Best 22lr Pistol for getting into shooting

[DarcyM]

Hi there. I'm new to handgun shooting as a hobby (law enforcement) and want to purchase a 22lr for economical reasons and so I can teach my son to shoot. I've been reading up on 22 pistols and see that jamming can be an issue. What should I be looking for specifically in a pistol and what companies/models do you recommend? I've been eyeballing the Waltham PPQ as a possibility, but it definitely is not the cheapest option for shooting. Shoot me some ideas!!

 

[4quickdub]

Walthers are nice, but if you want a solid entry level .22lr that you can enjoy with your son, the most common are Browning Buckmark and Ruger 22/45.

 

[BCRider]

I'd suggest a .22 pistol which is designed as a .22 and not intended to look like a centerfire handgun. I've seen a lot of .22's at our local events and the purpose designed options seem to suffer from less problems than those which are modeled after centerfire guns. I know, I know, there's lots of the others that are fine. But when I've seen a rimfire pistol act up it has proved to be roughly 3 times more common for the "centerfire looking" versions to have the problems.

On the other hand if you take the time to learn which ammo the gun likes and don't try to feed it anything but the one or two types that it works well with then just about anything can work well.

The "purpose designed" options I've personally seen that work very well are the Ruger Mk guns from any of the series and the Browning Buckmark line of guns. I also had occasion to use a S&W 22A for quite a while and found it to be very reliable. So I'd offer up the S&W Victory rimfire handgun as a possible option as well.

How old is your son? I ask because few of the .22 handguns fit small hands all that well. The Ruger Mk series guns with the strongly swept back grip angle is likely about the best option. But it's an odd angle to hold for two handed "square to the target" shooting. I find that the extreme angle of the Ruger Mk series guns along with other dedicated target shooting pistols works with a more natural wrist angle when shot in the classic body angled to the side one handed posture.

If he's a younger and smaller boy at this point the Browning 1911-22 might be a good option. It's an 80% sized Colt 1911. So it fits those with smaller hands really well. Along that line so does the Ruger Bearcat if a revolver would be acceptable. But neither gun fits a larger hand very well. I wear L or XL gloves depending on the maker and I can't hold a Bearcat well at all. I haven't held a Browning scaled down 1911 but I'd guess it would not fit well either. So you might end up needing two guns to get by until he grows enough to shoot regular size handguns well.

 

[philhut]

the suggestions above are good

GSG 1911 is a solid shooter also a 22lr revolver would be good too. like a Ruger single six these pistols especially the old models were marketed to kids and have handguards which are well sized for kids.


Also if you are new and your child is new to shooting many of the principles can be taught with a bolt action rifle carbine. The prices of rifles are similar to handguns and sometimes cheaper. As semi would work but for new shooters I would prefer them to learn the mechanical action of a firearm with a bolt or even single shot 22lr rifle
best 22 rifle to learn on now for top quality is a CZ452/455, also good rifles are ruger American, savage bolt, or henry single shot.

good luck...
i plan to teach my daughter on my CZ 452 with iron sights, if she likes that well there are lots of options afterwards.

remember new especially young shooters like positive feedback like shooting clay targets over paper since they crack/shatter or bottles/metal targets etc... principles of safety and proper gun handling i feel are a lot easier to teach with a rifle to start than a pistol which could be waved around like a magic want a lot easier. I wont introduce pistols until my daughter has safe proper handling technique with a rifle.

 

[sailor723]

I'd second BCRider's comments about purpose built .22's vs one's made to look like centre fire pistols. I've had a Browning Buck Mark for several years that i use for rimfire steel challenge. It's had lots of rounds through it and has proven to be very reliable.

 

[Meroh]

I'd second BCRider's comments about purpose built .22's vs one's made to look like centre fire pistols. I've had a Browning Buck Mark for several years that i use for rimfire steel challenge. It's had lots of rounds through it and has proven to be very reliable.

Buying new, this is the best value out there today. Great pistol!

 

[Bart68]

Smith & Wesson model 617, very accurate, easy to clean, shoots 10 rounds, this is my favorite gun I own.

 

[edgy]

What style of gun does your son like, show him some pics of different .22's and see which one he gets excited about.
Buckmarks and Rugers are possibly the best .22's out there,,,but damn are they ugly lol, I hate the look of them
If it's just a plinker to get him in to shooting, the centre fire copies like the GSG/Sig 1911's or M&P .22 are great looking guns, and with the right ammo are as dependable as any .22 can be. As much as everyone praises the Buckmark and Ruger I see them malfunction every single speed steel match I attend simply because they are .22's and ALL will malfunction due to ammo, not because of the gun itself.

 

[lavino]

For smaller hand people (from experience of my son) they will love the Ruger SR22 and M&P22. Personally I would go for the M&P22 since it feel almost the same as a M&P9. I would choose the closest one to the biggest caliber version you are planning to shoot since it will benefit you with the training towards handling the biggest caliber pistol in future. That's why I got a Glock conversion slide as well for myself.. but too bad it doesn't like a lot of ammo.

 

[blackbagop]

I can only second the Smith & Wesson 617 revolver. The jamming/malfunction is out of question. No magazines to purchase. It eats any kind of ammo, super reliable. Used price around $600-$750, new $700-$820 + tax. Only downside is that it is a bit heavy to hold.

