Don't get scared off of the Rugers.
Both of my .22/45's take down and go back together in 30 seconds. All it takes is doing it 20 times to get used to it. Neither of them are pickey about ammo, and are accurate enough that I can hit a penny at 50 yards off hand within 50 shots,,,,,on a good day
. On great day, and with enough sleep the night before I can do it within 10 shots...least I could last summer.
The Mark II I own is a ittle pickey about ammo. It prefers 40 gr high velocity non hollow points. Some hollow points will hang up on the feed ramp. Solids are 100% reliable. Mine WILL NOT feed stingers reliably.
Buckmarks (see the Buckmark thread)-All of mine prefer high velocity ammo. Standard velocity usually results in stove pipes or jams. Nolo problemo as all of the have shown a preference for Remington Thunderbolts, which although filthy, are high velocity.
CA75b w/Kadet upper (See Mr. Camps comments on the .22 conversion thread) Available as both an upper conversion unit for a CZ75/CZ75b or as a dedicated .22. Very easy to take down, very high quality all steel unit. Very accurate. CZ sells a Champion trigger assembly for the 75b that should make the Kadet outstanding. The Champion CZ I handeled at a local dealer had a very crisp trigger that broke around 1 1/2 pounds w/ zero creep. Possibly the sleeper of all .22s on the market right now. If you own a 75b, the Kadet runs about $250.00. The Champion trigger group is around $35.00 IIRC. A dedicated Kadet shoulr run around $400.00.
S&W 22s/22a. Outstanding accuracy. Far above the Rugers. Mine with a scoped 7 1/2" barrel has shot dime sized 50 shot groups at 25 yards from a rest. On a really good day a couple years ago, I managed a dime sized 5 shot group at 50 yards from a rest.( everything was going right that day and I don't know if I could duplicate that,,,point is the gun can and has delivered that) The main drawback to the 22s/22a is they aren't built for the long run. Mine has shown considerable wear on the slide in a relativly low (1-2K) rounds. Takedown is fairly simple. The nylon slide buffer is only good for 100 or 200 or so rounds, then needs replaced. my recommendation is to avoid them unless you have a few other .22's and want one super accurate gun. For a one and only .22 semi,,,forget it. They ain't made for the long haul. I bought mine as more of a novelty item, and added a set of three different barrels. 5 1/2 inch Bull barrel, 7 1/2 inch Target barrel and the 5 1/2 inch target barrel it came with. One barrel has open sights, one has a scope, and the third has a red dot. Hey, what the hey, it looks impressive in a pistol case.
S&W Model 41. Considerd by most to be the Mercedes of .22's. I don't care for the funky grips myself, so I haven't bought one yet. Can't comment on take down. Raves far outnumber bad or even so-so comments about the 41. I'll let others sing the praise of the 41 for the time being. Eventually I get one I suppose,,,when the right used one comes along at te right time. So far I've passed on 2 of them,,,used but unfired for under $600.00 ( I know, I know,,and yes I do kick myself for it, but there were mitigating circumstances in both cases,,,,such as a better deal on something I wanted more)
High Standard- older ones ARE out there. Some are still reasonable as far as price goes. Arguably the best .22 semi auto ever made. (Some will say the Colt Woodsman is the best ever.) I've seen more High Standards shoot true 1 hole groups than anything else though, so I have to go with the HS as best ever. Triggers that are measured in ounces rather than pounds tend to do things like that I guess.
Bottom line,,,The Ruger slabside should fit what you want for plinker/semi comp unless you can luck into a 41 or a High Standard for a good price. Mine runs right up there with a Trailside (actually, better than the Trailside) for accuracy, based on the sample Target supplied with the Trailside. Buckmarks are really decent guns also. Matter of fact, it's lot harder to find a bad .22 than it is to find a good one.
