I was in the same situation at the begining of the year. I looked at a few 22 rifles that retail for under $200. I wanted something good out of the box. Check out www.rimfirecentral.com for a ton of info on rimfire rifles. I purchased a Savage MKII bolt action with scope for $159 at Dicks Sporting Goods. A few weeks later, a Marlin 795 semi-auto with no scope for $129, also at Dicks. It got old quick with the bolt action, manually ejecting the spent round each time. But I still like the bolt action. I looked at the Remington 597, but that retails for closer to $200. In my opinion, the Savage is more accurate then the Marlin.