Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns 22 handguns - wheelgun or autos

Which do you prefer.

I'm moved back to wheel guns and liking it, especially with subsonics

Spot

I sold my only .22LR semi-auto a couple of years ago (Ruger MK-II), but still have a Colt DA and a Ruger Single Six, enjoy them both.

Yep it was the single six that bit me.

Don't know why the single actions seem much more attractive to me than the double actions. Never owned a Single action until last year.

Spot

.22 wheelgun or auto? Yes! Both! I have Ruger MK II & MK IIIs and S&W J frame and K frame revolvers. My S&W Model 17 is a very sweet gun, but I think I really like my 5� 617 best. I prefer stainless and the weight and balance of this gun matches my 627PC, so I can do a lot of my practice with the .22 and save a few bucks. I like my autos, but I shoot my wheelguns a lot more.

Both in 22 LR, but only revolvers in 22 MRF.

I have more semi-auto 22 LRs on a ration of 6 to 1, but if I had to pick only 1 22 LR to carry, it would be a S&W 18.

Jeff

Both!
most shot?
wife's Browning Buck Mark 7" fluted
2nd: my S & W M22A 7"

wheelgun? H& R 999 target model

I have a bunch of them and for years mainly shot pistols. As a kid it was a revolver. I am loading up today for a muzzle loading elk trip followed by turkey, which also is the opening of squirrel in arizona. And I think i am going to take a ruger convertible .22lr/.22magnum with me for the little tree rats.

Right now my only 22 handgun is a Smith model 617. Its a 10 shot, and very accurate. I kinda wish someone would make speedloaders for it, as loading a 10 shot 22 revolver with big ole mechanic hands, is kinda time consuming, but I guess the ammo lasts longer this way.

I have never owned a 22 wheelgun, but I wouldn't mind a Ruger Bearcat sometime.
My 22 autos are a Ruger MkII target and (till recently) a S&W M41.
Both lots of fun.

I like autos at the range and sixshooters in the field, mainly because revolvers seem to shoot any ammo reliably and some autos don't much like some hollowpoints. I have a Colt Sport Woodsman made in 1970, a Ruger Mark II fixed sight made in 1983, a Colt "New Frontier" made in 1970, a Bearcat made in 1963, an Astra Constable auto made in 1971, and a 4" S&W 651 .22 WRM made in 1993. So lots of choices! But I carry the Bearcat and the Smith most often.

.22 ammo has been on a steady slide downhill for a long time.
The Mark II's like high speed, not target or ultra velocity stuff. The best right now are CCI Mini Mag hollow points.
Long ago, Rem was super accurate as were the original WW wildcats. WW high velocity was also deadly.
Now it is hard to find anything that will shoot as good as the guns can.
I was buying bulk Fed for $8 a box of 550 rounds for plinking, got a lot of blooper sounding shots. The wife just bought me another box and the things were $18 plus tax.

Ruger auto all the way, Ruger makes a very nice holster that holds an extra magazine...accuracy of these pistols blow away any revolver's potential.

I tend to favor the wheel guns for .22's. I can get a Ruger SS Convertible that will handle both .22 Shorts, Long Rifles and .22 RF Magnums which makes a big difference in the field.
While I tend to favor suto pistols for concealment, toughness and magazine capacity in the larger rds. for some things, all of these qualities aren't significant when it comes to the .22's. E

I grew up with an old .22 revolver, but grew tired of having to eject spent brass. I still have that old revolver but haven't shot it in 25 years. My only other .22 handgun is a Ruger MkIII 22/44 with 4" slabside barrel. Awesome plinker and trail gun. Very light, reliable and more accurate than I am. I only shoot CCI Blazer ammo in it. When the gun is clean, it goes bang every time. Shooting at steel plates out to 100 yards is totally fun, and cheap.

Right now I have a single action revolver and a semi-auto, but I wish I had a model 617 S&W. Love that piece -- love the K frame Smith.

I have a Colt Officer's Model Match, .22 LR, DA Revolver - and a Ruger MkIII .22 LR, Semi-Auto Pistol ...

I also have NO "preference" as to one or the other.

Sometimes, one of 'em just seems to be more appropriate for the occasion.

My hands-down favorite is my tweaked Ruger MKIII. I have a .22 revolver that I like a lot, but mostly it's reserved for use in places that I don't want to litter with empty cases and it would be difficult to pick every one of them up.

Semi auto usually offers a smaller carry package, more rounds on tap, a single action trigger pull & a lot easier to reload.

Most of the .22 autos I've shot would jam. I like revolvers in the .22 caliber. Make mine a model 617 Smith if I could only have one. Ruger Super Single Six in stainless and with the extra cylinder if I was going single action. A model 63 Smith kit gun would round out my trio.

Of course, give me a Ruger Government Mk II or III with the 6 7/8" barrel also, preferably in stainless, if you're buying.

I own and regularly shoot .22 pistols as well as single and double action revolvers. I like them all for targets and plinking.

However, for hunting or serious woods walking and fishing I find that I most often reach for a Ruger(MK I) Heavy-barrel Target model. I've owned this gun since 1973 and it is totally reliable and very accurate.

I will sometimes carry a Ruger Single-Six when hunting.....mostly when I am also carrying my Winchester 9422....the two just seem to go together. I actually prefer a single action revolver over a double action (which I almost always fire single action anyway) when hunting because it is much easier to punch out and replace a single fired round instead of the entire cylinder trying to dump at once. I also prefer an auto pistol over the double action revolver for the same reason.....easier to "top off" when hunting.

In the last 5 years or so I do find myself carrying and using a 1911 with a Ciener .22 conversion on it. For years I wanted a conversion for the 1911, but held off as I felt it would not be accurate enough for "serious" use. Was I ever wrong!

I purchased the "target" version of the Ciener and it will consistantly keep 10 shots in under an inch at 25 yards. That's as good as I can hold with a handgun. It is a bit particular about what ammo you feed it, but with CCI or Remington high-velosity is totally reliable.

The other pistol that gets significant field carry is a bit of an embarassment. It is a little Sterling .22. It's small enough to fit in any pocket and is used to dispatch snakes, turtles and gar when running trot lines and throwlines on the river. It is surprisingly accurate (minute-of-snake head at 20 feet) and if it gets dropped overboard or I forget and seine bait with it still in my pocket......I haven't lost a "valuable" gun. Gets carried quite a bit in the summer.