My new SW22 should be delivered by the end of the week. My last 22 build was a KIDD 10/22 SuperGrade, this is my first 22LR Pistol in a while. I've spent a pretty fair amount of time reading all I could about the gun and Saturday talked extensively to someone who specializes in 22LR performance mods of all types. I also currently own a Silencerco Sparrow Suppressor. This is my list of what I intend to have him do when I ship it out to him. Thought I'd throw this out and see what the thoughts were. Thanks.

*Shorten barrel approx. 1”, re-crown etc to your specs
*Re-Tap for front sight (if available please supply Hex or Torx plug)
*Address possible direct mounting for a Burris FastFire III
*Thread Barrel to spec for Silencerco Sparrow (included)
*Machine included Kidd SS Brake to match barrel
*Polish Brake & Barrel to match one another as a unit
*Review trigger and recommend any work to improve overall performance
*Any accuracy improvements you feel would be a benefit

Sounds like a very nice gun is going to be much nicer yet. I hope it turns out great. Please remember when its all done Pics are requested by all of us to see how it looks as well as shoots.

Sounds good. I especially like the idea of shortening the barrel. 5 1/2" isnt my favorite for this type of 22. JMHO

I do not understand how shortening the barrel one inch is going to improve accuracy on this pistol ... seems like it would have the opposite effect. Understand why you might want to cut it back for the suppressor but not in the name of improving accuracy. (But then again, I have accepted there is a lot I don't understand anymore.)

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Mike

Thanks for the comments so far.
Michael, it does not improve the accuracy, although it also does not degrade it. What it does accomplish is make virtually any (but not all) ammo sub-sonic so that even with a suppressor the is no "sonic" crack (boom). It also make the gun not quite so unwieldy when you add a 5" Suppressor to the end of it. For the ultimate accuracy the thing to do would be put a Volquartsen on it, which I may do at some point, even though I don't profess to be that good of a shooter! A good trigger job for me definitely helps me shoot better.

Still waiting on my Volquartsen fluted/ported barrel. There was a 3 week wait on them. Don

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USN Retired/VN VET
M&P X5

Please don't take this the wrong way - I mean no insult, but do you ever just buy a gun and shoot it before you come up with a list of what to do to change it? Maybe I'm just jealous that you can afford to do all of that to your gun. I've had a Victory for a few weeks and just added a cheap red dot, and I love it.

SWP, did you ever get the work done? We'd all love to see some pictures and hear your thoughts.

Barrel length doesn't have a huge impact on accuracy. Most match barrels for precision .22 pistol competition are either 5.5" or 7". 5.5" is generally selected because most people like that sort of balance, no matter what the gun. 7" was at one time popular for the added sight radius when using iron sights, but many find that a shorter sight radius is actually easier to shoot with.

Model 41s, for instance, are widely-used with one of three barrel lengths: a standard 5.5", a 7" for shooters that want a heavier muzzle, and a 7" cut down to 5.5" for shooters seeking light weight (the 7" has a lighter profile).

Over the years, there have been many great entry-level customs built (mostly Ruger Mk Is, IIs, and IIIs) with 4" barrels. One of the hottest "gets" these days is a distributor-exclusive Ruger Mk III Hunter with a 4" fluted barrel!

Honestly, I don't think much more accuracy can be wrung from the gun without doing something really extreme. As in, ditching the barrel and going with something like a Shilen. But that's rather extreme, most people don't bother with that unless it's a shot-out or abused Model 41.

99% of real-world accuracy improvements are going to come from the trigger. It's pretty good for what it is, but sucks hard when compared to a match trigger like you'd find on a 41, 1911 conversion (which itself is only good because we've been working on making it not terrible over a century, or 80 years of competition), or a Euro gun.

OP has disappeared. Sure would like to hear more about his SW22.

True for pistols in my experience.

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Made it, Ma! Top of the world!

Wise A the original barrels on the M41's were 7 and 3/8" long. I have a original 1958 year barrel and gun myself. Then they went down to the 5.5 and 7" barrels later on. They also have the 41-1 as well which fired shorts back then.

Well, let's see--7", a 5" 'field' barrel, a 5.5" heavy barrel, and a 7 3/8". S&W offered all sorts of things at all different times.

Point is, among competitive shooters, people don't just select the longest barrel. A lot of guys new to precision pistol make that mistake--I sure did. First gun was a 6 7/8" Ruger. Current is a 5.5" 1911. The 5.5" is very slightly more accurate, but not by a lot.

For me I shoot the longer one at 7 and 3/8' and find it easier to pick up on the longer sight radius. I also like the balance better as well compared to a 5.5 but that is personal preference of course.

To each his own. I like mine just like it is. Would like to see the photos though.

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Mike
S&WCA #3065

One of these days I will post pics of both my 41 and 46 if I can ever figure out how to do it. I am terrible at stuff like this. I do well just firing the old tube up most days. I will have a Computer friend of mine help me with it.

Why is that? Is it simply because of the lighter weight of the gun?

I bought a new victory 22 a few months ago and it works and shoots perfect. I always thought someday I would like to buy a Ruger 22 single six for target shooting but the way my Victory shoots I don't think I'll ever need that Single Six.

What does 'need' have to do with it?

I just noticed that this thread is over a year old, oh well here goes. I've always been a Ruger .22 semi-auto fan and back in 1996 I noticed an article in a gun magazine about the Volquartsen custom Ruger Compact Carry semi-auto with a 3.5 inch heavy barrel and it was love at first sight. About 10 years later I managed to score one and I cannot shoot it as well as my MKII target model with 5.5 in bull barrel. I think it has more to do with the shorter sight radius than it does with the length of barrel. Having said that, I'm still in love with this short barreled Ruger and enjoy shooting it alot!