I want a 22lr pistol?

The SR22 is a decent little plinking gun. If that's what you like, then you should just get it and not worry about the rest.

Fundamentally, you can spend everywhere from $150, to $2,500 on a .22 pistol. From a Phoenix HP22 at the low end to a Pardini Olympic Free Pistol.

There isn't going to be a best one. There is only the one you are going to like shooting. If you've "fallen in love with it" then get it. It's fun to shoot, accurate enough for plinking and cans, handles high velocity ammunition fine by all accounts. From the one I tried, trigger is about average for the genre, so again, good enough to have fun with. The benefits of getting it is that Ruger is pretty good about making magazines available at a reasonable price so you can stock up.

I've got over half a dozen .22 pistols, all different types all of which I love shooting for different reasons - and I'm not done yet. There are still a couple that I need to add to my collection. The SR22 doesn't happen to be one of them ... but it's just because I don't feel about it the way you do. I have several .22 pistols that other people would (and do) think I'm crazy for so, again - just get it and don't worry about it. Ruger is an excellent company, and they make solid durable shootable products.

Get it and start "blasting".

Thinkingblade

Well, what do you want to do with your handgun? If you just want a "blasting little gun" that can put lots of cheap .22LR somewhere downrange and a smile on your face, then .22LR versions of duty handguns (like the SR22, S&W M&P 22 pistols, Sig Mosquito) are all decent choices.

If you're more worried about hitting a bullseye at 25 yards, and have a little extra money to spend, then you might be more interested in a "dedicated" .22LR pistol. The Ruger Mark II/IIIs are very widely liked, as are Browning Buckmarks. S&W also makes a 22A which is supposed to be okay as well. These are more pricey, but generally more accurate than .22LR "conversions" of duty handguns.

If you've got so much money and a hankering for Olympic medals, look no further than Walther (not S&W's American Walther, but the REAL Carl Walther), but be prepared to pay thousands for the honor of owning one!

If you're partial to revolvers, there are good ones out there too for much less money than a semi-automatic. My brother has a used S&W 617 that shoots very well. It can usually beat my Ruger 22/45 Hunter when using irons (though maybe that's the fault of the shooter).

As stated by the other reviewers, you will find several new .22 pistols to purchase. I, personally, have shot several revolvers (ruger single six, heritage arms, H&R 929, H&R 969, S&W K-22 {favorite}, S&W 319, etc) and semi-automatic (buck mark, Ruger mark 2, Ruger standard, colt huntsman). You will find something that fits your hand very well. It is a matter of looking.

My point has to do with goals and selection. I primarily hunt (small game, vermin and snakes) and plink with my .22 pistols. The semi-autos tend to be very finicky about ammo selection, while the revolvers tend to utilize the greatest variety. Given this, my preferred pistols are the Ruger single six and the S&W K-22 kit guns. They are slower to load, however, they possess more than sufficient accuracy for my activities. I also like the Heritage Arms single action revolver for a similar reason. It's not as pretty, but it is more than tough enough for the jobs I have at hand, and much more affordable.

I will note, the Browning buckmark target model is one of the most fun pistols I have enjoyed (I'd love to try a S&W 41 target) they just lack the versatility I desire for an everyday carry type of pistol.

Smith and Wesson 22a. I bought one for my retired mother to shoot at the range thinking it would be a decent plinker for $200 bucks on sale new. 3,000 rounds +++ It has only had 2 failures! One time the magazine wasn't up in the well all the way and the other was a Dud. Shoot the Federal "Semi Auto .22lr target grade ammo" in the 325 rounds white box from Walmart. Only thing I shoot anymore, has proven as reliable as CCI's at half the cost. Little more money then the 550 rounds bulk ammo garbage, but I have only had a few duds with all my .22's using this ammo.

Decently accurate, but defiantly not a match gun. Very cool rail attacked to the barrel upper, when tearing down gun the rail stays with the barrel so if you put scopes or other optics on it you don't loose 0 when cleaning. VERY heavy though, all steel construction and larger then my M&P Full size 9mm.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LKL-AKu680

Phoenix Arms HP-22... Some are decent others are junk. My uncles old one is SWEET. Mine is garbage! I only bought it because I like Single Action pistols like the 1911 and this was super cheep. Only bought for a range gun never intending for hunting or self defense and I'm still disappointed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUyo8ughuAQ

Taurus model 94, 9 shot revolver with 4" barrel. $450 range gun I bought as a home gun ( To many neighbors for a large caliber, and "momma" Can't handle my .12 gauge LOL> ) - Very fun revolver to take to the range and plink with, and I can hit a clay pigeon 100 yards down range with concentration. I usually get close to it and hit maybe once every 9 shots. But for an average shooter like me that's incredible out of a .22 pistol. Highly recommend this revolver.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSponlZ9aL8

North American Arms "Wasp" Mini revolver. - This is one of those super sub compact 5 shot mini revolvers. Great fun and a attention getting piece at the range. But only good for very close in shooting. A good "Get off me!" Gun for self defense when anything larger would be to big. Not ideal but it fit's a nitch market for super small concealable pistols.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zm2GIhsnqeM

Those are the only .22 pistols I have experience with, so those are the only ones I can give life experience opinions on. From reviews I have read the Walther .22lr is not reliable and that the Ruger's are exceptional. The Ruger single six and single ten SAA Revolvers are queens of the .22lr field, but expensive.

