Just about every time I'm in a gathering at the range or a gun shop and mention that I own a .22LR Smith revolver and a Ruger 10-22 I inevitably get snickers. "Yeah, fun to shoot, but won't stop anything." Stuff like that.

Well, I disagree. A .22LR can cut through a half-inch pine board anywhere from 9 feet to 400 yards as a YouTube vid demonstrates, using just about any ammo.

So tell me that, properly placed on a vital spot, a .22 can't be used for personal defense.

If I had only one gun to own -- and it may come down to that some day -- it would be a .22LR long gun with plenty of high-cap magazines. Maybe not the best defense weapon but certainly capable of inflicting some damage.

On the practical side, what's cheaper or more fun to shoot all day long without hurting your hand or shoulder?

Comments, agreeing or disagreeing, welcomed. Thanks.

More people are killed with 22s than any other caliber. Mainly because more people are shot with 22s than any other caliber but that's not the point. No, it's not the best choice beyond squirrels, but it will do in a pinch.

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No life story has happy end.

I sometimes get questions when spending all day at the range with my .22s, but they generally revolve around how can it be so darn accurate. I enjoy my .22s and if the ignorant want to laugh, let them.

As for a defensive round, while not my first, or even second choice, a .22lr is better than nothing.

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Regards,
Guy-Harold Smith II

I love my 22s and it sure would be better than a rock

Beats screaming for help by a LONG shot.....

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MARK

I agree AND disagree.

Yes more people are killed with a 22 then other calibers but the vast majority of these shootings/killings happen with a 22. Just like if majority of the guns used were 1911s then more people would be killed with a 45.

Yes it can stop an attacker but how fast? Enough time for him to get to you? Probably.

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

but sometimes it is not until several hours or days after the person is shot with the .22. Therein lies my problem with the .22 as a self defense firearm.

If I have to defend me an/or mine, I want to stop the action as quick as I can. No handgun is going to give immediate stops, but IMO any .38 up is more likely to than a .22.

Just the opinion of an old guy.

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the world is round everywhere

I've heard for years that more people are killed with .22s than any other caliber. Anyone got statistics to back this up?

No argument that a .38 will put a bigger hole in someone than a .22. However, lethal force is not always necessary to deter a threat. A leg or arm shot might be sufficient. And consider the legal consequences. Killing someone in self-defense may be justified in some circumstances but it's not hard to make a case that just wounding the attacker would have been the wiser and less risky course of action.

What are the statistics of shooting deaths to caliber bullet? - Yahoo! Answers
The FBI link doesn't work, however.

A hit with a .22 is better than a miss with a .45. With any pistol cartridge you need to get a fairly good hit. Those stories of hitting someone in the pinky with a .45 and spinning him around are bull. I don't carry a .22. Most of the .22s I have seen that are defense guns are obviously BUGs. I do not really know of a .22 that is designed to be a primary defense weapon. Perhaps a Walther PPK. I don't carry a .22 and I don't plan to start. If someone pointed a .22 at me, I would get verrrrry agreeable.

BTW, I have had enough experience with the rimfire priming systerm that I don't really trust it for defense. I get many more FTFs with .22 than everything else combined.

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Luke 22:36

Anyone who laughs at you for owning a 22 isn't someone worth talking to any further in my opinion. I have two boys, and we have a great time shooting 22s. We also enjoy BB guns, sling shots, bow and arrows, etc. My oldest son has a Benjamin 20 cal air rifle, and I sure wouldn't want to be on the business end of that thing!

Shoot! We even bring out the rubberband guns and Nerf guns occasionally.

Not only do I spend most of my range time with my .22s, my favorite round is becoming the lowly .22 short. I went through 300 of them last week. While the guys on either side of me were Ka-Booming away on their home-brewed, high-octane bazooka rounds, my K-22 was going putt...putt...putt, and putting tight little groups in at 50 feet. Lots of fun and very, very quiet. Shhhh. Putt...putt...

