.22LR fascination? Please explain.

mac1911 said:
Golf ball shooting is fun.....
Few weeks ago I took my daughter shooting. After 50 rounds through the Rascal my daughter wanted to try the 22AR.... I set this up for 100 yards with a inexpensive red dot.

That day there was a gent shooting his tacticool AR at a 5" plate. I asked him if my daughter could shoot at it.... " what with that thing" as he points at the 22. I said yes. Gave my daughter the nod.
Pow , ping ,pow, ping ,pow ,ping ,pow no ding Pow ding .....8 out t of 10 not to shabby.
I seen him just standing there with the WTF look. I asked him if he wanted to try it......"hell yes"
Now he shot 6 out of ten.. my daughter and he took turns loading and shooting random objects on the 100 yard berm
Click to expand...

A few moths back I was at the range and the outdoor range chair was there shooting his suppressed 10/22 with eotech at the 200 yard gong. That was pretty badass lol.

drgrant said:
I've had several, a MKII, a SW617, and now a SW 22A. The 22A usually works... if you clean it enough. I generally ****ing loathe/hate cleaning guns. So whenever I go to use the 22A, it really needs to be cleaned before every outing. Even then it's not perfect. The mags get scunked up too and those need to be cleaned periodically as well. .22 semis don't jibe with my cleaning intervals. Some of it also is just ammo. If I fed it mini mags or SV all the time it works more reliably than the bulk shit does. Problem is 90% of the ammo floating around is bulk garbage. Even if the gun is clean, you get that occasional weak round or whatever that promotes a stoppage. Same thing basically happened with my MKII, at least until I found out it liked CCI Blazer. In hindsight I should have just kept the 617. That thing worked even if it was covered with soot, it just didn't care.

I had pondered getting an SR22 or something like that, people don't bitch about them much.... probably be easier to clean than most, too.

-Mike
Click to expand...

I've got an SR22 (pistol). It is FILTHY right now. I admit, I'm lazy about cleaning it. Not only is it got lead and powder fouling, it was on my desk for awhile and my cat likes to walk on my desk to the window so now it has cat hair on it. Pretty sure there is cat hair in the action now. I just douse it in CLP at the range and it runs pretty good for awhile. Best part? I can shoot anything out of it, including the federal bulk packs. It just keeps chugging on. My only complaint is that the trigger is not the same as my semiauto SR9 and the safety is backwards (up is fire).
 
I have been taking my two kids ages 9 and 12 to the range, they both love the Ruger Mark III with Volquartzen trigger and fiber optic sights. They both can shoot better than most adults who hang out at the range. They can easily shoot 300 rounds a piece in one trip. We finish off with some cowboy action loads it of the GP100. They both can go 6 for 6 on the plate racks. .22 gave them the confidence to be able to do that. My 12 daughter is learning to shoot my 1911 because she kicks ass with .22. Don't think I would start a new shooter on .45.

So, for me, it's the best for starting kids on the sport, and yes, they are our future.
 
drgrant said:
I've had several, a MKII, a SW617, and now a SW 22A. The 22A usually works... if you clean it enough. I generally ****ing loathe/hate cleaning guns. So whenever I go to use the 22A, it really needs to be cleaned before every outing. Even then it's not perfect. The mags get scunked up too and those need to be cleaned periodically as well. .22 semis don't jibe with my cleaning intervals.
Click to expand...

Ah. NOW it makes sense. A 22A. Yeah, N1ZFG has two that we always put on the line at the Franklin Lodge Turkey Shoots, and those and my SR22 are the ones we have the MOST trouble with. Those things are jammomatics.

The SR-22 seems to have FTF problems but I have NEVER been able to reproduce it. I suspect it's sensitive to limp-wristing, as it's always a novice shooter it happens to.

Get a Mark series pistol. Seriously. MY preference is for a Mark II, then a Mark I. Mark IIIs you have to budget funds to get rid of all the lawyer-spawned crap on it (Mag safety, LCI, etc), but they are serious tack-drivers and reliable. Like I said earlier, I usually clean them least once a year and they run just fine.
 
soloman02 said:
A few moths back I was at the range and the outdoor range chair was there shooting his suppressed 10/22 with eotech at the 200 yard gong. That was pretty badass lol.
Click to expand...
Yeah! If there was wind, that was not trivial, man. (and the pop.... ding delay must have been awesome) The flight time is about the same as 600yds with .308. Last week enough people were on the pistol area at my range that I said WTH and shot my 22LR pistol (open sights) at the 12" 100m gong. I did awful at first, but got 50% on after that once I figured out the holdover, and that was with Rem Goldens, utter crap ammo. It was a hoot. Normally I do 100m with peep sights on a 10/22 offhand standing & kneeling as practice... but this was a first to try open sights on a 22 handgun at that distance. I guess it's kind of like trying to hold the same handgun to a 3" group at 25m. Aim small, miss small!
 
soloman02 said:
A few moths back I was at the range and the outdoor range chair was there shooting his suppressed 10/22 with eotech at the 200 yard gong. That was pretty badass lol.
Click to expand...

