[Carbon_15]

Looking to spend about $350 or so on a new plinker handgun, new or used. Right now the Bearcat is at the top of my list. Give me some other ideas. What are your favorite range toys.

[Rob1035]

ruger mkii, either standard or 22/45, whichever you prefer. There's so much aftermarket you'll never get bored...

[ACP230]

In your situation I think I'd look at the Olympic Arms version of the Whitney Wolverine.

[DMK]

My favorite plinker/range toy is my CZ-75. I have a Kadet slide for it so I bring it to the range and have the choice of cheap 9mm or super cheap 22LR. The gun itself was $300, but the Kadet slide was another $200 so that puts it over your price limit.

My second favorite would be my Ruger Single Six with a 6" barrel. It has swappable cylinders so I can shoot 22LR or 22Mag in it. 22Magnum is a lot of fun, especially with that long sight radius. :)

http://home.mchsi.com/~davidkoch/myarms/22Pistoleros.jpg
Here's my Single Six, my CZ-75 Kadet and a Marvel slide on a Sistema. I sold the Marvel because it was very finicky about ammo, I didn't like the sights, and wasn't appreciably more accurate than the CZ with the ammo I was using.

[GI Jane]

anything .22 cheap to shoot, can even use it in the garage.
Rugar mk II is nice.

[Dienekes]

The wife's Bearcat doesn't get used much in spite of her wanting one for years before I sprung for one of the new ones. In contrast to that I refurbished a beater old Ruger Standard Auto 6" that she found at a gun show for $85 and did a trigger job on it. It now looks semi-respectable and she shoots it often and well.

My user is the same thing but a 4" and was even worse looking. That's deceptive as the trigger is now great and it is probably the best shooting .22 I have...

You might find a decent old K-22 Smith for that kind of money if you look hard. A better .22 was never made.

Or a Colt Woodsman if you don't mind exterior wear. Old, but buckets of class.

[Moonclip]

Get a 22 lr pistol of some sort and a CZ52. 22lr pistol and a $10 brick of ammo can provide a lot of fun and the CZ52 will impress everyone at the range with the muzzle flash and blast and the empty brass being ejected halfway across the range!

[foghornl]

I currently have both a MKII and a Single-Six, and both are way up on the "Fun Gun" list.

I had a Bearcat for a while, but it was a bit too small for my ham-fists & sausage fingers.

[kahr404life]

I have a Walther P22 thats great. It has adjustible sites, different grip inserts, a light rail, and flat or finger groove magazine floor plates. It also comes with a tool kit for maintenance. Mine is very accurate and reliable. There is also a barrel kit that adds length and weight. Fobus makes a nice paddle holster as well. If you are feeling really froggy GemTech makes a very nice silencer. The only thing I don't like is a magazine disconnect feature. I only paid $180.00 (on sale new in the box) for mine.

[Working Man]

MKII and a Single-Six, and both are way up on the "Fun Gun" list

+1

[Black Majik]

Marvel unit 1 or 2 kit for 1911s.

Well worth it!

[Pointman]

Hard to beat a single action Six Shooter for shreer shooting enjoyment. Between my Springfield 1911 and my Vaquero the Vaquero goes out every weekend. Of course I've been shooting 1911's for 20 years and this is only my second of what my wife calls my "cowboy" guns :D

Oh and while .22's are cheap and fun for awhile they're still not even close to as much fun as some light .45 Colt loads. :evil:

[GunGoBoom]

Bearcat or Single Six are pretty good choices. Might also look at a Browning Buckmark - the Hunter model is what I'd recommend - about $299 retail new - has accessory rail, FO front sight, fully adj. rear, nice wooden grips, 7.25" bull barrel. Also maybe a Taurus 94 9-shot .22 revolver - you'd have some money left over. Also, to go beyond handguns, maybe a .22 rifle of some flavor, or even a Hi-Point carbine in 9mm.

[EddieCoyle]

If you're not locked in to a .22, I'd suggest a Ruger Blackhawk in .30 carbine. They're usually available used for around $200. It's not that expensive to shoot and the noise and flash is quite impressive. Every time I bring mine to the range, it draws a crowd.

[gvass]

For ultimate fun buy a cap'n'ball revolver!

[TimboKhan]

I am a diehard Ruger fan, so I recommend a MkI/II/III, but really, I don't know that any of the big dogs .22 autoloaders are dogs. I own a MkII right now, and thats my favorite, but I have also owned a Buckmark, and it was very nice too. I don't know much about the reliability of the Beretta Neos, but I do think that it is very, very cool that you can buy a carbine kit for it, and it also looks cool. Personally, depending on what Olympic prices those Whitney Wolverines at, that may very well be my next choice. That said, for $350.00, the used market opens up substantially for you, so maybe you don't want a .22. Hell, if you shop right, you probably will be able to buy 2 or maybe even 3 guns for that $350.00!