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Why, I aughta.....

hopefully, MEDXAM will chime in here with some first hand knowledge. i have attended autopsies involving .22LR rounds. they can bounce around some if they hit bone and they do very sufficient tissue damage. i argue the point quite often that i can take my marlin tube fed(18 rds) rifle and defend myself and my property. i've also got a 10 shot mod 17 and a 10 shot beretta 76 that i would be very comfortable with if it was all i could lay my hands on. lee

I investigate violent crimes on an Indian reservation, and the firearm of choice is a .22 rifle, usually the ubiquitous Marlin Model 60. I've only had a couple of shootings that were non-fatal. In all the rest, the victim went down and stayed down until the medical investigator and I zipped them up for the ride to ABQ.

I can't think of one where the shot guy continued whatever behavior caused him to get shot.

No head shots, either. Mostly to the torso, though one guy killed his wife by shooting her in the thigh (Marlin Model 60 that time, too).

I had another where a guy used an old Winchester pump .22 with an exposed hammer to put down a dude who had stolen the affections of his woman. He started shooting as he came in the door and pumped that little gun all the way through the house. The victim dropped after the first few, and got the rest as he curled up in a ball.

The most recent one was a 300 pounder who took a contact shot next to the belly button from a Ruger Single Six. It had the magnum cylinder in, so maybe it doesn't count for the purpose of this discussion. That guy just sat down and died.

I also went to the funerals of two cops killed by single rounds of .25 ACP, but that is for the "you can't stop anybody with a .25" thread.

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Rule of law, not a man.

While a .22 is not the best for self-defense, its better than nothing. I have carried a Taurus PT-22 when nothing else would be appropiate. I would like a .22 mag revolver or a Kel-Tec .22 mag with 30 rounds. These are just my opinions and yours probably are different.

My safe is full of .22s . Bolt action , lever , semi auto , tube fed , high cap you name it . Why ? Because they're FUN ! Affordable to shoot & as accurate as you want them to be .
That's nothing to laugh at . As far as personal defense , I would not want to be shot with a .22 because I would not want to be shot with any caliber . Its still going to ruin your day .
Al

In NYC, there is a serial killer on the loose dubbed "the .22 caliber killer." Shot to death 3 middle eastern shopkeepers so far. In September in a separate incident a 92-year-old WWII vet killed an intruder with a .22 rifle with one shot to the chest.

I've given my reasons on an earlier thread, but my choice of home-defense gun is a Smith & Wesson Model 48, .22 Magnum.

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Why, I aughta.....

.22LR : excellent accuracy + low recoil = head shots.

Behold! The mighty Ruger MkII Standard!

Totally accurate at 50' and cheap to shoot.

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But then, what do I know?

As mentioned it would not be my first choice as a defense round but you could make it work if you had to. I was introduced to shooting with a 22 50 yrs ago and loved it. After all these years of collecting revolvers and rifles of many calibers I still love the 22 and for some strange reason seem to be embracing the little caliber more than ever.

The .22lr is a great gun. More people probably own a .22 than any other caliber. A well placed shot with a .22 is still better than a miss with a .44 magnum. It's cheap to shoot, accurate and not intimidating to recoil sensitive shooters. I like them a lot!

*A 22? Ha ha ha*

*Well, yeah - But I hurt my hand, arm, and shoulder shooting my 460 last week, so I gotta stick with this for a few weeks. But I agree - ANYONE that isn't shooting a 460 or 500 is a girlie boy and probably shouldn't even be out here with the REAL men. --- So - Which are you shooting today?*

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In dog years I'm dead.

yup .. thats what Ill tell you ... 22 sucks for SD.
first ... just try placing your shots within a quarter inch on a moving target while afraid for your life ... not gonna happen son .. lose the delusion.
second .. when you find yourself with a live one .. how soon do you want that dude to change his mind .. sometime next week ... 5 minutes later? .. how about right now? 22 wont give you "right now" with any measure of reliability.
where does the 22 fit in .... why .. thats a backup to a backup when you just can't fit much gun on ya.

