Springfield Model 1922 cadet rifle A tangent sight on a CZ 452 rifle, with calibrated markings for ranges out to 300 meters Australian Air Force Cadets using the CZ 452 during firearms training TOZ-17 L81 A2 Cadet Target Rifle C12A1 Canadian Cadet Target Rifle Cadet with an L98A1 GP Smith & Wesson M&P15-22 SIG 522LR A cadet rifle is a rifle used by

military cadet A cadet is an officer trainee or candidate. The term is frequently used to refer to those training to become an officer in the military, often a person who is a junior trainee. Its meaning may vary between countries which can include youths in ...

s and others for basic firearms and

marksmanship A marksman is a person who is skilled in precision shooting using projectile weapons (in modern days most commonly an accurized scoped long gun such as designated marksman rifle or a sniper rifle) to shoot at high-value targets at longer-th ...

training. Generally .22 caliber and

bolt-action Bolt-action is a type of manual firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the bolt via a bolt handle, which is most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the weapon (as most users are right-handed). Most bolt-actio ...

, they also come in semi-automatic versions. They are often miniature .22 caliber versions of standard issue

service rifle A service rifle (or standard-issue rifle) is a rifle a military issues to regular infantry. In modern militaries, this is typically a versatile and rugged battle rifle, assault rifle, or carbine suitable for use in nearly all environments. M ...

s. Older 19th century cadet rifles were simply smaller and lighter versions of standard issue service rifles designed to fire reduced power cartridges.

Examples

* The

Martini Cadet The Martini Cadet is a centrefire single-shot cadet rifle produced in the United Kingdom by BSA and W.W. Greener for the use of Australian military Cadets. Although considered a miniature version of the Martini–Henry, the internal mechanism wa ...

is a centerfire single-shot rifle produced in the United Kingdom by BSA and

W.W. Greener W.W. Greener is a sporting shotgun and rifle manufacturer from England. The company produced its first firearm in 1829 and is still in business, with a fifth generation Greener serving on its board of directors. History The history of W.W. Green ...

for the use of Australian military Cadets. Although considered a miniature version of the

Martini–Henry The Martini–Henry is a breech-loading single-shot rifle with a lever action that was used by the British Army. It first entered service in 1871, eventually replacing the Snider–Enfield, a muzzle-loader converted to the cartridge system ...

, it is internally different. Chambered for the .310 Cadet cartridge (aka: .310 Greener), it was used from 1891 to 1955. * The Schmidt-Rubin Model 1897 cadet rifle was intended as a replacement for the earlier Vetterli rifles. The Model 97 rifles were single-shot using the bolt mechanism of the Schmidt-Rubin Model 89/96 rifle. It was to use a reduced power 7.5×55mm Swiss cartridge for the smaller younger cadets. The rifles sights were graduated both for the light and the standard loads. There were approximately 7900 of the cadet rifles made. * The Springfield Model 1922 is a

.22 caliber .22 caliber, or 5.6 mm caliber, refers to a common firearms bore diameter of 0.22 inch (5.6 mm). Cartridges in this caliber include the very widely used .22 Long Rifle and .223 Remington / 5.56×45mm NATO. .22 inch is also a popular ...

bolt-action rifle. It features a 24-inch (61 cm) barrel and a 5-round magazine. It was built as a cadet rifle, designed to mimic the

M1903 Springfield The M1903 Springfield, officially the United States Rifle, Caliber .30-06, Model 1903, is an American five-round magazine-fed, bolt-action service repeating rifle, used primarily during the first half of the 20th century. The M1903 was firs ...

rifle for training purposes. It was produced in several different versions until World War II, when shortages of materials made production of a training rifle impractical. * The No.8 cadet rifle is a bolt-action

version of the

Lee–Enfield The Lee–Enfield or Enfield is a bolt-action, magazine-fed repeating rifle that served as the main firearm of the military forces of the British Empire and Commonwealth during the first half of the 20th century, and was the British Army's sta ...

designed for British Army target

shooting Shooting is the act or process of discharging a projectile from a ranged weapon (such as a gun, bow, crossbow, slingshot, or blowpipe). Even the acts of launching flame, artillery, darts, harpoons, grenades, rockets, and guided missiles ...