I bought the SR22 about 6 weeks ago. I love it. Over 3000 rounds through it so far and no problems at all. I have used walmart ammo I bought 4 years ago, the cheapest Remington ammo from Sportsmans Warehouse and CCI. It is noticably less accurate than the Buckmark and Mark III's but not enough to bother me, and most people I have had shoot it didn't notice any lack of accuracy.

I went into my local gun guy and he had one each of the SR22 and one Walther P22 left. The guy in line in front of me was looking at them both, and I got a chance to feel them both while he was deciding and thankfully he got the Walther. I knew I wanted the SR22 before he decided, so I was glad he chose the P22 since I had my mind set in addition to knowing all the bad things I had read/heard about the gun. I was very happy to get the SR. It is my 3rd firearm from Ruger and I have to say they have great customer service and warranty. They are always quick to help with technical problems and questions. My friend by the way has the M&P 22 and while I experienced no problems at all with that gun, I oly fired one brand of ammo, so can't comment on its taste with a variety of brands. It is a full size gun compared to the SR22 pistol and I believe as such it is more of a complementary gun for training someone who owns an M&P to practice cheaply while retaining the feel and fit of their sidearm.

It shot very well to point of aim.

Anyway, I had done some research prior to purchasing the Ruger and one thing that really stuck out in my mind and was probably the main factor I used in choosing the gun was that it is extremely reliable with mostly all factory .22 ammo, including High Velocity. I've used Remington Golden Bullet, CCI Stingers, CCI Maxi Mags, Velocitors, Federal Value Pack (525 rounds), CCI Blazer, and Winchester. I have used Hollow Points as well as solids, no failures to feed or fire as of yet. I say mostly all factory ammo because obviously I haven't tried them all and I doubt it would work well with subsonic or ammo that uses the primer only to fire as those tend to not have enough recoil to rack the slide to eject the spent casing AND reload the next round into the chamber. I haven't tried match ammo yet but that should not be a problem. It is the CCI green tag.

One mistake I did make was after taking the gun apart to clean, which is very simple BTW, I placed the recoil spring backwards on the guide rod. Unlike my Springfield XD and Glock, and I assume most pistols there is a different diameter from one end of the spring to the other on the Ruger and believe me wheni tell you, it makes a difference. One endof the spring is larger than the other, and putting the larger end in first will cause a problem. You see if placing the guide rod into the spring with the larger end into the gun the wrong way it causes the slide to retract further than it should. This causes the takedown lever to crack because this lever acts as a slide stop. I thought it was because I was using high powered CCI Stingers, but I realized when taking the gun apart that that was the issue.

I called Ruger, they emailed me a return label no charge to me of course, sent it it via UPS, and had the gun back exactly 7 days later. I have never had that kind of turn around with any gun company.

I have since shot the gun a bunch since I got it back. Ruger also at my request tuned it and sighted it in for me also no charge.

One complaint some have had is that in their opinion it is a copy of the Walther, but doesn't come with a threaded barrel. That doesn't bother me because I have no plan to get a suppressor. But unlike the Walther, the Ruger doesn't care what you feed it. Now the gun is great for plinking, hunting, and target shooting. I wouldn't buy it solely for serious competition though, there are finer pistols for that, but for my need which is mostly the pursuit of unadulterated inexpensive fun, I doubt you can beat this gun.

I am dying to get the new Ruger 22/45 Lite, it is absolutely gorgeous, 10 oz lighter than the regular 22/45s but they are known to have issues making takedown difficult. it is also a bit pricier by $45-60 if you can find it. Very hard to find in stock anywhere...going like hotcakes.

From my experience the SR22 is the easiest pistol in that caliber to take apart and clean, is not anywhere near as finicky on what it eats and for the price, doubt you can beat it. I have no problem recommending this little gun to you. For more info, check out some reviews on YouTube. Nutnfancys review can be seen here: http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=ruger+sr+22+pi...

I love my little bersa firestorm .22lr. It's a walther ppk clone built on a .380ACP aluminum alloy frame with a steel slide. It shoots cheap 40 grain ammo and is alot of fun. My friend and I took a concealed carry test and he qualified with it while I used a 9mm. Honestly it shoots accurately for what its worth and I am considering using it as a back up gun with velocities. I'm saving for the browning 1911-22 but honestly the bersa is a great gun for the money.

If that glock in your profile picture is really your gun, then look at if you can get a conversion kit. They're not FFL required as you're only changing the top slide out, not the frame.

Just my 2 cents.

a ruger mark III is a great one, i just traded my mark II for a sks and man was that a good gun. i already miss it. the p22 is actually a pretty good gun as well.

My friends walther sp22 is a sweet little gun. Has never malfunctioned (at least the hundreds of rounds i've put through it), and is always DEAD accurate. But it's a walther, you cant expect less. Writing this remids me that I still haven't picked one up yet. I will be making a trip to the gun store this weekend. Happy Shooting!