MP22 or more 40/45 ammo to practice with?

[Dalavar]

I currently have MP40 (with the various other barrel options) and MP45 that both have apex upgrades. I'm really happy with the guns now but am still on the learning curve to be a better pistol shooter.

I'm trying to determine if I should pick up a mp22 to bring the skills up to snuff or use the same funds to just buy more 40 or 45 rounds and just keep shooting what I have.

I'm right handed but left eye dominant so I'm also looking into switching to shoot left handed as part of improving my skills.

I do have a 22 rifle (marlin 795) so i wouldn't be having to now supply a new ammo type. Plus, i'm thinking that the MP22 can shoot the stuff my marlin doesn't like. So i'm totally on the fence and looking for peoples thoughts.

thanks in advance!

 

[Rgoodwin]

Do a search. M&P 22 doesn't like just anything. CCI works best. Anything over 1200 fps should work. My new one was packed with grease. Clean and relube and shoot lots. Fun pistol !

 

[Mumbleypeg1]

The M&P .22 is a good trainer for things like mag release, safety on/off, and other mechanical, muscle memory drills for your other M&Ps. It isn't likely to significantly improve accuracy of shooting your other caliber M&P pistols, other than you'll not be likely to flinch shooting the .22 which might carry over. The M&P .22 is a fun shooter. If you can afford it I recommend you get one. Regarding it using ammo that your Marlin rifle doesn't like, this is bass-akwards. Your rifle will eat stuff your semi-auto pistol won't - this is true near universally, not just with your M&P. Hope this helps with your decision.

 

[Rpg]

Spend your money on ammo for the pistol you plan to use for its intended purpose.

My preference is the 45. Of course, I've used it for years and have lots of reloading components for it.

The 40 seems to me like a 'wana be' 45. What's the benefit?

Recoil in a 45 is modest and very manageable. Hardly distinguishable from a 40. If you can shoot one, you can shot the other.

You can get a few more rounds in a 40 than in a 45.

That's a silly consideration unless you plan to miss a lot. That's the only reason (in a real life - not a fantasy zombie - situation ) that you could need more rounds in a civilian SD situation.

22 pistols are great. They are their own justification.

I'd get rid of the 40 and get a 22.

 

[Rpg]

By the way, if you want a 22, find a colt woodsman or a hifgh standard model b. Either is several times better than the :S&W
A Ruger early auto is twice the gun a contemporary S&W is.

 

[Rastoff]

What kind of shooting are you trying to improve? Bullseye? Action shooting like USPSA or IDPA? Or is your focus on Self Defense?

If it's bullseye, get a .22, but not the M&P.

If it's action shooting, a better investment is a timer.

For all types of shooting, dry practice is where you'll see the most improvement.

 

[agksimon]

I guess there are differing opinions on this.
I have both and M&P9 and an M&P22 and shoot IDPA and steel challenge . The 22 has greatly helped me in my speed and accuracy at both, especially in transitioning from target to target. Sure, the recoil is different, but not something that I find a problem at all. It's the muscle memory training I get with shooting drills with the 22 a lot more than I can afford to shoot the 9mm that helps me.

 

[Dr.um]

By the way, if you want a 22, find a colt woodsman or a hifgh standard model b. Either is several times better than the :S&W
A Ruger early auto is twice the gun a contemporary S&W is.

Lol, have you checked prices on a Woodsman or Model B recently? What a surprise to learn that guns that cost 3-5x more than an M&P 22 would actually be better made guns.

I imagine a K22 Masterpiece might be a better gun too. Lol

FWIW OP, I am in the same boat (although sans .40) and I have finally decided to go ahead and get myself an M&P 22, if only to match my .45s. That couple with the fact that I love shooting .22LR out of ANYTHING made the decision for me. Are there higher quality, more affordable .22LR pistols out there? Sure there are, but they are none other that will match my M&P better.

 

[fdw]

I'd pick up a 22. I bought a FS 9 last fall and purchased the 22 about 2 months ago. Have put over 1,000 rounds through it without one failure or jam. And I've shot multiple different brands of ammo.

I think it helps with my 9, but even if it didn't it's a very enjoyable, relatively cheap pistol to shoot!

 

[Arik]

Im a believer in shooting what you carry/use for HD. A 22 behaves differently from a 9 which behaves differently from a 40 which .....etc..etc.. Shooting a 22 wont guarantee you wont flinch from a 9/40/45.

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

 

[fdw]

I'll add another thing. I've got two revolvers and two semis... and I believe the practice I do with all of them makes me a better shooter overall.

Also, because I keep the guns in various places around the house for easy access in case of need, I want to be pretty good with them all!

Just like my camera lens. I've had as many as 10 lens at one time. I've found using them all makes me better overall photographer.

