graycrait

The two polymer PLY 22s have been working 100% with nearly a 1000 rds of mostly hot or heavy stuff through them. The one that blew apart was an older all metal PT22, the really old ones with the half decent wood slabs that don't split apart. I grade the PLY 22 (polymer) Taurus tip-up pistols as reliable as does my shooting partner.

A friend and I have been shooting PT22s vs Beretta Bobcats vs Taurus PLY22s with all sorts of ammo. I shot some 60 grainers a few weeks ago and at 5 yards I had some hit sideways on a Shoot N See. I have fired about 250 rds of 60 grn SSS out of my PLY22 with nary a hiccup. I can't wait to get to the range with my two new to me 1:9 twist .22 rifles and fire some 60grainers. Next up for the 60 grainers will be out of a 8-shot Ruger LCR "Lead Slinger" as soon as mine gets in, hopefully this week. My buddy has about 5-600 rds of Hyper Velocity ammo out of his PLY 22. He also has a pair of Berettas and a PT22. My PT 22 slide blew apart during our experiments.

Shawn, Buy a couple of springs for that SA 1911 and an extra sear, disconnector and hammer. Also get a trigger of your choice, maybe even a blank. Then do a complete trigger job. Make sure you have one really good stone with very sharp edges. You never know some oversize pins might add finesse to the job. That is about all the further I have gone. Peening, squeezing and hand fitting rails to frams seems to require more tools than I want to get into. Fitting an oversize bushing would probably be doable at home. I studied on fitting lugs to slide and fitting the hood but would rather see it done in person. Having said all that I traded off my last 1911 project gun. It worked well but is now a project gun for a fella that wants to teach himself more aspects of 1911 work. As for DA revolvers S&W and Rugers aren't bad. Either is nearly as easy as the 1911 but require a little more finesse. I've never fit an oversize hand in a revolver and like fitting a 1911 barrel to the slide I would like to watch someone do it. I don't like to mess with Charters with knocking out the frame pins. In my estimation unless it is to replace a broken part there isn't much gained by opening up Charter and Taurus revolvers. Even though it is modular design the S&W M&P can be trickey. Having to remove the rear sight to access slide innards is bad juju unless you have a good sight tool. Then you have a very easy to lose sear spring in the frame. One of my friends has given me an Erma "Luger" take a look at as it doesn't work right and a Walther SP22 that he sort of wrecked. I sort of dread even starting these two. The Walther not so much but the Erma... I did an Erma before in .380 but vaguely remember it wasn't fun. 10/22s and Ruger MK series .22 pistols are comparatively easy except for the already mentioned safety detent ball and spring in the pistols, which are much larger than the S&W M&P sear plunger and spring. Where possible use a "cheater" pin to keep things together in both disassembly and reassembly. I always forget that. I would like to hang out with some smith who knows his way around milling, using a lathe and soldering just to see how a pro uses those tools.

You will likely need a rifle cleaning/work stand, get the red plastic one, durable and good enough. Also a variety of needle nose smooth and rough jaw with various bent tips. For holding the pistol frame I use a cheap drill press vice on a rubber mat. Plastic weighted hammer and a brass faced hammer. A gunsmith block where you have holes in it that you can lay a pistol down on it and knock pins out, get them at Brownells or make one out of wood or just use a roll of duct tape laid on its side (works well holding the pistol in place too). I used needle oilers a lot. I also have a sight tool and a Lyman digital trigger gauge. A laser boresighter is nice to have. I use Bear Metal "Q"-tips. I have a mini Lousiville Slugger 16" that I use to tap on revolvers to "walk" the side plates off. Ditto the punches, can't have too many: brass, steel and roll pin. Ditto files, especially needle files. Make some with "safe" sides where that side is smooth. The Wheeler bit set is good value, as are the Grace screwdrivers. You need pipe cleaners, Flitz and rags. Don't forget hex wrenches in both metric and inches. A variable speed Dremel with a bit kit and a Foredom help when controlled electric power is needed. Remember some projects require rarely used expensive tools and that might be the time to borrow if possible or take the gun to a real smith. This "kit" does about 90% of anything I do:

Saw one in Clarksville last week. I gotta have one or two.

