Channel fans and family, Chiappa just gave one of the simplest little rimfires out there a carbon makeover. Chiappa USA announced the Little Badger Carbon, a folding, single-shot .22 LR rifle with a carbon-fiber-wrapped barrel, and it comes in two flavors: the standard folding model and a Takedown version that breaks down even smaller.
What it is
If you’ve never handled a Little Badger, picture the most minimal .22 you can think of: a break-open, one-round action on a skeletonized wire-steel stock that folds flat against the receiver. It’s built in Italy by Chiappa Firearms and brought in by Chiappa USA. The new Carbon version keeps that formula and puts an 18.5″ barrel with a carbon-fiber shroud up front. Chiappa’s own product page is specific about the construction: alloy frame, steel barrel, carbon fiber, so the carbon is the outer wrap around a steel barrel, not an all-carbon barrel.
Chiappa pitches it as a backpacking, camping, truck, or survival rifle, basically a .22 that rides along in places a full-size rifle never would.
Key specs (per Chiappa)
- Models: Little Badger Carbon, SKU 500.278 (standard folding) and Little Badger Carbon Takedown, SKU 500.281 (Chiappa’s product page calls it the Little Badger TDX Carbon Fiber Shroud)
- Caliber: .22 LR
- Action: Break-open single shot, 1-round capacity, manual extraction
- Barrel: 18.5″, carbon fiber shroud, 1:16 twist
- Muzzle: 1/2×28 thread (Chiappa’s product page notes a 1/2×28 thread adapter ships loose with the standard model)
- Stock: Folding wire steel with built-in shell holder
- Forend / sights: Quad-Picatinny forend and an integrated Picatinny sight rail; no rear iron sight listed
- Safety: Half-cock hammer
- Overall length: 33″
- Weight: 3.2 lbs, per the release
- Finish: Blued / black
One heads-up on that weight: the release and the Takedown’s product page both say 3.2 lbs, but Chiappa’s product page for the standard 500.278 lists a 1.55 lb net weight. Those can’t both be right for the same rifle, so if every ounce in your pack matters, confirm with your dealer before you buy.
Standard vs. Takedown
The standard Carbon folds: the wire stock swings flat against the receiver so the whole thing gets shorter and flatter. The Takedown (500.281) goes one step further and breaks down for transport and storage, and Chiappa says it does that without losing any of the standard model’s features. Chiappa USA General Manager Jay Putnam put it this way: “The Takedown version takes that same concept and makes it even more packable.”
Chiappa says both models are available now through Chiappa USA’s dealer network.
Who it’s for
- Backpackers and campers who want a light .22 that disappears in a pack
- Truck, cabin, or ATV guns where simple and compact beats everything else
- New shooters and kids learning one round at a time, where a single shot actually slows things down in a good way
- Suppressor owners who want a quiet little plinker, thanks to the threaded muzzle
Our take
I like this one for what it is. A single-shot break-open .22 is never going to win a speed contest, but that’s not the point. It’s about having something that folds up, weighs next to nothing, and still lets you put a small optic or a light on it thanks to the Picatinny real estate. The carbon shroud is mostly about looks and keeping a longer 18.5″ barrel feeling trim, and the 1/2×28 thread means a rimfire can turns it into a really quiet backyard or campsite plinker.
The trade-offs are the obvious ones: one round at a time, a wire stock that’s about packability more than comfort, and no rear iron sight listed, so plan on a small red dot or scope on that rail. And again, check that weight spec with your dealer, because Chiappa’s own numbers don’t agree with each other right now. If I were picking one for a backpack, I’d lean toward the Takedown just for the smaller package, but I’d want to see both folded up side by side before deciding.
Chiappa has been busy this fall. If you missed it, check out our write-up on the Chiappa Rhino 60DS Hunter in .357 Magnum. And if you’re more of a “build the rimfire you want” person, here’s my Ruger 10/22 build with Azimuth, FAB and a BX trigger, plus our look at another new .22 LR rifle, the Derya TM22 Timekeeper.
Sources: Chiappa USA release via The Outdoor Wire; Chiappa Firearms: Little Badger Carbon Fiber Shroud (500.278); Chiappa Firearms: Little Badger TDX Carbon Fiber Shroud (500.281); Chiappa USA product page.
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