That shit is fun when you start getting bored at the range. My kid brother used to laugh his ass off when I would ring the 200 and 300 yd steel @ woodcock w/ my 10/22. The delay is hysterical. The first time he saw me do it I took the shot, quickly put down the rifle, leaned back in the chair and crossed my arms... ping. [laugh] At those distances it is about a 3-4 sec. flight time.

Of course, my kid sister went and one-upped me a few yrs ago in Afghanistan. She sent me a link to a vid of her shooting a mounted, full auto, grenade launcher. It was filmed by another Marine. She pointed it up. Pulled the trigger. Thunk, thunk, thunk. Then she hopped out of the back, jumped behind the wheel and drove away before they came down ~600 yds away on an old tank hull they were shooting up. [laugh]

It was pretty ****ing cool. I'll be hard pressed to top that one. I figure any attempt would require a .338LM. A high arc shot, and a really ****ing fast motorcycle. [rofl2]
 
.22LR? Favorite round used by the Mafia, so it must be good.


Not to mention the Mossad.
 
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I mainly like it because it's fun to plink with. My S&W 617 and my Marlin 39 are super fun. It's not about the cost either because most of my 22 cost me close to 8 cents a round and I can load 38s to shoot from my S&W 686 and my Marlin 1894 for just under 5 cents a round (my own cast and reloads) Last range trip I had my 617 and my 629. I offered to let someone shoot the 629 and he said he didn't want to waste my money with the 44 mag loads, but he took me up on my offer for shooting the .22LR. Then I told him the 44s were half the price of the 22s.
.22 is just fun. Light recoil, fast follow ups, very flat shooting for a handgun round, quiet. It's fun.
 
A cheap way to keep the skills up.
That and shooting squirrels and woodchucks with the Mosin tends to keep the neighbors under the kitchen table [smile]
 
drgrant said:
I've had several, a MKII, a SW617, and now a SW 22A. The 22A usually works... if you clean it enough. I generally ****ing loathe/hate cleaning guns. So whenever I go to use the 22A, it really needs to be cleaned before every outing. Even then it's not perfect. The mags get scunked up too and those need to be cleaned periodically as well. .22 semis don't jibe with my cleaning intervals. Some of it also is just ammo. If I fed it mini mags or SV all the time it works more reliably than the bulk shit does. Problem is 90% of the ammo floating around is bulk garbage. Even if the gun is clean, you get that occasional weak round or whatever that promotes a stoppage. Same thing basically happened with my MKII, at least until I found out it liked CCI Blazer. In hindsight I should have just kept the 617. That thing worked even if it was covered with soot, it just didn't care.

I had pondered getting an SR22 or something like that, people don't bitch about them much.... probably be easier to clean than most, too.

-Mike
Click to expand...

My brother has a sr22 can meet up of you want to try it out. I've run it on the bulk shit 555 ammo it fed the messed up bullets lol .

The reasons why I'm not a huge fan.
The safety is the reverse of my 1911. I have a habit of guns with safety's on the frame I rest my thumb on it, so I put it on safe all the time.
Barrel is short, I'd rather have a longer barrel 22.
Trigger is ok .

I love the 22 conversion kit for my 1911 . It's a gsg kit. Thing is a tack drive . I was able to cut a target In half with federal bulk match ammo.
 
drgrant said:
I've had several, a MKII, a SW617, and now a SW 22A. The 22A usually works... if you clean it enough. I generally ****ing loathe/hate cleaning guns. So whenever I go to use the 22A, it really needs to be cleaned before every outing. Even then it's not perfect. The mags get scunked up too and those need to be cleaned periodically as well. .22 semis don't jibe with my cleaning intervals. Some of it also is just ammo. If I fed it mini mags or SV all the time it works more reliably than the bulk shit does. Problem is 90% of the ammo floating around is bulk garbage. Even if the gun is clean, you get that occasional weak round or whatever that promotes a stoppage. Same thing basically happened with my MKII, at least until I found out it liked CCI Blazer. In hindsight I should have just kept the 617. That thing worked even if it was covered with soot, it just didn't care.

