22 Pistols

J

Jamie Young

New member
I want to get a 22LR pistol and i can't decide whether its risky getting a semi 22 or if its better getting a revolver. I just want the gun for plinking and for bringing girls or my nephew to a range. And my .45 costs too much to shoot every week. I had a friend that just could never buy anything but 22LR semi auto guns and they always seemed to jam up on him at some point. He never got the RUger 10/22 i know that has a good reputation. My real question is.....

Are the 22LR Revolvers more reliable than the Semi-Auto pistols in general?
And has anyone every owned a 22LR revolver that could be interchangable with the 22 Magnum round? Thats what I really want
 
The revolver as a general rule is a little less prone to malfunction than a good 22 Semi. Now a cheap 22 semi will jam more than a good one. This is true with any 22 semi be it pistol or rifle, but if you get a good one and feed it good ammo the malfunctions are few and far between. The Ruger "Single Six" has an interchangable cylinder allowing the use of either .22 LR or .22 WMR.

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Carlyle
 
Now I'm confused. Wait.. let me check, be right back.........................
...................................................................... Yep. Just as I though. This is in the wrong Forum. The correct one really should be Handguns and Pistol. But, by the cybermajic vested in me, I can transform it to the proper forum, where allllll will be answered. :D

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Schmit
GySgt, USMC(Ret)
NRA Life, Lodge 1201-UOSSS
"Si vis Pacem Para Bellum"

[This message has been edited by Schmit (edited April 14, 2000).]
 
I have an old Ruger Single-Six that has interchangeable cylinders for .22LR and .22 Mag. It works fine and is a good gun. Being a single action (cowboy-style revolver that must be manually cocked for each shot)It is a little slow to load (line up cylinder, push out empty, insert new round, repeat six times). I prefer semi-autos, and I think I hit a little better with them as well, but this is mostly a personal choice. I'd look at a Ruger or Browning Buckmark. But if the single-action revolver appeals to you, you won't go wrong with it either. And I think the revlover is a little safer if you are taking "newbies" shooting (its easy to pull the magazine out of an autoloader and think it is empty while there is still a round in the chamber). It is also easy for a new shooter to get excited when he or she hits the target with an autoloader, and turn around and accidently point the gun toward other people. Of course, this can also happen with the revolver, but at least it won't be cocked and ready to fire with a touch of the trigger. Good luck.

Doug
 
I don't know about other brands - but for most S&Ws chambered in .22 mag. the factory will also fit a .22 RF cylinder. Used to cost about $90, but that was some years ago.

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Jim Fox
 
I've got a stainless Ruger .22 which I like a lot. It occasionally jams, but not often. You have to remember to tilt the tip of the first round up.
 
My Ruger Mark II Competition will jam if dirty or if I try to shoot Remington ammo. I have no idea why it hates the Remingtons. Blazers work great for plinking ammo though, and my gun is fairly accurate with them.

Personally though, unless you feel you NEED an autoloader, I'd recommend the Ruger revolvers with the interchangable cylinders already mentioned. Revolvers work great for teaching new shooters, and are durable and reliable for field use.

You do need to keep the cylinder chambers clean though, and you may want to polish them to keep the fired shells from sticking...

--Rich

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Nothing threatens freedom so much as self rightous ignorance.
 
My single six is a lot of fun.
It is slow to load but they are accurate.
In the days of not so strong glasses
I could plink away at 100 yards with ease.
The magnum cylinder is a nice touch.
 
I bought a S&W 22a last year before they became turncoats, and it is an accurate little plinker. Good handling for me.

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Knock twice. Rap with your cane. Feels nice. You're out of the rain. We got your skinny girls. Here at the Western World
from Steely Dan's "Western World"
 
I too was looking for a new .22 a little while ago. Had my mind set on a S&W 22A before they did what they did then I decided that a Ruger revolver would compliment my Mark II Bull well. Every person I talked to advised me against a .22 revolver as they had many difficulties ejected the empties.

