Eeps24, you ask some good questions, and ones that I had. You've gotten some good info also. As they said, the simple answer is that .22lr ammo can be used in a handgun designed for .22lr, and most modern handguns ARE designed for .22lr. Very few modern ones are designed around .22long or .22short.
However, there is a bit more to it as well.
the first layer is what you asked: .22short vs .22long vs .22lr.
If you are sticking to firearms made in
this century, then .22lr will work in most handguns and in rifles.
However, there ARE .22short handguns and .22short rifles out there- they are
simply older [most pre-1940?] than what you may be looking for.
- I have a revolver that can only fire .22long, as the cylinder wasn't bored for .22lr.
- I have a friend who has a .22short pistol for target use [think 'olympic type' shooting].
- I have seen pump 'gallery guns' for sale that only fired .22short, as the chamber was cut for that.
- Yet, outside of olympic shooting, I do believe modern .22 handguns and rifles all are set around the .22lr cartridge.
My favorite rifle is a Marlin 39a, which can cycle and fire .22short, .22long and .22lr.
- It holds 19rds of .22lr, 22rds of .22l, and 25rds of .22short.
- I see no point in .22long in it, so use it with lr, but sometimes it IS fun to cycle through 25 rounds of .22short as fast as you can.
btw, changing the speed and weight of the bullet [speed by moving from .22l to .22lr, weight from moving .22short to .22lr] will result in it hitting at a different part of the target from the way you sighted it in.
Secondly, it is only partially accurate to say that there are semi-autos that cycle .22short. WHEN the cycle them, they cycle .22short
High Velocity ammo. Not
all .22short ammo.
- It is the energy of the round that cycles the action. A .22short high velocity may have enough to cycle the action, but a .22short cb or .22short cowboy may not do anything.
- energy is a product of mass times acceleration. Generally a .22short around 29gr moving at 1000-1100fps will cycle the action, but one moving at 700fps will not do so, as there isn't enough energy to cycle the action.
Lastly, if you are looking to buy a .22 firearm and are looking at .22lr ammo, you need to know about the speed ratings, or you may be very unhappy.
- Modern handguns [last 20-30 years] seem to be based on the .22lr High Velocity round. This is a projectile of between 37 and 40gr moving at between 1200 and 1300 fps. CCI Mini-Mag is a classic example.
[*]Despite the language of 'High Velocity', think of them as 'standard' ammo for .22lr firearms today. [don't shoot them in a .22lr firearm from before 1930, as they may not handle it over time.]
- However, there is also a category called 'Hyper-Velocity'. This is a projectile moving at over 1330fps, and sometimes as high as 1700fps.
[*]Use these in revolvers or manual-operated rifles [bolt/lever/pump], but don't expect good things from a semi-auto with them. Modern ones probably won't explode over time, but you may damage the action parts or the receiver from the bolt/slide moving too fast for the design. You can make changes to the semi-autos to help them handle it, with stiffer springs, etc- but then they won't cycle the other ammo.
[*]For someone without much knowledge, just stay away from anything moving over 1300fps if you want a semi-auto.
- Then there is 'Standard Velocity' .22lr ammo. This is moving at speeds of 1030-1180fps, with projectiles of 37-40gr. This type of ammo may or may not work in a given semi-auto. It depends on the design. Standard Velocity ammo in a Walther P22 may result in the slide moving 3/4 of the way back- which doesn't allow proper ejection or loading of the next round. In a Ruger MK II/III/IV, it may or may not work reliably.
- However, 'standard velocity' .22lr ammo is what the S&W Model 41 [still in production] is designed around, and the older High Standard semi-autos work best with this as well [despite 1940s manuals saying 'high velocity is ok', it isn't on any made since 1954].
- 'Standard Velocity' .22lr ammo is more accurate than High Velocity or Hyper-Velocity ammo- beyond about 30 yards. Within that, it is questionable. for real target shooting, where group sizes at 75 or 100 yards are key, a standard velocity round is a best bet.
- Then there are subsonic loads, cb loads and others, where the round is moving under 950fps- and possibly not cycling any semi-autos that were designed around the 'normal' High Velocity round [cb no, the subsonic usually has more mass, so it might cycle them, or it might not].
For someone new to all of this- buy .22lr high velocity and a modern firearm with .22lr on the barrel and you are done.
You only need to worry about the other elements if you move beyond .22lr high velocity or move into more specialized .22 firearms [older or competition].
Good luck, and enjoy the sport!