I had pondered getting an SR22 or something like that, people don't bitch about them much.... probably be easier to clean than most, too.

-Mike
Click to expand...

I have a 22S, same as the 22A only in stainless. It came with a bull barrel and the target grips which were much too large for me so I switched it to the standard grips which are better. I don't think the 22S offered anymore but mine runs like a top. I've never had a stoppage with it. As for cleaning, it's one of the fastest semies to break down and reassemble. Only takes a few seconds for either. A quick wipe down, boresnake, spray, wipe, patch and your done. I also got it a 7" barrel and mounted a pistol scope on it. Again, switching from one to the other only takes a few seconds. I still have my 617, a very nicely made revolver.

As for the original question, I wouldn't call it a fascination though I prefer shooting .22's more so then others. It's not a cost thing plus I reload for the other 20 some odd calibers that I have so there's that. I wouldn't call it a shyness toward recoil either as I have no issues with my large caliber firearms. I don't really care to use bullseye targets any more except just a warm up or zeroing. I usually like to go to the plinking range with a bunch of oddball items like toy solders, tiny water balloons, golf balls, small christmas bells, soda cans, string that I staple diagonally across the wood beams to split and so on. I find it relaxing and could spend a whole day there doing it. It's even more fun if small kids show up. I don't mind at all if it's okay with the parents for them to try some of mine as I usually bring an assortment and they kind of eyeball things as little kids do or give away a few boxes to extend the day for them. For no other reason, just a preference.
 
Great for first timers and kids. Beyond that I really don't shoot 22LR much at all despite having several guns.

I think the best by far is the M&P15-22. Great way to get kids familiar with the AR platform. Accurate out of the box and you can mount stuff to,it right off the bat to teach kids how to use different optics.

Personally, my least favorite 22LR gun is the, IMO, highly overrated 10/22. I've used two new stock ones. The interface is clumsy and unlike any other firearm and both of them jammed repeatedly, unless you were using match ammo. I very rarely have an issue with the 15-22, so constantly needing to baby the thing was irritating. The standard box mags are also lacking and pale compared to the stock 25rd 15-22.

I think the only reason you hear so much about them here is because MA gets screwed on high cap mags making the 15-22 less desirable. Personally I'd never buy a 10/22. I have three other 22LR rifles and a conversion kit for my AR and they all outshine my experience with the 10/22
 
I don't hate the round just never had the itch to buy my own bolt gun in it. Don't see the point of a 22 ar when you can have a real one... as for the handguns the buck rodgers rejects the ruger puts out shoot great and are dead accurate but God do I hate the way they look. And walther 22s make me want to shoot the gun when i try putting it back together. Haven't gotten around to the sr22 heard good things but not high on the list. So fascinating no. At the present I'm not going out looking for 22. I shoot 9 out of big guns (beretta/sig) if I want a plinker. But it's a good round that carrying 1000 of in your range bag won't dislocate your shoulder such as 45. Fun to get shooting good to practice with cheap to practice with. Better than throwing rocks idk. But I agree with the op to a point people go nuts for it I don't see that
 
drgrant said:
I should have been more specific. I just think .22 LR is overrated when trying to teach a newb how to fire a handgun for the first time. If I had a gun/ammo combo that was even 95% reliable it might be a little different, but its easier for me to just move the person to centerfire as soon as I know they're not going to be recoil sensitive. Jams and other BS with .22s are a major distraction on the line. ...
Click to expand...

Ruger Mk III 22/45 target, 5½" bull barrel
5002 rounds across 78 sessions.
Failure to Feed: 48
Failure to Fire: 20 (includes 12 duds that wouldn't fire with 4 distinct strikes each)
Failure to Extract: 6
Failure to Eject: 21 (includes stovepipes)
Failure to Lock Back: 2
Total failures: 97
Reliability: 98.10%

RoundsTypeMV (fps)
750Aguila Rifle Match 40Gr Solid1080
1659Winchester 36Gr CuPlHP1280
950Federal American Eagle HV 40Gr Solid1240
1643Federal AutoMatch 40Gr Solid1200
 
I'm sure that both Bobby Kennedy and Jim Brady would disagree with it being a "pellet gun". That being said, it *is* a solid teaching round, is affordable for people who shoot a tremendous amount (appleseeds come to mind), and is simply a lot of fun to plink with. When trying to work out flaws in pistol mechanics I will always grab my bull barrel MkIII before anything else in my safe. It's the perfect teaching tool for basic pistol shooting, in my opinion.
 
