compare S&W new 317 to Ruger LCR 22?

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681ismyfavorite

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im in the market for a light weight .22lr snubby for my daughter.

ive fondled the LCR 22 and like what i see (except the lock).

has anybody personally compared the LCR22 to the light weight S&W 22lr snubbies?

in particular the LCR 22 trigger seemed noticably better than the S&W's.

i know the S&W had exposed hammer and adjustable sights, 3" bbl....but also costs substantially more.

this isnt going to be a defensive gun for my daughter, she turns 10 this week. this is for plinking, training, and totin' around for fun.....
 
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Although I like the DA trigger-pull on the 317,
I've also heard that the LCR 22 has a better trigger pull
than the S&W's. Hope you get some good responses
to this thread, I'm thinking about the LCR myself. TACC1
 
I personally would not recommend the 317, the aluminum alloy frame is a horrible combination with the 22lr round. Chambers and brass expand so much after 50-100 rounds that ejecting the rounds is almost impossible. I'd say check out the Model 63 .22lr, it's the same as the 317 but Stainless Steel.
I own more ruger revolvers than I do smith, and I actually enjoy them more than my smith. Rugers are great firearms, and the SR22 is just as good.

Check out hickock45 on youtube, he has a 20 minute review/shooting video on the SR22
 
DIYautotech said:
I personally would not recommend the 317, the aluminum alloy frame is a horrible combination with the 22lr round. Chambers and brass expand so much after 50-100 rounds that ejecting the rounds is almost impossible. I'd say check out the Model 63 .22lr, it's the same as the 317 but Stainless Steel.
I own more ruger revolvers than I do smith, and I actually enjoy them more than my smith. Rugers are great firearms, and the SR22 is just as good.

Check out hickock45 on youtube, he has a 20 minute review/shooting video on the SR22
Click to expand...

thanks but im interested in the revolver instead.
 
For starters kudos on training your daughter at a young age to responsibly handle firearms, I wish more people would do the same with their children. I don't know much specifically about either revolver and cannot comment about expansion on chambers but I do know that a double action only revolver can become a bit frustrating. I would personally go with the Smith so that she can learn to use both styles of the action and learn to be more accurate by using the single action that you would not get on the Ruger. You can always take your Smith to a decent gunsmith and have the action worked over to be much nicer than the Ruger. I'm sure you can get the Ruger worked up as well but you won't feasibly be able to have an external hammer put on it.

Hope I helped.
 
317

The 317 is awesome , I have one a 2 inch with hundreds of rounds through it and u can get the shells out easier than on my 617 / 10 shot only after a few rounds ,, the 317 has a very heavy DA pull that can be lightened up it is very accurate ( I put three rounds into a 1 1/2 " OD sized , triangle shaped group at 40 plus yards in an old appliance ) 30 years shooting exp. doesn't hurt , although they are heavier built have u ever seen a Ruger u would rather have than a Smith and Wesson ? and most of the ruger triggers really suck , But the way they come the DA pull on the 317's is way too Lawyer Engineered Heavy and the shape of the hammer is awkward if u do any SA shooting personally I don't , why they didn't stay with a 63 or 34 type hammer is a mystery , about everyone I let shoot my little 317 wants one but they are high priced even in a used one , especially the non keylock models like mine
 
I have 317's and suffer no, zero...nada problems with extraction. The TP can be tamed for your daughter with a set of Wolff (or similar) springs and maybe just the hammer spring only. It is my wife's daily carry and I have taught her to pull the trigger enough to grab the top of the hammer with her itty-bitty thumb and cock it for SA. It is a little "tender" in some areas, but it is not intended to be a range-gun. It is a very accurate little Judy-Pooper for it's size. Mine are 1-7/8" NL snubs.
 
DIYautotech said:
I personally would not recommend the 317, the aluminum alloy frame is a horrible combination with the 22lr round. Chambers and brass expand so much after 50-100 rounds that ejecting the rounds is almost impossible. I'd say check out the Model 63 .22lr, it's the same as the 317 but Stainless Steel.
I own more ruger revolvers than I do smith, and I actually enjoy them more than my smith. Rugers are great firearms, and the SR22 is just as good.

Check out hickock45 on youtube, he has a 20 minute review/shooting video on the SR22
Click to expand...

I can attest that you are 99.9% wrong about the 317s. Just this morning I blew 150 rounds through mine with zero issues. I use to work at an indoor range outside of Philadelphia and the range 317 held up with no problems.

What are you basing your statement on?
 
I purchased a 317 three years ago. 3 inch bbl, adjustable sights. The front is fiber optic, the rear is shallow " v ". The shallow "v" was a little hard to adjust too and may one day change it to a " U " for a better sight picture. Other than that I absolutely love it and have had no problems with anything. I have shot it a lot at least 2,000 rounds. Love the adjustable sight , love the fiber optic front ( very easy to see with 60 year old eye ), light as a feather, goes in a little belt holster and I never know it's there. Get the 3 inch wih adjustable sights will be easier to teach some one than with 2 inch fixed. Using Kentucky windage to aim with is frustrating to a new shooter and the longer sight radius makes hitting easier. Only wish I had one when I taught my children to shoot, this is perfect for that application. Daughter will love it.
gary
 
Interesting that one's first post is to make a statement that's completely not true....if it was a person, it would be slander! (OK, I'll admit I do more lurking than posting on this site.....)

