.22 Plinker?

[JReedEsq]

I looked long and hard at several different .22s before I bought a .22 conversion kit for one of my Glocks. It's obviously different than shooting a defense caliber, but it's still a great way to spend more time shooting your carry gun.

[Guest tnglock]

Those of you shooting the Walther p22 have you taken them apart to see if it is eating your slide up? My slide was ruined after about 500 rounds, there is a fix to this if you search the P22 bible. There are about 5 persons that I shoot with almost weekly that bought the P22 after I did and theirs started doing the same thing as mine. They had the "fix" done to theirs, I am waiting to see if it works. Myself I traded mine for the Ruger MK3 and shoot many 1000's of rounds through it with out any problems. This is just a warning to tear it down and check the slide for wear.

[Guest pusherman]

I have a mosquito and a 22/45. I like the way the ruger shoots, but its a PITA to clean(the take down). The sig shoots alright, but it does jam a bit.

[Guest The Highlander]

I'll go against the grain here and tell you to stay away from the Walther. I just don't like the dinky little trigger feel. It is ok to plink with but is not a target gun by any stretch. The factory sights suck, and the safety is a little weird unless you are used to Beretta 92's and such. I just don't like it, but my daughter loves hers. I just think it is money wasted on a gun you will "outgrow" pretty quickly, in my not so humble opinion.

So what do I recommend? A Ruger Mark III, Browning Buckmark, or S&W 41 on the high end.

As far as cleaning the Rugers go, yes it is a little difficult until you have done it a few times. On the other hand, I just don't clean mine. It gets a new recoil spring every 8 or 10 years, and I don't clean it much in between. I run a Boresnake through it when I remember too, and that is it. And just so you don't think it is a safe queen, this gun sees at least 3000 rounds a year now. And for about 10 years, it was fired more like 20,000 rounds per year. Yes, the barrel is a little worn, and no, it isn't as accurate as it once was. But I've fired it more in 25 years than most people will shoot a single gun in a lifetime.

After I had fired around 100,000 rounds through it I got a little worried it would break, so I bought a twin and put it in the safe. That was 15 years ago, and I still haven't even fired the "spare!"

The Highlander

Edited May 18, 2010 by The Highlander

[byrnemm]

I'll go against the grain here and tell you to stay away from the Walther. I just don't like the dinky little trigger feel. It is ok to plink with but is not a target gun by any stretch. The factory sights suck, and the safety is a little weird unless you are used to Beretta 92's and such. I just don't like it, but my daughter loves hers. I just think it is money wasted on a gun you will "outgrow" pretty quickly, in my not so humble opinion.

So what do I recommend? A Ruger Mark III, Browning Buckmark, or S&W 41 on the high end.

As far as cleaning the Rugers go, yes it is a little difficult until you have done it a few times. On the other hand, I just don't clean mine. It gets a new recoil spring every 8 or 10 years, and I don't clean it much in between. I run a Boresnake through it when I remember too, and that is it. And just so you don't think it is a safe queen, this gun sees at least 3000 rounds a year now. And for about 10 years, it was fired more like 20,000 rounds per year. Yes, the barrel is a little worn, and no, it isn't as accurate as it once was. But I've fired it more in 25 years than most people will shoot a single gun in a lifetime.

After I had fired around 100,000 rounds through it I got a little worried it would break, so I bought a twin and put it in the safe. That was 15 years ago, and I still haven't even fired the "spare!"

The Highlander

Highlander that's impressive, and a good story!

I'm sure that Ruger has a lot of value to you.

[Guest dboonekilledabearhere]

Thanks everyone for the helpful input. I have done some more research and it looks like I have narrowed it down to the Ruger or Browning. The Browning Buck Mark Stainless Camper is a sweet looking pistol. Of course the Rugers look good too. No one mentioned anything about the Ruger Charger. It does have the built in bipod which could come in handy when shooting but I am still not sure about the design, etc. Thanks again!!!

Well....I just took a look at the S&W model 22A ( since I will be buying 2, the model 41 looks like it is out of my price range). Is anyone familiar with the 22A model?

Edited May 18, 2010 by dboonekilledabearhere

[gregintenn]

Don't cheap out on the 22s. I shoot 22s 10-1 over all pther calibers combined. My favorite is an older Smith and Wesson model 18 Combat Masterpiece with a 4" barrel.

[Mad_Squirrell]

................ No one mentioned anything about the Ruger Charger. It does have the built in bipod which could come in handy when shooting but I am still not sure about the design, etc. Thanks again!!!

The Charger is basically the Ruger 10/22 rifle with a pistol grip and short barrel . It's more gimmicky than anything but would consider it a fun long distance/ rodent gun.

I own the MkIII 22/45 . Ive put over 2000 rounds through it since I bought it used in February its been a great gun .Dad owns the the p22 its fun can't say much else for it best we can get out of it accuracy wise 3-4" groups at 25 yards . You would definitely be serviced better with the Ruger MK series or Buckmarks these pistols are accurate enough for small game hunting as well . as an added note some the Ruger MK III's come pre drilled and tapped for a scope and include a weaver base .

Edited May 19, 2010 by Mad_Squirrell

[Guest The Highlander]

byrnemm, I LOVE my Mk II. It is a 5 1/2" target model, blued, like they all were 25 years ago. Actually, I just realized this is the guns 25th anniversary year! Pretty cool come to think of it.

