My Favorite 22lr Pistol

[Doriangray6]

I bought this 6" field model S&W 422 at a gun-shop in Glenwood Springs CO when they first came out in the 80s and have put 10s of 1000s of rounds through it since then.
Its' light weight and under slide barrel design make it easy to carry and incredibly accurate so despite some wear marks it still works flawlessly and other than a standard strength Wolff recoil spring I put in last year it's all original.
As I remember it, along with a Hunter 1210-7 holster, cost me less than $200 out the door. It also came with two 12 rounds magazines and over the years I've managed to acquire six other 12 round mags all of which fit nicely in two milsurp 1911 mag pouches.
While all my friends and relatives like some of my firearms this is the one that they "all" like and all hope that I leave to them when I croak.

 

[Yendor357]

You have to love a good 22 pistol. My deceased brother had a gun very similar, if not the same as yours. He loved it. I dont know whatever happened to that gun.

My fave is the M41. I bought the Field barrel for the then princely sum of $115 in the mid ‘80 from Gil Hebbard Guns. The Bianchi holster was originally for a 7 in barrel. I had an old shoe repair man in the next town cut it down for me. I’m sure I carried that M41 and the Bianchi 1000 miles in my mis spent youth.

A few weeks ago, I bought the Ruger Mk II on a whim. It was born in 1990. It came with the period correct Pachmayers in place. One spare mag, no box. I tapped the rear sight over a bit, and took the front sight down .012. It shoots the $3 for 50 Armscor really well.

 

[indigo22]

Likewise I love my 22Lr S&W 2206, cousin of your 422. I will hold onto this one to the end.

Replaced the rear sight, new grips and had the action slicked up, along with a muzzle adapter. Runs like a champ.

 

[sophie]

This High Standard Trophy has always been one of my favorite .22 shooters. I sold 2 of my S&W Model 41’s, one with 7” barrel and a 5” barrel because they fell out of favor to this High Standard. The 41’s were too ammo pickey too.

 

[henry1089]

The 22LR has become my go to target practice caliber since covid
I still shoot 9mm and 45 ACP regularly but it's just to easy and inexpensive to not shoot the 22
I have two M 41"s super nice and a couple of Ruggers, also very nice.... but my obsession as of late has been the High Standard pistols. They can be troublesome at times, but they are as accurate as any gun I've ever shot. They have their idiosyncrasies like feeding and mag adjustments, sometimes extraction, but once they are set up and tuned, they are super fun and ridiculously accurate. I have been hooked on them. The triggers are unmatched in my experience, they are relatively easy to work on. All models from the Victor to the Sport King are all worth shooting and owning IMHO.

 

[S&WshooterFIN]

I have five .22 LR revolvers / pistols.
Favorite is mod 17-5, but I like also my 2206 4", more than my others semi .22 Ruger MK 1 and High Standard Victor Military

 

[Doriangray6]

The 22LR has become my go to target practice caliber since covid
I still shoot 9mm and 45 ACP regularly but it's just to easy and inexpensive to not shoot the 22
I have two M 41"s super nice and a couple of Ruggers, also very nice.... but my obsession as of late has been the High Standard pistols. They can be troublesome at times, but they are as accurate as any gun I've ever shot. They have their idiosyncrasies like feeding and mag adjustments, sometimes extraction, but once they are set up and tuned, they are super fun and ridiculously accurate. I have been hooked on them. The triggers are unmatched in my experience, they are relatively easy to work on. All models from the Victor to the Sport King are all worth shooting and owning IMHO.

The HS 22lr pistols are great. I have two of them. A 1951 (my birth year) Sport King with a 6.5 barrel and a 1956 Duro-Matic with a 4.5 barrel.
With their slanted grips shooting them is like pointing your finger.

 

[TheTinMan]

Both single shot, 10” .22 LR pistols. I haven’t shot the first-year Colt Camp Perry (top) but the Smith & Wesson 3rd Model Perfected (bottom) is a delight to shoot. With my old eyes, the 10” sight radius at arm’s length lets me focus on the front sight. Conserves ammo too!

I also love my Ruger MK II … until I have to clean it.

