My new practice toy came in a little over a week ago. Having put 500 rounds through it already I'd like to share my findings. Oddly enough there's not a lot of information about this one. Partly because it isn't sold in the US and if there is any material about it from Europe then it's in some other language that my google'fu didn't turn up. I finally took the plunge based on the pistols listed weight and the gushing report thread from TheRick here at CGN.
Anyhow on to my own gloating....
The Force 22 has a polymer frame, anodized aluminium slide and a regular good ol' steel barrel. It shoots the common .22 LR cartridges. Operation is the direct blowback principle. The gun is light in the hand at only 29 oz. However it has a full sized frame that appears to be taken directly from a 9mm Force model. The relative size is easily shown in the pictures below. The trigger is quite light to use being just a hair more pull than my CZ Shadow on single action. The Force 22 is single action only.
The gun shot just fine straight out of the case. The first few magazines saw holes all over the place which may have been me or just the barrel getting cleaned out by the bullets. But during the first two mags this all got fixed up and by the third mag it was shooting nice tight groups. The slide action and casing ejection is what amazed me. For a new pistol I'd expect the slide action and ejection to be a little lazy. But not the Force 22! Cases were flying all around with great gusto! And the slide action is fast and crisp right from the beginning. As the 500th round approached just today I did notice that the slide is getting a bit lazy and the ejection is not so spirited. Obviously I need to clean it which will be done before the next range outing.
The Force 22 fits very nicely in the hand with a grip size and shape that is close to the CZ Shadow. The difference being that it is a little more square'ish. As with most polymer framed guns the grips are part of the frame and not in any way changeable. But this IS a .22 so there's no real need for anything more. As shown the pattern provides pleanty of grip stability for this application thanks to a patterned front and back strap areas as well as the sides.
Shooting the Force 22 is a real treat. The light weight produces just enough of a kick to let you know you're shooting a real gun. Yet it's not enough kick to startle even the most timid new shooter. The trigger reset distance is quite short but not 1911 short. I haven't measured the pull but it is light without being light enough to accidentally release the hammer when not wanted. I've shot a couple of different Ruger Mk's, an S&W 22A, a High Standard match target pistol and an S&W model 63 .22 revolver. Of the lot the Force 22 is more fun than most and matches the joy of shooting the S&W revolver.
Another big aspect of my choice was my desire to use this as a practice gun for IPSC shooting. In that regard again the Force 22 excells with a frame shape that is very similar to the CZ Shadow which I'll be shooting in Production. The bit of kick compared to the other options helps me get practice in following the sights during rapid fire. The shots in the left side target were done in my best newbie double tap style. The other groups were a mix of fairly rapid fire and serious aiming.
Freedom Ventures lists the Force 22 at $599 which puts it over the cost of some of the other .22 pistol options but it isn't the most expensive option by any means. And from what I've seen so far the cost was well worth it. This is one fine and fun gun to shoot.
Anyhow on to my own gloating....
The Force 22 has a polymer frame, anodized aluminium slide and a regular good ol' steel barrel. It shoots the common .22 LR cartridges. Operation is the direct blowback principle. The gun is light in the hand at only 29 oz. However it has a full sized frame that appears to be taken directly from a 9mm Force model. The relative size is easily shown in the pictures below. The trigger is quite light to use being just a hair more pull than my CZ Shadow on single action. The Force 22 is single action only.
The gun shot just fine straight out of the case. The first few magazines saw holes all over the place which may have been me or just the barrel getting cleaned out by the bullets. But during the first two mags this all got fixed up and by the third mag it was shooting nice tight groups. The slide action and casing ejection is what amazed me. For a new pistol I'd expect the slide action and ejection to be a little lazy. But not the Force 22! Cases were flying all around with great gusto! And the slide action is fast and crisp right from the beginning. As the 500th round approached just today I did notice that the slide is getting a bit lazy and the ejection is not so spirited. Obviously I need to clean it which will be done before the next range outing.
The Force 22 fits very nicely in the hand with a grip size and shape that is close to the CZ Shadow. The difference being that it is a little more square'ish. As with most polymer framed guns the grips are part of the frame and not in any way changeable. But this IS a .22 so there's no real need for anything more. As shown the pattern provides pleanty of grip stability for this application thanks to a patterned front and back strap areas as well as the sides.
Shooting the Force 22 is a real treat. The light weight produces just enough of a kick to let you know you're shooting a real gun. Yet it's not enough kick to startle even the most timid new shooter. The trigger reset distance is quite short but not 1911 short. I haven't measured the pull but it is light without being light enough to accidentally release the hammer when not wanted. I've shot a couple of different Ruger Mk's, an S&W 22A, a High Standard match target pistol and an S&W model 63 .22 revolver. Of the lot the Force 22 is more fun than most and matches the joy of shooting the S&W revolver.
Another big aspect of my choice was my desire to use this as a practice gun for IPSC shooting. In that regard again the Force 22 excells with a frame shape that is very similar to the CZ Shadow which I'll be shooting in Production. The bit of kick compared to the other options helps me get practice in following the sights during rapid fire. The shots in the left side target were done in my best newbie double tap style. The other groups were a mix of fairly rapid fire and serious aiming.
Freedom Ventures lists the Force 22 at $599 which puts it over the cost of some of the other .22 pistol options but it isn't the most expensive option by any means. And from what I've seen so far the cost was well worth it. This is one fine and fun gun to shoot.
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