Advice on .22 LR Practice Pistol (Walther P22?)

[amagi]

With ammo costing what it costs...and me wanted to go to the range more often...I decided to look into a .22 LR Pistol for training.

I bought a Advantage Arms Glock Conversion Kit, and I'm pretty happy with it...but it isn't without its problems. It jams if you use anything that isn't Remington Golden Bullets...and Classic Pistol (where I shoot) doesn't carry Remington Golden Bullet.

I want a more practical pistol. I tried out a Walther P22, and I liked it a lot however I wanted to know if anyone had any dealings with this pistol? The clerk at Classic Pistol told me it has it's problems too. You can only use certain ammo that's fairly expensive (for .22LR, I think $10 for 100 rounds?) with the Walther.

Anyone else have a good .22 LR Pistol I should practice with, or any other advice on .22s I should know?

Thanks!

[mrnyman]

The Clerk is right the Walther P22 has its problems too , 1 being that it likes hot ammo, mine ius sighted in for CCI quick shocks, it hits dead center everytime with this ammo, however .22's are picky with which ammo they like, i like my little Walther, mine has been 100% since i bought it , no failures whatever, Walmart sells tons of Remington golden bullets you dont have to buy it at the range, but guaranteed the Walther will work with anything CCI makes.

I like the built in lanyard loop in the butt , you can put a piece of string on it and wear it around your neck when camping or hiking.

[Steve_NEPhila]

Go with a Ruger Mark III. It is a very precise and accurate pistol that will eat just about any ammo you put in it and will print pretty groups if you do your part. I have a Hunter variation of the Mark III and it is superb. I have shot the Walther and I do not like it. The trigger pull is garbage, the accuracy leaves something to be desired and it felt cheap.

Rent a Ruger at Classic for a nominal fee and see for yourself. If you ever see me there shooting a Mark III, just ask and I will happily let you shoot it.

[NShortino]

Depending on who you ask you'll find very conflicting opinions of the P22. The most common issue is with ammo, but which ammo it will/won't take is different for many different people. Some P22's only like the expensive stuff, usually CCI mini-mags, or some other brand. Unfortunately every P22 seems to be a bit different as to what it likes and doesn't like.

My P22 I bought used, and the seller told me upfront that it only liked CCI ammo. After putting a few hundred rounds of my own into an already fairly used gun, I decided to try out some cheap bulk .22 LR ammo I had around. It ran just fine, as it has with every other ammo I've tried since, including subsonic ammo.

I think the majority of ammo issues come during the guns break-in period. If you buy new I'd suggest using high velocity or higher grade ammo for the first few hundred and then experiment with the cheaper stuff to see what works. It may work with anything right off the bat, or it may never work with some brands, but I wouldn't worry too much.

I've seen a few P22's lately on the classifieds here, and I see them often in the used section of gun stores, so I suggest trying to find a used one for a good price ($200-250) and see how it works for you. It's one of the best options out there for a .22LR to train with and is well worth the price. Worse case if you hate it you can put it back up for sale for close to what you paid minus transfer fees.

[orionz06]

How is the pistol going to help your training, or more so, how do you wish it would? There are two ways to go, and only one is truly reliable, the other is tolerable (P22).

[rwb1500]

Go with a Ruger Mark III. It is a very precise and accurate pistol that will eat just about any ammo you put in it and will print pretty groups if you do your part. I have a Hunter variation of the Mark III and it is superb. I have shot the Walther and I do not like it. The trigger pull is garbage, the accuracy leaves something to be desired and it felt cheap.

Rent a Ruger at Classic for a nominal fee and see for yourself. If you ever see me there shooting a Mark III, just ask and I will happily let you shoot it.

+ 1000000


You CAN NOT beat the Ruger MKIII for a .22 pistol for the price.

[rovert97]

Shortino, is that Walther still plinking away? I broke it in with a good diet of Minimags. But after a while it would feed the bulk federals no problem. It was the bulk Winchester crap from walmart that always gave me issues. I liked that gun but it just didn't fit me for what I was looking for in a 22 pistol.

Now I have something that I absolutely love. I have the conversion kit for my Sig P226 and it runs like a top on anything I feed it.

[rwb1500]

Check out this thread.

http://forum.pafoa.org/pistols-41/10...l-beginer.html


There is a lot of good info on .22 pistols in there, plus me waxing romantic about the Ruger MKIII.

[mrnyman]

The Ruger MarkIII and the P22 are different animals, i own a MIII too, one is big heavy and Bulky ideal only for Target shooting or Hunting, the other is light small and handy , ideal for general plinking , camping hiking etc. , My MIII weighs about 46 ounces while my P22 weighs about 20 ounces, like i said they are not the same.

THe "problems" with the P22's were not the Guns themselves but the Magazines, the problem is the Series "A" mags, Walther has since replaced those with the series "B" mags.
Keep away from the series "A" mags and you'll be fine.
However if a big hevy hunting gun is desired the Rugers can't be beat.

[Pete D.]

I beg to differ about the big and bulky part of the Ruger criticism. The four inch barreled Ruger weighs thirty-three ounces, nearly a pound less than the aforementioned 46. (My 1911 doesn't weigh 46 ounces.)
Other than that...yes, they are different guns. The Ruger is a full-sized pistol, the Walther is not. The Ruger is more accurate and more reliable with just about any kind of ammo. (and, yes, I have shot both).
Accuracy is satisfying.
Pete