.22 Mag for self-defense concealed carry

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I understand your point but will the dedicated handgun .22 mags pick up steam like a "regular .22 mag? There are examples of ammunition slowing down in longer barrels. There is not much difference between the FN 5.7 and the same round in the FN "Five Seven" pistol and the P90 Carbine. No one likes the .22 mag more than I do but I would like to see ballistics of the new .22 mag ammunition in longer tubes. Buffalo Bore 75 grain hard cast FN .32 ACP in a 2" barrel gets 850 fps and 120 ft lbs. A 3" barrel gets you 1,000 fps http://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=132
 
If the lady has arthritis in her fingers, then she may not be able to operate the trigger of a revolver or some double action semi-auto's.
It's important that she likes shooting it enough to become good with it. And no other round promotes fun and enjoyable practice like the .22LR.
There's so many different .22 pistols to choose from verses the .22 mag. that the .22LR might be the best way to go.
Find her what she likes and then teach her how to shoot it well.
Most .22's can be fired as fast as one can pull the trigger.
And proficiency helps to develop accuracy.
No one wants to spend a lot of money to buy .22 magnum ammo for practice which is quit pricey. Just stick with the .22LR and then let her shoot reliable hyper-velocity rounds for self-defense.
Meanwhile there's standard velocity type rounds for practice.
And if she ever needs to use it a .22LR pistol can be really loud when fired indoors, especially some of the hot .22LR rounds when fired from a short barrel.
I listened to a guy shoot some Aguila Maximum ammo from a Walther P22 short barrel and there was some seriously loud blasting. I would have hated to not have had any ear protection on. Plus they come in different pink patterns that appeal to many ladies. And they can also be easily outfitted with a laser sight on their accessory rail.

http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2009/jun/16/widow-pulls-pink-pistol-handyman-she-believes-was-/
 
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"That said, .32 Long still comes up short versus cartridges in the .380ACP or .38Spl class, but I'd take a .32 Long revolver over a .22WMR revolver any day of the week."

Different strokes for different folks. Where do you find .32 S&W Long for $15? Pray tell...

And If anybody has a link as where to find .32 H&R Magnums "IN STOCK". I surely would appreciate it. I can see it now. Federal Premiums aka Not In Stock, Sold out, No Backorders.
 
carguychris: you didn't see my post, did you? We now have two sources of 22Mag designed for handgun barrels. If they work, and both are from VERY reputable sources, then more or less all of your complaints should be fixed.
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True, I did not check the links before posting, my bad. :o I'm curious about this too; the loads seem effective on paper, but I wonder if they'll solve the fouling problems.
Where do you find .32 S&W Long for $15? Pray tell...
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$13.95 actually. :) AIM usually has several brands but they must have sold out of everything but Prvi Partizan.

http://www.aimsurplus.com/catalog.aspx?groupid=92&name=.32+S&W+Long

I paid $12.95/50rds locally for Aguila in early 2009 before I sold the last .32 Long revolver I owned. You just need to know where to look. As I mentioned earlier, some gun stores overcharge for the obscure stuff because it sells slowly. OTOH other gun stores charge low prices because they want customers who like old guns to come back.

In my experience, if the odor is cosmoline is strong and there are lots of rusty vintage lever-action, rolling-block, and muzzleloading rifles hung on the walls, the store is more likely to sell it cheap. :D
 
I have a standing order for 7 kel-tec PMR30's. Five of these from family members who hunt. Seems the 22mag is considered ideal for dispatching wild hogs wounded or bayed up by the dogs. I know hogs are alot tougher than a human. So maybe this round will prove effective on the streets. Time will tell.

P.S. One of them is destined for my safe.
 
I carry an NAA Pug .22Mag on dog walks in my quiet little Texas town, but I wouldn't carry it for any other occasion ... .22Mag can certainly kill you, but a .38 or 9mm can be carried in a pretty small, light package and those calibers are more likely to be useful in an SD situation ... I agree that rimfires are more likely to misfire; I have that problem all the time with my 22a .22lr ... but the Pug has never had a misfire, maybe .22mags are better made (they ought to be, they cost enough more than .22lr) ...

and no offense, but I wouldn't try shooting any hog I've ever seen with a .22mag, unless it was tied up and 90 percent dead already ... those puppies can take a lot of damage from bigger rounds; I wouldn't go after one with anything less than a .357magnum ...
 
I like the .22 Win mag. Mine's a Taurus 941 (8-shot) DA revolver. There's no recoil so your friend will probably like it. It does have a heavy DA trigger though. Inexperienced shooters may not like it. But you can always get some trigger work done.

