Which .22 ??

[Redcoat3340]

Looking to save some money and shoot my .22 more.....

So I took my S&W 422 to the range the other day and didn't have a very good time with it. I used it for a warmup and it functioned fine (used mini-mags); but it felt so light in the hand and my targets were to say the least disappointing.

So now I'm reconsidering replacing it with another .22 (blaming the tool, not the operator of course!!). I had a very nice Ruger Mk II but sold it to my son's father-in-law as he competes in a postal league in Couer d'Alene and was shooting with an H&R Sportsman. He needed an upgrade and he's a great guy.

Not sure I want another Ruger....so I'm trying to decide what's a good .22 to practice with.

Here's a few I'm considering: new S&W Victory; Ruger 22/45, High Standard Sports King; obviously another Mk II or III; something in a Browning ? ? ?

Or get a conversion unit for my Sig p226. That makes a bunch of sense from a practical point of view -- same platform, modest expense, etc. but I'm wondering how well it actually shoots.

I'd like a heavier rather than lighter gun; not a revolver; decent out-of-the-box trigger; and ease of cleaning....which sort of points to the conversion unit....but I thought I'd ask here and see what folks said.

I've sorta ruled out the Sig GSG Mosquito/Firefly, the Walther (neither is made by actual company and while the Mosquito gets mixed reviews, the Walther is roundly panned even on the Walther board).

I'd love a Smith model 41 but money is really a consideration and I'm not shooting for high level competition....and unless I come across a screaming deal for any of the really top shelf .22s it's gonna be a mass produced gun.

Suggestions, opinion,

 

[FifthWheel]

Ruger Mark IV?

 

[Nedroe]

Make Mine a........

High Standard. Some of the finest .22's ever made
HD Military had one growin' up as a kid, have one now. It never misses.
[

High Standard Supermatic 107

None better in my book.

Ned

 

[ISCS Yoda]

Walther makes a couple of nice .22 pistols. The P-22 is a dream pistol, it is polymer so somewhat light but not a featherweight, and the shoot great. The PPK/S .22 is, of course, a classic in that it is exactly like a Walther PPK/S except not a .380. They are all metal so they have a nice heft to them, but they come with a very difficult first shot/double action trigger. The trigger can be fixed, and then it's a neat gun, looks great, feels great, shoots great. Neither of these are very expensive.

 

[Harkrader]

Beretta Neos. Looks funny, but it's a Giugiaro design that is affordable. And it shoots very well. Two barrel lengths available. Youngsters love it for its looks.

S&W 22S. Cheap, very good shooter.

Sigarms/Hämmerli Trailside. VERY accurate. My most common .22 semi-auto companion on trips to the range, or as a camp gun while backpacking.

Walther P22. Two barrel lengths. Very accurate but ammo fussy.

I do have a 41 but its accuracy is wasted on me nowadays. Safe queen.

My Ruger Mk II is also a good shooter but I HATE HATE HATE taking it down to clean. I see Ruger now makes one that is a one-step take-down. I am considering trading.

 

[hoc9sw]

As I was reading the post, I was thinking GP100 in .22, but that got washed out. I have one, and love it, but it is a revolver.

The GSG pistols are what they are. I shot out the slide on a 1911-.22 Sig (GSG product), got it fixed on warranty, and will sell it at some point.

I have the M&P 22 Compact, and love it, but any repair is a trip to CS, as there are no spare parts.

I am seriously looking at the Ruger MK IV, as it resolves the issues I had with the previous versions (I am very arthritic, and the traditional Ruger field strip is impossible for me)

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

I have a 422 also, and when I don't shoot it for awhile it seems to lose accuracy. I find that within a few sessions, it recovers that ability to hit something.

Rather than replacing the gun; buy more ammo!

Ivan

 

[JM4151]

22 handgun

The new 22 Victory's are great guns. I have a 41, a Ruger mark 2 and the Victory, which is my favorite. No problems with it.

 

[1911 45]

If you can find one check out the new mark IV. I bought one last week and I love it. One button takedown for cleaning. I have had it to the range twice now with a total of 400rds through it with cci mini mags it ran perfect not one problem.

 

[Wee Hooker]

I love my Smiths but the Ruger MK II/III and .22/45s are still the benchmark for value, accuracy, versatility and reliability in this price range. I honestly don't see anything on your list that will unhorse them. I do see several that I know you would likely be disappointed in.

 

[Irn-Bru]

Ruger SR22 is a fun little gun to shoot.

 

[Lou_NC]

Redcoat,
If you like to hit what you're aiming at, and price is a consideration, it's hard to beat the "bang for the buck" of a Ruger MK II. I don't care for the engineering changes on the MK III and in my humble opinion, the MK IV is a "solution looking for a problem". I've never had any difficulty stripping or reassembling a MK II. (If you take a minute to understand where the hammer strut is supposed to go during reassembly, it's really quite simple and logical to put one back together).

Good luck,
Lou

 

[Kanewpadle]

If you want a gun that is pleasurable to shoot, get a Mark II or IIII. Or a Victory.

There isn't a polymer framed or striker fired gun that comes anywhere close to being as accurate or satisfying to shoot as one of those mentioned above.

 

[retiredbadge8091]

I am going to own a Ruger Mark IV Target in blue ASAP...

 

[Marshwheeling]

One more vote for the Ruger. Mine is a Mk. III. It is a little fiddly to take down, but not bad enough to make me do the mods. But I'm preaching to the choir here. You know darn well there's no good reason to get anything else except just to try something different.

 

[Redcoat3340]

Thanks to all who shared their expertise.

I'm narrowing it down to a S&W Victory (I'm still feeling guilty selling some 39s and 59s to finance a couple of Sigs...maybe this will atone for it);

Will look for the Sig Hammerli and a couple of flavors of High Standard.

 

[Grayfox]

Browning Buckmark.
You can't do better for the money.

 

[steamloco76]

The S&W Victory, Ruger MKII,III, IV and Browning Buckmark have advantages over just about every other .22 semi-auto pistol; they function reliably with just about any standard or high velocity .22 long rifle ammo. I've owned a Sig Mosquito, Walther P-22, the new Walther PPKs .22 and a Ruger SR-22. All of them were and are functionally picky regarding ammo. The absolute worst was the Sig, which only worked with CCI Mini-Mag.

My vote is for the Ruger MKII, though the S&W Victory is interesting because you can switch barrels so easily.

 

[Farmer17]

I've had a Ruger MKI and a Ruger 22/45 and I like the grip angle much better on the 22/45 and it had a better trigger but both were very accurate and reliable. The take down is not really a big deal once you get used to it. I also had a Browning Buckmark Camper that I preferred over both the Rugers mostly because it had much better ergonomics. The Rugers have a little button for a thumb safety and it looks cheezy and is not as easy to reach as the big paddle thumb safety on the Browning. Same thing with the slide release the Browings is much more comfortable and not as cheap looking.

 

[zonker5]

Browning Challenger III is my go to .22 with a Buckmark close behind. You won't go wrong with either one.