Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Rimfires Anyone shooting a SW 317?

Mu mother wants a .22 pistol, says the LC9 dad bought her kicks too much. She was a city girl, never cared about guns until things started looking sketchy to her. She is almost 70. So she wants a .22 pistol. Must be able to carry in her purse(better than nothing, no convincing her otherwise), keep at home, and shoot more regularly. It could be worse, the 317 holds eight rounds, is low maintenance, and appears easy to shoot and carry. All I have to do is teach her to keep pulling the trigger until the target changes shape or catches fire. Dud round? No jumping through your azz trying to clear a jam, just pull the trigger again. I did manage to convince her a .22 autopistol was a bad idea for a number of reasons. That’s a win.

So who has one of the 317’s, how do you like it, and is there anything I need to know about it? (More I look, I may get two. I like the little bugger...)

can you find one? another one to check out is the ruger lcrx 3in 22lr...they have a larger grips too. I think thats gonna be my next one.

I've got one and carry it while at the farm. It's a great little revolver...although it isn't really that small.

It is light though. The only knock I have on it is the factory trigger is heavy...like real heavy.

The trigger makes accuracy a bit more difficult due to the lightweight, but a simple trigger job could take care of that for her...

I agree with everything Rolltide said - if her grip strength is weak she will need reduced trigger pull. I assume she only needs minute-of-the-torso accuracy at 10 yards.

I've got both barrel lengths & use them. Not extensively, but with no problems & non expected. S&W quality.

The weight & capacity just makes them extremely handy. Price is getting high on them, but what isn't.

Mine are keepers for sure,

Wolf:
I have one that I bought when S&W first released them.(in fact I bought one of each of the lightweight models as they came to market...Though the 44 Special and then the 44 mag went down the road fairly early, and later the 3" 317 to a pesky friend) .
I still carry the .22, .32, or .357 continually...always have one on me. The Scandium 317 in the 1&7/8" configuration should not be sold short. Loaded with CCI Segmented HP's (product code 74) it is surprisingly effective. The trigger can use some work, and more importantly the sights, since the grey color of the front and rear sights have no contrast in the original form. I solved that problem by installing Crimson Trace lasergrips on all of mine, though the 360PD came with an orange Hi Viz front that solves the sight problem. Having the same sights on all three makes the point and shoot capability much more effective for my 76 year old eyes. . Good Shooting !

I have the 44spl and the 3” 22lr, both HiViz Green front.

I cannot foresee a circumstance where my kids will not enjoy them after I’m gone.

I have two of the 22 rimfires, both 1st run editions. A 4" with adjustable sights and Houge style rubber grip and a snubby with the laminate boot grip. Carried alot but seldom shot.

Echoing what others have said...the trigger pull is very heavy. I had one, it was very difficult to shoot for my wife. Unless she has exceptional grip strength for a 70 year old woman, I would pass on most .22 rimfires. They are heavily sprung for reliabilty with 22 rimfire ammo.

Consider a .38 revolver and load it with full wadcutters. Mild recoil, good penetration, far easier to shoot.

Good luck.

A 38 is much better for self defense than a 22lr. I would look at self defense ammo for greater performance.

My brothers wife is about the same age as your mother and she tried a semi-auto but it didn't work out for her either, she ended up with the Ruger LCR in 22 LR. He said of all the revolvers they tried it had the best trigger pull by far, she is very satisfied with it, you may want to take a look at one of them.

drover

I will look at the ruger. Just like that Smith. Silly, really. Not fond of the polymer revolver, and I’ve been packing a Glock 17 for 27 years. What sense does that make?😁

Yes, I understand what you are saying. The Smith fits my idea of a very nice looking while the Ruger looks funky at best but my brother is even more gunny than I am and he swears that the trigger beats the Smith's. They make two versions one is strictly a double action and the other is conventional SA/DA. Anyway I will be curious what you think of it, if you can even find one to try.

drover

No joke, been in the lgs three times this week, each time looking for something different. Damn near laughed at each time. Finally told my buddy that owns it, “Just keep looking and let me know when you find it. And find me some ammo for it(them) too. I don’t care about getting it today, nor next week. I want it, will still want it when you get it, and will wait. Just frigging find it, alright?” He says he will. We’ll see what happens.

i have a s&w 317 3” and a ruger lcr 1.7”. the 317 is lighter but its double action trigger is heavier. the 317’s aluminum cylinder can heat bind after 50+ rounds shot in quick order, not so the lcr. for deep ccw or purse carry i would go with the lcr. nothing wrong with a decent 22lr revolver for a ccw, practice is cheap and pleasant. just find the right trigger pull for you.

Picked up a 317 with a 2" barrel 17 years ago carry it in a shoulder holster and have a CrimsonTrace and it use it for a second backup but mostly while trapping coyotes and cats....it's so light really don't know I' am packing it.....