So rather than burn more brain cells on this quandry I bought a Glock 19, not a .22 but as fun to shoot and almost as cheap. I'll revisit the .22 question when my mid year bonus.
 
I recently bought a Ruger Single-six and it is quickly becoming one of the most used guns in my(hopefully and prayerfully) growing arsenal.

It was the first pistol my wife has shot, a 6 year-old shot it yesterday and loved it, and heck I love to shoot the thing for practice.

I thought about an auto, but I know me, and I would wind up rapid firing alot and not concentrating on shot placement as much as I do with the single-six. You really learn to make the shots count when it takes so long to reload. Besides, with the .22WMR cylinder; I feel confident of the gun's power to take small game animals.

Oh yeah, when I new shooter points the muzzle at ya, and they will most likely; ya feel so much better knowing that they cannot fire the gun with the hammer down.

DaHaMac

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Know Yourself, Know Your Weapon, Know Your Enemy; then Know Victory!
 
DougB - Try punching them all out first. Then grab six and drop them in while advancing the cylinder w/the other hand. On the topic at hand, I've had a S-S Convertible since '72 and used to own a Ruger 22/45 bull bbl. w/ a factory-adjusted 2.5# trigger(It was a jam-o-matic new, but Ruger fixed it and did the trigger for free). I highly recommend both, but kept the revolver because it has a better trigger. John
 
Personal opinion: Browning Buckmark. Its a great gun, and its the one I use to teach. I've not had anybody that I've taught negligently point the muzzle at me yet, because they get "THE LECTURE" before we ever go out the door.

Reliability is good. Accuracy is awesome, wish I could shoot centerfire half as good and I would be a good shot.

On reloading single actions, this works with a blackhawk in .45 acp, use a auto pistol magazine as a speedloader, eject all your empties first then as you turn the cylinder, hold the magazine up to the chamber, and shove the top shell in with your thumb. Repeat as you turn. I'm not sure this would work for a .22 (rimmed cartridge and all) but it works on bigger rounds. Cheap 1911 mags worked for the black hawk.
 
I'd go with a revolver. I recently purchased a Beretta Bobcat 22LR. I had read that these pistols were very reliable. I tried many different brands of ammo through this gun and rarely could get through a full clip without a jam. I sold it and purchased a Taurus Model 94 22LR revolver with a two inch barrel. This revolver isn't much bigger, holds nine rounds, and is totally reliable.
 
I have a Ruger Single Six with the interchangable Mag and .22LR cylinders, so it's certainly available. I personally like the .22 semi-autos, and I've got a pair of Ruger MK-II's that are mighty reliable with a wide variety of ammo.

If I'm taking a beginner to the range, I bring along both a revolver and a semi-auto .22 and let them try both. It's surprising how many prefer the revolver for it's simplicity, but plenty also like the semi-auto.

Since you really want a Ruger Single Six with the Mag cylinder, that's the one to buy. :)
 
Thanks for the info folks i went to the gun store today and bought a brand new Ruger MKII and a used Ruger Single Six with the 22lr and 22wmr cylinders for $450
Your imput has been very helpful in choosing a good plinker thanks again
 
You can't go wrong with the selection of semi-auto .22s available today.

Ruger Mk IIs are a blast, are reasonably priced and are very reliable. They offer a model for all tastes (from plinking to serious target shooting). The 22/45 polymer frame models are lighter weight.

The new SIG Trailside is highly rated, with more emphasis on accuracy. This will be my next pistol.

I have no experience with the Browning Buckmark, but apparently many happy owners rate them the equivalent to the Ruger Mk II.
 
I got a taurus .22 revolver with 9 rounds in the wheel. I bought it b/c it has the high capcity compared to other revolvers and you can save your thumbs from loading magazines!
 
The Single Six is an outstanding choice. Although, if you're going to introduce the small of hand to shooting with it, the Ruger New Model Bearcat is a real gem.

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Tamara's House o' Weapons: If we can't kill it, it's immortal.
10mm: It's not the size of the Dawg in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog!
 
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