Why No .22 Rimfire Interest?

S

SGW Gunsmith

Moderator
Maybe I'm not visiting the "correct" forums here, but I find it to be more than interesting that there is extremely little interest involving .22 rimfire caliber pistols or rifles.
Has everyone who frequents this web-site forsaken their .22 rimfire firearms for center-fire? Help me understand, or at least "tell me to get lost". :o
 
#1 I think the extreme shortage of ammo the 22rf had a lot to dowith it..
#2 Look at what a 22rf pistol or rifle goes for today. By the time a new shooter buys a weapon and minimal accessories thee probably is much or any spare cash left.
#3 With the increased interest in personal protection needs, the 22rf isn’t considered a good choice. JW was spot on on his post.
#4 It seems like if your not shooting 1599 yards there is a lack of interest in talking to you.0

I own several 22rf rifles, I still use my marlin model 100 single shot for hunting squirrels, the need for a follow up shot is seldom. That gun was the gun I learned to shoot with.

I have a couple 22 revolvers that I plink tincans with an hunt gophers with. I really enjoy plinking wit the 22rf revolvers.
 
Has everyone who frequents this web-site forsaken their .22 rimfire firearms for center-fire?
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Not at all, RF subjects/topics seem to hold their own here fairly well. I even saw some plugs suggesting a Georgia woman with a bum shoulder consider a number of rimfire options, not to mention several other threads. If you check up on threads about "What should my first handgun be" you'll see quite a few suggestions for RF's.

I don't think I can agree with Lucas on his points 1 & 2 and maybe 4. For #1, I don't think a whole lot of 18 to 21 year old NEW shooters are going to remember a whole lot about something they were not directly effected by a couple of years ago. Us old timers, we saw it come, we saw it go, and we just keep keeping on like we always did.

For point #2, naw, getting rounds popping for $300 or less is still way cheaper than CF- I figure that's for a rifle or Heritage type pistol, eyes, ears, and a pack of targets.

For point #4, Man, I really hope the Operators, Rambo's, and million round a year shooters aren't running off the RF crowd. I don't think that's what the shooting community is about and I don't think that's what the administration of this forum is about either. It would be kinda cool if the RF crowd had it's own section here, but I don't run things and they've probably got a lot more pressing matters to attend to than my opinions anyhow.
 
I think Lucas McCain hit all the points and for me personally, it's got to do a lot with the shortage issues that lasted for years and .22 not being a good self defense round.

That's not to say I'm not shooting .22, I am, I shoot it more than anything else. The NAA Minimaster, SR22, and soon the Charger... they're all getting a lot of range time, more than my centerfire guns. I just have nothing more to say about them. I can't go into reloading or how to make them more accurate because I'm limited to what quality I get in the box of ammo I buy and this is one of the major reasons I'm not into .22's like I am other cartridges.

As to why people aren't talking about them? I think there's a lot to be said for first time gun owners who want something for protection and .22 isn't it, a .38 or a 9mm is. Nobody will ever recommend a .22 over a centerfire and even non-gun people get that a .22 is smaller than 9mm or .38 Special and not as powerful. First time owners are not going to be willing to spend $350 on a decent .22 pistol, then spend another $300 on a budget 9mm on top of ammo, mags, holsters, etc.

To me, .22's are fun guns for shooting with some ability for self defense or small game getting. All of my .22 revolvers I have or will be buying have spare .22 Mag cylinders, so they're really .22 Magnums. My Charger with the brace is really just so I can shoot a shorter barrel .22 rifle off my shoulder without an NFA item that isn't legal in my state. It's short OAL could find use in my cramped apartment for home defense, but it's really just something that's a 10/22 based gun that's for SHTF and is a fun range gun that's also a big finger to the ATF.
 
I probably shoot more 22LR in both rifle and pistol than all other calibers combined. You can get a lot of quality trigger-time for very low cost. I get more enjoyment out of rimfire shooting, dollar-for-dollar, than is possible with a centerfire. And shortages,.....what shortages? Whoever didn't have rimfire ammo when they wanted it had themselves to blame. There will certainly be shortages in the future. Right now, there is a glut of 22 rimfire ammo and the prices are reasonable. If you like to shoot rimfire, or any other caliber for that matter, then you should buy plenty of it now, while it's available, unless you already have several bricks or more put away. By now, we should all know not to take it for granted that ammo will always be there on the store shelves when we want it.
 
I don't know about this forum in particular, but if you can't fine info on the 22 rimfire on the internet, you're just not trying. I'm not going to say "most," but a lot of forums have sections dedicated to rimfire.

At one time, I had about two dozen 22's, a dozen of each, rifle and handgun. Well, at some point I realized that might have been a little overboard for me, so I'm down to just one rifle, and three handguns.

I need to get them to the range.
 
To much skill and accuracy involved - Join, rimfire central. Seriously. Dont come here for that. Every forum has its own character and tone. That is not here.

This forum is more about dragging you rifle threw the dirt to improve the looks of your firearms. Or maybe a 22LR upper for an ar15, which I do have. So yea, You can talk those bangbang shoot em up black 22LR.
 
