Small arms in Australia. Recommendations?

[Wayfarer]

Hi everyone. I will be soon getting my gun license and am looking for a good rifle to go hunting with. What do you recommend for an absolute beginner to the "field"/area. I am only interested/able to purchase bolt-action rifles, due to laws and expense constraints. So no AR-15s like you lucky Yanks.

[Mihais]

What sort of game?What budget?Scoped or not?What's the general configuration of the terrain in your area(is it open field,or is it mostly wooded) Do you want it to have dual use(ie. precision shooting at range )or its only for hunting?

[Wayfarer]

Small to Medium game, budget is around 2000$ AUD. The terrain in the intended region is lightly wooded/hilly if that helps. As for purpose, simply hunting for now.

[Mihais]

I'm big on the idea that it's not the gun,it's the shooter.I'm not to familiar with American made rifles,except the Remington 700,which is widespread and you have tons of armorers and options if you want to improve it later.
Higher end European rifles,like Mauser,Blaser or Antonio Zoli are out of reach from a financial pov. but in my neck of the woods there is a saying you can't go wrong with a CZ(Ceska Zrojovka).Given you constraints, Steyr Sport(~13-1400 euro) or Steyr Scout could also be ok.There are of course hundreds of,if not thousands of other posibilities,but I only mentioned what I shot and liked.
A Russian made gun,like a Saiga or Baikal could also be fine,since you're a beginner and those could be found cheaper than the rest,but they are not bad weapons.
As for caliber,you'd better think of something that is cheap and available.A .223 has scores of ammo types,so is 30-06,but that could be a bit too powerful.
Now,I'm not a big hunter of 4 legs animals and probably you could find better alternatives at home,but at least among the hunters I know this is a place to visit Frankonia - Marktführender Ausrüster für Jagd & Sportschießen. Anbieter von exklusiver Markenmode. If you don't know German,google translate does the job for you.

[cadpipe]

Does it have to be bolt action? or just not semi-auto? An over under gives you 2 calibers in one rifle, but it is not bolt action or semi-auto. Remington makes a .410/.22, youcould shoot slugs, shot, or .22s. :Dancing-Banana:

[Chunder]

I recommend starting off with a .22 Mihais recommended CZ, I would too - I started with one and it is terrific at a cheap price.

A .22 will teach you a lot about getting close to game, shifting winds & walking. A Bigger Calibre early on just teaches you how to be slack, and the appreciation of what it takes to get the game will make you a better, more conservative shooter IMO.

Then go to a bigger calibre.

The other advantage of the .22 is that ammo is cheap. You can therefore get a good grasp of ballistics on the range - what properties the bullet has as it rises & falls from the scope.

Trying to do that with a big calibre straight off is a waste of time. When the gun laws came in, a lot of people lost their guns, or just stopped altogether - when they come back, they regard themselves as old salts - competent - until they start shooting again, missing their targets often.

Crawl before you can walk and you'll be pretty bloody good in the long run.

[gunnut]

Can you guys get Savage rifles in Australia?

Also, Wayfarer, don't ever skimp on your optics if you decide to get one.

[Chunder]

Captain would probably be the guy to ask that - 10 years ago you could get a Savage no probs.

[omon]

i think you'd be better off going to your local gunstore and choose from what is available, cuz we can give you tons of choises\advices, but what good will they do if you can't get those rifles, at least tell us what is available by you.
in any case pbly 95% of modern and even not so modern bolt action rifles would be more than enough for your needs, it is more what rifle fits you best, like stock lenght, comb hight, weight, ballance,trigger....ect. that is why i think i'd be a lot easier to pick if you actually handle those rifles.

[USSWisconsin]

The .22 is a fine starter gun, accurate, effective on small to medium game, and inexpensive - both to buy and shoot.
Shooting a lot (many 100's of rounds) is the best way to learn to use a gun, cheap ammo allows it to happen, .22 rim fire is about 4 times cheaper than cheap center fire. I wouldn't use it on deer, but many have with success, it is enough for most game animals under 50#.

Avoid guns that use expensive or hard to get ammo.

