M&P 22 Magnum - An Answer to Nobody's Question?

three50seven

three50seven

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I've always like the 22 Magnum cartridge. I recently came across a used M&P 22 Magnum for a price I was comfortable paying. I bought it, and mounted a cheap micro red dot sight on it. I shot a little over 100 rounds through, using 5 types of ammo ranging from 30 to 45 grains. Everything ran fine, and accuracy was acceptable with most.

After my range session, I started to wonder what purpose this gun really serves? It's as large as a full-sized M&P centerfire, albeit lighter weight with twice the capacity. The accuracy was acceptable, but I definitely wouldn't call it a target pistol, nor is it accurate enough to hunt small game with. As a range toy, it's a lot of fun, but the cost of 22 Mag ammo makes it a hard sell over 22 LR guns.

Overall, I want to like this pistol, but I don't see myself keeping it long-term unless I can find a good use for it. I would love to hear from others who had or have one of these, what your likes and dislikes are in regards to it.
 
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three50seven said:
I've always like the 22 Magnum cartridge. I recently came across a used M&P 22 Magnum for a price I was comfortable paying. I bought it, and mounted a cheap micro red dot sight on it. I shot a little over 100 rounds through, using 5 types of ammo ranging from 30 to 45 grains. Everything ran fine, and accuracy was acceptable with most.

After my range session, I started to wonder what purpose this gun really serves? It's as large as a full-sized M&P centerfire, albeit lighter weight with twice the capacity. The accuracy was acceptable, but I definitely wouldn't call it a target pistol, nor is it accurate enough to hunt small game with. As a range toy, it's a lot of fun, but the cost of 22 Mag ammo makes it a hard sell over 22 LR guns.

Overall, I want to like this pistol, but I don't see myself keeping it long-term unless I can find a good use for it. I would love to hear from others who had or have one of these, what your likes and dislikes are in regards to it.
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I have a Ruger Single Six Convertible. The .22 Magnum cylinder is like new because I never saw how a .22 Magnum is needed for anything. The CCI HV HP's will settle any small game and for target or plinking it's still just a hot .22 that cost's nearly as much a centerfire round. It's just my opinion of course, but it's like buying a .32 in a Compact. The .380 is much better in the same size gun.
 
I love the 22 mag cartridge. It's a super fun caliber to shoot, and the kids get to shoot something more powerful than their usual 22lr. I have the Volquartsen Scorpion 22 mag (actually, two of them), AMT Automag II, and S&W M&P 22 mag.

I'm not sure what to make of your post. When you say, "As a range toy, it's a lot of fun, but the cost of 22 Mag ammo makes it a hard sell over 22 LR guns", isn't all ammo quite a bit more expensive than 22lr? Your other pistols are just range toys too, right? Unless you shoot competitively or carry it for work, aren't all our guns "range toys"?

As an aside, how did you assess the accuracy of the gun?
 
It all goes in waves. The current "in" thing is guns that are fun and enjoyable to shoot vs. the older macho magnum/big bore culture. OEMs looking for new customers recognize that light recoiling guns are the thing.

There's definitely some drawbacks, like seeing all these muscley 250lb beardbro guys running 9mm PCCs as their primary long arm when they surely could manage an AR10 type rifle. You should train up to the best platform you can manage. If that's a .22 WMR handgun, so be it, but for most people it shouldn't be a stopping point.
 
Bought a 351C Sunday and have been playing with it out back. It's a LOT louder than my 43C and holds less rounds,so why buy it? Must be my old age stoopidity kicking in again.
 
My father bought a S&W 22A as a dedicated motorhome defense pistol. His take was that a chest full of 10 .22lr would at least deter someone from further aggression if not put an end to the situation entirely. If a 30 round Magnum was available then, he would have snapped it up with a grin.
 
i have both a 351PD and a MP 22 mag.
i like them both. the 351PD is a great pocket gun, but has very limited accuracy with its short barrel.. the MP 22 mag is a a much better carry weapon.
only issue i have had with the MP 22 mag was the pure garbage double stack magazines it shipped with. never got more than 7 rounds fired before either a miss feed, or a jam.
then i found the 10 round single stack magazines.
i have over 500 rounds through it without a jam or miss feed on the 10 round single stack magazines.
 
My wife and I searched for quite a while to find her a CCW handgun. She has some reduced hand strength so she struggled with gripping and racking pistol slides, and she is definitely recoil averse. Our son manages a local gun store so we had the opportunity to handle a wide variety of handguns. In the end, my wife chose the Ruger LCR .22 Magnum. That revolver fits her perfectly, the recoil is very manageable, and she shoots it very well. The trigger pull of rimfire revolvers is almost always stiffer than that of center fire revolvers, but she has no problem with that. I added a LaserMax red laser, and an XS Yellow Dot front sight to complete the package. Although the .22 Magnum isn't my top choice for a self defense round, it is still a very potent round and I don't think that anyone would want to be shot with a couple of them. Better to have one than none! I think that the .22 Magnum is a great varmint round and can be a great BUG. Ammo prices are not that bad compared to .22 LR unless your shooting thousands of them. Enjoy!
 

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I have a Single Six convertible, a 22WMR American Rimfire and recently added the 3" Taurus 8-shot SS revolver...

Needless to say, I enjoy the 22WMR and feel there's definitely a niche for it, although I don't prefer it in semi-automatic versions.

Reliability has been 100%: can't recall a misfire, etc. with 22WMR...

Cheers!
 
three50seven said:
I started to wonder what purpose this gun really serves?
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Not a 22 mag but a 22LR. I got a great deal on a SW22 Victory a couple of years ago. I guess we all have a gun we’re not sure why we bought, and this is mine. It is fun to shoot, almost no recoil, very accurate, reliable, and you can’t beat the cost of 22LR ammo. But it doesn't serve much of a purpose.

It’s great for plinking and the occasional varmint. As it turns out, it’s about the only gun I have that my daughter-in-law will shoot – she’s what I would call recoil adverse.
 

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In a.small frame short barrel REVOLVER I think it is much superior to the J Frame 38 Special. In fact my S.S. J-Frame 38 Special has been demoted to fishing gun. If I was to carry my J-Frame .22 Magnum I would not feel under armed.For me it shoots very accurately.

I do understand your comment about it's size. I have a CZ-82 9x18 that I feel the same way about. It is on the large size for conceal carry and open carry due to the power of the 9x18.

With that said I would keep the.gun if your budget allows it. My personal experience is six month's after I get rid of a gun something happens that makes me wish I had it back.
 
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