Review: Ye Ole Single Shot .22

“Ye Ole Single Shot .22” This review is going to be completely different from most of my other reviews (except for “Ye Ole Smoke Pole”) because I am not talking about one gun, I am talking about one TYPE of gun, a gun you probably already own, a single shot .22 of some description.

This is an interactive review, I am going to present a philosophy of use and some options and hopefully generate a discussion about whether these guns are something every prepper should have, or something best left as decorations on the wall.

The single shot .22 pictured here is the first gun my wife ever owned. I bought it for $15 back in the mid 1980’s, and had a friend (gunsmith) who was doing a batch of bluing throw it in there when he was doing the others. I redid the wood myself, so for a grand total of $30 we got this little shooter.

.22 Marlin Single-Shot Rifle

About Our Single Shot .22, Specifically:

This particular gun is a Marlin Glenfield Model 10. They were made from 1966-1978. It’s the same gun as the Marlin 101 and the Glenfield 101G. This particular single shot .22 has a birch stock, they were also made with walnut stocks. The critter impressed on the stock is, theoretically, a squirrel, although the wear makes it hard to see this for sure.

There is nothing whatever spectacular about this rifle. It’s a single shot .22, no magazine gun that shoots .22 S, L & LR. The action of the bolt does not cock the gun, you have to pull out the back part of the bolt to cock the hammer.

There is no other “safety”. Like many bolts, to disassemble the gun, you simply depress the trigger, open the bolt and it slides right out. The action is tight, and the ejection strong.

I fixed up this gun and gave it to Spice to teach her how to shoot. It’s quite small, and fits her 5’4 frame very well. She fell in love with shooting using this little firearm, and to this day it’s as likely as not to go to the range with us as one of her “I just want to shoot it” guns.

Philosophy Of Use:

The idea of a “single shot .22” for prepping is simple, as simple as the guns themselves and is twofold;

1) Not everybody can shoot, and people who have useful and critical skills but who are not shooters need to learn. This gun is a perfect tool to teach safety, responsibility, marksmanship and how to clean a firearm

2) The gun is a light, quiet, bombproof hunting .22 that pounds tacks. It can use any rotgut .22 ammo you stuff into it, and it can break down into something very small and easy to carry with the removal of one screw.

Tale Of The Tape:

Here’s the specs on my Glenfield Model 10 Marlin single shot .22:

Stock: Wood, birch
Capacity: 1 shell
Finish: Blued
Barrel Length: 18”
Overall Length: 30”
Front Sight: Blade
Rear Sight: Notch
Scope Rails: Yes
Weight: 5 LBS
Ammunition: Any .22 ammo you care to put in it (except cap & ball, which should never be shot out of a rifle)

Shooting The Single Shot .22:

The gun pounds tacks up to 75 yards, as you would expect from a .22.

Loading the bullet is a “one at a time” process, you drop the round into the chamber and close the bolt. Once the bold is closed, you pull back the cocking lever (it requires a significant tug, so a youngster might have trouble pulling it back).

The trigger is surprisingly crisp and agile, with a clean break. There is no noticeable recoil. Trigger weight as tested: 4.4 LB

The Bottom Line:

Everybody should have one of this type of gun, there are definite survival uses and teaching uses for one. This gun might be an option to consider in a GHB/BOB type situation where compactness is important, since the removal of one screw allows the gun to be taken into two reasonably short parts.

The single shot .22 are not a self-defense weapon if you have ANY other option, since the one shot with slow reload is a bit 1862 for most people’s taste today (especially since it’s one shot of .22)… but you could use your one shot and then swing gun like a club…