[highsea]

Jesus Christ! $2000 for a rifle?

Get a Remington 700 in .30-06. You can get 55 gr. .22 sabot rounds for varmints and 220 gr. round nose for whatever your biggest wombat happens to be. And everything in between. It's the one caliber that does practically everything.

If I had to live with only one rifle, that's the one it would be.

[Wayfarer]

Jesus Christ! $2000 for a rifle?

The cheapest I could find online and in stores ranged from 700 to 2000. Guns aren't as cheap in Australia as in America

The .22 is a fine starter gun, accurate, effective on small to medium game, and inexpensive - both to buy and shoot.
Shooting a lot (many 100's of rounds) is the best way to learn to use a gun, cheap ammo allows it to happen, .22 rim fire is about 4 times cheaper than cheap center fire. I wouldn't use it on deer, but many have with success, it is enough for most game animals under 50#.

I recommend starting off with a .22 Mihais recommended CZ, I would too - I started with one and it is terrific at a cheap price.

A .22 will teach you a lot about getting close to game, shifting winds & walking. A Bigger Calibre early on just teaches you how to be slack, and the appreciation of what it takes to get the game will make you a better, more conservative shooter IMO.

Thanks. A stupid question, but caliber refers to the size of the round right? So when someone says .22 or .50 caliber they are referring to the diameter of the bullet? Within the .22 rifle range, what specifics should I be looking for in particular? I have time before I buy, so does anyone suggest reading a book on rifles or firearms? I've done some basic firearms training like stripping and cleaning a Steyr and I have fired a Steyr a few times but that is about it.

[Mihais]

Distance between grooves or lands,traditionally,or hills and valleys in case of polygonal barrels(you won't find those in rifles).
Can you give a link for online stores you found please?Just for curiosity,since I won't buy anything from Australia.What are the import laws?
Do you mean Steyr AUG?

[Wayfarer]

It's the modified variant the Australian Army uses called the AusSteyr but I believe it is almost identical to the AUG.

http://www.claytonfirearms.com.au/pr...category_id=70

http://www.adelaidegunshop.com.au/in..._id=9&Itemid=2

As for importation laws, they are strict. Recreational shooting would not justify an exception.

http://www.ema.gov.au/www/agd/agd.ns...s_import_tests

[USSWisconsin]

The cheapest I could find online and in stores ranged from 700 to 2000. Guns aren't as cheap in Australia as in America





Thanks. A stupid question, but caliber refers to the size of the round right? So when someone says .22 or .50 caliber they are referring to the diameter of the bullet? Within the .22 rifle range, what specifics should I be looking for in particular? I have time before I buy, so does anyone suggest reading a book on rifles or firearms? I've done some basic firearms training like stripping and cleaning a Steyr and I have fired a Steyr a few times but that is about it.

Yes caliber in small arms refers to the diameter of the bullet, so a .22 is ~22/100" in diameter and .50 is about 1/2 inch. There are also different sizes in each caliber like: 7.62mm x 57mm and 7.62mm x 39 mm. The second number is the length of the cartridge.

In .22 rimfire, the "Long Rifle" (LR) size is a standard and is the most common and the best one to get (IMO). There are 100's of good designs, single shots and repeaters (manually worked and semi-auto).

Are there shooting ranges near where you live? Here the shooting ranges offer beginner classes, where an instructor provides a variety of guns and shows you how to shoot each type, it would be a good investment. Alternatively visiting a friend with guns who lives in the country, and asking him to show you some tips would be good.

I like this one
http://www.adelaidegunshop.com.au/ou...&category_id=9

Better (I own one, excellent gun)
http://www.adelaidegunshop.com.au/ou...&category_id=9


good value, looks like a bargain
http://www.adelaidegunshop.com.au/ou...&category_id=9

Nice hi end used - says it has scratches, they won't hurt anything and would make the gun more useable - since it wouldn't matter if it got another scratch.
http://www.adelaidegunshop.com.au/ou...category_id=58

another nice inexpensive 22
http://www.claytonfirearms.com.au/pr...category_id=13