Rifleman Review: Winchester Wildcat 22 SR

[@ralphgreenjr.2466]

Shout out to Winchester Customer Service! I have a Winchester Wildcat that I purchased new two years ago. Last Friday I had a mishaps and broke the cocking handle. I called Winchester Customer Service Parts on Monday and had to wait all of 5 minutes. I talked directly to a technician and he said they would send the part right and I would have it by Friday. I got it today, Wednesday! The cost was $00.00! WINCHESTER!

[@FestusBro]

This is my new favorite .22 rifle. Now they have come out with a woodstocked version known as the Wildcat Sporter. Yes it is made in Turkey. I have no issues with Turkey.

[@KD-lb9bg]

Hopefully the quality of their rifle is much better than the quality of their 22lr ammunition.

[@romeoalphafoxtrot9517]

Basically any of their rimfire ammunition. It's pretty much garbage! I quit using it years ago. I did, however order one of the Wildcat .22 LR rifles. It should be at my FFL soon.

[@karlmason6145]

Can't tell you if the durability is great yet, however I can say it is the best cycling 22 I have ever used, and is far easier to clean properly.

[@karlmason6145]

​@romeoalphafoxtrot9517 what is the good ammunition? I know a few others that ate definitely worse.

[@georgetorrise5775]

It's was bad. It has gotten better

[@3tvet]

Almost every semiauto .22 Rifle or pistol on the market utilizes a polymer stock. I do not believe they would sale more utilizing aluminum and steel, as you say, which would cause the rifle to be more expensive and therefore sell less than its competitors. If you want wood and steel buy a Henry. If you want a light, handy, easy to maintain and affordable rifle, buy this Winchester.

[@randymagnum143]

So sad there is no model 60 or 795.

[@jeff1806]

Whats going to make this rifle a competitor to the Ruger 1022 is its capability to take 10/22 mags. I think they made another 22lr rifle but it only took their proprietary X mag which was super expensive for a 10 round. And they only made a 10 round mag.

[@Z7d3nR4]

Will those magazines fit in the 10.22?

[@kiwipom51]

No they don't but the Ruger mags fit the wildcat

[@Xng88]

Marlin still the best 22 LR out there hands down.

[@macknewman835]

I have a new 10/22 and a 1977 model 60 Marlin. I love them both but I grew up with Marlin . 22s. They've all been tack drivers. I'm partial to the heavy 22" barrel on the Marlin.

[@Hamann9631]

I was hoping to see how to reverse the reversable safety.

[@arch3088]

No thanks. I will keep my Ruger.

[@nathanieltodd6711]

Aren’t they imported from Turkey??

[@davidsawyer6003]

According to Shooting Times "The Wildcat is manufactured by a company in Turkey called Istanbul Silah. While this name may not be familiar to American shooters, the company is a very successful international arms manufacturer." Much better than being made in China, at least Turkey is a NATO partner.

[@tominva4121]

I keep hearing stories of the Rear Sight falling off on these, and getting lost.

[@karlmarz5236]

Mine did, first day. Replaced it with a red dot.

[@Theylive4213]

Simple use loc tite blue and it's good. Same with a $200 Spyderco pocket knife, you have to lock tite the pocket screw or they work their way out to lose that knife. Nothing is perfect or perfection especially a $200 firearm.

[@randymagnum143]

How much did this review cost FN?

[@SlickCat]

I see broken plastic parts in your future 😖

[@robertwatson818]

Poor "review". Lots of mentiion of gadgets--peachy keen features but----how does it group and is it reliable?? Reliability is paramount

[@jasoninglis4013]

Just brought mine so far it a fail cocking handle snapped off during firing and the mag fell to bits on second load

[@kjw882]

The quality of the rifle is exactly what you'd expect from Turkey, garbage. While it can be a fun little rifle, it is definitely cheap, especially the forend pic rail cover. Broke that flimsy pos the first time removing it. I feel like the 10/22 will last a lifetime while the wildcat will last a couple years if careful.

[@NatureBoy736]

That’s just a rail cover, my bro dropped his ruger 10/22 and broke those cheap factory flip rear sights. Also the 10/22 is a good rifle they didn’t make it simple to take apart to clean. The wildcat seems like an all around better rifle.

[@randymagnum143]

File it with the junk plastic remington. Uninspired crap.