.22LR Pistols

[George Bynum]

Originally Posted By: Reddy45
For what it's worth, I have always had better luck shooting 22LR pistols with high velocity ammo. CCI Stingers and Minimags are good picks. Makes them boom a little more and improves cycling.


I did not confirm this myself, but the Ruger forums have said this multiple times:

Directly from the FAQ at Rugers websight, concerning ammo in the Ruger 22 Auto Pistols...

What type of ammunition should I use in my Ruger .22 pistol?
The Ruger .22 pistols are chambered only for the .22 caliber Long Rifle cartridge, standard velocity or high-velocity, manufactured to U.S. Industry Standards. Do not attempt to load hyper velocity, .22 Long, .22 Short, or any other type .22 caliber cartridge into the magazine or in the chamber of the pistol. Use of .22 shot shells is not recommended.

I limit Stinger and Velocitor to bolt action rifles or revolvers. Ruger does say (cannot find citation) that hyper-velocity is ok in the SR22, but I don't have one.

 

[billt460]

If you want to achieve the most longevity out of any .22 LR semi auto rifle or pistol, use the lowest velocity, (power) cartridge that will reliably cycle the action, without causing any feeding or ejecting malfunctions. Using any load with more velocity or power beyond that requirement will only serve to increase wear to the pistol. It won't be dangerous, or break it. But it will induce more wear over time.

If you have a semi auto .22 pistol, be it Ruger, Browning, or otherwise, and it functions reliably on Standard Velocity ammo, and instead you feed it High Velocity, it will only serve to increase the slide velocity. This will, over time increase wear. It's simple physics. For every action, there is an equal or opposite reaction. More velocity out the barrel, equates to more slide velocity going rearward when the action cycles. All other things being equal.

This is especially true in a straight blowback action. And not one that uses gas, delayed blowback, or employs some other operating principal that gives time for chamber and barrel pressure to dissipate before the action begins it's cycle. .22 semi's are straight blowback actions. So this additional residual energy is directly transferred into rearward motion of the slide. So like any other machine with moving parts, the harder you use it, the more it will wear. This doesn't apply to a manually operated bolt, pump, or lever action .22, because nothing is moved by the force of the cartridge, except the bullet out the barrel.

 

[DriveHard]

another vote for the Buckmark. I love mine!

 

[Astro14]

Just took my neighbor shooting.

She had an SR-22. I had a Single Six.

The SR-22 is a nice, reliable pistol. Very reasonably priced. Easy to strip/clean.

But I really like the accuracy, and nice trigger, on the Single Six.

Cowboy vs. modern. But the cowboy-style action still works just great...

 

[Yah-Tah-Hey]

S&W Model 18 Combat Masterpiece purchased new in 1972.

 

[billt460]

Originally Posted By: Astro14
Just took my neighbor shooting.

She had an SR-22. I had a Single Six.

The SR-22 is a nice, reliable pistol. Very reasonably priced. Easy to strip/clean.

But I really like the accuracy, and nice trigger, on the Single Six.

Cowboy vs. modern. But the cowboy-style action still works just great...


Were you shooting .22 Magnum or .22 L.R.?

 

[Astro14]

Just .22LR. I’ve got both cylinders, but .22magnum is more expensive than 9mm these days...

 

[AVB]

I don't know why, but I like that the Ruger Mark series uses a bolt similar to a rifle. I have a MkIII 22/45 lite. It really is light with the polymer frame and skinny barrel in the aluminum shroud, but I would like to buy a MKII with the metal frame one day.

 

[billt460]

Originally Posted By: Astro14
Just .22LR. I’ve got both cylinders, but .22magnum is more expensive than 9mm these days...


It's good you're experiencing good accuracy with your Single Six with the .22 L.R. cylinder installed. Some don't shoot too accurately because of the bore being larger to accommodate the larger, (.224 dia.), jacketed .22 Magnum bullet. When the smaller, (.222 dia.), .22 L.R. bullet is fired, it can be a bit less accurate on some revolvers.

I have the Stainless Single Six, and it shoots the .22 Magnum more accurately. It still is accurate enough with certain brands of .22 L.R. Just not as accurate as with the .22 Magnum cylinder installed. I also have a Ruger Blackhawk Convertible in .45 Colt / .45 ACP that shoots much the same with the smaller, (.451 dia.), .45 ACP rounds. Nature of the beast I guess.

 

[Astro14]

Thanks, Bill - I had no idea that there were any accuracy issues with the single six, nor was I aware of the bullet size difference.

I was shooting at 10 yards, and the groups were all pretty close to the size of a dime, under the size of a quarter, which is about as well as I can shoot with a handgun. Better than I shoot with any other handgun. I've been buying Aguila copper plated ammo (.22LR 30gr "super maximum") at my local gun store for $35/box of 500. Finally reasonable again, but nothing like the good old days. I like the Aguila. Works well in my neighbor's SR22, too.

Best deal I can find on .22magnum is still about .40/round. For that price, I should just buy a Ruger Blackhawk and shoot .45 Colt...

 

[billt460]

Yeah, .22 Magnum ammo is crazy expensive for what it is. (Small light bullet with a minuscule powder charge, and a thin brass rimfire case). I remember back when I bought my .30 Carbine Ruger Blackhawk. At the time I could buy commercial 110 Gr. FMJ .30 Carbine ammo all day long for $10.00 a box of 50. Now that's what .22 Mag. rimfire runs... Or even higher.

I was thinking of getting another Ruger Blackhawk convertible in .357 / 9 MM. But from what I read the 9 MM is really inaccurate in that revolver for the same reason. The barrel is bored .357 dia. to accommodate the .357 cartridge. And when you shoot .355 dia. 9 MM in it, the bullet has too loose of a fit, and it's inaccurate as a result.

It seems a bit silly to pay close to $700.00 for a inaccurate 6 shot 9 MM single action revolver. When you can purchase a slew of 15 to 19 shot 9 MM pistols for that same price that are more accurate.

 

[Killer223]

My vote is for a High Standard, or buck mark. I have both and the HS is a better shooter, but very picky on what ammo it shoots.