[Moonclip]

EC, you are finding 30carbine Blackhawks for $200 in Mass of all places? I agree that it is a "blast" to shoot and ammo is only like 9-12 per 50 if you shop around. I like my 357 blackhawk much better though especially as many 30carbine blackhawks seem to have a sticky chamber issue.

[Brad Johnson]

+1 on the 22/45. I have one (4" bull barrel) with close to 25,000 rounds through it. Dead reliable, cheap to shoot, and accurate as all heck.

Brad

[yesterdaysyouth]

cz52 is where it's at...

[Carbon_15]

you know, a .30 Caqrbine Blackhawk is theonly one on the list that had not occured to me.
Does anyone know the velocity and energy figures for the .30 carbine from the Blackhawk? Would it be approprate for deer?

[TimboKhan]

One of the gun magazines actually just did a write up on the .30 carbine, and they indicated that it would be acceptable on smaller deer. My dad has a .30 carbine, and it actually is a very fun and pleasant cartridge to shoot. Just to give you an idea, recoil is stouter than a .38 special, but not as stout as a .357. At least thats how it feels to me.

[Navy joe]

you know, a .30 Carbine Blackhawk is the only one on the list that had not occured to me.
Does anyone know the velocity and energy figures for the .30 carbine from the Blackhawk? Would it be approprate for deer?

My dad owned one of these things before I was around. By his accounts the deer ought to at least die of a ruptured eardrum. Pretty brutal to shoot.

I say get a .22 conversion for something you already own. If you have a 1911, get the Marvel.

[TimboKhan]

Navy Joe,

Not to hijack the thread, but really, your dad found the .30 carbine brutal to shoot? I just shot one, and I found it very pleasant, and not particularly loud, or at least not any louder than anything else. Perhaps there was something different between then and now that changed the equation?

[ChristopherG]

I can't imagine the 30 carbine would be a good choice for deer--at least not as good a choice as a 357, which has so much more projectile flexibility. The 1850 or so fps of a 30 carbine sounds good, but a 357 can do a bit better than that out of a carbine length barrel, and with a substantially heavier bullet--so I wouldn't expect the carbine to be ballustically very impressive from a short barrel. Now a .357 blackhawk, that's a very fun gun and certainly could be used for deer. I got one a couple months ago--6.5" stainless--for 260 bucks. They're a great buy.

[valor1]

Any reliable .22 handgun is what I consider a fun gun. I can recommend the following:

- Ruger Mk II pistols in whatever variant
- Taurus 941 revolvers
- Bersa Thunder 22 pistol
- Cz Kadet conversion on a Cz-75 pistol

Enjoy

[Graystar]

2 Ruger 10/22s, a gating gun kit, a couple of 50 round magazines!

[TimboKhan]

The 1850 or so fps of a 30 carbine sounds good, but a 357 can do a bit better than that out of a carbine length barrel

Sure it can, but the whole point is that it's fun to shoot out of a pistol too! Not trying to be confrontational with you as I flat out love .357's and I honestly consider them to be the best all around handgun round there is (just my opinion), but try shooting the .30 carbine out of that same Blackhawk platform (well, a blackhak chambered for it, I mean) and I think you will find that it, in addition to the .357, is a very satisfying round to shoot. Sorry for being a .30 carbine apologist/hijacker guys!

[Jim101]

Ruger 22/45 with a Red Dot or a Ruger Single-Six combo........I have both and they are Fun Guns.............

Jim

[Red Tornado]

I gotta side with the CZ52 suggestions, they are a hoot! Loud and hot and a big enough pistol that recoil is very slight. Surplus ammo's even available for it.
RT

[mokster]

Just recently purchased a redhawk 44 and though a little pricey for rounds its a blast to shoot I love it. My next favorite is the 357 blackhawk.

[Caseless]

How about a Savage Striker bolt action hand-rifle :cool:
http://www.savagearms.com/501f.htm

[Stevie-Ray]

My best plinkers are all .22s. Especially the Rugers. I have an old RST-6 and loved it so much I bought a KMK-512. Both are an absolute blast and have each gone thru thousands upon thousands of rounds without a hiccup. I do also have a Taurus PT-22 that is loads of fun, but not as accurate as the Rugers, of course. I could see building a para-military rig out of a 10-22, considering the amount of aftermarket accessories available for them. That would probably be even more grins than the rifles I have now. Hmmm....might take valuable time away from my pistol plinkin, though.:D