Ruger Convert?

greener · Post by **greener** » Sat Nov 10, 2007 8:38 pm

Spent most of my time at the range today helping a new shooter. The guy had decided to start shooting for fun and self-defense and had bought an S&W .32 revolver (great price and nice gun) and was trying out his new Bersa 380, purchased because a used revolver might not be reliable. His shooting style was six rounds as fast as possible. He was also afraid of anything that had recoil.

Spent a couple of hours going through grip, sights, how to load and fire. Suggested he shoot a .22 for a while to learn to shoot and took him through my MKIII's and MKII. I think he fell in love with the 22/45, especially after he found out .22's were not bb guns and didn't have much in the way of recoil. I think he went through a firesarms class with an instructor who didn't think much of rimfires. By the time he left, I had the feeling that he was on his way to find a 22/45.

jjfunk · Post by **jjfunk** » Sat Nov 10, 2007 9:14 pm

Good for you for taking the time to show someone some basics. I truely beleive that there would be many more shooters if people took more time to introduce people to proper shooting techniques and gave more unbiased shooting information to prospective shooters. Thumbs up Greener!

Song Dawg · Post by **Song Dawg** » Sun Nov 11, 2007 12:07 am

Absolutely right, JJ!
My buddies and I take newbies out shooting as a regular activity via the rimfire route.
We've yet to have a complaint!
I'm convinced that will be the salvation of firearms in this culture.
Way to greener!

SD

neophyte · Post by **neophyte** » Sun Nov 11, 2007 9:03 am

Get someone interested in shooting with a .22 and for the rest of there life you'll have a shooting buddy.
My shooting partner has in the recent year decided to add to his collection.
I encourage him

He initially wanted bigger to keep up with the "Jones"
Seeing how much fun I was having; he now has a couple of .22's and looking for Mk11-111 with maybe a 17hmr. Learning how much more fun can be had without being beat up.

jjfunk · Post by **jjfunk** » Sun Nov 11, 2007 1:05 pm

I hear you Neo, we all have had or at least shot the "big" guns. We choose to shoot rimfires for a lot of reasons, price, price of ammo, not so abusive. All good reasons to introduce people to them though. I am convinced that many people aren't "into" shooting because of bad experiances which probably started out with a "bubba" handing them his S&W .500 magnum or something outlandish like that for the first ever time that they went shooting. I agree, that larger calibers have their places, and I do own quite a few of them. But without confidence and good technique all they do is hurt the people shooting them. One of the reasopns I like milder calibers for first time shooters. (And I'll admit, I love all the rimfire "shooting buddies" this helps create.)

Glenn · Post by **Glenn** » Sun Nov 11, 2007 6:00 pm

People at the range are often really helpful to newbs....like myself. I went to the range a few weeks ago and the guys next to me were very friendly and one let me shoot his S&W .22. I'm thankful there are people out there who will take a little time out of their day to help those of us who are new/getting back into the sport.

Georgezilla · Post by **Georgezilla** » Sun Nov 11, 2007 7:01 pm

This is exactly how I got into shooting at the start of the year. One of my friends offered to take me out shooting, after that day I decided it was very enjoyable. But the funny part is I ended up getting a brand and type of pistol he hates the most, the Ruger Mk3 (he hates them so much that he refuses to fire it)

Since then he and I have gotten two other people into shooting. We even converted an anti-gun person

Song Dawg · Post by **Song Dawg** » Sun Nov 11, 2007 7:39 pm

There ya go!

Most anti's would be converts if they just had an opportunity to be educated via a shooting outing.

SD

greener · Post by **greener** » Sun Nov 11, 2007 8:09 pm

Georgezilla wrote:This is exactly how I got into shooting at the start of the year. One of my friends offered to take me out shooting, after that day I decided it was very enjoyable. But the funny part is I ended up getting a brand and type of pistol he hates the most, the Ruger Mk3 (he hates them so much that he refuses to fire it)

Since then he and I have gotten two other people into shooting. We even converted an anti-gun person

Is your friend a MKII purist or just doesn't like Rugers?

My rimfires may have converted my eldest (Dad, guns are bad) daughter. Got her out to the range with my wife and son a month or so ago. She didn't like shooting her grand dad's .38 spcl or my 9mm. She started having a blast wth the single six and ended up trying to turn 1" shoot'n'see dots green with my 22A. Almost had to drag her off the range. I think if I had taken only centerfires, she wouldn't have changed her mind about guns.

greener · Post by **greener** » Sun Nov 11, 2007 8:14 pm

Song Dawg wrote:There ya go!

Most anti's would be converts if they just had an opportunity to be educated via a shooting outing.

SD

You are absolutely right! If all I knew about firearms was the popular media, I'd believe that all folks who had them were knuckle dragging stone killers. A shooting outing would change a lot of minds.

Georgezilla · Post by **Georgezilla** » Mon Nov 12, 2007 12:09 am

greener wrote:Is your friend a MKII purist or just doesn't like Rugers?

