SIGforum
22lr tactical trainers. Who is the best?

This topic can be found at:
https://sigforum.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/430601935/m/7030037405

November 14, 2023, 12:19 PM
stickman428
22lr tactical trainers. Who is the best?
I have a Ruger 22/45 and a MKIV with a threaded barrel as well as a Buckmark. All three are just brilliant plinkers.

Lately I’ve been looking at the FN 502 and Sig’s 322. Palmetto has a tempting deal on an ugly green 322 but it comes with 3 mags and is already priced better than the 502. I like that the Sig has a 20rd capacity verses FN’s 15. I saw that +2 followers are available for the FN so 17 round capacity is possible. Then again the FN comes with a TB and is suppressor ready which is important to me.

It looks like I would have to get an adapter to convert the Sig to a threaded barrel for suppressed shooting. I couldn’t find any available but then again Google sucks at finding stuff like that compared to the membership here.

To those that own or have shot both the FN and the Sig which did you like more? Do you think one is noticeably better made than the other?

I’ve just about shot my poor Sig Mosquito to death. I’ve had it a long time and back when 22lr bricks were $10-12 I was shooting around 1000 rounds through it a week. Every single week.

What is a more modern plinker that would be a good successor to my “tactics trainer” mosquito?


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The price of liberty and even of common humanity is eternal vigilance
November 14, 2023, 03:31 PM
Challer
As far as I know, all 322 are suppressor ready. but do not handle like another gun in the family.

For me the Beretta 92 and p226 conversion work great and have nearly the same trigger
November 14, 2023, 03:45 PM
sigarmsp226
Stickman - Keep in mind that Brad has a NIB P322 with two 20 round mags in black listed in the SIGForum classifieds for $380.00 shipped. Here is the thread link.

https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...0601935/m/6710050644
November 14, 2023, 03:45 PM
HRK
P322 is on my list, I have a Glock G44 and can say it runs extremely well for a 22LR,

It's had the occasional failure to feed or pop up of a round while loading which is typical of any 22 I've shot. Bought the threaded barrel and attached Spikes Buckwheat suppressor and it still ran well. Ergo is pure Glock so if you carry a Glock it's a good option. The only problem is the lack of an optics ready slide, that needs to be remedied as does the low capacity mag situation.

The P322 though does come optic ready so if you're going to be in the optic camp it's a step ahead as well as the larger capacity mags.

Found a good review of the P322.

Link
November 15, 2023, 01:04 PM
Tonydec
My brother has the FN. While he likes the ergo's and accuracy, and breaks down easily for cleaning. He doesn't like that it is single action only with no decocker. He has never owned a 1911 so it is foreign to him. I haven't fired it yet so can give no personal experience. I have handled it, feels good in hand for me also and the take down is much better than my Buckmark.

As to the Sig, as mentioned it does come with a suppressor adapter.


Tony
November 15, 2023, 02:36 PM
JG
Beretta 92FSR sku J90A192FSRF1 has threaded barrel and suppressor sights plus 15rd mags.
November 15, 2023, 02:48 PM
LincolnSixEcho
I don’t know about the best, but my G44 is great. Feels similar to my 19 (albeit lighter) and it runs like a sewing machine. It’s deadly in GSSF for me and honestly now having it, I never seem to shoot my M and P 22 compact anymore.
November 15, 2023, 03:20 PM
Beanhead
The suppressor adaptor for the P322 should come with the gun. Unless it is used, it should be in the box.
November 15, 2023, 03:43 PM
1KPerDay
My P322 isn’t reliable FWIW. Not reliable enough to use in matches. Good for malfunction clearance drills if that’s your bag. I have multiple mags and have tried about 6 types of ammo. I get lots of light strikes and jams with everything so far.


---------------------------
My hovercraft is full of eels.
November 15, 2023, 03:59 PM
sigarmsp226
quote:
Originally posted by 1KPerDay:
My P322 isn’t reliable FWIW. Not reliable enough to use in matches. Good for malfunction clearance drills if that’s your bag. I have multiple mags and have tried about 6 types of ammo. I get lots of light strikes and jams with everything so far.