Still the best round for a zipgun...

zip_gun-550x412.jpg
 
Taipan01 said:
I don't really care to use bullseye targets any more except just a warm up or zeroing.
Click to expand...

I tried shooting bullseye about 15-20 years ago and gave it up after about 3-4 sessions. Boring. Couple of years ago, I met a guy who mentioned that Ayer Sportsman's is starting up a bullseye team, and I should come over and practice with them. Tried it... wasn't too happy with the results but I decided that I'd invest a few bucks in putting a red dot on my Mark I and see how I did. Much to my surprise, I found that this time around, I'm enjoying it. And since I'm down here alone for a few nights every week, I just plan on Monday nights shooting a match.

xtry51 said:
Great for first timers and kids. Beyond that I really don't shoot 22LR much at all despite having several guns.

I think the best by far is the M&P15-22. Great way to get kids familiar with the AR platform. Accurate out of the box and you can mount stuff to,it right off the bat to teach kids how to use different optics.

Personally, my least favorite 22LR gun is the, IMO, highly overrated 10/22. I've used two new stock ones. The interface is clumsy and unlike any other firearm and both of them jammed repeatedly, unless you were using match ammo. I very rarely have an issue with the 15-22, so constantly needing to baby the thing was irritating. The standard box mags are also lacking and pale compared to the stock 25rd 15-22.

I think the only reason you hear so much about them here is because MA gets screwed on high cap mags making the 15-22 less desirable. Personally I'd never buy a 10/22. I have three other 22LR rifles and a conversion kit for my AR and they all outshine my experience with the 10/22
Click to expand...

15-22 IS a great gun. They've been very reliable at Appleseed Shoots when I've seen them on the line, and the mags don't have the allergy to muddy ranges that the 10/22 mags do.

That said, remember that the 10/22 is a 50 year old platform and has gone through very few changes over it's lifetime. For a plinker, it's fine. For someone who wants to run more rounds through it or actually work on marksmanship? Well, you don't take a Chevy Nova with a stock 350 to the track, do you? Nope, you build it up. Same thing - Ruger is hitting the lowest common denominator with it, and they're doing a great job of it. You want something better, you spend a lot more money either on a better rifle OR on aftermarket parts. (and yes, if I buy another .22 rifle, it's likely to be a 15-22. I've got two 10/22 LTRs already.)
 
Kevin_NH said:
For all the people with feed problems in their 22 pistols, have you considered a revolver?


Good pellets are half the price of 22 ammo, cheap pellets are maybe 2 cents each. Or you could reclaim lead and make your own (e.g. Nomad).
Click to expand...
It wasnt that long ago that 22 was ~3 a round in bulk. I was buying cases of 5000 rds of CCI Blazer for 160 bucks only a couple years ago.
 
AHM said:
Ruger Mk III 22/45 target, 5½" bull barrel
5002 rounds across 78 sessions.
Failure to Feed: 48
Failure to Fire: 20 (includes 12 duds that wouldn't fire with 4 distinct strikes each)
Failure to Extract: 6
Failure to Eject: 21 (includes stovepipes)
Failure to Lock Back: 2
Total failures: 97
Reliability: 98.10%

RoundsTypeMV (fps)
750Aguila Rifle Match 40Gr Solid1080
1659Winchester 36Gr CuPlHP1280
950Federal American Eagle HV 40Gr Solid1240
1643Federal AutoMatch 40Gr Solid1200
Click to expand...
Wow, you really keep stats on your range trips. Doesn't it take the fun out of it.
 
I can shoot my M&P15-22 at an indoor range but not my wife's M&P15 Sport. :)
Getting much more available in my area.
$33 for a box of 500 American Eagle 22LR.
I take both when I go to the outdoor range at Uwharrie.
 
drgrant said:
Skinflint round. Suppressed its pretty cool. Overrated for anything beyond these two. Really overrated for training.
Click to expand...

Wouldn't say its overrating for training, but rather that it isn't the only round I would use for training. Its the perfect round to start with if you are trying to get rid of inadvertent flinching when you shoot.
 

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