A friend of mine liked my Mdl 18 so much, but wanted smaller and lighter. So he bought a Mdl 317, and he's well on his 10,000+ rounds (it takes him longer to load it than to shoot it).

He's one of those who believes excess cleaning wears out a .22 firearm more than shooting, and has maybe cleaned the bore 3 or 4 times. I cleaned out the innards at about 5000 rounds when I installed a lighter trigger spring. Other than that, it lives in his tackle box.....in the Pac NW.

Another friend has the LCR, and I've shot it.....it's a nice gun, and a good buy. My experience is that both Ruger and S&W make good firearms.

But I'm with those who say that your daughter would be better served by single/double action. Especially for small, weaker fingers (although kids might have stronger hands now, what with all the texting they do), double action-only may be frustrating.

Further, teaching them single-action may (IMHO) be safer: when the hammer is cocked, she'll know that the gun is ready to shoot....easily.

I trained 2 daughters how to shoot, and my Mdl 18 was the first handgun they shot. Now....soon it'll be a grandson's turn!
 
my kids been shooting since age 5 with a bb gun, then at age 6 with a cricket .22lr rifle, then at age 8 with a walther p22, she turns 10 today but the 317 or 63 is out of my price range for now.

she will have to wait for her lcr 22, none in stock in my area, my lgs is trying to find one.

i had a 4" model 63 non locked that i traded off because she just didnt like the balance, too front heavy for her.
 
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My suggestion for a young child is the Ruger Bearcat. It's sized appropriately and the dedicated SA only will teach her great handling skills. Meanwhile, save your denaro's for a new 3" 63 - you'll love it - it's like an extension of my hand - and she can develop more skills with it later. Gads, I suggested a Ruger...

Stainz
 
DIYautotech said:
I personally would not recommend the 317, the aluminum alloy frame is a horrible combination with the 22lr round. Chambers and brass expand so much after 50-100 rounds that ejecting the rounds is almost impossible.
Click to expand...

Suggest you send yours back to S&W. I just purchased a 3 inch 317 and shot about 300 rounds out of it so far, 8 different brands. I did not have one single issue with the revolver and it ejects all brass just fine. I have not cleaned the revolver yet either.

Unfortunately I have no experience with the Ruger LCR but may I offer a suggestion? Have her handle a 617 with the 4 inch barrel to see if it "fits".
As much as I like the 317 it is difficult to shoot well and any change in holding it will change the point of impact. This could prove to be frustrating to a young lady.

Good luck with what ever you two decide.
 
ive seen on GB lately that new LCR22s are going for $360~ish. thats a good price!!!

then i see S&W DAO 2" model 43 no locks going for under $500.00~!!! damn tough decision i have to make.
 
Don't have a 317, but have its cousin - the 43C and love it. No problems, poa = poi, no extraction issues and decent trigger pull for a rimfire revo.
 
well i went out and bought the LCR 22. the trigger is as tough as any other D/A rimfire revolver ive shot, the only difference is that it gets the stiffest mid stroke instead of at the end. id have preferred the 43C or something like that but with a steel cylinder. im not a fan of the aluminum cylinder guns.
 
You might also consider the Ruger SP101-22...

5765.jpg


It has a slightly longer sight radius and my give her more satisfactory plinking results.
.
 
DIYautotech said:
I personally would not recommend the 317, the aluminum alloy frame is a horrible combination with the 22lr round. Chambers and brass expand so much after 50-100 rounds that ejecting the rounds is almost impossible. I'd say check out the Model 63 .22lr, it's the same as the 317 but Stainless Steel.
I own more ruger revolvers than I do smith, and I actually enjoy them more than my smith. Rugers are great firearms, and the SR22 is just as good.

Check out hickock45 on youtube, he has a 20 minute review/shooting video on the SR22
Click to expand...

I have a model 63. I considered the alloy version but I was worried about my scrubbing out the finish on the interior of the cylinder chambers.

For durability, my vote is for the 63. Many shots later the trigger has improved.

Metal parts break-in; plastic parts break-down.
 
I like steel or stainless steel for the durability factor as well....but don't sell the aluminum cylinders short. I have seen them worn-out on range guns, but it's not the chambers that wear out. It's the rotational wear from turning on the yoke-tube and range-guns don't get all that much "love" anyway. Unless you plan to put 30-40,000 rounds through it, I would not be too concerned about an aluminum cylinder. I don't think anybody has posted a picture of a bad or blown-up chamber on an aluminum cylinder.
 
I've shot both.
Off a rest the Ruger in DA outshot the Smith in SA.
Denis
 
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