. They are simple single-shot, hand-fed cadet rifles and were originally designed to be used by military marksmen firing in civilian competitions, before being turned over to the cadet forces. Currently, the Number 8 is used by the British cadet services as a basic target rifle. Some examples are in civilian ownership worldwide, especially following the disposal by the New Zealand cadet forces of their Number 8 and Number 9 rifles at auction. * The TOZ-8 is a single-shot, .22 caliber cadet rifle conceived in 1932 by the designer-gunsmith D. M. Kochetov and serially produced at the Tula Arms Plant. The TOZ-8 is a simple device, trouble-free and reliable in operation. It was widely used as the primary cadet rifle for military, paramilitary and police organizations in the USSR for decades. It is also used today for hunting small game. * The Mauser KKW cadet rifle is a single-shot, .22 caliber rifle that was introduced in 1938. It is virtually identical to the

Karabiner 98k The Karabiner 98 kurz (; " carbine 98 short"), often abbreviated Karabiner 98k, Kar98k or K98k and also sometimes incorrectly referred to as a K98 (a K98 is a Polish carbine and copy of the Kar98a), is a bolt-action rifle chambered for the 7.92× ...

. These cadet rifles were used by all German military, paramilitary and police organizations, especially the

Hitler Youth The Hitler Youth (german: Hitlerjugend , often abbreviated as HJ, ) was the youth organisation of the Nazi Party in Germany. Its origins date back to 1922 and it received the name ("Hitler Youth, League of German Worker Youth") in July 1926. ...

. * The CZ 452 (aka: the Trainer, Special or Special Military Training Rifle) is a .22 caliber, magazine-fed bolt-action rifle, equipped with a 24.8" (630 mm) barrel that is provisioned with tangent sights. The barrel is polished whereas the receiver has a matte finish; both are blued. The barreled action sits in a beech stock in the European-style with checkered grip, schnabel fore-end, and arched (curved) comb sometimes referred to as a Bavarian or "hogback" stock, and is trimmed with European sling swivels and a hard plastic butt plate. The lower drop at the heel and arched comb of the stock are designed to aid shooting with

iron sight Iron sights are a system of physical alignment markers (usually made of metallic material) used as a sighting device to assist the accurate aiming of ranged weapons (such as a firearm, airgun, crossbow or even compound bow), or less commonly ...

s. The rear tangent sight is graduated in 25 meter increments with calibrated markings from 25 to 200 meters, while the sight leaf is adjustable for windage. The hooded front sight blade is adjustable for elevation. * The TOZ-17 is a Soviet

.22 Long Rifle The .22 Long Rifle or simply .22 LR or 22 (metric designation: 5.6×15mmR) is a long-established variety of .22 caliber rimfire ammunition originating from the United States. It is used in a wide range of rifles, pistols, revolvers, smo ...

, bolt-action cadet rifle with 5 round detachable magazine made by the TOZ firearms company. It has a similar appearance and functions much the same as the Mosin–Nagant rifle. The design reflects Soviet tradition, as it is very simple to use yet strong and functional. The rifle is very well built, reliable and accurate. It features twin extractors on the bolt which makes case ejection very positive. The bolt is considered large compared with most rimfire designs, paired with a large firing pin and spring assembly. The TOZ-17 has a free-floating barrel for increased accuracy. * The Parker Hale L81A2, officially known as the L81A2 Cadet Target Rifle (CTR), is a 7.62×51mm, heavy-barrel, bolt action, hand-fed, single-shot rifle. It replaced the L81A1 and is used by the ATC, ACF, SCC and

CCF CCF can refer to: Computing * Confidential Consortium Framework, a free and open source blockchain infrastructure framework developed by Microsoft * Customer Care Framework, a Microsoft product Finance * Credit conversion factor converts the am ...

in competitions such as The Schools Meeting, The Ashburton staged annually in July by the Council for Cadet Rifle Shooting (CCRS), and the Inter Service Cadet Rifle Meeting (ISCRM) held at Bisley Ranges. * The C12A1 cadet target rifle is a 7.62×51mm, heavy-barrel, bolt-action, hand-fed, single-shot rifle with a free-floating barrel. It is a competition rifle used by members of the

Royal Canadian Army Cadets The Royal Canadian Army Cadets (RCAC; french: Cadets royaux de l’Armée canadienne) is a national Canadian youth program sponsored by the Canadian Armed Forces and the civilian Army Cadet League of Canada. Under the authority of the National ...

for advanced training and

target shooting Shooting sports is a group of competitive and recreational sporting activities involving proficiency tests of accuracy, precision and speed in shooting — the art of using ranged weapons, mainly small arms ( firearms and airguns, in forms suc ...

competition. * The WASR-22 or AK-22 Trainer is a

, semi-automatic cadet rifle loosely based upon the AK-47 and manufactured in Romania by

Cugir Arms Factory Cugir Arms Factory is a Romanian state owned defence company that is one of the oldest defense companies of Romania. Cugir Arms Factory has a history that can be traced back to 1799 during the Austrian Empire. The steel manufacturing workshops were ...

