- I definitely agree with some of the guys here on the .22. Also, pellet rifles are a blast and are very cheap to shoot.


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## bigrebnc1775

CMike said:


> I have am pretty proficient with handguns, and I have some experience with a shotgun.
> 
> However, I have no experience with a rifle. I don't think I even ever shot one.
> 
> What would you guys suggest for a rifle type gun? I don't hunt.
> 
> My use would be for fun.



410 bolt action


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## Sunni Man

lizzie said:


> Sunni Man said:
> 
> 
> 
> Start out with a .22 cal.
> 
> The ammo is cheap.
> 
> Great gun for shooting varmits.
> 
> And plinking cans can be alot of fun.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Or a really nice air rifle. Over the past year, I've really gotten into target shooting with air rifles, and it's a blast. Very cheap ammo ($5-$10 for a tin of 250-500 pellets), quiet, challenging, and addictive.
> 
> There's also the collecting aspect of it that's great fun.
Click to expand...

Most people have No idea that Lewis & Clark took an air rifle with them on their exploration of the West.

And that it play a pivotal role in making their mission a success.   

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pqFyKh-rUI]Girandoni air rifle as used by Lewis and Clark. A National Firearms Museum Treasure Gun. - YouTube[/ame]


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## lizzie

Sunni Man said:


> lizzie said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Sunni Man said:
> 
> 
> 
> Start out with a .22 cal.
> 
> The ammo is cheap.
> 
> Great gun for shooting varmits.
> 
> And plinking cans can be alot of fun.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Or a really nice air rifle. Over the past year, I've really gotten into target shooting with air rifles, and it's a blast. Very cheap ammo ($5-$10 for a tin of 250-500 pellets), quiet, challenging, and addictive.
> 
> There's also the collecting aspect of it that's great fun.
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> Most people have No idea that Lewis & Clark took an air rifle with them on their exploration of the West.
> 
> And that it play a pivotal role in making their mission a success.
Click to expand...

 
Yes- I haven't found one of those to buy for my collection yet, lol.


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## Sunni Man

lizzie said:


> Sunni Man said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> lizzie said:
> 
> 
> 
> Or a really nice air rifle. Over the past year, I've really gotten into target shooting with air rifles, and it's a blast. Very cheap ammo ($5-$10 for a tin of 250-500 pellets), quiet, challenging, and addictive.
> 
> There's also the collecting aspect of it that's great fun.
> 
> 
> 
> Most people have No idea that Lewis & Clark took an air rifle with them on their exploration of the West.
> 
> And that it play a pivotal role in making their mission a success.
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> Yes- I haven't found one of those to buy for my collection yet, lol.
Click to expand...

If you have a spare couple of million dollars laying around you might be able to add it to your collection.


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## lizzie

Exactly SunniMan 

I'll just have to stick to my old German air rifles and pawn shop finds, lol.


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## Sunni Man

Here is what it took to pump and then shoot the Girandoni air rifle.

But it was one powerful air gun!!

"A press of a slide with the thumb would load a .46 caliber ball into the chamber. The shoulder stock was actually a leather wrapped iron chamber which would have been *pumped to 800 psi air pressure *with *1,500 strokes from a hand pump *made specifically for that purpose. A shooter could* put a hole in a one inch pine board at 100 yards *and could fire around 40 shots before experiencing a reduction in muzzle velocity. Spare pumped up air chambers would prolong the shooting power.

www.suburbansurvivalist.wordpress.com/.../the-ultimate-survival-rifle-gira..


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## CMike

I finally made a decision

http://www.usmessageboard.com/4559941-post1.html


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## Sunni Man

CMike said:


> I finally made a decision
> 
> http://www.usmessageboard.com/4559941-post1.html


Good choice


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## Ringel05

tinydancer said:


> Got back in here. 54 give me a Hawken. Now my dad, and don't laugh now, his real name was Daniel Boone. He set me off on percussion.
> 
> Sorry, I love the smell and will die to this day to fire a Hawken. Man I can smell it and I can taste it. Finally going to get laws changed up here. Guess what I'm going to buy.



Hawkens are fun but military arms reproductions are better.

Model 1816 .69 caliber Harpers ferry conversion.







1854 .58 caliber Springfield 






.58 caliber Remington model 1863 "Zouave". 






Breechloding 1853 Sharps Carbine


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## Mr. H.

^ Nice. 

My stepson was a character-interpreter at a nearby state historic site and for a time a Civil War reinactor. The site coordinator let him borrow an original 1800's flinlock rifle that I got to shoot.
I remember thinking that the wood itself was 100 years older than the rifle. 
I might have the terminology wrong. It had a small flash pan where you poured a little bit of gunpowder.

Great experience.


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## Meister

Ringel05 said:


> tinydancer said:
> 
> 
> 
> Got back in here. 54 give me a Hawken. Now my dad, and don't laugh now, his real name was Daniel Boone. He set me off on percussion.
> 
> Sorry, I love the smell and will die to this day to fire a Hawken. Man I can smell it and I can taste it. Finally going to get laws changed up here. Guess what I'm going to buy.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Hawkens are fun but military arms reproductions are better.
> 
> Model 1816 .69 caliber Harpers ferry conversion.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 1854 .58 caliber Springfield
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> .58 caliber Remington model 1863 "Zouave".
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Breechloding 1853 Sharps Carbine
Click to expand...


1883 Springfield "trapdoor" can still be used with 45-70.
I've had a lot of fun with mine....so have my friends.


click on the pic


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## MikeK

The most fun rifle I've ever owned is a Marlin 39-A, which is a classic.  It's a beautifully made extremely accurate, lever-action .22 and is a pleasure to look at, to handle, and to shoot.


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## Ringel05

Meister said:


> Ringel05 said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> tinydancer said:
> 
> 
> 
> Got back in here. 54 give me a Hawken. Now my dad, and don't laugh now, his real name was Daniel Boone. He set me off on percussion.
> 
> Sorry, I love the smell and will die to this day to fire a Hawken. Man I can smell it and I can taste it. Finally going to get laws changed up here. Guess what I'm going to buy.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Hawkens are fun but military arms reproductions are better.
> 
> Model 1816 .69 caliber Harpers ferry conversion.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 1854 .58 caliber Springfield
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> .58 caliber Remington model 1863 "Zouave".
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Breechloding 1853 Sharps Carbine
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> 1883 Springfield "trapdoor" can still be used with 45-70.
> I've had a lot of fun with mine....so have my friends.
> 
> View attachment 16710
> click on the pic
Click to expand...


I got to fire a Henry-Martini model 1871 like the ones used during the Zulu uprising in Natal.  Now I know why some of those soldiers had bruises down their entire right side for almost a year after Roarke's Drift.






Also fired the 1874 Sharps (Quigley) rifle, another one with a hefty kick.


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## Two Thumbs

Ernie S. said:


> Get a MAN'S gun, for Christ's sake!



For fun?

Get a full metal jacket of fuck yeah baby!

Image Detail for - http://media.defenseindustrydaily.com/images/ORD_M2_Mounted_Lance_lg.jpg


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## Douger

CMike said:


> I have am pretty proficient with handguns, and I have some experience with a shotgun.
> 
> However, I have no experience with a rifle. I don't think I even ever shot one.
> 
> What would you guys suggest for a rifle type gun? I don't hunt.
> 
> My use would be for fun.


Ruger 10/22 or an old Browning T-bolt


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