Same situation with the P322 I had - five different mags and six+ different types of ammo and accuracy was 5” groups at 50 feet - from a rest - so I sold that specific pistol - but I really really want to own one at some point - maybe my next one will be more reliable.
November 15, 2023, 06:44 PM
stickman428
quote:
Originally posted by sigarmsp226:
Stickman - Keep in mind that Brad has a NIB P322 with two 20 round mags in black listed in the SIGForum classifieds for $380.00 shipped. Here is the thread link.

https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...0601935/m/6710050644



Thank you for the heads up! That’s a good deal at a perfect time. I had to pull the trigger on the Sig. I suppose the only logical answer is to get both the Sig 322 and FN 902 and see how they stack up against each other. Big Grin

I handled the FN recently and aside from it being SAO which is weird for a hammer fired 22lr I really liked the feel of the little plinker.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The price of liberty and even of common humanity is eternal vigilance
November 15, 2023, 07:44 PM
colt_saa
quote:
Originally posted by stickman428:
Thank you for the heads up! That’s a good deal at a perfect time. I had to pull the trigger on the Sig. I suppose the only logical answer is to get both the Sig 322 and FN 902 and see how they stack up against each other. Big Grin

I handled the FN recently and aside from it being SAO which is weird for a hammer fired 22lr I really liked the feel of the little plinker.


Congratulation on the P322

Mine has been flawless with every ammunition that I have fed it. Many thousands of rounds of ammunition have been through it so far. About 50/50 with and without a suppressor. The P322 arrives suppressor ready.

The guys at my shooting club always get a kick out of it when the 6 steel plates start falling and all they hear with their muffs on is Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!

I do not consider 22s to be tactical trainers. With out the recoil pulse of your carry firearm, follow up shots are totally different (unless a 22 is your carry gun). I train with what I carry

That said 22s are great for trigger control and sight acquisition improvement. After the first few thousand rounds I did pop a Romeo-0 onto mine

You talk about the +2 base pads for the 502 to get you to 17, do you realize that there are Factory 25 round magazines for the P322? Obviously that is for those of us in the Free States of the Union.

Right now I have the 2 20s that came with my pistol and four of the 25s.


------------------------------------------------------------------
NRA Benefactor . . . Certified Instructor . . . Certified RSO
SWCA

356TSW.com
45talk.com
RacingPlanetUSA.Com
November 15, 2023, 08:15 PM
stickman428
quote:
Originally posted by colt_saa:
quote:
Originally posted by stickman428:
Thank you for the heads up! That’s a good deal at a perfect time. I had to pull the trigger on the Sig. I suppose the only logical answer is to get both the Sig 322 and FN 902 and see how they stack up against each other. Big Grin

I handled the FN recently and aside from it being SAO which is weird for a hammer fired 22lr I really liked the feel of the little plinker.


Congratulation on the P322

Mine has been flawless with every ammunition that I have fed it. Many thousands of rounds of ammunition have been through it so far. About 50/50 with and without a suppressor. The P322 arrives suppressor ready.

The guys at my shooting club always get a kick out of it when the 6 steel plates start falling and all they hear with their muffs on is Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!

I do not consider 22s to be tactical trainers. With out the recoil pulse of your carry firearm, follow up shots are totally different (unless a 22 is your carry gun). I train with what I carry

That said 22s are great for trigger control and sight acquisition improvement. After the first few thousand rounds I did pop a Romeo-0 onto mine

You talk about the +2 base pads for the 502 to get you to 17, do you realize that there are Factory 25 round magazines for the P322? Obviously that is for those of us in the Free States of the Union.

Right now I have the 2 20s that came with my pistol and four of the 25s.



I wasn’t aware of the 25 round mags until tonight. I’ll DEFINITELY be scooping up a few of those. Cool

This is the video that sold me… well that along with the VERY fair price tag and fact that Sig made the 322 themselves. The FN is actually made by Umarex in Germany. It would be a lot cooler if FN made the 502 on their own. That said I’ll probably still buy one. I liked the one that I handled recently.




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The price of liberty and even of common humanity is eternal vigilance
November 17, 2023, 06:43 PM
Black92LX
I have the 502 and like it.
The 322 was not out yet or I probably would have the 322.