Somone correct me if I am wrong. There is only one LEO primary dealer in Glocks in TN. I believe they cover a multistate area. Sub LEO dealers have to pay more than the primary Glock dealer does because the primary dealer has to make a profit too. Sub dealers then have to charge more than the primary dealer charges them to make a profit. How much more each sub Mi//Leo Glock dealer charges is a market decision of the seller, usually driven by the buyer. I've been to the Outpost quite a few times on trips to visit an old friend in the Manchester area and nearly every time walk away empty handed scratching my head. I just figure they have the luxury of many I24 customers. Buying at G&L is great, I just avoid it on weekends. It has been like Black Friday on weekends for years it seems. Having Jeff Wall there is a huge benefit. Nice guy and very competent. There is an obvious reason G&L is so busy. Congratulations to them.

Is there another reliable gun besides the G19?

I haven't recrowned one, but am looking into it. I look at the exit marks of my own .22 and don't see anything "un-symetrical" But I am wondering if a really good re-crown job can, in pracitical terms, "improve" plinker gun performance? Why the guys out West re-crowned the Ruger MK II Government - I have no clue. I do have some .22s that have very nice deepset crowns which seem to shoot well. I am wondering if I learn to re-crown my own guns that I may prevent future issues? Most "inexpensive" .22s seem to hav shallow crowns. I am wondering if Rugers in particular could stand a better crown. Ruger in general produces guns that are in MHO about 95% "there." With a little after market their pretty darn good quality mass production can be fine tuned to be 1st class. Therefore I wondered if their crowns could be improved? Craig

I had a KT Sub2000 Glock 9mm and the only problem I had with it I couldn't pry it out of the hands of other people who wanted to shoot it. They are fun, work well and for an inexpensive 9mm carbine - simply work! I opted for a 5.56 ultralight that shoots nearly as cheap of ammo with a lot more punch. However, I wouldn't turn down a good deal on a zombie 9mm carbine that works as well as the Sub2000. My only real issue with the Sub2000 was with the cheek weld and the funky front sight. A good trio would be a Glock 9mm, KTSB2000 and an Advantage Arms .22 Glock conversion. Even better would be a Glock 9mm, TacSol .22 conversion and a light AR 9mm with Hahn block for Glock 9mm mags.

I've been down this road. Dolomite has good advice and I have used Muellers mysel. However, for about 150 bucks I don't think you can beat the Weaver 2.5-7x28. It is the perfect field .22 scope - an elegant sufficiency. It balances well on nearly any practical .22 and gives you clear glass, enough practical light and aesthetically doesn't overwhelm a .22. On the other hand Nikon has come out with a BDC rimfire scope that has caught my eye and I may get because I like to shoot a variety of .22 ammo. I am curious if I can match specific .22 bullets to the various BDC reticles on that scope on one particular .22 rifle. Nikon Prostaff 3-9x40 Rimfire Rifle Scope 6725, Matte w/ BDC 150 Reticle Weaver 2.5-7x28 Classic Rimfire Rifle Scope

I know this is going to be a "she said he said thing," but I have to bring it up. I have a friend going to one of the US's big gunsmith schools. He and I have traded, tinkered with, bought and sold a pile of .22s. I have probably done 20 VQ upgrades on Ruger MKI, IIs and III's including internal polish jobs, etc. I am a rudimentary armorer on a number of handguns, some school trained and others more or less self-taught. I mentioned to my gunsmith school friend that I thought a tuned up Ruger is probably equal to any gun for sale less than a grand including the S&W 41. He told me that they recrowned and did a VQ upgrade on a MKII Government and shot it against: Buckmark Target, S&W 41, Hammerli Trailside, & H&S Supermatic Citation. He said "hands down the Ruger was the more accurate pistol" in their informal multiple shooter test. Practical or not, objectively true or not - I don't care. However, it is my contention that except in the most exacting "staged" impractical shooting competitions a properly set-up Ruger is probably as good as any .22LR pistol in the sub-$1000.00 category. My friend more or less verified that for me. What is my point? Save your money and spend 60 bucks on VQ Ruger parts, 30 minutes on polishing and either do it yourself or have a smith recrown your Ruger. New grips if you need them. Unless you are shooting a Hammerli 208 or one of the more modern Euro pistols (Pardini, Walther, Bennelli, etc.)in some esoteric style of competition you probably can't shoot as good as the Ruger. I just did another Ruger MKII 5.5 SS for a local PD detective, sniper on the Tac Team, trained by the local Army SF sniper instructor and Camp Perry competitor. I looked at the gun and said to myself, "Why, in practical terms, does one need anything more?" I get this: Pardini - Larry's Guns Inc. But what I don't get is spending more that a Ruger can give you unless you have the training, skill, discipline needed for a specialist target pistol other than vanity? Craig in Clarksville

Do not get a Glock.

