Belt Fed,
There are several problems in Kalifornia. The first is that the law is frequently vague, ambiguous, and even contradictory. The second is that most LEO's are not "gunnies" and may not apply the law correctly. The assault rifle law out here has effectively done away with flash hiders on centerfire rifles. Rifles chambered for the 22 LR, as you noted, have been exempted. The problem is running into an LEO that thinks flash hiders are illegal in general. And, any barrel that is threaded is viewed as silencer ready. So, the gunnies I hang around with won't even consider doing something that could result in the temporary confiscation of their "black" 22 rifles. The "compliant" 15-22 for Kalifornia doesn't have the option of a flash hider. Heck, we think it's great that our compliant model has the 6 position stock! I'm still envious of you guys just for being able to have 25 round mags!