Magnum Research 10/22 .22 Magnum

I was kicking around Gander Mountain after work yesterday, and I, as is my wont walked over to peruse the selection of rimfire rifles.  I love .22s, and especially the .22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire, better known as the .22 Magnum.  If you do an archive search here at Gun Nuts, I’ve been on the .22 Magnum bandwagon ever since I was 14 or so, and my dad gave me a Marlin 25M bolt action rifle, which I still have to this day.  My next gun was an EAA Bounty Hunter single action in .22 Magnum…which I also have.

Unfortunately, I acquired “disposable income” too late in life to buy one of Ruger’s 10/22 rifles in .22 Magnum when they were being made, which is why finding the Magnum Research MagnumLite 10/22 Magnum rifle at Gander Mountain was such a pleasing surprise.  I expected the rifle to be quite heavy; however when I hefted it to my shoulder, the 5 pound weight (light!) was easy to point and manuever.  This is because of the patented Magnum Research Graphite barrel, which allows for match accuracy while significantly reducing the shoulder weight of the rifle.

Now, to be perfectly honest, the .22 Magnum is not an ideal “personal defense” cartridge.  It’s a rimfire, and lacks the ballistic whack of a .223 or other serious rifle round.  However, in a 5 pound gun with a couple of spare 9 round magazines in a pocket or bag, I would feel pretty comfortable grabbing this rifle to knock about in the woods here in Central Indiana.  Now if I could only find one of those wild Grendel semi-auto pistols in .22 Magnum, I’d be all set.

The MagnumLite .22 WMR rifle has an MSRP of $791.  If you’re a big believer in .22 Magnum for varmints and small game (like me) then you should probably check this rifle out.