————————————————
The world's not perfect, but it's not that bad.
If we got each other, and that's all we have.
I will be your brother, and I'll hold your hand.
You should know I'll be there for you!
November 21, 2023, 07:51 AM
stickman428
First impressions of the Sig P322 are very positive.

I love the texture and feel of the grip. It looks and feels more like a compact pistol than a 22 pretending to be a 226 (Sig Mosquito). I like that Sig provided two triggers with different profiles that can be easily changed out. They appear to be making a solid effort to please as many people as possible.

The trigger pull is decent, the reset is longer than a Glock but not terribly long. I’ll be interested to see if the pull improves as it gets lots of rounds through it. My Mosquito’s DA pull never changed from awful and gritty but the SA pull did improve over time. I put close to 30,000 rounds through that little plinker and might be one of the few to actually have a mostly positive experience with their Mosquito.

I doubt if I’ll add an RMR but having the capability is nice.

The 20rd mags are another great idea on Sig’s part. They are beating everyone else in the capacity game. I also love that they make 25rd mags to rub it in the competitions face even further. Big Grin

So far it is a MUCH better 22lr pistol than my first Sig 22 in terms of fit, finish, capacity, and overall feel.

Now for the thing I don’t like.

I don’t like the way they did the threaded barrel. It loves to unscrew from the barrel and FIRMLY attach itself to whatever muzzle device you have attached. I don’t like that I cannot disassemble it without removing the threaded adapter. I can’t exactly use a thread locker on the adapter because it will need to be removed often before the gun can be disassembled for cleaning. It’s similar to the Walther PPK 22 in this regard.

It’s cold and rainy so I won’t be able to get a range session in today but pics and a range report will be coming soon.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The price of liberty and even of common humanity is eternal vigilance
November 21, 2023, 08:12 AM
DoctorSolo
Good thread, looking forward to the update.

Was looking at the G44 but the 322 is interesting.
November 21, 2023, 12:04 PM
chuck s
Don't discount the P322. It can be an important adjunct to your SIG "service" pistol.

There is more to "tactical training" than managing recoil for a second shot so the P322 as well as the airsoft version of the M18 has value managing presentation which includes removing the safety at the same time. Dry fire has literally no feed back. Yeah you got the pistol out of the holster and heard a click is X seconds but did you hit anything?

If I had the backyard space to shoot .22LR I'd ask Santa for a P322 but have to be content with the SIG airsoft M18 for now to maintain skills with my manual safety P365 and P320. My Ruger .22's controls don't remotely resemble my SIG pistols.

Draw and put a shot center of mass makes no difference what caliber projectile comes out the muzzle and "subcaliber" training can maintain that critical presentation skill even if you don't have a manual safety. First hit is often all that's necessary and certainly gets the target's attention. For a 2d hit you'll need "full caliber" recoil management practice which requires a range (or tolerant neighbors).

-- Chuck


"Never send a man where you can send a bullet."
November 21, 2023, 01:12 PM
stickman428
I decided to swap out the straight trigger for the curved one. It’s not hard to do but the first few times you do it you might get a little frustrated.

Fast forward a few hours and it turns out I prefer the flat trigger that came installed so I swapped it back. Big Grin

I have to say I LOVE the grip texture and slim grip. It’s one of the most comfortable and naturally pointing 22lr pistols I have held.

Sig made a pretty good looking gun. I have to say I do like the aesthetics of the P322 as well.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The price of liberty and even of common humanity is eternal vigilance
November 21, 2023, 02:26 PM
airscapes
Hi, first time poster on this forum. Picked up a P322 in Oct, first pistol purchase, had been renting different models at the range for weeks. Fist set hands on the p322 at the Oaks Gun Show (PA) and left with it. felt as if it grew from my hands. Anyway, worked perfectly for the first 100 rounds, then at the second outing the fail to lock on empty started to happen.. Fedex has it now, on the way back to be tweaked. Sucks, but was a simple phone call, box it and drop it off. Hope to have it back in 2 weeks.
November 21, 2023, 04:18 PM
desertfoxxx
Have:

G44
FN 502
Sig P322

Sig is picky on ammo and mag loading. A joy to shoot when it works properly. FN 502 is probably my favorite due to its heft, ergos and metal lined mags. Nothing wrong with G44 even using ProMag 25 rounders. Just doesn't have RDS cut...