I am looking to get my 25 y.o. son a 22 hand gun. He is expressing interest but knows very little about guns in general, he would not notice an imperfect trigger (but still....), I doubt he will know how to maintenance well etc.. and he doesn't live close by for me to fuss over it for him. I bought my wife a Buckmark and after replacing one little part on the guide it is flawless. It and the Walther are a littl too pricy so I am thinking the Beretta Neos might be a good idea -and think he may like the new wave design. It looks to be between that or the old fashioned Ruger MK III or MK IV whatever model they are up to. I have fired the Ruger and they are ok- folks seem to love them and they have a good rep. Pluses and minuses for each ? ? ? Any I have overlooked?

The S&W 22A semiautos are decent little guns that are pretty economical.

Sometimes they need a little break-in or polishing but I had one that ran forever after a little TLC.

Ruger by far. I don't know much about the Mark III with the loaded chamber indicator or the lock. But the Mark I and II are the best for the money so the III should be good.
They love the CCI Blue Tag Mini Mag hollow point bullets.
You will find that ammo is the limiting factor with any .22 today.
The gun has been in production since I was born in 1937. Perfection is hard to beat.

I'll add a +1 for the Smith 22A.
I've owned and shot all that have been mentioned.
My wife shoots her Buckmark weekly and wins many weekends .
But I can keep up with her with the 22A 7" barrel.

S&W 2206 with adjustable sights.

Jeff

ruger

So will I add a +1 for the Smith 22A.

I've only owned a Ruger MkII and a Taurus, but I've handled most of the others mentioned - and talked to their owners - while working in a gun store.

Either one of the Rugers or Buckmarks (any style of either) is a first-class pistol. That lightweight 22A is intriguing and highly accurate. I'd love to find a decently priced High Standard. I haven't heard much at all about the NEOS, so won't comment. The little tip-up Taurus is not as good as the Beretta it copies, and neither is an all-round gun. Some of the Bersa 22s are better than you'd suppose.

For all-round use, ease of service and supply of parts like spare magazines, it'd be hard to beat a used Ruger.

Nothing at all wrong with the Rugers.

You may consider the Ruger Mk III 22/45 which has the 1911 grip frame angle to ease his transition to his next pistol.

If he doesn't know much about guns I would start with a .22 revolver. Easier to check whether it's loaded or unloaded than a semi-auto - for one thing, you don't have to worry that he'll unload it in the wrong order (e.g. with a semi-auto if he pulls back the slide to unload with the mag still in place, then drops the mag, he'll still have a round in the chamber). I like the Smith & Wesson Model 17 or 18, which have very good single action and double action triggers, although they are pricy - still, look at it as a lifetime investment.

Hi. If you decide to go with a revolver, then a Ruger Single Six is a very fun gun - it is a single action cowboy style revolver. For a semi auto, I can tell you that I absolutely LOVE my Ruger MkIII 22/45. The only caution is that field stripping the gun can sometimes be a challenge to the newly initiated.

I too must use the word RUGER when it comes to a .22 caliber handgun. I think the Ruger single six is a good place to start for someone that does not have a lot of experience but if they do, jump up to the Ruger semi-auto .22 cal. I have one with target sights and it is a joy to shoot plus cheap ammo to.

I too will jump on the Ruger bandwagon.

The simplest is the Ruger Single-Six. It is easy to use for an inexperienced shooter and accurate. Not much to go wrong with a Single-Six and in a .22 revolver the single action is what you want. Double action revolvers are normally fired in single action mode anyway and to get equal quality to the Ruger will be much more expensive.

In a semi-auto I'd also vote Ruger. I have owned and shot a MK I Ruger Target Model (5 1/2" heavy barrel) since the mid-1970's. This pistol is near bullet-proof and scary accurate. Only thing needed to maintain these pistols is flushing with a good solvent once in a blue moon to remove built-up gunk.....but otherwise, just load and shoot. Complete tear-down CAN be a bit tricky with the Ruger, but is VERY seldom needed and not that diffecult once the design is understood.

for a first .22 hand gun, I am always going to pitch the Smith & Wesson revolvers.