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it just needs more voltage

Makes a pretty good argument that a .22 can be better than bigger bore guns for SD:
Ask Foghorn: Is .22lr The Best for Self Defense? | The Truth About Guns

i like all guns in 22 cal. semi's,levers,pumps,and revolvers.they can't be beat for looks,fun and cost to shoot.Now i'm getting crazy and looking for and collecting the bigggggg .32 cal................. small steps.

if a .22 stings,i figure the .32 will really hurt.

Anybody who wants to belittle the .22 should bear in mind the fact that John Hinckley fired 6 shots in less than 2 seconds from a cheap revolver and knocked 3 people FLAT, right on the spot. The 4th victim, Pres. Regan, stayed upright for just a few minutes before he collapsed with a hit in the lung. Believe me, I have a great deal of respect for ANY cartridge that can perform like that!

I think it was homicide detective Evan Marshall that said he had been to the morgue to see plenty of bodies with 22 or 25 caliber holes in them, but never to see one with a 44 caliber hole in the big toe . . . .

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Qui plantavit curabit

Everyone has time to watch a meth head bleed out. At the least he might drive himself to the hospital and 2+2 equals he gets questioned and maybe charged. What good does that do us? Too little too late.

Give me a magnum or a shotgun. If I'm gonna see carnage it's not gonna be me or my own if I can help it.

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Dum vivo cano

Go to a slaughter house and ask them what they put down cows with. Years ago most farmers that wanted to butcher a beef put em down with a .22 rifle with no fan fare.
I had a close friend that I worked with that was retired off the indianpolis PD as leut of homicide from about 1940 to 65. He told me he thought getting shot with a 22 was about the worst as usualy in a torso wound it would rickoshay from rib to rib tearing up the victim. Conversly, if it didnt hit a bone it would go straight through you. He said he had a partner that got shot right through the body but hit no bone. End result, emergency put a bandaid on the front and back exit wound and released him!

.22LR - Because hundreds of Mafia hit men can't be wrong.

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Insert short witty words here

Where I live the 22 is the go to gun to pouch deer with. It is cheap to buy so if you drop it and run when the DNR show you have not lost a whole bunch. A 22 a spot light a head shot and it is meat on the table.

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Carpriver.

I have killed a lot of hogs with an Astra Cub in .22 short. We used .22 LR in a rifle for cows and they will drop a 1500 lb. cow like a rock. Larry

A 22 for self defense is not my 1st, 2nd, 3rd or even 4th choice but it sure beats fists, feet and foul language.
I did not become a truly good pistol shooter until I practiced Bullseye with a 22, and my last few range sessions with centerfire rifles-all that practice with 22s paid off. Likewise starting new shooters with a 22 is THE Way to go.

Just got a 22a. Have more in 22LR than any other caliber.

I have the m&p 15-22 if the first round don't slow the BG down by the time i get to the 25th rd he probably wishing he would have went somewhere else!!! Especially when I pop that second mag in!!

I sure like the 22, and I shoot it an awful lot. It's fun practicing with my Model 41 and Hi Standard Supermatic, although it's discouraging now that I can't put the shots as close together as I once could. I stocked up on CCI target 22 shorts when I got a Hammerli-Walther Olympia a few months ago; now that's a gun that gives me a grin all over when I shoot it. Wish I could try it on 25 meter, silhouette turning targets, but there aren't any in the vicinity.

When I go out in the desert shooting other stuff, a S&W 317 often goes along with me in an Alessi cross draw holster. I have a couple of rounds of shot just under the hammer for snakes, and six solid points for other varmints including the two legged kind. It sure makes me feel a lot more secure even if I've been shooting a 357 or 30-06. And it's fun to bounce cans with.

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I grew up in a home where the only handgun was a K22. Many of my Dad's friends did have bigger handguns, mostly .38 Specials, but I remember at least one .38-.44 Outdoorsman, and later, some .357 Magnums. Once when they were shooting, I asked my Dad why he didn't have a bigger gun too. His response was typical of his brief and simple replies: "No need for one around here." I suppose he thought I was a real loon when I bought my Model 29.

