Savage 64 F Rifle 22 LR 21 in. Black – Superb Affordable Semi Auto

Description

The Savage 64 F Rifle 22 LR is a plain, light, honest semi automatic rimfire, and it is not pretending to be anything else. Five pounds, forty inches, a black synthetic stock and a ten round detachable magazine.

What separates it from the other cheap .22 on the rack is the receiver. The Savage 64 F Rifle 22 LR is grooved from the factory, which means a scope goes on with rings alone and no base, and that is worth more on a first rifle than any amount of styling.

What the Savage 64 F Rifle 22 LR gives you

• .22 Long Rifle, semi automatic, ten round detachable magazine
• 21 inch matte black sporter barrel, 1:16 twist
• Grooved carbon steel receiver, so rimfire rings mount directly
• Matte black fixed synthetic stock with checkering
• Right hand action
• Five pounds, forty inches overall
• Savage part number 40203

Why a ten round detachable magazine beats a tube

• You can load a spare magazine in your pocket and swap it rather than feeding rounds down a tube
• A magazine comes out, so the rifle can be shown clear at a glance
• Spares are inexpensive, which matters when a magazine is the part most likely to get lost
• Tube fed rimfires are slower to unload than to load, and this is not

Savage 40203 specifications

• Manufacturer part number: 40203
• Caliber: .22 Long Rifle
• Action: semi automatic
• Capacity: ten round detachable magazine
• Barrel length: 21 inches, sporter profile
• Barrel and metal finish: matte black, blued
• Receiver: grooved carbon steel, 3/8 inch rimfire dovetail
• Rate of twist: 1:16
• Stock: fixed synthetic, black, checkered
• Hand: right hand
• Overall length: 40 inches
• Weight: 5 pounds
• Sling swivel studs: none
• Recoil pad: none

The grooved receiver on the Savage 64 F Rifle 22 LR is the detail that matters

Sports South records the receiver on this rifle as grooved, and that single word decides how you scope it. A grooved rimfire receiver has a 3/8 inch dovetail machined straight into the top of it, so there is no base to buy and nothing to bolt on. You need rings and only rings. We stock Talley 3/8 inch dovetail rings in one inch low, which is the correct pattern, and the Viridian Venta 2-7×32 rimfire scope comes with rings of its own.

The other half of that is worth saying plainly: there is no Picatinny or Weaver rail on the Savage 64 F Rifle 22 LR. Rings cut for those patterns will not sit on a 3/8 inch dovetail without an adapter, so buy rimfire rings or buy an adapter, not the wrong rings twice.

Ammunition and magazines for the Savage 64 F Rifle 22 LR

The Savage 64 F Rifle 22 LR, like any semi automatic rimfire, is fussier about ammunition than a bolt gun, and the usual answer is to feed it high velocity rounds rather than subsonic or target loads, which often do not carry enough energy to cycle the action reliably. Armscor 36 grain high velocity hollow point is the load we keep deepest and it is the right kind for this rifle. Winchester Wildcat 40 grain copper plated comes in a 1,500 round jug if you are feeding a whole afternoon. Spare Savage 64 series ten round magazines are cheap and worth having three or four of.

Other Savage 64 rifles we stock, including a left hand model

If you want glass included, the 64 FXP comes with a scope already mounted, which for a first rifle saves both the guesswork and a second order. There is a genuine left hand version of this exact rifle: the Savage 64 F in left hand, which is a rare thing at this price and almost nobody mentions it. The 64 Precision puts the same action in a chassis with a threaded barrel and a twenty round magazine. For the obvious comparison, we also stock the Ruger 10/22.

Worth knowing before you buy

• Zanders records sights as fitted but does not say which. Ask us and we will confirm the exact sight set before it ships.
• No sling swivel studs and no recoil pad. Neither is a loss on a five pound .22, but if you want a sling you will be adding studs yourself.
• Ten round detachable magazine, 1:16 twist, 40 inches overall, five pounds.
• The .22 Long Rifle cartridge is standardized by SAAMI, so factory ammunition is consistent across brands.

Why the Savage 64 F Rifle 22 LR earns its place

• A grooved receiver, so the scope costs you rings and nothing else
• A detachable magazine rather than a tube
• Five pounds, which is light enough for a young or small shooter to hold up steady
• Cheap enough to leave in the truck and honest enough to shoot well
• The same rifle is available left handed, which almost nothing at this price is

The Savage 64 F Rifle 22 LR is a first rifle, a truck rifle and a pest rifle. It suits the parent buying a .22 for a child to learn on, the smallholder who wants something light by the back door, and anyone who wants to shoot a few hundred rounds on a Saturday without thinking about the cost. It is not a target rifle and the Savage 64 F Rifle 22 LR will not out-shoot a good bolt action, but it will do the jobs a .22 is actually bought for and it will do them for years.