The price of everything is going up these days, but .22LR rifles are still affordable, sort of. Even made-in-America rimfire rifles are now reaching the prices we paid for centerfires not that long ago. But one rifle is still very affordable, and very versatile to boot. The Savage Mk II offers a lot of bang for your buck, as long as you are willing to accept it for what it is.Savage rimfires @ TFB: Fudd Friday: Savage Revel Classic Review Savage Arms Redesigns the Model 110 With AccuFit V2 & Improved Action New Savage Arms A22 and B Series Timber Tactical Rifles The Rimfire Report: The Savage Model 24 Combination Gun From the frozen wastelandsThe Savage Mark II is currently available for MSRP as low as $189 at Walmart for the bare-bones F model without AccuTrigger. The standard F model with AccuTrigger sees MSRP start at $299 for the synthetic-stocked version, or $319 for the wood-stocked G model. Those prices significantly undercut any other bolt-action rimfire rifle made in America—and part of the reason Savage can do this is that the Mark II is made in North America, but not the U.S.A. Instead, the Mark II comes from Savage’s Lakefield plant in Ontario, Canada. This factory is steeped in decades of tradition; its roots go all the way back to the H.W. Cooey Machine & Arms Company, founded in 1903. Cooey had massive production in the first half of the 20th century, making millions of rifles and shotguns, almost all of them utilitarian, rugged single-shot models, before being bought out by Winchester in 1961.(Fun fact: The total output of the Cooey plant alone eclipsed the number of firearms registered in Canada’s long gun registry, which ran 1995-2012. That should tell you something about Canadians’ compliance record with the registry.)When the Cooey plant in Coburg, Ontario, shut down in the mid-1960s, employees bought the machinery, trucked it down the highway and started a new factory in Lakefield. They kept on producing the Cooey Model 64 semi-auto and began working on new firearms too, including the Mark II bolt-action rimfire. After Savage bought the factory, production continued and now you know where Savage’s Model 64 semi-auto and Mark II bolt-action come from. Mid-century modernWhen you handle an old Cooey rifle and compare it to a modern Savage Mark II, the changes in the North American firearms manufacturing industry are very evident. The old Cooeys made before the Winchester takeover are basic and obviously built with an eye towards profitability, but none of them that I’ve handled and owned have ever felt cheap. The Cooeys made after the takeover (which happened around the same time as Winchester’s massacre of its own lineup) feel less finished and are sometimes made of cheaper materials. There was no plastic on the old Cooeys, but there was on the new stuff. And that theme continued on through the Lakefield plant.The Savage Mark II uses stamped internals. The receiver is a utilitarian piece of tubing with the barrel pin-fitted. The safety is not slick to engage; when you pull it back, it’s loud and stiff. The magazines and mag release are very basic and … edgy. The 10-rounders, which most Mark II rifles ship with, protrude from the gun right at the balance point. Five-round magazines are readily available and work a bit better for woods carrying, and that’s what I typically use with my rifle. The action isn’t exactly slick, but mine runs smoothly enough, and the AccuTrigger is as crisp and predictable as any other Savage bolt-action I’ve used.All in all, it’s a package that works, but no Savage Mark II shooter is ever going to gush about how slick their rifle runs, or how well-finished it is. The Savage Mark II is made for people who want a lot of rifle for little money. Which version?Along with the standard F-series models mentioned earlier, there are multiple target versions of the Mark II in Savage’s current lineup. The Mark II FV has a heavy 21-inch barrel and would probably serve as a good basis for a DIY build. The Mark II FV-SR has a 16.5-inch heavy, fluted barrel with a threaded muzzle and a one-piece Picatinny rail included, and would probably also be a good place to start for a project rifle. If you want to shoot at targets with iron sights, not a scope, then you could buy the Mark II FVT, which has a heavy 21-inch barrel and peep sight included from the factory. There’s also the Mark II FXP, which comes with a standard-profile barrel and a 3-9x scope mounted from the factory; the Mark II FVXP has a very similar configuration. The Mark II Minimalist adds a modern minimalist-style Boyds laminate stock, Weaver bases, and an 18-inch barrel with a threaded muzzle. You can also get a laminate thumbhole target-style stock on the Mark II BTVS, with a heavy stainless-steel 21-inch barrel. The Mark II BV has a laminate sporter-style stock with a heavy barrel; the Mark II BRJ also comes with a laminate sporter-style stock and heavy barrel, but on this model, Savage fluted the 21-inch barrel.That’s a lot of variations, and if you keep an eye on Savage’s website here, you may see models added or deleted from the lineup over the years, as they’re always remixing this rifle to meet current trends or to add a few key features to continue capturing the budget-conscious shooter. In my case, I own a Savage Mark II FSS, which is basically the standard F model with a stainless finish on the metal, and I also owned an older target version of the rifle at one point. The FSS has been replaced by the Savage Mark II Stainless, which appears to be nearly identical except that it comes without Williams fiber-optic sights. I would say that’s an upgrade, since the fiber-optic insert on the front sight of my FSS has gone missing, and there wasn’t enough adjustment range to get the elevation right anyway, a complaint I’ve also seen from other FSS shooters.I solved the problem by adding a Bushnell A17 rimfire scope, which I found on clearance, and it has been my small game gun ever since. I can’t tell you how the rifle groups on paper because I can’t remember the last time I took it to the range—it’s been years. But I can tell you it has never missed a head shot on a snowshoe hare. I have performed feats of marksmanship to clear out my neighbors’ pest problems that left the old guy astounded. That’s not me saying I’m a great shot, I’m not—it’s me saying that this rifle is very capable for a very low price. It’s highly accurate for my hunting purposes. I tried a variety of ammo when I bought it, found CCI Mini-Mags shot well, and that’s what I load in it. The bolt was stiff when I bought it, but after years of use, it’s not slick, but it’s smooth enough for my purposes.With its stainless finish and synthetic stock, I can crawl around in the late-season slush for rabbits and partridge, mucking around in my marshland hunting spots in all manner of foul weather, and not worry about the gun coming to grief. I’m not pumping out round after round through the rifle in hopes of downing a fleeing animal; the point of it is one-shot, one-kill, and it’s perfect for that. But what about the other versions of the Savage Mark II? Patrik reviewed a Mark II FV-SR for TFB last year, and said this was “a rimfire rifle that punches well above its weight.” He certainly found it very accurate. Do a little Google-Fu and you will find this theme running through comments and user reviews all over the World Wide Web. Although some buyers do occasionally get stuck with a lemon, like any manufacturer, such stories are rare. The overwhelming majority of users say their Mark II, whatever the variant, shoots far better than its price tag implies.They also almost invariably complain about the magazines’ sharp edges and mention the action feels clunky compared to something more expensive—but that should hardly come as a surprise, should it? To me, the surprise here is the rifle’s performance when compared to its cost and its versatility. Along with plinking and hunting, a lot of these budget-friendly Savages are also a good starting point to the world of precision rimfire shooting. If you get serious, you will probably upgrade to something else, but for a taste of the fun, the Savage Mark II is a budget-friendly entry point. I’ve been happy with mine that I bought with my own hard-earned shekels, and would recommend anyone else looking for a versatile, accurate and affordable rifle consider it.If this post has you ready to hit the range, head over to gunranges.com - a free directory to help you find shooting ranges near you, wherever you are in the United States.