This past weekend I traded my seldom shot, never carried Glock 48 and $75 for a NIB 617 with a 4 inch barrel. I am pretty happy with the trade. The 617 has a better trigger than the 22LR Ruger GP 100 I bought and quickly sold a few years ago. And while the 617 is big for a 22 it doesn't have the clunky, built like a tank feel in my hands the Ruger did.

It didn't shoot as well as I had hoped for but am pretty sure that was my having a bad day, not the gun. Ejection was sticky a couple of times but not real bad. My other 22s are a M&P compact and a model 41. I shot the 617 a lot better than I shoot the 22 compact but not as well as I usually shoot the 41. Next time I go to the range I am going to take all 3 and see how they really compare. The 41 sets a pretty high bar.

While I am happy with the 617 right out of the box I am already thinking of making a couple of changes.

I bought a set of reduced power rebound springs for my model 69 and have all but the 14 pound spring I put in that gun left. Changing the rebound spring doesn't affect ignition reliability so I am thinking of trying either the 15 or 13 pound spring in my 617.

The stock rubber grips felt pretty good but I think I like the 500 grips on my 69 a little better. Still debating if the change would be worthwhile or if there is some other grip I should consider. Recoil is not an issue so I might even look at wood grips.

I am not going to change a thing until I shoot the gun a few more times as it is.

Anyone make any changes to their 617 that you feel made it a noticeably better gun?