My rimfires may have converted my eldest (Dad, guns are bad) daughter. Got her out to the range with my wife and son a month or so ago. She didn't like shooting her grand dad's .38 spcl or my 9mm. She started having a blast wth the single six and ended up trying to turn 1" shoot'n'see dots green with my 22A. Almost had to drag her off the range. I think if I had taken only centerfires, she wouldn't have changed her mind about guns.

No he's not a MKII purist, he just pretty much hates the Rudger Mark series

He thinks I should have gotten a P22 or Neos. I decided against them because of the lack of after market parts and because I don't like polymer frames in most cases, I usually like a pistol with some heft. They were both fine pistols, but I'm really glad I went with the mk3

My friend took his daughter out to the range, she shot everything from .22 up to .45 Colt, but the only ones she went back to for second helpings (about 300 second helpings

) were the .22s. Even though a .22 was the only one to hurt hurt her

One of the early model P22's when they had the bad extractor that would sometimes eject cartridges back instead of to the side ejected some hot brass right down her shirt

greener · Post by **greener** » Mon Nov 12, 2007 12:38 am

The P22 has quite a following despite its shortcomings. The P22 extractor has been a day-one, unresolved problem. The casings either weakly go up, or back towards the shooter. It can be fixed if you peen the extractor and stretch the extractor spring. I have one and it has become a project. First to fix the obvious manufacturing defects and second is to learn to shoot it with consistent accuracy. If I can fix the accuracy part (how much gun and how much shooter?), I figure I'd approach world class with my other rimfires.

I can see why she liked it. Small, light, "cool" factor, no recoil...

Georgezilla · Post by **Georgezilla** » Mon Nov 12, 2007 2:23 am

greener wrote:The P22 has quite a following despite its shortcomings. The P22 extractor has been a day-one, unresolved problem. The casings either weakly go up, or back towards the shooter. It can be fixed if you peen the extractor and stretch the extractor spring. I have one and it has become a project. First to fix the obvious manufacturing defects and second is to learn to shoot it with consistent accuracy. If I can fix the accuracy part (how much gun and how much shooter?), I figure I'd approach world class with my other rimfires.

I can see why she liked it. Small, light, "cool" factor, no recoil...

Yeah, she said she liked it because it was "cute".

With the P22 (standard version, haven't gotten the chance to try the target version yet.) I can usually shoot 5 or 6" groups at 25yards. With my MK3 I usually shoot 3" groups from 25yards. I think some of the loss of accuracy when using the P22 is A, a lack of experience with the pistol, and B, using iron sights instead of a red dot. I've been shooting since March this year (never even held a gun before then, what was I thinking

) and around 70% of the shooting I've done from then to now was with my Mk3, which has had a red dot mounted since April. So I think my lack of iron sight experience costs the P22 some inches in my hands.

A week ago while I was at the range (Ordering my RRA

!) a fella that was shooting next to me asked if he could see what my MK3 did at 50yards I said sure. He shot it with a sandbag rest and a "scope hold" (thats what he called it), he shot a 5 shot 2" group at 50yards. He told me how the other rimfires he's tried faired at 50yars, he mentioned a target P22 (I think thats the longer comped barrel version) that he got 7" with (thats with iron sights). This scope hold I learned from the guy is REAL steady. Add a steadier (granted unless you frame mount optics on the P22 it's not possible to hold the optic) hold and a red dot as opposed to iron sights and a standard hold and I don't think it was a fair comparison.

Both of my "informal" tests of the P22 seem to have set it up for failure

I'd really like to see someone with more experience see what it can do.

I seem to put the P22 in the "fun to shoot" category. If I just want to make noise and punch holes in paper and my friend has his P22 out, I'll have a lot of fun shooting it. But when I want to try and progress my skills I'll take out my Mk3. But I'm also way biased/familiar with my Mk3, I won't even like my RRA as much (thats saying something when the RRA cost 4x the Mk3).

If someone asked me what I thought of it for a first plinker, I would for sure recommend it. I am waiting to find a used P22 for a good price, I do want one a lot

It really does have a nice "cool" factor like you were saying.

greener · Post by **greener** » Mon Nov 12, 2007 7:07 am

I'm not sure any version of the P22 could be classified as a target pistol. The light weight magnifies any errors the shooter has. The sights are not nearly as good as those on your Ruger. They are fun plinkers and I can see why they have a group of folks who really like them.

I shoot for fun. I'd like to be better at it than I am. I enjoy getting into many of the technical aspects. Perhaps the "experts" turn some would-be shooters off by getting too technical. A would-be shooter asks a general question about firearms gets overwhelmed by the details. I try to keep the answers along the lines of if you like the feel and it fits your budget, it will probably do well and you probably will enjoy shooting it.

swoter · Post by **swoter** » Thu Dec 06, 2007 8:56 pm

My wife bought a P22 last year with the laser sight, and she loves it. Small, light, and can shoot with both eyes open using the laser. Fairly accurate at 15 to 20 yards.