Ruger MK II with bull barrel. I remember reading of a pistol club in South Africa that had several of these that had fired in excess of 4 million rounds each without any work at all. Hard to beat that kind of reliability.

It all depends on whether he will invest the time in learning about handguns and what you/he wants. If he's going to be pretty casual, I'd go with a revolver. If he's going to get into it, an auto is fine. If the latter, the Ruger Mk. III in whatever configuration you want, would be my choice. I like the Government configuration. (5 7/8 heavy barrel.) If you go revolver, you've got the stainless Ruger Single Six along with a magnum cylinder. A Smith K-22 (617) is never a bad choice either. A model 63 Kit Gun might be preferable if he's a fisherman.

Ruger gets my vote

Ruger'd be fine but I'd say single six convertable.

I was so pizzed at my MKII stainless bull barrel pistol on Sunday I would have gave it to you.

The damn thing has a habbit of knowing when I need it to function (feed). It likes to stab one right into the bottom of the feed ramp which basically splits the lead nose like a piece of firewood under an axe.



If won't eject cci stingers either.

I dunno, the fuggin MKII jams plenty on me.

I really like revolvers.

My ancient Ruger ( mk1 ?) used to do just that,
IF I didn't shake the magazine after loading.
You know, take all the pressure off the carts and shake it like a rattle.
Then it would cycle flawlessly.
And with the two handed "fast trigger" it would empty a mag in?
2secs or less!

mine is cursed.

I can shoot cans and targets till the cows come home but if I need it to function to shoot a critter it will jam every time.

I know how you feel Dave.
That is one thing I can say for the 22A. I bought it well used.
Bore looked fine but the outside is missing 'paint' in a few spots.
But it shoots any and all ammo I stuff in it.
AND, when I do my part, I can hold 10's and X's all day at 25 feet. All the black at 50.
One day soon, I'll get a 100!

The wife's Buckmark , golden trigger target pistol will shoot as well. But ony with CCI or Blazers. Every other brand or type with jamb at least one per mag.

I'll take a look at mine tonight maybe. Tear it all the way down & clean it really good. check the extractor & stuff. Check the magazine over really good. Stupid thing shoots awesome when I can get it to feed.

Just my humble opinion, but I would not get a semi-auto for a person who knew very little about guns in general. Add in the low maintenance and you not able to be there and it�s an accident waiting to happen. For example, lots and lots of folks think that when you remove the magazine the pistol is safe and have no idea they have to clear the chamber (although I understand the latest Mk III Ruger does have a magazine disconnect). Or, lacking well ingrained gun handling skills, they pull the trigger and presto there is another one up the spout that only takes a slight tug on the trigger to set off.

I would strongly recommend a revolver of some kind, either double or single action. They don�t promote safe skills by themselves or totally make up for their lack but do offer a little extra protection against the more common mistakes.

That's my preference, too, but he did specify a pistol.

The Ruger's are easy to shoot well. I prefer the MK II. My wife has a MK III and it has some features I don't like. I don't care for the loaded chamber indicator and, as the gun comes from the factory, it will not fire with the magazine out. This feature also prevents the magazine from falling clear of the gun when the mag release button is pressed. She didn't like this feature either, so I deactivated it for her. It was no simple matter and required alteration of a couple of parts. I don't reccomend it unless you are familiar with these guns. For a first handgun, I would not reccomend an auto pistol at all. I'd go with a .22 revolver. A Ruger Single Six single action. It's easy to maintain and simple to operate. It's also accurate and a lot of fun to shoot.

I'd keep my eye on this one. It ends in a little over 1 day.

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=194587229

That's a nice looking one. I'd like to have that myself.