I've got literally a couple of hundred thousand rounds through the gun. The blue is gone off the grip frame, and the exterior barrel has wear, and a few dings. The chamber is worn and the barrel is probably a little loose and pitted, but it is still about as accurate as I can hold, although my Kimber Target .22 puts it to shame. Of course the Kimber cost what 3 or 4 of the little Rugers cost, and it has less than 10,000 rounds through it.

The little Ruger is still rock solid. When it does start to choke a little, I break down and clean it. I keep a couple of spare recoil springs, but since I don't shoot it as much anymore, I don't think I've put one of them in it in about 10 years, maybe fired it 20,000 rounds in that time. I've put a truckload of Federal 550 bulk packs through that gun!

[Guest TargetShooter84]

Go with Walther P22...I have it and love it.

[Reg]

I've had several .22 pistols over the years, but my best shooting ones have been my Brownings. I bought this one a few months ago from a fellow TGO'er and added a few accessories.

[Guest Tom@GunDepot]

The S&W 22A is not a bad shooter at all either some people don't like the flat top rail but they shoot very well. Very pocket book friendly too. I love my Walther's though mine shoot better than my single six. Also the new Chiappa 1911's 22lr are pretty good shooters, hope this helps you.

[Guest dboonekilledabearhere]

To Reg,

That is a sweet pistol.

[Guest friesepferd]

when giving my props to the mkIII 22/45, i forgot to mention that i have owened a walther. my ex took it with him, and im glad he did. although it was plenty fun to shoot, it just isnt all that high quality or reliable in the long run. i like my 22/45 a ton more.

i had a friend with a buckmark.. they are not bad. the main dissadvantage is that there are some things screwed down and the screws tended to come loose and you would have to tighten them.

out of those 3 i still find the markIII like... 500 times better than the other two.

as far as cleaning goes, like i said in my review, i really dont find it that much of a pain to take apart and put back together once u learn the few little tricks to do it. mainly which angle to turn the gun at when you release the hammer strut so that it falls into place. as others have said tho... they dont actually need to be taken apart and cleaned all that often. you can clean the main parts just with having the slide locked back and using a toothbrush and a bore snake. they can also easily go a few thousand rounds without a real cleaning... trust me. the club i ran at school cleaned their mark IIs every few weeks, and they easily had 1000-2000 rounds through them in that time frame.

[Reg]

To Reg,

That is a sweet pistol.

Thanks. I plan to add a trigger overtravel screw. While it's out, I may Duracoat the trigger black.

[Guest RevScottie]

Reg,

What grips are those? Did you have to do any mods to use them?

[Reg]

Reg,

What grips are those? Did you have to do any mods to use them?

The grips are Pachmayr wrap around finger groove grips for the full sized 1911 frame. There is a fellow on the RimfireCentral forum named Rusty22 that manufactures the adapter plates to accommodate any 1911 grip on the Buckmark.

The plates mount using the existing grip screw holes. The 1911 grips then mount to the frame.

Shoot me a PM or visit the Browning section of Rimfire Central for his contact info.

[Guest RevScottie]

Shoot me a PM or visit the Browning section of Rimfire Central for his contact info.

I found the info on Rusty22. Really sways me towards buying a Buckmark as my next .22 plinker

Thanks!

[Guest dboonekilledabearhere]

I really appreciate everyone's input and opinions. So here is what I have narrowed to...

Ruger Mark lll - Hunter or Competition

Browning Buck Mark - Camper or Contour

Any further opinions?

[Guest Tom@GunDepot]

I really appreciate everyone's input and opinions. So here is what I have narrowed to...

Ruger Mark lll - Hunter or Competition

Browning Buck Mark - Camper or Contour

Any further opinions?

Can't go wrong with either. LOL

[Guest dboonekilledabearhere]

There are a couple accessories that I would like to add to whichever pistol I purchase. A scope for sure and a suppressor would be pretty cool.

[Guest MERRILL]

I have owned the Ruger 22/45 MkIII and the Browning Buckmark Camper. Both are good guns. The Ruger is a real bi..h to take down and clean. It is not necessary to break down the Buckmark to clean it. The manual advises against it; just give it a good douche job with brake cleaner or electronic parts cleaner, then a spray of WD-40 or your favorite lubricant. Of course you clean the bore in the usual manner. Incidentally, I never broke down the Ruger either,just a good douche job with above mentioned cleaners. Forgot to mention that the Buckmark is a lot less choosy about what it eats.

Edited May 24, 2010 by MERRILL

[Guest dboonekilledabearhere]

The search is over. I have decided on the Ruger Mark lll Hunter SS with the 6 7/8" barrel. I will try to post pics when I get it. Thanks once again to Tom at Tri Cities Gun Depot. I may have to get a part time job to support my addiction.

Now another question....which scope for the new Ruger????

Thanks again TGO'ers for the advice and input.

Here is a couple of pics of my new addition

http://s882.photobucket.com/albums/ac28/db0863/?action=view&current=RugerMarklll.jpg

Edited June 13, 2010 by dboonekilledabearhere

[byrnemm]

That is a great choice. IMHO you picked the best one.

The great thing about it is if you have the money for the gun then you don't need that part time job to shoot .22

[Guest tlondon]

you did pick a good one. I own a beretta neos u22 and love it. It eats everything I have put in the mag