whats the best 22LR pistol ?

There isn't a best. There are generally agreed to as good models at different prices. I shoot alot of .22 particularly in pistols and have some suggestions - but it's competitive enough a field that all of these have strong proponants (and detractors). (note'd I've pulled the Walther P22 because it isn't much of a "target" gun. It's more of a plinker.)

$300 or less:

Ruger - there are bunch of variants, some more than $300. Bull barrel, 22/45 grip, etc.

Browning Buckmark - again, bunch of variants, some more that $300 - My choice in this group.

Smith and Wesson 22A - a solid gun in this catagory just not a great fit for me.

$300 - $1000

A huge price range, but some interesting choices:

Beretta 87T - Choice 1 for me and one of the pistols I have. Built on the well proven 84 frame and action with the long target barrel, ambi safeties and rails top and bottom. Did some basic tuning on the trigger and it is a great weapon in this catagory. I've got a red dot on mine.

Hammerli Xesse - Choice 2 for me, previously released as the Sig Trailside. Exceptional trigger and accuracy for the price (although it used to be much cheaper) and the redesigned grip prevents the slide from biting you like it used to. (Wow, beavertail grips! What a new innovation! It must be only what ... 50 years old at least? )

Benelli MP95 - Choice 3 for me - this is a budget "exotic". It is a solid budget entry into different sorts of bullseye style competitive shooting and the only of these that starts out ambidextrous. It's cheap and plastic in the places where it doesn't matter, but the trigger is excellent and it has the ergonomics of this class of gun which are interesting. It is extremely accurate with excellent sights for this price of gun. I've had mine for years and still shoot it often even though I have upgraded in this class as well.

Here's where a bunch of the "upgraded" Ruger and Browning guns fall price wise. Long bull barrels, upgraded triggers, all sorts of different accuracy variants. Basically, though I like the Buckmark platform ... at this price point I would rather have the Beretta.

Here's also where a bunch of the "conversion kit" guns show up - Kimber, CZ, Sig (226) which are sold by the manufacturer as .22's. These are centerfire frame guns with the factory .22 conversion kits on them. Any of these are really excellent choices if you are looking for a "trainer" as part of your requirements.

$1000+

The head of this class is without question the Smith and Wesson Model 41. It's the only of the classic Bullseye guns that has survived as High Standard and Browning and Beretta dropped off. An excellent firearm and pretty much guaranteed to be more accurate than you.

But that might not be good enough ... so Clark Custom Guns does an excellent custom version of the Model 41. (A two tone Bullseye Optic in the 6.5" barrel is on my birthday list)

Clark also does nice work on Ruger pistols, but somewhat the undisputed king of those is ...

Volquartsen - their Master series pistols pretty much makes even me like the Ruger pistol platform, although their ergonomic grips are right hand only which is unfortunate. I've had the pleasure of shooting a couple of these and Volquartsen does excellent work with this platform, well worth the money if you want the best a Ruger can give you.

Exotics?

Pardini, Hammerli, Walther all make free pistol or rapid fire Olympic style pistols ... which are pretty remarkable weapons. I have a Pardini SP and it practically forces you to be a disciplined shooter.

Now there are some great .22's out there which for one reason or another no longer are being made which can range in price and often can be found in the oddest of places because they aren't mainstream sorts of guns. Here are some of my favorites:

Browning Medalist - the upgraded version of the Browning Nomad which was the upgrade of the Challenger I believe. The best wood you are ever going to see on a .22 pistol, bar none. It was Browning's run at the S&W Model 41 it has the performance, but never caught on well enough.

Beretta 89 Gold Standard - Beretta's run at the S&W as well. One of the amazing features of this gun is that the barrel is not a sleeve in the slide or something like that. It is a massive block with the barrel drilled into it. Probably my favorite and the more expensive precursor to the 87T.

High Standard - Victor, Challenger, Citation ... there are bunch of models and through the 50s - 70s were considered the class of the .22 right along with the Model 41. The company has been purchased several times and you can buy new High Standards ... but the reviews are pretty mixed. The originals people still swear by and there always seem to be some out there for sale.

From personal experience, my favorite is the Ruger 22/45 Mark III. I have shot the high-standard, Mark I, Mark II, and the smaller walther pistol that occasionally comes with the laser sight. To provide more current information I will go with an article in Guns and Ammo's Handguns edition where they tested the Beretta U22 Neos, Browning Buck Mark Contour URX, Ruger 22/45 Mark III, S&W Model 22A, and Walther SP-22 M3. All did pretty well and average accuracy with five separate types of ammo only separated the Ruger and Browning by .03 of an inch (2.15 and 2.18)with the Browning pulling slightly ahead. Not even a statistically significant number. the other three hovered right around or just under 2.5 inches (2.43, 2.45, 2.48).

Overall ranking of the pistols based on ergonomics, trigger, sights, grips, offhand accuracy, and ease of reloading left them ranked with the best at the top as follows:

Browning

Ruger

S&W

Beretta

Walther

The Ruger only got beat out due to less points for ease of reloading. The Ruger is also about 100 dollars cheaper realistically. I would say if you are going semi automatic and buying new, it is a toss up between the Ruger and the Browning, get whichever you like the best. If you are looking at after market parts, go with the Ruger without a question. just my $.02

Some to consider;

The Ruger Mark 3 target with bull barrel

Ruger Mark 2 Government Target, bull barrel

Colt Match Target

Browning Medalist Target

Browning Buckmark

Smith and Wesson 22A Target pistol

Sig Trailside

The ‘best’ is open to debate. However I really like my Rugers and of the several I own my fav is the Ruger Mark 2 Target and the Mark 2 Government target with bull barrel. The Ruger 22/45 is also well made and accurate. But that Government model is a tack driver.

High standard also makes a target pistol But I am not fan of that company.

The Buckmark is top quality and quite accurate. But I’d prefer the Browning medalist.

You might look up the guns I listed and find one that fits you. Although many of those have grips you can change out with an after market one its very important for it to fit your hand. This makes a huge difference with accuracy. Because no matter how accurate the gun is, if the grips don’t fit you, you just won’t get what the gun is capable of.

Bull barrels are nice and their weight helps you hold on target but they get very heavy to carry in the field.

Ruger 22/45 or Mark 3. Reliability is identical. The big difference is the grip angle, the 22/45 has a grip angle comparable to the 1911, and the Mark 3 has the grip angle of the Luger Pistol....or a Glock.

So far I only own a early 70 s Buckmark and a Medalist. The Buckmark has a Ultradot PAN-AV 2mill red dot on top of a rail and is accurate and fun! The Medalist has all of the weights and forend is perfect and shoots from the iron sights like a switch watch and is smooth as silk, it almost makes you giggle! I am the only thing that is flawed in both instances because each is capable of ten shots under a dime at 25 feet!

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RE:

whats the best 22LR pistol ?

looking to buy a nice target pistol cal. 22LR what are some good models ?

Browning Medalist

No one ever mentions High Standard, but they are one of the best shooting pistols around!

* Ruger Mark III 22/45 with the Target Bull Barrel.* Extremely accurate, fun to shoot, functions flawlessly.*

Nice? Any High Standard made in Hamden CT that's still in good condition.