Lifetime .22LR pistol?

05RAV, I will say that the norinco is a good pistol, at a great price point, but when you saw the fit and finish is on par with the original colts, Shows you must never have had a Colt.

At some point in time I had an opportunity to look at the Colt Huntsman owned by a friend of mine (an iteration of the Colt Woodsman; nearly identical). No better fit and finish than the M93. One can still buy a Colt Huntsman at P&S Militaria from where a friend of mine bought his.
 
I have a Ruger Mk4 22/45 tactical - https://ruger.com/products/markIV2245Tactical/specSheets/40149.html - with post-recall serial number
mine has a polymer frame with metal bits inside, top barrel and bolt assembly is steel

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aside: my rear sight, the thing that raises/lowers with a teeny hex screw, is thinner than what it sits in and can shift left/right with a bit of light pressure - this seems wrong to me; comments/advice? (it's my first real pistol, no experience owning any other)
 
Hi,

I already got a decent 9mm (CZ-75B omega). I have quite a bit of .22LR amo laying around, and I'm starting to look at .22LR pistols. The Chiappa is cheap and on sale right now, but reviews aren't great. The GSGs/SIG look nice and I appreciate the full-size 1911 aspect.
The Ruger Mark-type pistols are sweet, to me they are looking like Lugers. They seem solid. Im told that Browning buckmark is good.

If I was to buy only one .22LR pistol, a solid piece that would last forever, what should I shop for? I would say below $700.

Any recommendations for a .22that could be passed on to the kid later in life? Robustness and reliability is the TOP priority here.

A revolver is not out of the equation, but I don't know if they are as reliable (or more) than pistols in rimfire config.

Thoughts?

If you want lifetime, you need all steel, and a proven design.

Pick up a good used High Standard; I have had mine for over 40 years, and it is still about the most accurate pistol at our club, and is super reliable. Sig Sauer and GSG will not have the longevity; they have a lot of alloy in them and are prone to wear and breakage. My second choice would be a browning buckmark. Revolvers are fun, but require more frequent cleaning. Ruger pistols are all steel, but lately I know of three where the cocking "knob" has broken off and required re-welding; Ruger Single Six 30 years ago were great pistols, but lately, I have no idea.
 
05RAV, I will say that the norinco is a good pistol, at a great price point, but when you saw the fit and finish is on par with the original colts, Shows you must never have had a Colt.

I've never had one, but I have three other Norinco pistols; fit is on par or better (tighter) than the originals on my NZ 85, my 1911 (and after more than 3000 rounds each, the fit is staying that way), while the finish leave a bit to be desired, but they are as good as many other imports; and my NP58; the finish and the fit is better than the Sigs I have handled; grips were bad, but I replaced those.

I would guess that their little .22 would be just fine. What about replacement clips though?
 
Quote Originally Posted by marshall View Post
05RAV, I will say that the norinco is a good pistol, at a great price point, but when you saw the fit and finish is on par with the original colts, Shows you must never have had a Colt.

I've never had one, but I have three other Norinco pistols; fit is on par or better (tighter) than the originals on my NZ 85, my 1911 (and after more than 3000 rounds each, the fit is staying that way), while the finish leave a bit to be desired, but they are as good as many other imports; and my NP58; the finish and the fit is better than the Sigs I have handled; grips were bad, but I replaced those.
I would guess that their little .22 would be just fine. What about replacement clips though?

Magazines for the M93 are still available at Marstar although the price increased since I bought mine. Probably one can find them at some other places too. Internet could be helpful.
 
At some point in time I had an opportunity to look at the Colt Huntsman owned by a friend of mine (an iteration of the Colt Woodsman; nearly identical). No better fit and finish than the M93. One can still buy a Colt Huntsman at P&S Militaria from where a friend of mine bought his.

I have the Norinco (which is going on the block shortly), 2 Huntsman pistols (4.5" and 6") and a couple of Woodsman pistols (a 4.5" 1st Model and a 6" 2nd Model). The Norinco is nowhere near any of the Colt's...


blake
 
Quote Originally Posted by 05RAV View Post
At some point in time I had an opportunity to look at the Colt Huntsman owned by a friend of mine (an iteration of the Colt Woodsman; nearly identical). No better fit and finish than the M93. One can still buy a Colt Huntsman at P&S Militaria from where a friend of mine bought his.

I have the Norinco (which is going on the block shortly), 2 Huntsman pistols (4.5" and 6") and a couple of Woodsman pistols (a 4.5" 1st Model and a 6" 2nd Model). The Norinco is nowhere near any of the Colt's...
blake

So what exactly does it mean? Nowhere near in what sense?
 