Another option would be for a .32 ACP semi-auto. This is another round I really like due to low recoil. I have a Walther PPK/s (one of my favorite shooters) and a Beretta Tomcat. The Tomcat makes a great purse gun because of it's size, and the fact that it has a tilt-up barrel. Your friend wouldn't have to rack the slide to load it, a bonus for those with arthritis. There's a lot of different .32 semi-autos out there, look around for the right one.

Another option of course is to have your friend practice practice and practice some more on the .380 until she gets used to the recoil.
 
Think I'd favor a revolver such as the Ruger single six and a shoulder rig. I like squeezing a bit more accuracy rather than spray and prey. The .22 Magnum is capable of fine accuracy. Penetration is far superior to a .380ACP, .38 Spec. or a .45ACP. Yes, the .22 Mag. is hard on the ears, but that will not be a concern if the gun has to be used in self defense. For a smaller package a nine shot double action revolver with .22 Stingers will work. I think the idea here is to have personal protection, not an assualt package.
 
Rimfire is a poor choice for SD but hey its your life, maybe you can throw the weapon or something, use it as a club if it fails.
 
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BGutzman said:
Rimfire is a poor choice for SD but hey its your life, maybe you can throw the weapon or something, us it as a club if it fails.
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I think the original poster is well aware that .22 Mag is not as effective for self defense as .44 Mag, but he explained the reasons why the "heavy" calibers are not appropriate in this case. Your mileage may vary, but IMHO a .22 Mag far outweighs a pointy stick and/or harsh words for someone who physicaly can't handle a big bore blaster.
 
I wasn't proposing a 44 Mag, what I was proposing is a Rim fire is not as dependable as a centerfire round. Seriously shoot whatever a person likes no problem its not my hide on the line.

I credit the thread author for acknowledging Rim fire is less reliable and that he doesnt see it as being the best choice but it is his choice.

However none of that negates the fact that it is a rim fire and I feel that regardless of you body capacity to carry or use whatever you owe it to yourself to get a gun (or in this case ammo) that will reliably shoot when you pull the trigger.

Go for 17 HMR but have a plan for if it fails. ie club or whatever you can imagine works for you. :)
 
i would carry a 22 mag for sd. if thats all i can handle. to the people who say its not enough power think again. my buddy who does custom slaughter uses a 22mag 90% of the time and drops 800 to 1800 lb bulls or steers with one well placed shot. i normally carry a g30 but i am still healthy i also have a colt vest pocket in 25acp for those days i am just wearing board shorts.
 
I like to carry my NAA Black Widow in 22mag. It has a 2" barrel. Sure, it is not as powerful as my 40S&W, but it fits in my shorts pocket and no one ever knows I am carrying it. Dry phone bullets are penetrated 4-5". I think that is enough to do the job if the shot is well placed. Also, I have never had a single failure with this gun with many types of ammo. I have shot many armidillos, one shot one kill every time.

I definitely will look at the Hornady 45gr ammo. Right now I use the 45gr Winchester Dynapoint. I might chronograph it this weekend and post back.
 
and no offense, but I wouldn't try shooting any hog I've ever seen with a .22mag, unless it was tied up and 90 percent dead already ... those puppies can take a lot of damage from bigger rounds; I wouldn't go after one with anything less than a .357magnum ...
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While I would agree from my limited expierience with the above quote I have been assured by experts in the sport of hog hunting that it is perfect for the task described.

Like the tireless debate over cartridge stopping power, this appears to be another case where shot placement is critical.

Some observations on the upside for the pmr30.

low recoil (for those with sensetivities)
increased power from 22lr (the only option for those listed above)
fast followups with a very deep reserve

Considering the job of a cw carrier is to simply survive an armed confrontation it would seem that the pmr30 is well suited for this.
 
Jim March

Thanks for the info on the Speer Gold Dot .22 Mag. I was not aware of it. Should make a good load for my 3.5 inch S&W Model 51-1.

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Don't discount the little guy...

Once pulled out my Single Six and shot a water logged 4x4 fence post. The 22 Mag round just popped right on through. So I decided to see how big of a hole I could blow out of the backside with my Blackhawk. I was shocked. The 357 Mag round never made it through the fence post.

So I'm guessing the 22 Mag might be good for poking holes in your attacker.

But I'm also guessing that my 380 will deliver a bit more shock, even if it doesn't penetrate as far.

P.S. With 6" barrels, my 22 Mag revolvers don't make good CCWs.
 
A .22 mag makes a loud noise that will attract attention, can be very easy to conceal, and probably hurts like hell. Not to mention its mere presence may be able to settle a self-defense situation.

North American Arms (NAA) makes a whole line of mini-revolvers chambered in various .22 calibers.
 
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