 

[sheriff54]

I see the two answers and they both make a bunch of sense. Buy one gun, buy a case of ammo (yeah, I know, hard to find, high cost!!) BUT that really is a good way of learning to shoot. BUT the other way is what I did. Started with a 357. Then got a k22. Used to shoot a bunch. Read several hundred a week, every week for several years... A different time, different cost, needed to know double action and do it well !! it kept me alive the last 40 years... Warm up with the 22, then use the 357 till I had to stop or had run out of ammo. 2 - 3 times a week, several hundred at a setting. I still warm up with the k22 all these years later. I enjoy that gun. I don't see the m&p 22 the same way I see a k22 but it's a good trainer. use what works for you. one gun, a LOT of ammo. that means practice. main gun and 22 trainer, hopefully there is some ammo for one or the other AND that means practice. Seems like the one common thread is practice???

 

[agksimon]

I've seen guys burn up a lot of ammo and not improve their shooting. It's because they've developed bad habits (grip, trigger control etc.) I've helped a lot of shooters become very good by watching and correcting their techniques.
Practice does not make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect.

 

[tectrry]

I can't add any other ideas that what has been said already, but I can add my own experience. I have the MP22, MP9, & MP40c (also with 9c barrel). I go to the range every week and I love starting out with 100-200 rounds through the 22 just for fun and then I can really concentrate on what I need to work on with the 9 & 40. It works for me.

 

[Dalavar]

Thanks for all of the various feedback. I primarily shoot target until I have high enough confidence in myself/weapon to have for home defense use.

I had a huge improvement in my shooting when I did the apex kits. (low left issues). So i'm continuing to see improvements in reduced flinching etc by just continuing to go to the range and shoot a few hundred rounds. I'm also continuing to dry fire practice to improve trigger control and am noticing a lot of improvements in the front sight staying more and more stable. All of that is leaning me away from considering the mp22 a stepping stone platform for me.

But that said, i'm still considering the mp22 as a fun range compliment to the marlin.

Really enjoying the conversations and knowledge on this board. It's helped me a ton as I got back into shooting again.

 

[Rastoff]

But that said, i'm still considering the mp22 as a fun range compliment to the marlin.

Can't argue with logic like that.

 

[Bkreutz]

Thanks for all of the various feedback. I primarily shoot target until I have high enough confidence in myself/weapon to have for home defense use.

I had a huge improvement in my shooting when I did the apex kits. (low left issues). So i'm continuing to see improvements in reduced flinching etc by just continuing to go to the range and shoot a few hundred rounds. I'm also continuing to dry fire practice to improve trigger control and am noticing a lot of improvements in the front sight staying more and more stable. All of that is leaning me away from considering the mp22 a stepping stone platform for me.

But that said, i'm still considering the mp22 as a fun range compliment to the marlin.

Really enjoying the conversations and knowledge on this board. It's helped me a ton as I got back into shooting again.

One thing you can try is to buy a cheap rail mount laser (you can get them as cheap as $30) and watch the laser dot as you practice dry firing. It will show up a flinch or pull immediately (it will also show you how shaky your hand is). I don't shoot with a laser but I have one that I put on when I practice "run and shoot" and am not in a place where I can actually shoot.

 

[K-9]

I would get the MP22. Can't have too many toys.

The price difference in ammo-(.22LR vs .40) alone will pay for the pistol in a short time.

 

[spad124]

Thanks for all of the various feedback. I primarily shoot target until I have high enough confidence in myself/weapon to have for home defense use.

I had a huge improvement in my shooting when I did the apex kits. (low left issues). So i'm continuing to see improvements in reduced flinching etc by just continuing to go to the range and shoot a few hundred rounds. I'm also continuing to dry fire practice to improve trigger control and am noticing a lot of improvements in the front sight staying more and more stable. All of that is leaning me away from considering the mp22 a stepping stone platform for me.

But that said, i'm still considering the mp22 as a fun range compliment to the marlin.

Really enjoying the conversations and knowledge on this board. It's helped me a ton as I got back into shooting again.

My experience is that I bought a M&P22 last fall as a basic trainer for my adult daughter and a semi auto practice gun for myself. I don't own any other M&Ps. I bought the M&p because it was full sized, had a comfortable grip, and operated like a larger caliber pistol. My other semis are 2 Sigs and an old Norinco 1911A1--as well as a few S&W revolvers--.38s and .45s.

I had begun flinching and pulling down just before the break with my semis--more with my service sized Sig than the .45ACP oddly. I found shooting the M&P allowed me to work on correcting my flinch. While the M&P does not have the same recoil as the 9mm, with its light weight compared to my other pistols it has enough with the slide cycling so that you get the idea and have to work with it.

For new shooters, I think it is a good introductory semi. My daugher did well with it pretty quickly. Again, it is full sized, the slide cycles like a 9mm, cases eject, and it has a safety. So tranistion to a larger caliber is easier.

Two concerns I have are that first, I expected better accuracy- but with the lack of 22lr I haven't shot it much lately (not going to pay $65/brick- rather wait for supply to catch up). So, it may need a few hundred more rounds to break in as groups are getting tighter. T

he second concern is the trigger. I'm used to crisp SA triggers and this has a longer softer pull and a less defined break. I guess it's like full caliber M&Ps, but I don't know for sure. The M&P feels strange to me, but I'm used to something else. However, i'm able to adjust.

FWIW- I also have a Marlin, a 995 which is an older model of the 795 and really enjoy shooting it. CCIs work well in both. The M&P22 does complement the Marlin well.