.22 Pistol Suggestions???

G

Guyon

New member
I'm thinking of getting a .22 LR pistol for target practice and plinking. Any suggestions on accurate, reliable guns out there?

Also, what's the price range on these guns? I really don't want to spend over $200. Can I still get a decent .22 semi-auto for that price?

------------------
Guyon
NRA & GOA Member
 
The obvious choices are the Ruger and Browning pistols. I don't think you can go wrong with either. You might look for a Browning Buckmark Camper. A friend of mine bought a new one on sale for $162 last winter (it was basically a going out of business sale - don't expect to find one that cheap). I think its about the least expensive of the Buckmarks, but it shoots fine. I wish I'd bought one.

Doug
 
I own a Buckmark Standard and my son in law has a 22/45.

Both are very good pistols, but I would tend to favor the Browning for accuracy and certainly ease of maintenance, the Rugers are a real bear to field strip.

There's the Sig Trailside but I don't see where you are getting your money's worth, its expensive. And TFL posts seem to indicate its not all that great in accuracy.

Beretta and you know who have .22's but I think the Beretta is ugly and it sure is expensive!

IMO-check out the Browning line of Buckmarks.
 
If you stretch your budget $50, you will have a bigger selection available. At $200, you are limited to the 22/45, the lower end Buckmarks, and maybe a MK-4.

I have two Ruger MkIIs, a KMK-4 and a MK-678. I paid about $240 for each one. Both are rugged, reliable, accurate, and a pleasure to own. If you decide on a Ruger, be sure to buy one with adjustable sights. The 5.5 inch bull barrel is a good choice. For more info on Rugers, see http://www.ruger-firearms.com/pistolsrf.html

And don't be deterred by those who say that Rugers are hard to field strip.
 
I'd toss in for the Ruger MK-II too, and second the comment about field stripping. It's really not that hard, and once you figure out the only "trick", it's very simple. You can easily pick up a used MK-II for less than $200, new will be about $30-50 more than your $200 target.
 
HARD TO STRIP! Rugers almost take themselves down. Swing the mainspring housing out pull down and the bolt just drops out. I have taught people to do it in minutes.
 
I might be picking up a .22 today.

The Browning Buckmark Standard, or the Ruger 45/22. Both are great. I took my girlfriend to the store with me though, and she liked the Browning better.

Make sure you take your "better half" or whomever you'd like to take shooting with you, to make sure the grip is good for her as well...

The only thing I liked about the Browning better than the ruger, was that the 45/22 has a weird balance, that you have to get use to. There are lots of stores around here, but if you don't have any around you, the mags for the ruger 45/22 might be hard to find. If you have a 1911, then I highly suggest getting a 45/22..

Cheers.
Albert
 
I have a S&W 22a and I really love it. I bought it pre blackmail arrangement and I wouldn't advocate a purchase from those traitors.
You can't beat the classic styling of a MarkII and I kinda wish I would have bought one of those just for the looks. To my notion, it is THE classic .22 general purpose
handgun.
I think I just might have talked myself into one!

------------------
"Any world that I'm welcome to.....Is better than the one I come from"
 
Greetings,

I have a Ruger MkII and a recently purchased Buckmark. You can't go wrong with either. Almost all new Buck Marks come with adj. sights. My Buck Mark is more reliable than my Ruger, re: jamming and failures to feed.

Regards,

Ledbetter
 
Having owned the Ruger MkI, MkII, 22/45 as well as the S&W 22A & S and, I say: But the Browning Buck Mark! :D

I have three and they are really good pistols at a really good price.

------------------
Make mine lean, mean, and 9x19!
 
I'm putting together a head to head backyard test of inexpensive ($200.00 approx) .22's for just this reason. I had a chance to shoot the Buckmark and 22/45 head to head both last week, and earlier today. I won't go into the details here, but in short, the 22/45 outshot the Buckmark Camper, the Ciener .22 conversion unit on my Kimber and my ancient H&R convertible-using the .22lr cylinder.Best group of 5 from the Buckmark was 1 1/2 inch from a rest @ 25 yards. Best group of 5 for the 22/45 measured a bit over 3/4".HOWEVER-I believe this was pure and simple luck. Everything just happened to go right for that group. Bottom line for both the Buckmark Camper and the 22/45 is they shoot better than they hve a right to, given the decent price. All of the 4 could strike terror into the heart of any *tin can* with relative ease at 25 yards. For most shooting and plinking, it really boils down to a matter of taste. FWIW, in the autos, I had 1 failure to feed in 1000 rounds,(in the 22/45) using Remington Thunderbolt ammunition.(Possibly the worst junk ammo short of the Bikal brand Russian steel case ammo). The Buckmark went through 250-300 or so rounds without a hitch.

