204Ruger

Do to a recent walleye tourny that my son (8yrs old) and I entered we are wondering what to purchase with our prize money. We finished 4th and this is the first time that we have placed in the money for a walleye tourny. I suggested that we get something that will last a long time so that we can both remember...that is where the Remington 597 in 22lr comes in. I/we don't have a decent 22 and I thought that this rifle would be perfect for our many grouse hunts not to mention gopher hunts in the spring as well. Our prize money will just cover the cost of it but I thought I would pick your brains and experiences a little.

I know that there was some issue with the plastic mags but have heard that it is all rectified with the new metal ones. I also like the color changes (not that this is a big deal) from the previous grey to black synthetic.

Any have one or know of one and can shed some real world experiences with one, let me know.

PS. August has been a hard month to get through. I have already purchased a Mossberg 500 in .410 (always wanted a .410). I'll need to buy another gun safe!

We have sent some of the Remington autos back to the Remington because they had major problems, out of the box, at the sporting goods store I work at. I would suggest a Ruger 10/22, I think that it is a great gun that you have a huge selection of after market options to choose from.

What Sidewinder said!!! You can leave the Ruger as-is or trick it out to the max. Gary

I do agree with you both that there is alot of accessories that can be bought for the 10/22. Sidewinderwa, are those 597's that you have seen sent back the earlier versions or more recent ones? I was also wondering what kind of faults did they have?

for what its worth I have the earlier 597 Model and I wouldnt spend the money on another. I also have a Ruger 10/22 and it's hands down the way to go even if you have to shell out a lil extra for it. The rotary clip works much better than the upright style anyway.

We returned the last Remington last week! I believe the bolt came apart when shooting. There were parts flying out of it. Go for the Ruger.

For myself the 10/22 is the only way to go for a 22lr. The last 3 that I purchased, I did replace the hammer, installed shims with the hammer, and replaced the extractor. All mods were done even before shooting. The trigger pull on the ruger is way to high for me, and for around 30 bucks that can be taken care of, down to 1.5 lbs pull. I shoot mainly the federal 550 rd packs sold at Wal Mart and the rifle has too many stove pipe jams with this ammo. The new extractor will solve this problem. I have days shooting rats, that I will go thru between 1 and 2 thousand rounds in a day, thus the reason for buying the cheaper ammo.

I know this is an older thread, but I thought I would add my personal experience. I have a Rem 597 LS HB (Laminate Stock, Heavy Barrel). I bought it about 4 years ago or so. I have shot some incredibly small groups with it off the bench (smallest groups in the zeros at 25yrds... .055" was my smallest group). Not bad for a $300 .22, and I have had nary a problem with it.

I spend a lot of time over on http://www.rimfirecentral.com which is all about rimfires and the consensus on that site is that the 597 is consistently above the 10/22 in accuracy when comparing out of the box. The 597 got a bad rap in the beginning because of the problems with the 1st generation plastic magazines. That has been resolved many many years ago and the 597 is a fine shooting semi-auto. For a community of folks shooting the 597 check out this forum. 597 forum on Rimfire Central

Not sure what parts could come flying out of the bolt on a 597. The only thing that can come off is the charging handle and that is designed to come off for cleaning.

Here is a small spreadsheet of some of my ammo testing in my 597 to find out what ammo it likes. All 5-shot groups at 25yards. I now do most of my rimfire testing at 100yards because I am generally testing for smallbore silhouette competitions and if it can't shoot MOA at 100yrds then it isn't up to snuff. A few of us use Remington 597 rifles in silhouette competitions on windy days so that we can take advantage of the semi-auto during lulls in the wind.