 

[Sochi]

My vote is for new Ruger Mk IV 22/45 Tactical.
- Eats any bulk ammo - tested - not problem.
- Super Easy to clean,
- have 1911 ergo,
- rails for optics/red dot and light
- thread for muzzle compensator.
- Nice and heavy metal feels like a "real gun".
- Very accurate.
- Tons for accessories and upgrades available (Tandemcross)
- My daughter loves it

 

[VE3RADIO]

the suggestions above are good

GSG 1911 is a solid shooter also a 22lr revolver would be good too. like a Ruger single six.

These were going to be my recommendations, I have both of these and my son shoots both. The nice thing about the Ruger Single (super) Six is that most of the time it comes with 2 separate cylinders, one for .22LR and one for.22WMR - this will be a nice step up for him when the time is right. As for the GSG it is an amazing .22LR firearm, however there is a break in period and it can be picky with ammo.. however if you use CCI it runs like a champ... there are some helpful online videos about the GSG showing how to remove the overspray.. I did this and now I can shoot any ammo.. even the junk flawlessly.

 

[NickVR]

Ruger Mark Series or a nice .22LR revolver.

 

[Bart68]

Never thought of the whole weight thing of the 617 which is a gun that your kids kids will learn how to shoot on I also have a Colt 1911
that shoots every ammo I have ever put in it and it's smaller and lighter than the 617.

 

[jckstrthmghty]

The S&W Victory was recommended to me from a few competitive shooters.

 

[BCRider]

The 617 is an amazing handgun. But it's a heavy sucker for a smaller hand and still growing spaghetti arms.

A club mate and I run my club's Jr .22 nights. Every so often we give the kids a treat and bring out the handguns for them. I put on the smaller magna style grips but they still find that even the smallish K frame revolvers rather muzzle heavy. On the other hand they love the Mk III Ruger I've got. The one with the skinnier angled grip frame. The 22-45 Ruger tends to be tough for small hands to get the thumb around the backstrap correctly. Those that have a little larger size hand find the 1911'ish grips just fine though.

Never turn your back on a youth with a handgun though. When we do the handgun thing it's one on one only. And we both stand right behind the kid with the gun just in case. Even the best and most attentive can find it too tempting to spin around with the handgun when someone behind calls out something that catches their attention. The trust level certainly rises as we see them handling the usually used rifles. But there are only a few of the older long attending ones that we trust enough to just stand to one side rather than "basket" them from behind.

Most of the parents are great on this aspect. They certainly love their kids to bits. But most of them also appreciate in good detail just how focused and consistent their offspring truly are. When we get one of the good ones that has a PAL we'll often bring out a third table and set up a third line after a few cautionary pointers to them. Or perhaps we've just been lucky so far and avoided any parents with a serious "Little League Syndrome"....

 

[JayG]

Ruger mk3/2 is a good 22lr to begin with

 

[ubergewehr]

I would only purchase:
- a 1911 or Commander frame
- a SigSauer p226 or 320 frame
- a glock frame

...then go with .22lr conversion kit. Either basic brand conversion kit or a selected competition.

Then you have a basic frame to expand on, multi caliber at the same time or later. Tuned with upgraded parts at the time or at later date.

 

[Wendell]

Hi there. I'm new to handgun shooting as a hobby (law enforcement) and want to purchase a 22lr for economical reasons and so I can teach my son to shoot. I've been reading up on 22 pistols and see that jamming can be an issue. What should I be looking for specifically in a pistol and what companies/models do you recommend? I've been eyeballing the Waltham PPQ as a possibility, but it definitely is not the cheapest option for shooting. Shoot me some ideas!!

The fact that you reference 'law enforcement' suggests to me that you'd prefer something that functions like a duty pistol, so - for me - that rules out single-action pistols like the Ruger, the Browning, and any model of 1911. Most police in North America are issued a Glock, so that'd be the obvious place to start, and irunguns usually has .22LR conversion kits that fit Glocks, but with most of those models - as you've noted - reliable function is far from certain.

Like you, I want a reliable .22LR trainer with controls and function that are as close as possible to a duty pistol (like a G19). I want to be able to introduce new people to pistols using a .22LR model that doesn't involve any complications, or explanations, or excuses. I don't want any manual safety lever, and I don't want any magazine disconnect. I don't want a weird grip angle, and I don't want a weird magazine release. I do want easy holster availability and just-like-the-centerfire operating controls (including a functioning slide-stop), but I don't want malfunctions, or ammunition sensitivity. Like you, the best that I've found in this respect is the Walther PPQM2 .22 SD Tactical; it's certainly not perfect, but (IMO) it's the best available (in this specific role) and it works as advertised.

For the purposes you've described, I'd suggest that you just buy a new Walther PPQM2 .22 SD Tactical.

 

[bogozzo]

My GSG / Sig 1911 - 22 eats almost anything, runs well long into being dirty. Nice weight so new shooter feels minimal recoil, good sights and OK trigger. Kids like single action revolver, it slows them down as well, so better teaches breathing. Beretta had some wonderful model 948, model 74 and 76 semis, that function wonderful on most ammo. They were "ladies'" guns, so nice grips for small hands. Still a few aroun but of course would be used.