If you want something in the heirloom category, my vote would go to a Colt Ace, or a S&W M17... don't know where you'd find one for $700...

iu
 
Quote Originally Posted by 05RAV View Post
So what exactly does it mean? Nowhere near in what sense?

Fit/finish and accuracy both, as well as quality of manufacture (especially of small parts). Take the Norinco and any of the Colt's apart (detail strip) and look at them side by side - there really is no comparison...

Fit and finish for the M93 are on par with that for the Colt Huntsman. Inside or out. For example, the bluing on the M93 is absolutely superb (see my pic in #31). All parts for the M93 fit together very well and work as an old Singer sewing machine (if you are old enough to remember them). I don’t know what is the condition of your M93 but like I said in post #31, mine was ONIB, covered in cosmoline. May be yours is an old beater and does not look so great, I don’t know. The only thing that is better in Colt Huntsman are wooden grip covers. For me it's a minor part anyway.
Accuracy is a completely different story. The only fair comparison would be to put both pistols in a gun vise and precisely measure the groupings. Otherwise a lot depends on the shooter. If you are not satisfied with the M93 accuracy that might be your problem as a shooter. For me, the M93 in my hands is very accurate at 20-25 yards, more accurate than I am as a shooter. The M93 has quite primitive fixed iron sights and even with sights like that it shoots splendidly.
 
Ruger MK II III are built like tanks, as are Ruger revolvers.
My two forever rimfires are accurate and reliable. The S&W Model 41 and Model 17-6.
 
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Fit and finish for the M93 are on par with that for the Colt Huntsman. Inside or out. For example, the bluing on the M93 is absolutely superb (see my pic in #31). All parts for the M93 fit together very well and work as an old Singer sewing machine (if you are old enough to remember them). I don’t know what is the condition of your M93 but like I said in post #31, mine was ONIB, covered in cosmoline. May be yours is an old beater and does not look so great, I don’t know. The only thing that is better in Colt Huntsman are wooden grip covers. For me it's a minor part anyway.
Accuracy is a completely different story. The only fair comparison would be to put both pistols in a gun vise and precisely measure the groupings. Otherwise a lot depends on the shooter. If you are not satisfied with the M93 accuracy that might be your problem as a shooter. For me, the M93 in my hands is very accurate at 20-25 yards, more accurate than I am as a shooter. The M93 has quite primitive fixed iron sights and even with sights like that it shoots splendidly.

So you've taken them apart and compared them side by side?? I have (and my M93 was NIB when I got it also) and the quality is readily apparent when they are de-greased and compared. I'm not denying that the Norinco is a good deal at that price point, but it is no Colt. As to the accuracy, yeah, you're probably right, I've only been shooting handguns for 45 years or so, and only the last 37+ years have been in the military as well as instructing LE. I probably can't do a fair comparison. I guess it all depends what your definition of "splendidly" is...
 
Really, I find that hard to believe, used ones maybe, Colts had not made these since the 1990's of so, I forget the exact year..
and the M93 is based on the PRE woodsman Colts.
At some point in time I had an opportunity to look at the Colt Huntsman owned by a friend of mine (an iteration of the Colt Woodsman; nearly identical). No better fit and finish than the M93. One can still buy a Colt Huntsman at P&S Militaria from where a friend of mine bought his.
 
Let me give a good review on a Chiappa 22 pistol then. I got one for $200, brand new, from a site sponsor Frontier Firearms. The 1872-22 in blued finish. Works fine... every time. $200 well spent in my eyes.

It will never be an $800 Ruger single 6 or 12... it was only $200. But it will still punch the same sized holes in paper and spin my little metal spinner targets just the same.
 
Quote Originally Posted by 05RAV View Post
At some point in time I had an opportunity to look at the Colt Huntsman owned by a friend of mine (an iteration of the Colt Woodsman; nearly identical). No better fit and finish than the M93. One can still buy a Colt Huntsman at P&S Militaria from where a friend of mine bought his.
Really, I find that hard to believe, used ones maybe, Colts had not made these since the 1990's of so, I forget the exact year..
and the M93 is based on the PRE woodsman Colts.

I don't know what you mean by a "PRE woodsman" colt. To the best of my knowledge the Woodsman was designed in 1913 and produced from 1915 to 1977. Pretty long time ago. Anyway, everywhere on the internet, the M93 is referred to as a copy of the Colt Woodsman: https://nationalinterest.org/blog/t...as-guns-so-much-its-copying-them-making-25602. Like I said before, the M93 is very similar to the Huntsman still for sale at P&S Militaria except that the Huntsman has wooden grip covers. For your info, the M93 was also discontinued at the end of 1990's or early 2000's. Apparently, too expensive to produce even in China.
 
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