 

[Drm50]

I’m taking “pistol” literally, so revolvers are out. That would mean I would have to nominate High Standard HD Military. It won’t outshoot any of my M41s, other High Standards or Browning Medalist. We talk’n 20+ top of the line target pistols. I guess because I had it so long. Some guns I own are just guns, others seem like family.

 

[Krogen]

I am still looking for my favorite 22 pistol. These critters are a love/hate thing with me. They can be cantankerous (like me), fickle (like my ex) and unpredictable (like new members at the gun club).

At this point, I shoot a model 41, a couple MKIII's, a Buckmark, a Match Target, a Huntsman and a Woodsman. They all have some quirks, but if I had to pick a favorite it would be the MKIII that was tricked out by Voltquartsen.

I guess I'm fickle too. I have my eyes on a new favorite, a Browning Medalist. Sadly, it's an unrequited love. I haven't brought one home. Yet.

 

[.38SuperMan]

Thought to say what my favorite 22 pistol is. I have several and each have their charm. For absolute accuracy my K22 is fantastic but for pure fun plinking my 34-1 4” and 2” are great as is my 63 4”. Again it’s hard to have a single favorite.

 

[chief38]

I'd have to say my favorite 22 LR pistol is my 1979-1980 vintage M41 that I bought new back then. I have shot it so much and it is still in perfect shape and functions like a Swiss watch. I have also used it in bullseye competitions with it's original factory sights - never lets me down either. I am one of the luckier owners and never had any feeding issues with it. I have had it on a strict CCI standard velocity diet for 3 decades but originally I used Remington standard velocity Target ammo however that ammo went down hill with consistency and that is when I made the switch 30 years ago.

While I always liked the pistol, about 10 years ago I bought a brand new - old stock, Sport & Field barrel still in the factory wrapping. I paid more for that barrel than I paid for the gun brand new - lol. It fit like a glove with no fussing and shoots better for me than the factory 5 1/2" bull barrel that came on it. Nothing wrong with the bull barrel - I just always thought it was a bit on the heavy side and the field barrel took almost a 1/2 pound of weight off. I have never put the bull barrel back on!

I sold a Colt Woodsman that was also vey fine pistol, however I hated the way it took down for cleaning. Because it was such as hassle I rarely shot it and so I wound up selling it. That said, it was a pristine and beautiful gun that was a tack driver. I sometimes do regret that sale.

I've got a slew of 22 RF revolvers (S&W & Colt's) but this thread is basically about pistols so I won't elaborate on those here.

 

[Arm]

I only have one, it's a MK II target model. Would never part with it.

 

[Kp321]

I have several 22 pistols but these days I only shoot two of them, a mid 60’s M-41 for bullseye and a Nelson conversion for speed events. From a rest, both pistols are equally accurate but I shoot the 41 a little better. The Nelson is 100% reliable so it gets the nod for events where a jam or ftf puts you out of the running.

 

[Yendor357]

I can remember disassembling a Ruger Mk 1 when I was about 18. It took me at least an hour to get that thing reassembled. But nowadays, with good old YouTube, difficult things are a lot easier.
I put the Volquartzen trigger kit in my Mk II stainless. From start to finish, I’ll bet it didn’t take me but about 35 minutes. That trigger is now sub two pounds virtually no movement (after you take up the slack) before the break.

A friend of mine recently brought over his 2 Buck Marks, and an old Challenger. I put empty cases in the chamber to cushion the firing pin, and checked the trigger pulls. Nice! The old Challenger was as nice as any Model 41. Two pounds, clean as a whistle. His two tone chrome and black, broke at just under 3 pounds, with just a little “bend” to it. The matte black one had a trigger that broke under 4 pounds with a bit of movement, but still a good trigger. I was impressed.

So I did the logical thing and got on Gun Broker. Found a nice slab side Buck Mark; it’ll be here in a few days, hopefully. I’ve ordered the Tandemkross Gear Box, and a pretty set of Altamont grip panels for it. I have high hopes. I will check back in when it all comes together.

 

[robvious]

I have weakness for 22lr pistols...
my sentimental favorite would be my late father's Ruger standard, his first pistol, 4 digit serial number... I don't shoot it... last time I did was with dad....
for accuracy it would be either my Marvel 1911 conversion or Ruger. MKII Gov Competition.. for silly fun... Beretta 21A or Phoenix HP22A... all are cheap fun...