I'm not a fan of them. Ruger 10/22s and Browning T-Bolts are pretty nice.

If you're looking for a good bolt action, CZ seems to be the industry standard. I recently purchased a CZ Scout for my son and am amazed at how accurate that thing is out of the box.

I have a 14 year old Browning BL-22 that has always been dead on. I've never adjusted the sights and can hit whatever I aim at. But that's a lever action.

For bolts, I'd go with CZ.

the little Marlin 925r is an accurate rifle as well right out the box. Only around 170 bux out the gate is a good deal to me. As far as the Rem#5 Im not the biggest Remmington fan of late. Their latest models have been pure junk class weapons (710 and the 770 to name 2) as far as Im concerned. They have severely undercut the quality in a lot of models from what they used to have. Just a thought. Its also dependant on what you wish the rifle for? Target or Hunting. If for target then the ruger 10/22 as was suggested is a fine weapon to build on...If for hunting then the Marlin 925r is what you want. Put a fixed 4x .22 scope on there and your set. Unless you want open sites (im old open sites are a thing of the past for me anymore)

There are quite a few nice bolt action 22's out there. If you like Rugers there is the 77/22, Kimber also make a very fine 22 rifle. Marlin also makes a nice little 22 bolt action. I bought a 98IT a few years ago and couldn't believe how good it shot right out of the box.

The Savage's have the best trigger of any of the budget classed rimfires. They tend to suck at ejection though.

CZ 452 is a good rifle without spending a bunch of money.

I got a marlin 22 mag with a heavy barrel a few years ago and it makes a 5 shot group under 1 inch at 100 YD , usualy with 2 or 3 touching , I would think the 22 LR would do the same at 60 or 70 YD. be shure to try different amo as it can make a big differance from gun to gun. . My buddy has a ruger bolt action 22 LR that is dead nuts at 80 YD and has a very smooth action. I wish it was mine , but my wife is getting on to me as I now have 5 22's , they just dont get it!

I got a marlin 22 mag with a heavy barrel a few years ago and it makes a 5 shot group under 1 inch at 100 YD , usualy with 2 or 3 touching , I would think the 22 LR would do the same at 60 or 70 YD. be shure to try different amo as it can make a big differance from gun to gun. . My buddy has a ruger bolt action 22 LR that is dead nuts at 80 YD and has a very smooth action. I wish it was mine , but my wife is getting on to me as I now have 5 22's , they just dont get it!

The #5's I've seen look to be of decent quality; although I'm not certain of accuracy.

As noted above the CZ 452 has a good reputation for a bolt action.

If your willing to consider a semi-auto and spending some $$$ both Magnum Research and Volquartsen make exceptional rimfires that shoot very well out of the box and use 10/22 mags/parts.

Winchester has a new 22 called the wildcat. I haven't seen one yet, but it looks reasonably priced.

Savage's acutrigger model rimfires are another gun to consider. They make a variety of stock options and are reasonably priced.

If your willing to consider a 17 caliber, I've noticed that most 17m2 and 17hmr out shoot the same comparable model in 22lr in the same manufacturer.

I purchased a CZ 452 American yesterday.
Dropped on an older Weaver scope I've had laying around and put it to the bench.
Started out with the target at 50 yds after a visual bore sighting and put 3 rds into it. Although the initial shots printed down in the lower right quarter, all holes were touching. Thus far, I'm like'in the accuracy.
General impressions;
Walnut stock finish is acceptable. Checkering is uniform in depth and pattern. Receiver inletting seems pretty good and barrel float is OK, but just slightly snug at the end of the forearm. Should be easily remedied.
Action fit and finish are again, acceptable. Trigger guard is (taking me a minute to find the right word here) plain, basic, minimal finish, but sturdy and very functional. It will accommodate a gloved trigger finger.
Trigger pull sucks out of the box, creeps for about a mile before breaking. It is slack adjustable and will work on that today a bit.
The 453 has a 3 way adjustable trigger but is not compatible with the 452 without some fairly extensive work. The 452's trigger might well be acceptable with a small amount of work with the stone, I'll let ya know how it all turns out.

Thus far I am reasonably impressed with the rifle costing under $400

Ever hear of a Sako Finnfire. Super accurate :you won`t find better.