Ruger 10/22 is the answer you seek.
“Ruger 10/22 is the answer you seek.”
^^This^^
I’ll second the 10/22. Classic lines, it is a rifle that has been around since the 1960s - so, clearly, people like it.
I have one that a friend of mine customized with a match-grade barrel...using match ammo that is no more than $0.12/round, it’ll drill holes in a quarter at 50 yards all day long, and into a dime if I really do my job. The rifle is easily modified with barrels, triggers and furniture, so you can customize it any way you’d like. The AR-15, with its similar customizability, is the 10/22 of centerfire rifles.
I would like to get a Ruger 10/22 Takedown. That looks like a real nice package.
Once I am out of NJ, I would like to get a 10/22 with a integrally suppressed barrel. But those are banned in this state, so I will have to wait. Good thing... because they are real expensive...