$200.00 IS NOT going to buy a target grade .22 these days. Even the Ruger 22/45, which proved to be the most accurate of the 200 dollar range guns could usually manage 10 shot groups of about 3 to 5 inches with the cheapo ammo.(Flyers were frequent) Sorry, you just CAN NOT get a $700.00 Smith Model 41 grade trigger on that price range of gun these days. What you CAN get, is an inexpensive .22, that will hit a fair sized target, 95% of the time. Groups tend to be more "Clusters" than groups. By that I mean the majority of the shots are nice and tight, with 2 or 3 opening the group size up to the maximum size. Accck! I typed more than I wanted to here. Sorry, I got carried away a bit. I'll try to post the results sometime this week, time permitting.
 
REast - Thank you! Sounds like you're getting as tired as I am of hearing how hard it is to field strip a Ruger 22. It's certainly different from other guns when striping it and that's it, it's not harder. But that should never be a consideration as to whether to buy one or not.
 
For a fun plinker, you should be able to find a used Ruger. Check your dealers and gun shows. They are good pistols and are fun to shoot. Adjustable sights would probably be a smart option, especially if you want to do a little target shooting. The Ruger is reliable and they are everywhere, so you should have a choice, even used. Try both the 22/45 and the standard grip models to determine which you prefer.
 
Ruger 22/45 with a 6 and 7/8 inch bull barrel.

Or if you have a G19/G17, get an Advantage Arms conversion kit for $250!

------------------
The Seattle SharpShooter - TFL/GT/UGW/PCT/KTOG
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by REast:
HARD TO STRIP! Rugers almost take themselves down. Swing the mainspring housing out pull down and the bolt just drops out. I have taught people to do it in minutes[/quote]
I wish you'd teach me! My mark II is the first gun I bought when I was of age many years ago. It takes an act of congress to strip, like prying money out of a lawyer's hands. ;)


------------------
"Facts are meaningless. You can use facts to prove anything that's even remotely true."
Homer Simpson... but attributed to Algore.
 
It seems like the Browning and Ruger are the classics. I looked at them and the S&W and the Colt (though I don't think they are maknig the Colt .22 anymore). I ended up going with the Smith. While I've shot the Rugers and Brownings, I've been just as happy with the Smith. Keep in mind that the recoil on a .22 is so light, you're not going to get much kick from each shot. Therefore, fondling the gun in the store should give you all the help you need. Pick which you like best, you can't really go wrong with any of them.
 
Another point in favor of the Ruger autos is their legendary durability. I have two Mark I models, a 1969 T512 and a 1976 T678. They have consumed untold thousands of rounds without a bit of trouble, broken part or a SINGLE malfunction that wasn't the fault of the ammo! I have owned or known of perhaps 20 other examples with similar records. If you keep a Ruger clean and use quality ammunition, it simply won't fail.
I hope the Browning is a durable, but don't see how it could exceed a Ruger.
I know of many S&W 22A variations that have shed parts and finish after a short time...and consider, that spare parts and aftermarket parts won't be as easy to come by for anything but the Ruger, after S&W goes belly up and the Browning is forbidden importation by our vigilant gubmint.
Rugers are NOT hard to assemble/disassemble. Those who say they are should RTFM.
I really like the looks of the smallest new Browning, the Micro...reminds me of a classic Sport Model Woodsman. But for the long haul, I'll still take the Ruger .22, whether in the simplest fixed sight 4" model or the full-blown stainless target style, they are 'best buys'.

------------------
If they take our guns, I intend to let my hair grow long and acquire the jawbone of an ass.
 
Greetings,

Regarding the Browning Buck Mark, now that I have had mine for a while and shot about 2000 rounds through it, I notice certain design aspects that seem inferior to the Ruger design. For example:

Ruger field strips by pulling one lever out with a paper clip or any similar object. Browning requires gunsmith screwdriver on three screws.

Browning features a rubber recoil piece which absorbs shock from recoil guide. The one in mine is already coming apart. I don't want to fire the gun until it is replaced, in case it fails completely.

Browning design allows certain small parts (extractor assembly, recoil spring retaining clip) to come apart "unexpectedly," increasing chance of loss of small part during cleaning.

Browning grips are not intended to be removed, as they serve to retain certain parts in position. This makes cleaning inside the grip frame more difficult.

Certain parts, notably the recoil spring and guide assembly, are not as durable-looking as the Ruger design. My recoil spring already shows signs of wearing out.

Any one have any thoughts on this comparison?

Regards,

Ledbetter
 
I have a Ruger MK-II, and it is a great little tack driver. Found it NIB at a gun show for $189. They have been making the thing for 50 years, so the design and construction are solid.

There are easier handguns to field strip. The Ruger manual suggests using a plastic hammer to remove the bolt stop pin. With due respect to other posters, that is not what I consider to be a self-stripping gun. My SIG P-226 is self-stripping; my Ruger is more like a jigsaw puzzle. It is also a tad tricky to reassemble. It is possible to get it put back together and not have it function. (You can test this by dry-firing: if it don't click, it ain't right.)

Those little annoyances aside, it is a great gun and fun to shoot. It is also substantial enough that if you are having grip or trigger pull problems in shooting other handguns, you can work on correcting your form on the Ruger at a significantly lower ammo cost.
 
Ebverybody's talking autos, but can I put in a good word for the Ruger Single Six? Very nice single action revolver, with a spare cylinfer for .22 WMR.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top