I have a 44 (actually 2 of them) but there is zero reason to get one if you are not trusting to practice in a Glock style firearm. None

quote:

Originally posted by hrcjon:

I have a 44 (actually 2 of them) but there is zero reason to get one if you are not trusting to practice in a Glock style firearm. None

I do not have any Glocks, so that is not a reason.

However, I can actually find one of these to buy, which is more than I can say about the Ruger or the Browning, so that might turn out to be the deciding factor.

V-tail. don't get a 44 if this is your sole .22lr purchase. There are rugers, victories and buckmarks out there. I see a zillion of them online... and there is literally nothing on the horizon that will make them unavailable if the pricing on those is the issue.

quote:

Originally posted by hrcjon:
V-tail. don't get a 44 if this is your sole .22lr purchase. There are rugers, victories and buckmarks out there. and there is literally nothing on the horizon that will make them unavailable.

Where do you see them? I am striking out, every place I look.

Used is fine, new is fine, but I have not seen either. Maybe I'm not looking in the right places.

I just quickly glanced on gun broker, buds and a few other places I might buy. all had inventory. Because there are a zillion models it may not be what you specifically are looking for. I would guess your local dealer could probably get one without too much wait... my local LGS has literally had nothing but victories on its shelf in this whole mess.

quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:

quote:

Originally posted by hrcjon:
V-tail. don't get a 44 if this is your sole .22lr purchase. There are rugers, victories and buckmarks out there. and there is literally nothing on the horizon that will make them unavailable.

Where do you see them? I am striking out, every place I look.

Used is fine, new is fine, but I have not seen either. Maybe I'm not looking in the right places.

Yeah most everyone is wiped out of any Ruger or Buckmark autoloading 22 LR right now including Buds and Grabagun. This seller on Gunbroker has 6 Ruger 22/45 for buy it now immediate purchase and checkout at reasonable price considering today's market .

Getting reasonably priced 22 LR ammo is a whole another problem too.

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/890386659


A Buckmark.

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/889440933

This message has been edited. Last edited by: grumpy1,

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What they all had in common was unreliability; it never took very many rounds through any of them, revolvers or autos, before they got dirty and began malfunctioning. The Bearcat, in particular, got dirty quickly, enough that it was difficult to insert rounds or extract brass, and frequent failures to fire occurred, especially when the rounds weren't fully seated due to dirty chambers. Typically two or three cylinders were enough to get there, with some ammunition dirtier than others, of course.

This surprises me. I've never shot a bearcat, but I have a single-six, and I've never had a problem with it, even after sessions involving hundreds of rounds. Yes, it will take a little more pressure to insert rounds into the chambers after it gets dirty, but not what I'd call "difficult". The design of the gun ensures that they are fully seated in the chambers as the cylinder rotates...if they're not, the cylinder can't rotate. I've never had problems with FTFs with that gun....in fact I've frequently taken ammo that failed to fire in other guns, stuck it in there, and watched it go bang. Same with my MkII.

It's true, though, that some guns are just lemons. I had a Marlin 60 that was the most jammomatic thing I've ever owned...it wouldn't even get through a full mag without a failure to feed. I cleaned it, polished the feed ramp, tried all sorts of stuff and just couldn't get it to be reliable. I love Marlins, and the 60 has a fine reputation, but mine was just junk. I sold it off and don't miss it at all.

22lr is not as reliable as center fire, no doubt, and some brands are worse than others. Remington seems to be the worst in my memory...especially the thunderbolts. I typically found several bad ones in every box of 50 of that stuff. I've been shooting winchester M22 lately, and only seem to have failures to fire once every 150-200 rounds. Most of those I can rotate so the firing pin hits elsewhere on the rim, and they'll fire on the second attempt.

quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:

quote:

Originally posted by Rob Decker:

Start with Ruger (Mark IV) and then go elsewhere if you're not satisfied.

I do not see any in stock anywhere. Do you have any suggestions?

I'll bring the pair with me next week.

I just pulled up one of the wholesaler sites my buddy's shop uses....no Ruger 22s in stock. Actually not much of anything in stock at the moment. New inventory is real hard to come by.

Rugers and Brownings shouldn't be that hard to find if you are willing to buy online. Look at Gunbroker/Gunsamerica/Gunsinternational.

Given the current ammo situation, I've been looking at a lot of .22 pistols as well, but have been going in an entirely different direction.

Much as I've tried I can't warm up to the Rugers or Brownings. For a while I was looking pretty seriously at the Sig Trailside (the Mosquito doesn't seem to have a good reputation). However, the Trailside also seems to have some problems with the breakage of small parts.

Since I don't mind buying used, like some of the classic older guns and want something that is extremely accurate I've been looking at the Smith 41 and some of the High Standards. I'l probably end up spending more for a 20-30 year old gun than I would on a new Ruger, but that's ok.

Eventually may end up with a Ruger and some upgrades, but for now am having fun learning about the S&W's and High Standards and hoping I don't end up with a jamo-matic.

quote:

Originally posted by Houndog:

Since I don't mind buying used, like some of the classic older guns and want something that is extremely accurate I've been looking at the Smith 41 and some of the High Standards. I'l probably end up spending more for a 20-30 year old gun than I would on a new Ruger, but that's ok.

Eventually may end up with a Ruger and some upgrades, but for now am having fun learning about the S&W's and High Standards and hoping I don't end up with a jamo-matic.

Nothing at all wrong with Rugers I have a couple but as a purely personal preference I've been shooting my Buckmarks far more than My Rugers lately. I reserve my Trailside for training with a lighter weight pistol.