Hey Northern Dave You have a freak gun I have 2 Mark IIs one regular and one with a Leupold scope I have fired thousands of rounds mostly non scoped NEVER an issue.Every one I know with one would say the same.

I crossed this bridge two years ago my daughters 16th B Day.Yes I would have liked a S&W for a life investment but I was so happy with her Taurus tracker that I bought one for my. Father and Daughter (we also have custom pearl handle folding knives) someone get me a tissue I am tearing up. They shoot well are relatively light and have really nice grips. She has 4in I have 6in.When I walk the woods I carry mine.

I have a few 22 autos the standard I measure all by is the Ruger Mark II SS with bull barrel

Hank

Sig Mosquito's a good one; I've also got a Buckmark.

Of course, if you REALLY cared, you'd pick him up a Diamondback.

+1

I'm a revolver guy. If I was looking for a reasonably priced .22 handgun to buy my son, I'd look around for a nice H&R Model 999.

They're widely considered one of the best revolvers H&R ever made. The downside is, people have started to appreciate them and the prices are starting to get a bit high for a nice example.

In fact, I'm going to have to keep my eye on this one.

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=195312103

thanks all- I am enjoying this thread and have been bouncing all over gunbroker. The buckmark was a great find. I don't know how he would like a revolver. If tallying up the score a nice priced Ruger MK III might have the edge right now (if the buckmark gets gobbled up) but hope you all keep it coming.

thanks Bristoe- gotta say the mention of an H&R didn't so much for me but then I took a look. Looks like a lot of gun for the money.

I'll admit,..most of the offerings from H&R are fairly "ho-hum"

But they hit a home run when they put a 6" barrel, 9 shot .22 cylinder, and adjustable sights on their late model break down frame. The full size, hand checkered grips are a nice touch, also.

Back when they were still making them they got a lot of very good reviews from the gunwriters who tried them out.

I have three Ruger .22 autos. A MKI 4" standard, a MKII 5 1/2" bull barrel target, and a MKIII 4" 22/45 heavy barrel with adj sights. None has ever missed a shell.

+1 on the H&R 999 revolver, but they are getting harder to sneak up on.

I have a Browning Buckmark which has served me well.

+1

My Ruger Mark II Hunter shoots more like a rifle than a pistol.

I've owned most of the 22 wheel guns and none of the revolvers have ever come close to this kind of accuracy.

I just could stands no more! Yep, that .22 Ruger kept playing on my mind like a bad tune from the juke box. I had to do something about that noise in my head......So I went down and purchased the Ruger MK-3 with heavy barrel. Now I can say I got a real FUN GUN!!!

My kids all loved my S&W622. And I like it a heck of a lot better than any Ruger I've shot.

I really like my Ruger MKII Slabside. If you do decide on Ruger I'd sure hunt around for a MKII of some flavor. The MKIII has the goofy lawyer junk that complicates them even more.

The s&w 22a is good, easy take down. just be careful of used ones. The electors will peen the chamber at the neck. It takes a few thousand rounds to get to that point tho. I love mine. With a red dot its almost like cheating.
-Yeti

Just gave both of my sons Ruger Standard autos. Got 2 more waiting on my grandsons. One of them I bought new in 67 and the other is a 70 model.

Ruger mark2 or if you're feeling flush a SW model 41.

I love my Buckmark Slabside. Extremely accurate and not finiky with ammo choice.

The trailslide is real nice

The H&R top breaks with the 9 shot cylinder are pretty damn good guns, I've been through thousands of rounds with mine and its still ticking just fine.

The Walther P22 works great if you're looking for a semi auto and has a hammer, which makes it a little more interesting than the Ruger pistols IMO.

Ruger Mark 2, not newer 3. Stainless 5 1/2" bull barrel.

2nd choice - Browning Buckmark, pick a model but a URX 5 1/2" would be a good one IMHO. Stainless preferred.