Looking To Buy a 22 For Getting Others Into Target Shooting

Bart68

Bart68

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I work with and my kids have friends who have never shot a gun and would like to try it but I don't want anyone touching my current Hand Guns.

With that being said I have no problem picking up something in the GSG 1911 price range for them to try their hand at shooting, I want to have
a "loaner gun" if you will.

So if anyone has any suggestions on a

Gun that when they look at it they think it's a cool gun.

A gun that is going to be fun at the range and can hit paper.

This one is for me, a gun that is easy to clean and is reliable.

I have been thinking revolver but will young folks think that that's a cool gun? But it does fit what I'm looking for but so would so many others.

I looked at a lot of 22's this morning and checked out all the ones they have, which is most mentioned here but for the price point and
cool factor I bought a GSG 1911, very close to getting a used Ruger III but someone pulled the sights and mounted a rail on the top of it and
I'm not into changing it back to normal sights or buying optics for a "loaner" gun (although that would really amp up the coolness factor).

I have 8 or 9 different types of 22 ammo already but with that being said who has a GSG 1911 and what do they feed it?

gsg_1911_22lr_pistol_black_640.jpg
 

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I'm a big revolver fan but i get what you are saying about the "cool" factor for kids...and they are pricey.

it seems to me that a lot of the .22 versions of centrefire guns like 1911s and the various 9's suffer from more than their share of jams, failure to eject, being ammo sensitive etc etc.

I'd suggest a purpose built .22 like a Ruger or Browning Buck Mark. The new Rugers are much easier to take down but are fairly expensive. My pick would be an entry level Buck Mark Camper. Reliable, accurate and fairly cheap.
 
I'd say a ruger single six or ten if you can get a good one on the EE... I've got a single six and never had issues with it.

I also have a full size P226 in .22 for training. That pistol does not like subsonic rounds though, not enough oompf to complete an action cycle. I also got a .40 slide/barrel for it for normal use.
 
Fun: If you are constantly fiddling with the thing to get it to feed/fire/eject then that's no fun.
For that reason I like the SW Victory and Ruger MK IV. They cycle ammo very well and hit what you aim at. I've had no issues.
The Victory fits smaller hands better than the MK IV.
You still have to clean the thing so these two are top of the list in that regard.

Cool: Ruger SR22 - By all accounts it is a good choice but I have no experience with it.
http://www.gunbacker.com/best-22-pistols/ (I think they go for around ~ $550)
It is small for small hands (but has small and large grips) and apparently is not as sensitive to ammo choices than others of it's type. (like the PPQ)

Less expensive: GSG1911- A friend has one and says it cycles flawlessly with Winchester 22LR. I guess he got a good one.

Ultra Cool and way too expensive: CZ Scorpion EVO 3 S1. You'd probably have trouble sharing this :)
 
mastermind said:
Revolvers get plenty of attention from new and non-shooters. Sometimes more than pistols

I’d go with a S&W 617
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This.

They're really "overbuilt" for a .22 and will last for many generations of new shooters (with reasonable care). A tad on the heavy side for weaker arms, but the grip is small enough for small hands and they are quite accurate. Not fussy with ammo - some .22's are (like my S&W 41). The young minds can grasp the function of the gun, more so than an auto-loader and it can be used D/A or S/A. A little on the pricey side for a .22 - but they always hold their value. So far as "cool" goes - if you set one down beside a S&W 686 (.357/.38) - you can't tell the difference.
I use to have a S&W 422, which my girls liked - alloy frame, nice and light, with a small grip and accurate as well. Pain in the A, to strip and re-assemble, though - lots of fiddly little parts.
 
sailor723 said:
It would help if we knew the OP's budget.....no point in suggesting a $1,000 gun if he is thinking $500. Also, planning to buy new or go the EE route?
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Agreed, but at some point you have to take a step back for budget and ask yourself "get something cheap now (and possibly regret later), or save up for something good from the get go :)

I mentioned the P226 classic in .22 since it's anywhere from 729-800$ new, so used could be 20-30% less; and you can aquire calibre conversions for it for later on and enjoy an actual 226 centrefire later on without buying a whole new platform :) (For some reason it's cheaper to buy a 226 classic, then a conversion kit for centrefire than buying a centrefire 226 and a .22 conversion kit).

The 226 also has that "oh cool" factor. Well ok, so would an M&P 22 :)
 
sailor723 said:
It would help if we knew the OP's budget.....no point in suggesting a $1,000 gun if he is thinking $500. Also, planning to buy new or go the EE route?
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Thinking $500.00 max, it's not really something that I'm looking for but something I can bring out and they will like and it doesn't matter if it's new or used as long as 18 to 25 year old like it.
 
A GSG is a good choice, but if you want a better pistol that is suited to smaller hands, the Berreta model 70 or 71 is a great little gun. They are troublefree, and could be found for about $250.00 not too long ago.
 