The S&W 41's are a Classic, finding ammo that runs the best in one is really not much more than finding the most accurate 22lr in a given pistol. Maybe be spottier ammo availability it's nice to have one that runs well with anything. I would probably shoot my 41's more if they had a Red Dot sight on them like a couple of my Brownings, That and I have a bunch more Browning mags. I probably should invest in a Clark barrel for one and put a Red Dot on it. All in all I seriously doubt our Great Grandchildren will wear out a model 41 and so spending a little more on an appreciating Classic Firearm might be a worthwhile investment for you. Mine sure as heck aren't going anywhere!

I had a High Standard reproduction that was OK but not quite up to the original High Standards. Magazines are a little harder to find. Than for Brownings or Rugers. The High Standards steeper grip angle might be great for a Glock shooter but other shooters might prefer a more standard grip angle. It's something to consider when finding the exact one you want.


Some may be happy with a couple mags but I much prefer 10 or more mags for a 22 pistol since my Gun Club has a dedicated 22lr plinking range that is just GREAT to shoot a 22 pistol at. It's fun to crank off a 100rds or more and then speed load the mags and go right back at it.

Anyway lots of good advice from others here too. I hope you find one or more 22lr pistols that you Love! :-)

Depends what you want to do with the .22lr
For economical shooting to light competition
You could get by with Buckmark and the S&W Victory

Both have excellent aftermarket support and have been reliable performers.

I'd recommend the Ruger platform, however it has its limitation in that you can't swap barrels as the "upper" is the registered part of the handgun.

Don't get me wrong, I do love the Rugers.

Me, for informally .22lr shooting I have my S&W 2206, which functions flawlessly, has remarkable re-set.

For formal, Bullseye league, I use a S&W Model 41... standard model with Clark barrel, Vortex Venom 3moa and Rink grips.

This setup is more accurate than rifles I have owned. Sandbagged, one hole 5rnd groups at 75ft.

quote:

Originally posted by Houndog:
...

Since I don't mind buying used, like some of the classic older guns and want something that is extremely accurate I've been looking at the Smith 41 and some of the High Standards. I'l probably end up spending more for a 20-30 year old gun than I would on a new Ruger, but that's ok.

Eventually may end up with a Ruger and some upgrades, but for now am having fun learning about the S&W's and High Standards and hoping I don't end up with a jamo-matic.

For those interested in a lot of information- rimfire central dot com has a LOT of info- and a very good High Standard section.

Distilling what I've learned there, I'd say that the High Standard 106 [military grip angle] is generally as good or better than anything made AFTER that- so, anything made since around 1969/71 to closure around 1983.

If you like slant grips, the 104 is tops in quality.

I like the 101 Supermatic, but the trigger isn't quite as nice as the 104 or 106.

Basically- the peak was around 1962-1967, for high standards.

That said, I do like the older ones from the 1940s and 1950s. This is a summary from a 'shooter's point of view, where durability, reliability, trigger refinement, accuracy and sight quality are evaluated.

DJPaintles mentioned mags being a little harder to find. interarms tx dot com sells new-made magazines of high quality. They have other parts as well. I have had no problem getting mags, other than their $55 cost.

But, Houndog, if you go High Standard- be patient and expect to have to tune magazines.

You may get lucky and they work just fine, but that has not been my experience, on average.

I have an elderly High Standard Supermatic Citation Military that is very accurate. But magazines ARE a challenge. I have two period magazines that feed well but off brand replacements do not, although I know one guy whose gun show specials do fine.
I splurged on some "type" replacements from the rump organization in Texas. After lip adjustment, they feed but do not always drop free.

After all this watch V-Tail pick up a Taurus TX22 Comp.

https://youtu.be/68CgjdPOhNA

I'll throw rocks or hit things with a stick before I buy another Taurus.

I like the Ruger MK family for a factory dedicated .22; I also highly recommend a conversion kit for platforms you already have. It's a great way to build good muscle memory skills with the same trigger group you already shoot with. I would also suggest folks get a decent quality rimfire revolver that don't already have one, just because.

just a small list of the conversion kits I own...226 229 1911 92 cz glock ar hk. I'm probably missing some as this is off the top of my head. They all suck compared to a decent dedicated .22lr like the ruger or victory. especially given the OP needs.

I have a Buckmark Camper and a Ruger MKII heavy barrel. They both have their own merits. The MKII is stupid-accurate but the trigger could be better.

The Buckmark is the funnest gun I have and I like the fact that you don't have to permanently modify the pistol to customize it. You can change barrels with just a couple of screws. With the Ruger MK series, you're stuck with what barrel you have.

The Buckmark has the benefit of flipping the sear spring for an instant 2# trigger pull.

The MK series has a stiffer factory spring, but there's tons of aftermarket VQ parts to make the trigger more desirable.

It's also easy to add a PIC-rail to the Buckmark. Two screws and you're done.

I run my Buckmark suppressed with a red-dot.

Tony

I have a browning challenger II that I bought back in 1975, great little pistol, feels completely different than my buckmark, and I shoot it much better, for whatever reason.

Final decision has not been made yet, but at this point it looks like I will probably choose either the BuckMark or a Ruger Mark ???.

One of our SIGforum members is planning to stop by the hangar tomorrow and said that he will bring two Rugers, a Mark II and a Mark IV, for me to fondle, and Martin-who-works-with-me has a BuckMark that he will let me play with.

Not sure about the BuckMark, but the Ruger apparently is available in many configurations. I would want a pretty basic model of whatever I get.

Final choice will of course be influenced by what I can find for sale. If any of y'all has one that you want to sell, please contact me via the email address in my profile.