I've had both, had some fun with each, sold them both to fellas here on the forum. They did make me want to get a 9mm AR for a time but I got over it. If a PC9 or Camp 9 fell my way I would like to try them out but am not keen on spending real money on either. I still think my 6lb AR covers and then some what any 9mm carbine can do. Between the two subject carbines my nod goes to KT for weight, size when folded and the ability to use (in my case) Glock 9mm mags.

DS, thanks.

I've shot quit a bit out of it out of various .22s but just wanted to get a feel for what other AR shooters may have seen out of the 1:9 AR barrel seeing that a .22LR is something like .002" difference in diameter vs 5.56. I have a Tactical Innovations 10/22 1:9 barrel as a control vs the AR, just haven't been able to get to a range since acquiring both.

Has anyone used a .22 conversion in their 1:9 AR and had any luck with the Aguila 60grain SSS?

This one is compact and lightweight. FP-45 Liberator - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia VOCO FP-45 Liberator Pistol If not the above I would go Glock:)

I hope to have some luck with the CMMG bolt replacement conversion. I want my lightweight AR with its 1:9 twist barrel to work with Aguila 60grain ammo. If not I got a Tactical Innovations threaded 1:9 twist barrel installed on one of my 10/22s for the 60grain SSS.

Cool! Lesson learned for us all!

lostpass, This is something you can do yourself. Get some blue loctite for the rear screws and a brass punch to hammer out the old front sights and hammer in the new ones. I've done it with these sights before. Rear sights. Put a little loctite on the screw threads, not in the holes. If you put it in the holes it can drip into the receiver and onto the bolt. No big deal but can be a slight cleanup irritant. Front sight. It may be just as easy to leave the barrelled action in the stock and lay the stock on the carpeted floor. Put a board under the barrel where the sight is that offers some support for your pounding but of course make sure the sight and dovetail clear the board. Knock the sights out from left to right and back in right to left. Left side is the ldft side of the rifle if you were shouldering to shoot it. If you have someone around it may help if they hold the rifle still while you pound the sight out. Brass marring can be eliminated with a graphite pencil.

I read this when it first came out. Probably a "must read" for a "game changer" firearm. The geopolitical developments due to the freewheeling proliferation of this firearm can't be undersestimated.

Detail strip the thing. The beauty of the Ruger action is that you can do that yourself. Just watch some of the small springs in the trigger action, it comes out as a unit but when you start pulling it apart you could lose a spring. My experience is that early actions of this type seen in the Speed and Service Sixes may have had a little more hand fitting than later model GPs and SPs, maybe not. Anyway when I have disassembled later model Ruger DA revolvers I found that often times there were small amounts of "slag" left from the casting process. I just took a pick and fairly smooth needle file with safe edges and smoothed things out a bit, removing the occasional bit of "slag." Clean everything well and oil with tranny fluid and reassemble. Ruger GP100 Book of Knowledge « Gunner’s Journal