. Unlike the AK-47, it uses a simple blowback method of operation. As such, it has no gas system and the internal components have been modified accordingly. While designed to be a cadet rifle for basic firearms and marksmanship training for the Romanian Army, it was never used as such. Instead, it was sold on the civilian market, primarily in the United States in collaboration with Century International Arms. Because of its cheap ammo and low recoil, it is marketed as a "starter" or "trainer AK". It is usually shipped with two 10-round magazines and is currently sold with the price ranging from $200 to US$500. * The L98A1 Cadet GP Rifle was a 5.56×45mm NATO cadet rifle used by the Combined Cadet Force and

Sea The sea, connected as the world ocean or simply the ocean, is the body of salty water that covers approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. The word sea is also used to denote second-order sections of the sea, such as the Mediterranean Sea, ...

, Royal Marine, Army Cadet Force and Royal Air Force Air Cadets in the United Kingdom. It was introduced in 1987 to replace the

.303 .303 may refer to: * .303 British, a rifle cartridge * .303 Savage, a rifle cartridge * Lee–Enfield The Lee–Enfield or Enfield is a bolt-action, magazine-fed repeating rifle that served as the main firearm of the military forces of the B ...

Lee–Enfield No 4 rifles and .303 Bren guns used for weapons training. The L98A1 rifle began a phased decommission in early 2009 and is now no longer in use. UK cadet forces have now received the updated L98A2 rifles. The L98A1 was similar to the L85A1, but lacked the gas components. It was a manually operated, single-shot rifle, with a cocking handle extension piece mounted on the right side of the weapon, and was cocked with the right hand. It was also fitted with adjustable iron sights. The L98A2 has the same gas parts and cocking handle of the L85A2, but lacks the selective fire switch. This means the L98A2 can only be operated in the semi-automatic mode but is the same in all other ways. * The Smith & Wesson M&P15-22 is a

variant of the

Smith & Wesson M&P15 The Smith & Wesson M&P15 is an AR-15 style semi-automatic rifle by gun manufacturer Smith & Wesson. Introduced in 2006, the firearm is designed for police use and consumer markets. History "M&P" stands for "Military & Police" and is used to pay ...

. It is blowback-operated, rather than direct impingement-operated. It is made with a polymer upper and lower receiver, rather than the

aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It ha ...

that is normally used in

M16 The M16 rifle (officially designated Rifle, Caliber 5.56 mm, M16) is a family of military rifles adapted from the ArmaLite AR-15 rifle for the United States military. The original M16 rifle was a 5.56×45mm automatic rifle with a 20-roun ...

and

AR-15 style rifle An AR-15-style rifle is any lightweight semi-automatic rifle based on the Colt AR-15 design. The original ArmaLite AR-15 is a scaled-down derivative of Eugene Stoner's ArmaLite AR-10 design. The then Fairchild Engine and Airplane Corporation ...

. It also uses proprietary polymer 10- and 25-round magazines. It was designed to be a less expensive alternative for training with an AR-15, as the rifle itself is much less expensive than most AR-15s, and the ammunition is also much less expensive than the

.223 Remington The .223 Remington (designated as the 223 Remington by the SAAMI and 223 Rem by the CIP) is a rimless, bottlenecked rifle cartridge. It was developed in 1957 by Remington Arms and Fairchild Industries for the U.S. Continental Army Command ...

/ 5.56×45mm NATO. The rifle features a safety, magazine release, operating handle and bolt lock that operate just like an AR-15's. * The SIG 522LR is a . 22 LR semi-automatic, blowback-operated

rifle A rifle is a long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting, with a barrel that has a helical pattern of grooves ( rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus on accuracy, rifles are typically designed to be held with ...

