..I need a good .22lr pistol....

[PaiN]

I enjoy shooting .22lr for the bulk of my trigger time and consider .22's my "practice" weapons. I've already posted about my practice M1 Carbine, for hand gun practice I have a .22lr kit for my Sig P220, in theory its prefect but in reality not so much . The pistol does not operate or weight the same with the .22 on but mostly its really ammo picky and fussy in general about being clean & lubed etc... The Sig P220 .45 is a whole different animal, its a rock of reliability and function.
Any suggestions on reliable, well built .22lr semi-auto pistol, that might fit well into the "practice" role for me...?

tx

[ripley16]

It's hard to beat a Buckmark for a quality .22lr these days.
The bargain bin holds the Beretta NEOS, a quirky but very well made pistol.
I'd pass on the Mosquito and P22... too unreliable.

[PaiN]

That was fast
yea, the Mosquito is definitely out, it looks too much like my 220 kit on the inside and from what I've read likely functions the same.
I was considering an S&W 22A, but they seem to be designed as more of a "bullseye pistol"...

[BuckeyeBlast]

BuckMark or Ruger 22/45 RP would be my suggestions. The 22/45 RP seems to aim similarly to my PM9, but the trigger's are waaay different. I don't know of any 22 w/ a Kahr-like trigger.

[Kingcreek]

Buckmark or Ruger, whichever you like most. I have 2 Buckmarks and they have been great, both of mine have adjustable wonderful triggers. I'm looking for a Buckmark Camper for my daughter.

[jocko]

who knows, that might just be a model kahr should consider adding to their line. a 22 K9 would be awesome or maybe even in the cw9 series..

[mr surveyor]

I prefer the Ruger pistols...particularly the bull barrel (Mk II or Mk III) 22/45 due to the grip size and angle and overall feel. Some will complain that they are hard to field strip and re-assemble, and I think I also remember that "talking Barbie" used to say "Math is haaaard". The Brownings are fine as well, and I wouldn't hesitate to jump on one of them if the price was right. Both of these are reliable, heavy duty pistols with target grade accuracy. The Mosquito, P22 and a few others are not as suited for as many uses as the Ruger and Browning. Having shot both the P22 and Mosquito a time or two, and many, many Ruger pistols over the years, I can tell you there is absolutely no comparison. Turtle heads in the pond at 25 yards are reasonable targets for the latter, whereas the former are more suited for shots at the whole turtle at 10 yards.


surv

[gb6491]

I have 2 Buckmarks and they have been great, both of mine have adjustable wonderful triggers.

Do you have the Varmint or the Silhouette? I had a Varmint for a while, but now only a Standard and BM Plus UDX.
I concur with recommending the Buckmark, but I'm not too sold on the current Ruger MKIII. The MKI and MKII versions are a different story and I would recommend one of them without reservation.

In a service style pistol, the GSG 1911 gets excellent reviews from most users. However, my recommendation for a service style .22 would be the CZ Kadet. It's available as a conversion or stand alone pistol. All major components are made of steel (unlike the alloy GSG) so it's a heavier pistol. It has adjustable sights; it's also accurate and reliable. It's a quality item. The price of the conversion is about that of available conversions for other pistols. The Kadet pistol will generally run a bit more than the Browning or Ruger guns.
Here's a shot of my Buck Mark plus UDX and my CZ75B with a Kadet conversion installed:

A better shot of the Kadet:

Here are some other .22s worth consideration.
Ruger MKII 22/45:

Ruger MKII 5.5" Target Model:


Ruger MKII 6 7/8" Tapered barrel Target Models:

The Walther X-esse (formerly SIG Trailside) is also an excellent pistol:

Advantage Arms makes conversions for several popular pistols. I have one on my Glock 27. It works fine, but the pistol is very, very lightweight with it installed:

Regards,
Greg

[Ljutic]

IMHO, you just can't beat a Ruger Mark II. Unfortunately, you won't find them as easily as the newer Mark III guns. Here is my rational behind this.
1) Cheap magazines
2) Incredible customization options - Volquartsen stuff is fantastic
3) They work well with many types of ammo
4) They aren't fussy about being clean
5) I've never heard anyone say they have "shot out" a Mark I or Mark II, but several people will post up pictures of their 60's era guns that they still shoot today. When your kids have kids, they will still be shooting your Ruger.

With that said, I also have conversion kits for the full size Glocks, 1911, and a Kadet kit for the CZ 75. They are fine but do suffer from small quirks like slide not holding back on last round from time to time, etc. The CZ mags are incredibly high priced. The Advantage Arms mags are cheaper, but 100% plastic and may not last in the long run.

I'm in the market for another Mark II since my one experience with a Mark III has been less than stellar. If I can't track one down, I may try a Buckmark just because I've never had one.

Don't discount the Ruger Super Single Six convertible with LR and WMR cylinders. Built to survive and a ton of fun if you can appreciate a single action revolver.

[mr surveyor]

I agree with the statement about the Mk I and Mk II being the better of the Ruger line.

If conversions are a consideration, there are a lot of conversions available for 1911 platforms, Sigs, Glocks, etc.

[Ol'coot]

I have a Browning buckmark Camper this shoots like a dream with an excellent trigger and a Sig Mosquito that after ammo being finicky to begin with runs well now but the trigger is really poor with but my newest addition is a GSG -1911 is by and far my favorite .22LR for plinking and training, it shoots and handles very well and has a really nice trigger and run great on Federal bulk back ammo.

[xRUSTYx]

Nothing better than a browning buckmark i have one, and have yet to clean it even once ... 1000+ rounds later. no FTF, no FTE, nothing but pure joy ... and they come cheap

[Bawanna]

I have a Browning buckmark Camper this shoots like a dream with an excellent trigger and a Sig Mosquito that after ammo being finicky to begin with runs well now but the trigger is really poor with but my newest addition is a GSG -1911 is by and far my favorite .22LR for plinking and training, it shoots and handles very well and has a really nice trigger and run great on Federal bulk back ammo.

Ok, that does it, I'm putting one of these on my most wanted list. They look good.

[BuckeyeBlast]

Here's the 22/45 RP I was talking about (front center). Back left is a MKII, Back right is a MKIII. I'm also picking up a BuckMark on Saturday. So, if you want any comparo's... let me know.

[Ljutic]

Ok, that does it, I'm putting one of these on my most wanted list. They look good.

I was right where you are now Bawanna, and not very long ago. I was torn between the GSG or an Advantage Arms conversion kit for a 1911 I had on hand.

I went so far as to go to the LGS and let them give me the full sales pitch on the GSG. It does feel nice and it's affordable. In the end, here's what made me go with the AA conversion.

1) GSG mags were impossible to find at the time. When you do find them now, they cost 1.5x an Advantage Arms mag. I use my .22s for gun games so I need at least 6 mags. Adds up quickly.
2) No GSG has target adjustable sights. I'm not super picky, but when it comes to .22s, I want target sights.
3) Trigger isn't as good as the trigger on my tuned 1911.
4) Resale value if I decided I hated it.