It wouldn't be my first choice for protection, but I guess if Dad's K22 was all I had I wouldn't lose a lot of sleep worrying about it. That said, if I were you, I would get a bigger gun for the purpose - maybe a shotgun. But if you don't, I won't be one who criticizes.

i have seen two police associates shot multible times in the head with the .22...first was hit twice in the head with a 22lr rifle....second was hit three times in the head with a cheap handgun (.22) both survived.....to me,.22's are very cool,fun to shoot,cheap to shoot,and excellent learning tools...they are nowhere near the top of my list for self defense...most of us here have larger calibers for that purpose that simply out perform the .22 in that respect....i'm of the belief..carry the largest caliber that YOU can handle well....as to the argument of "winging someone,wounding him" get past that...in a hurry....pray you never have to use a gun in self defense but...if you do...forget the "wounding"fallacy

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SWCA#2208
KK4EMO

I have shot prairie dogs with a 30-06 and watched them crawl to their burrows more than once. I have also dropped prairie dogs on the spot with a 22 LR. Accuracy counts, multiple hits are better.

In a home defense situation, multiple rounds of 22 LR beats a cell phone, loud words, or a 911 call every time.

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S&WHF 366

We all have heard about the mythical 320 pound meth addict who's going to take a dozen 22 bullets in the chest, then beat you to death with your own gun. I'm sure it happens. I just wonder how often it happens? Sure if it happens to YOU, it's once too many, but just how often? On the other hand, the Armed Citizen column in the American Rifleman is full of accounts of citizens who used 22's to repel boarders. If he takes a hit, or even sees the gun/hears the gunfire and runs, that's a win.

I've known a few people who got shot with a 22 for one reason or another and survived. Every one of them said it hurt like XXXX. They had no interest in doing anything but getting to a hospital.

I don't use a 22 for S/D but I sure wouldn't leave one on the kitchen counter to run get something else either.

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John 3:16 .

Heck NO! I don't laugh at the .22 it is good cartridge is has its own role to play in shooting sports and hunting just like its centerfire brothers have their own role to play in shooting sports and hunting and in self defense.

Speaking from experience or just observation..........
Someone tells me that a .22 won't stop anyone I turn to them and say come at me and let's see. Pretty much ends that conversation.

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Forum consigliere

I like to shoot and I can shoot a lot more with a .22 than with my .40 as I can get 500 rounds for the same price as 50 of my .40. So 10 times the fun for the same price. Unless necessary it won't be my defensive weapon but for having fun it can't be beat.

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G21C,Shield.40,LCP

For an instant stopping, like Jeff Cooper used to say, aim for the lacrimal duct.!
Regards, Ray

Surely most of you must remember a fellow named John Hinkley ? He damned near took out the US Govt. armed with a "Saturday Night Special" loaded with .22 shorts

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John

One shouldn't shoot to kill. One shouldn't shoot to wound. One should shoot to stop a life threatening action. If shooting is truly justified, one shouldn't shoot someone "just a little bit". And, if the shooting is justified, and the BG dies as a result, then the BG actually killed himself by the course of his actions.

Of course, that's just my opinion.

I agree. I would really like to have a .22. You can shoot for hours for a few $$ and with little fatigue. I load my 30-06 down to rounds with light bullets that are very close to a .22. Funnest round I have to shoot and they don't hurt. My wife and boy love them. As kids (ammo was cheap but money was scarce) we could share a couple of hundred rounds between us and plink in the woods or off the railroad tracks. In my .357 ninety per cent of the rounds that I shoot wouldn't make the good defense rounds. And even for home defense I'm not going to use anything stronger than a .38 special load because I want to keep my hearing. Sure I like to load up big kabooms and kicks, but it just ain't necessary for good shootin'.

I will always own a brace of .22's for small game hunting and just for
shooting "fun". What is more inexpensive and fun to shoot all day
than an accurate .22 ? I will probably never use one for SD though.
Have a 12 gauge at home for that and i choose to use at least a .38
caliber revolver for carry. But to each his own.
I would'nt want to get hit by a rimfire.

Chuck

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They hold no Quarter