. It is patterned after the SIG 55x series rifles that fire 5.56x45mm centerfire cartridges. The 522 fires .22 LR ammunition and serves as a training rifle for its larger counterparts due to mostly identical controls and features. It differs from its centerfire counterpart in a number of ways. The 522 series has no adjustable gas block as the 55x series does. Instead, a mock gas block is installed. SIG refers to this as a storage container. Instead of 30-round magazines, the 522 series accepts 10-round or 25-round magazines that are manufactured by Black Dog Machine and re-branded for distribution with the SIG 522.

Conversion kits

.22 caliber conversion kits are commonly used on standard

M16 rifle The M16 rifle (officially designated Rifle, Caliber 5.56 mm, M16) is a family of military rifles adapted from the ArmaLite AR-15 rifle for the United States military. The original M16 rifle was a 5.56×45mm automatic rifle with a 20-r ...

s and

M4 carbine The M4 carbine (officially Carbine, Caliber 5.56 mm, M4) is a 5.56×45mm NATO, gas-operated, magazine-fed carbine developed in the United States during the 1980s. It is a shortened version of the M16A2 assault rifle. The M4 is extensive ...

s. As .22LR ammunition is cheaper and less powerful than the standard 5.56×45mm ammo, this allows for cheaper target practice on indoor pistol ranges.

References

{{reflist, refs= {{ cite web , url = http://www.diggerhistory.info/pages-weapons/colonial.htm , title = Digger History , archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101216081211/http://www.diggerhistory.info/pages-weapons/colonial.htm , archive-date = 2010-12-16 The N.R.A. Book of Small Arms, By Walter Harold Black Smith, National Rifle Association of America, Military service publishing company, 1948 {{cite web, url=http://rifleman.org.uk/Enfield_Rifle_No.8.html, title=Historic small-bore Enfield rifles, training rifles and BSA rifles; plus league competitions, first=National Rifle Association Historic Arms Resource Centre – Miniature-calibre Rifles, last=Leagues, website=rifleman.org.uk, access-date=22 May 2017 {{citation, authors=П.А. Гусак, А.М. Рогачев, title=Начальная военная подготовка, trans-title=Initial military training, type=military instructor manual, edition=2, location=Minsk, publisher=Narodnaya Asveta (People's Education), year=1975, pages=226–228 {{citation, author=А. E. Blagovestov, title=То, из чего стреляют в СНГ, trans-title=Shooting in CIS , editor=A. E. Taras, location=Minsk, publisher=Harvest AST, year=2000, page= 557 {{citation, journal=Охота (Hunting), author=Vladimir Tikhomirov, title=Мелкашки на охоте, trans-title=No big thing at hunting, quote=Справедливость требует упомянуть, что реально многие охотятся со спортивными малокалиберными винтовками ТОЗ-8 или ещё более ранними моделями (Justice requires mention that many really hunt with sports mini-rifles, TOZ-8 or even earlier models), number=11–12, year=2009 {{cite web, title=Epsom College are hottest shots again, url=http://www.yourlocalguardian.co.uk/sport/8293187.Epsom_College_are_hottest_shots_again/, work=Guardian.co.uk, access-date=17 September 2010 {{Cite web, url=http://wasr-10.com/WASR-22, title=WASR-22 | WASR-10.COM, website=wasr-10.com {{cite web, url=http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Category4_750001_750051_757786_-1_757784_757784_image, title=Main product page, access-date=15 November 2014{{third party inline, date=April 2018 {{cite book , last = Sweeney , first = Patrick , title = Gun Digest Book of The Tactical Rifle: A User's Guide , publisher =

Krause Publications Krause Publications is an American publisher of hobby magazines and books. Originally a company founded and based in Iola, Wisconsin, they relocated to Stevens Point, Wisconsin, in April 2018. The company was started by Chester L. Krause (192 ...

, year = 2011 , location = Iola, Wisconsin , page = 195 , url = https://books.google.com/books?id=dNVuyM8W4u4C&dq=%22SIG+522LR%22&pg=PA195 , isbn = 978-1-4402-1432-5 {{cite web, author=Daniel T. McElrath , url=http://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/sig-522-review/ , title=SIG 522 Review , publisher=Americanrifleman.org , access-date=2012-02-16 Full Auto Rimfire Conversions for the M16 Rifle By Frank Iannamico
/ref>

External links

Single-shot bolt-action rifles Bolt-action rifles .22 LR rifles

Examples

Conversion kits

See also

References

External links