I’m interested in buying a handgun. I’d like to start with a .22 due to costs.

I was initially interested in the Beretta Neos because I’ve read generally good reviews online. I stopped into Gander Mountain and the guys in there don’t seem to like them. Their price is $229, IIRC.

The gunsmith showed me a used Ruger Mark II 22/45, which they’re going to sell for $160. It was a tapered barrel. I’ve read up on them tonight and find a lot of information and a few complaints about them: cleaning, picky about ammo, etc. Though, there are more people out there who own them than own the Beretta.

Any opinions?

The used Ruger is cheaper. I think the Beretta is cool looking, fits my hand well, and looks easier to clean for a novice.

I’ve got about 1000 .22 rounds I bought for my rifles that I’d like to shoot when the weather warms up (Winchester Wildcats, Winchester SuperX, Federal GameShok), and it would be great if the chosen handgun could fire these reliably. Some of the Ruger guys say there MkII’s tend to be picky about the ammo they fire.