I posted this on another forum where some fella was having issues with his Advantage Arms Glock .22LR conversion kit. It may be of some use to someone. I've had a half a dozen or more of the AA conversion kits, all for 9mm Glocks. They usually have gotten away from me when people I know have used them and couldn't get one, so I sold them mine. I currently have one each for G26, G19 and G17. I mainly accumulated them to help train my wife. No issues with them at all. My biggest issue with the AA conversion is that it is so light. I partially remedied that with a Seattle Slug brass grip void filler in all 3 of the Glocks I use the AA conversions on. A rail light also adds some weight. I also have the same sights on my carry Glocks as I do on my AA conversions. I was mainly firing some pocket .22s this weekend using Aguila 60 grain SSS and got out the G26 w/AA conversion. It digested the long soft nosed Aguila 60 grainers no problem with no evidence of keyholing at short range, something another short barreled pistol I was working on couldn't do. (Yeah, I know about 1:9 twist vs 1:16). I am currently infatuated with 60 grain Aguilas. I would love to have an AA G19 conversion with a threaded 1:9 twist barrel. However, I have found that CCI Minimags are pretty reliable out of an AA conversion. I have a fairly large bucketful of .22 pistols and have had many other, while getting to shoot a lot of different guns belonging to friends. If I want to shoot the staples out of my shooting partners targets I don't reach for the AA conversion kit. But to teach folks how to handle a Glock and have some cheap fun with an almost too light of a .22 pistol for its size, the AA works for me. For me the AA conversion is not a very good platform for making tiny groups. I think the barrel probably spits the bullets out well enough, but a Glock trigger on such a light firearm is not a recipe for consistently tight groups for me. I have found that these things need to be clean and for me seem to run well on a relatively light lube, which I apply anywhere and everywhere friction occurs, especially that gizmo that slides in and out of the frame attached to the barrel. I use red transmission fluid on the AA kit. Unlike my Glocks the AA kits needs to be cleaned more than I like, but it is what it is. If I want to shoot a light accurate .22 pistol that shoots a variety of SV ammo well I reach for a S&W 422.

[TABLE=class: sfinnerposttable] [TR] [TD=class: sfpostcontent]I know it is "whatever the market will bear" but I find the pricing in Fjestad's Blue Book nearly laughable when it comes to DW revolvers and what they seem to be bringing on Gunbroker. Two examples from the online current edition of the Blue Book: [TABLE=class: text] [TR] [TD=class: black10bold]Model 15 2 in. barrel[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD] [/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [TABLE=class: text, align: center] [TR=class: black10bold, bgcolor: #eeeeee] [TD=width: 30%, align: left]Grading[/TD] [TD=width: 10%]100%[/TD] [TD=width: 10%]98%[/TD] [TD=width: 10%]95%[/TD] [TD=width: 10%]90%[/TD] [TD=width: 10%]80%[/TD] [TD=width: 10%]70%[/TD] [TD=width: 10%]60%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD=align: left] [/TD] [TD]$285[/TD] [TD]$225[/TD] [TD]$200[/TD] [TD]$190[/TD] [TD]$180[/TD] [TD]$170[/TD] [TD]$160[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [TABLE=class: text] [TR] [TD=align: right]Last MSR was $346.[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [TABLE=class: text] [TR] [TD=class: black10bold]Model 15 Pistol Pac[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]- includes 2 1/2, 4, 6, and 8 in. barrel assemblies, extra grip, 4 additional front sight blades, and aluminum case. Disc. 1995.[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [TABLE=class: text, align: center] [TR=class: black10bold, bgcolor: #eeeeee] [TD=width: 30%, align: left]Grading[/TD] [TD=width: 10%]100%[/TD] [TD=width: 10%]98%[/TD] [TD=width: 10%]95%[/TD] [TD=width: 10%]90%[/TD] [TD=width: 10%]80%[/TD] [TD=width: 10%]70%[/TD] [TD=width: 10%]60%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD=align: left] [/TD] [TD]$500[/TD] [TD]$395[/TD] [TD]$360[/TD] [TD]$330[/TD] [TD]$300[/TD] [TD]$275[/TD] [TD]$260[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [TABLE=class: text] [TR] [TD=align: right]Last MSR was $629.[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] Who updates the Blue Book? Why? Cause now that I am interested there aren't any DW revolvers available at those prices. I realize the Blue Book is a guide but in DW revolvers it isn't even close. It is the same case, (Blue Book is underpricing) with other individual "collectable" guns like the S&W 547 K-frame 9mm and Ruger Speed Six 9mm. However, it appears the whole DW revolver line is way underpriced. Craig in Clarksville, TN [/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE]

When you detail strip it, your young why not, do it over a big white terry cloth towel. Two things that always seem to fall out are the trigger plunger & spring and often the detent ball & spring in the safety. They are not near as small as the sear plunger/spring in a S&W M&P, but when they bounce across the floor and land in that 70's dark green shag carpet time spent looking for them gets irritating.