Bart68 said:
Thinking $500.00 max, it's not really something that I'm looking for but something I can bring out and they will like and it doesn't matter if it's new or used as long as 18 to 25 year old like it.
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18-25 kids will be used to guns from movies (i.e. semi autos). Probably will not have seen any revolver action... That being said, everytime someone handles a single action cowboy revolver for the first time they usually have a smile/grin :)
 
If you are using it to intro younger people I would suggest a used M&P 22, it will be in your price range, they seem to function reliably and it definitely has the cool factor they will appreciate. I personally own the GSG, but I have a couple of buddies with the M&P and I'm very impressed with it, might even get one myself.
I think the younger crowd will appreciate a semi a lot more than a revolver
 
Given the budget I'd still say a Buck Mark Camper....They work right out of the box......you never see long threads on what mods to make to get them to work or what brand of ammo you need to use so they will function reliably

Same holds true for the Beretta 71-74's....although they are more like $400 these days than $250.

I own examples of both and they are reliable, accurate and not at all fussy about ammo.
 
edgy said:
If you are using it to intro younger people I would suggest a used M&P 22, it will be in your price range, they seem to function reliably and it definitely has the cool factor they will appreciate. I personally own the GSG, but I have a couple of buddies with the M&P and I'm very impressed with it, might even get one myself.
I think the younger crowd will appreciate a semi a lot more than a revolver
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I agree with edgy. The GSG has feeding issues. Also a pain to take apart. The S&W is the most reliable of all the full size copies of centerfire handguns I’ve shot and it looks tacticool. Close to the OP’s budget of $500 also.
Revolvers are nice and safe but more pricy for a good one and not as exciting to shoot. Nothing is moving or ejecting and kids are used to semi-autos from movies and tv.
 
For something that looks cool and is a hoot to shoot it's hard to beat a M&P22. It's a light pistol but recoil is almost non existant. I'd say reliability,on mine at least, has been on par with my Buckmark and Ruger MK's. I don't recall ever having a missfire or failure to feed/eject.Takedown is pretty straight forward for cleaning. I was never a polymer pistol guy but when the M&P22 first came out I picked one up at the gun store and figured I'd give it a try for the heck of it. Figured if I didn't like it I'd give it to the kids. It quickly became one of my favorite .22's.
I had a GSG for about 6months. It was a complete POS. I ended up taking emery paper to the rails to get it to reliably function. I spent more time clearing jams than shooting.
 
caperaway said:
For something that looks cool and is a hoot to shoot it's hard to beat a M&P22. It's a light pistol but recoil is almost non existant. I'd say reliability,on mine at least, has been on par with my Buckmark and Ruger MK's. I don't recall ever having a missfire or failure to feed/eject.Takedown is pretty straight forward for cleaning. I was never a polymer pistol guy but when the M&P22 first came out I picked one up at the gun store and figured I'd give it a try for the heck of it. Figured if I didn't like it I'd give it to the kids. It quickly became one of my favorite .22's.
I had a GSG for about 6months. It was a complete POS. I ended up taking emery paper to the rails to get it to reliably function. I spent more time clearing jams than shooting.
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x2 for the M&P 22. I have since moved to a S&M Victory for the rail and a red dot, but will keep the M&P for exactly the reason you stated.
 
If you want a neat gun thats also a lot of fun to shoot and wont break the bank try a Norinco 1911. Anytime Ive taken new people to the range for the first time its been every bodies favorite to use hands down every time.
 
sailor723 said:
I'm a big revolver fan but i get what you are saying about the "cool" factor for kids...and they are pricey.

it seems to me that a lot of the .22 versions of centrefire guns like 1911s and the various 9's suffer from more than their share of jams, failure to eject, being ammo sensitive etc etc.

I'd suggest a purpose built .22 like a Ruger or Browning Buck Mark. The new Rugers are much easier to take down but are fairly expensive. My pick would be an entry level Buck Mark Camper. Reliable, accurate and fairly cheap.
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^^^^^ Sailor nailed it you can't go wrong with this pistol.. you don't need to futz with it add parts to shoot it reliably ...very important to new shooters who may be apprehensive with their skills at the beginning
 
Don't compromise on reliability - Malfunctions aren't cool, and make learning to shoot a real drag.

ALL autoloading 22 pistols have favourite brands of ammo, so expect to invest in several kinds of bricks if you want to shoot bulk ammo. If you are okay with spending more on ammo, then CCI minimags are a solid bet for excellent reliability.

I had a GSG 1911 that was excellent with many types of bulk 22 ammo, once it was broken in. You can put a short-reach trigger and slim grips on it for shooters with small hands.

My M&P22 had outstanding reliability with a shocking variety of bulk ammo, but it would stretch your budget a bit (especially if you are going to get extra magazines, which is a big part of cool factor).

For smaller kids, they'll have trouble with any of these grips. SOME Norinco m93 Woodsman pistols have excellent reliability with some types of ammo, and have very small grips. I have a couple that have had zero malfunctions after break-in.
 
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