Whether for hunting or just plinking at targets ...

For me, .22 l.r. rifles return me to my roots of shooting, as it probably does for a lot of folks here.

I started out learning about firearms safety and marksmanship on a single shot .22, specifically my Dad's old Remington 510 TargetMaster. He got it for his 12th birthday in 1941.

Using the factory buckhorn sights he shot it for 20+ years, killing a huge number of squirrels, rabbits, possums, racoons, et al, but sometime after I came along he scoped it. Today it wears a different scope, but it's still super accurate with ammo it likes and it likes a fairly wide range at that.

I later acquired a Rem. 514 (also a single-shot) to which I had my 'smith fix a receiver-mounted aperture. This thing has a great trigger, and with the aperture, it's about as accurate as Dad's scoped 510, at least out to as far as I can see a target and hold. It's presently serving as a "trainer" for a 12yr old great-nephew.

My .22 l.r. family:

L-to-R:
Rem. 510; Rem. 514; Ruger All-Weather 77/22; CZ Scout; CZ 453 (foreground).