I tend to agree with the logic that almost 7 years of nearly unobtainable .22 ammo really hurt the caliber. If you think, a whole generation just learning to shoot couldn't find it.
 
No, rimfire is very much alive and well. Very well. Just not on this forum. Rim Fire Central. Be there or be square. Anschutz, CZ, Ruger, new Tikka, old Model 52 and High Standards - a whole parallel universe to explore.
 
I'd imagine there are lots of .22 shooters here. I just posted my own experience with a new gun over the weekend.

To a lot of folks the .22 is not cool. That's too bad for them I guess. They will never allow themselves the simple joy of the platform. One obviously experienced Operator at the range looked over at my MK IV and said "that bullet will never stop anyone." I asked him if he'd volunteer to be shot with it and he shut up.

I guess the folks recommending RFC to you have not read over there. I only started reading yesterday and I recognize your handle. :)
 
fourbore said:
To much skill and accuracy involved - Join, rimfire central. Seriously. Dont come here for that. Every forum has its own character and tone. That is not here.

This forum is more about dragging you rifle threw the dirt to improve the looks of your firearms. Or maybe a 22LR upper for an ar15, which I do have. So yea, You can talk those bangbang shoot em up black 22LR.
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I think that's a bit of a misrepresentation of this forum, at least from my perspective. We have plenty of people interested in skill and accuracy. I also must be missing these drag your firearm threads.

A lot of forums do have a theme. I don't think you need to disparage a forum simply because your interests lie elsewhere.

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk
 
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Unabashed .22 fan here. I really enjoy my .22 collection. For that matter, I enjoy all of my other guns as well. I own more .22s than any other single caliber. Hard to beat an afternoon with a couple of plinkers and a bunch of ammo. Fun for a fraction of the price.
 
Patient Wolf said:
I'm think when you consider the number of different pistols vs the number of pistols offered in .22 RF, the difference isn't as large as it may appear. In any case, you could also look here:

http://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/
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SGW is a regular at Rimfire Central, which I know because I'm a 22lr lunatic.

SGW, there are writers here who very much like 22lr arms, but it doesn't get the kind of focus here that you get at Rimfire Central. Part of the difference in focus is that many here will tell you that the 22lr is great for training and introduction to shooting, and economical as well. You will find few here shooting 40 cent per round 22lr from $1000 10/22s, and no one spamming forums with pictures of their best 50 yard groups.

This milieu is more general.
 
zukiphile said:
SGW is a regular at Rimfire Central, which I know because I'm a 22lr lunatic.

SGW, there are writers here who very much like 22lr arms, but it doesn't get the kind of focus here that you get at Rimfire Central. Part of the difference in focus is that many here will tell you that the 22lr is great for training and introduction to shooting, and economical as well. You will find few here shooting 40 cent per round 22lr from $1000 10/22s, and no one spamming forums with pictures of their best 50 yard groups.

This milieu is more general.
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I think I would have a tough time spending $0.40/rd for .22 ... and my eyes are not good enough anymore to impress anyone with my groups. :)

Still, I just sunk a bunch of cash on upgrades on top of buying a new MK IV Competition so I can see where that would get addictive.

I think we have a great cross-section of shooters here, including those you mention who may be die-hard rimfire fanatics.
 
I like the 22 RF. I currently have 1 rifle and 2 pistols in the caliber. The most recent being a S&W M&P 22 compact. I intend to accumulate at least 1 rifle and 1 pistol for each of my 3 kids to have one day.

The ammo shortage may have had an affect on some, but there's no shortage now. I wasn't an enthusiest during the shortage, so it has little bearing on my firearms choices.

Although there are cheap 22's out there, I find them to be rather expensive for their limited use. The M&P that I just purchased was more expensive than the hi-cap poly 9mm I own and the all metal 380 I have. I do have a cheap Heritage Rough Rider that I like.

22 rimfires are good for training, target shooting, plinking, small game hunting, and are fun. The larger centerfires can do all that and serve as defensive weapons and for larger game hunting. The price paid is a higher cost per round.

22 rimfire ammo has serious lack of consistency. I experience more problems with it than any centerfire ammo. Even from box to box of the same brand there are inconsistencies.
 
LBussy said:
Still, I just sunk a bunch of cash on upgrades on top of buying a new MK IV Competition so I can see where that would get addictive.
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The discussion at Rimfire Central is focused on this niche in a way it can't be here. It's an internet destination for people seeking technical assistance with 22lr arms.

Addiction is a useful concept in this area and Ruger MK pistols and 10/22 rifles carry all the dangers of a vast aftermarket, just as AR15s do. Previously, I've gone farther down the road of parts replacement and customization than I could justify.

I could give you a 10/22 parts list that would crest $2,000, but the end product would be hard to sell for more than $800 and in my wobbly hands it might not shoot much better than a $700 10/22. It's easy for me to forget that when I shop for parts.

Establishing a budget for a project before you start it is a good idea.
 
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