I've been taking the kids, nephews, and friends out a lot the last few months to target shoot. Half have never shot a firearm before while one or two have a little more experience. I wanted to take a group out that haven't shot before together so I can teach them all going from .22LR bolt up to .223 bolt in one trip. To keep it fun I brought along 2x .22LR semi-autos, 10/22 and a new Pieta PPS-50.
The PPS-50 was $240 with a wooden stock, came with a 30RD stick mag, carbine size .22LR. It seems solid and built okay. (I did find 4 bits of metal much bigger than a pin head while de-greasing and cleaning first time, behind the bolt under the rear cap.)
As there was four of us and four rifles to go through, we only put 30 rounds each through the PPS-50 this trip but it did well enough. We had a single jam on the second mag but as it was with a new user and everything was new I'm writing it off to "break-in". At 25Y we all hit the metal target without issue and even the new guys managed to do well with the iron sights once they knew where to aim. The side thumb leaver safety switch is easy to reach and firmly locks in place either direction with the customary white and red dots. Changing mags was slow and took more muzzle control but I blame this on the bolt which is only held open by the magazine after last shot. Removing the magazine makes the bolt shoot forward closing the chamber. Inserting a magazine is simple enough once you have it in the right grooves.
Cleaning it is a pain due to no bolt hold back. To do a good job you pretty much have to take it at least halfway apart, and trying to clean under the barrel shroud is another PITA.
The newer model has longer oblong barrel shroud holes, rather than round, and none on the bottom. They aren't as clean and perfect as the round ones used to be but aren't sharp either. The rear end has a screw cap that holds the bolt and spring group together and when shooting I noticed that the vibrations made it loosen about 1/4 turn, but no further. I'll keep an eye on that in the future and make it tighter after each cleaning.
The wooden stock is solid but I find it to large for my grip, and I have large hands. I didn't think to ask but I suspect the kids found it big/thick as well. Compared to other wooden stocks I have, ranging from good to cheap quality, I'd say this was the most uncomfortable for me. I will probably cut/sand the grip area or replace the stock if we continue to enjoy and use the PPS-50.
Over all everyone enjoyed shooting the PPS-50 and for $240 it was worth picking up a second 30RD mag. Much better than 10RD mag we are stuck with on the 10/22's.
We did try out 4 different brands of ammo but had no issues other than the one FTE I suspect was user issue. None met the suggested 1300fps but all were over 1200fps. As we shot steel no pattern to share but an earlier test by me to ensure it functioned okay left most of the 30 rounds in a 2" hole with two or three fliers freehand at 20 - 25 yards. I consider this a plinking gun and not for hunting.
Not a lot of info or mods out there for this rifle so I thought I'd post some info here. I wouldn't have bought the rifle for the old price of $400 - $500 but for $240 I think it's a nice "fun gun" for the kids and newbies with the bonus of having 30RD mags again.
The PPS-50 was $240 with a wooden stock, came with a 30RD stick mag, carbine size .22LR. It seems solid and built okay. (I did find 4 bits of metal much bigger than a pin head while de-greasing and cleaning first time, behind the bolt under the rear cap.)
As there was four of us and four rifles to go through, we only put 30 rounds each through the PPS-50 this trip but it did well enough. We had a single jam on the second mag but as it was with a new user and everything was new I'm writing it off to "break-in". At 25Y we all hit the metal target without issue and even the new guys managed to do well with the iron sights once they knew where to aim. The side thumb leaver safety switch is easy to reach and firmly locks in place either direction with the customary white and red dots. Changing mags was slow and took more muzzle control but I blame this on the bolt which is only held open by the magazine after last shot. Removing the magazine makes the bolt shoot forward closing the chamber. Inserting a magazine is simple enough once you have it in the right grooves.
Cleaning it is a pain due to no bolt hold back. To do a good job you pretty much have to take it at least halfway apart, and trying to clean under the barrel shroud is another PITA.
The newer model has longer oblong barrel shroud holes, rather than round, and none on the bottom. They aren't as clean and perfect as the round ones used to be but aren't sharp either. The rear end has a screw cap that holds the bolt and spring group together and when shooting I noticed that the vibrations made it loosen about 1/4 turn, but no further. I'll keep an eye on that in the future and make it tighter after each cleaning.
The wooden stock is solid but I find it to large for my grip, and I have large hands. I didn't think to ask but I suspect the kids found it big/thick as well. Compared to other wooden stocks I have, ranging from good to cheap quality, I'd say this was the most uncomfortable for me. I will probably cut/sand the grip area or replace the stock if we continue to enjoy and use the PPS-50.
Over all everyone enjoyed shooting the PPS-50 and for $240 it was worth picking up a second 30RD mag. Much better than 10RD mag we are stuck with on the 10/22's.
We did try out 4 different brands of ammo but had no issues other than the one FTE I suspect was user issue. None met the suggested 1300fps but all were over 1200fps. As we shot steel no pattern to share but an earlier test by me to ensure it functioned okay left most of the 30 rounds in a 2" hole with two or three fliers freehand at 20 - 25 yards. I consider this a plinking gun and not for hunting.
Not a lot of info or mods out there for this rifle so I thought I'd post some info here. I wouldn't have bought the rifle for the old price of $400 - $500 but for $240 I think it's a nice "fun gun" for the kids and newbies with the bonus of having 30RD mags again.
