Beretta 21A or Ruger LCP II?

As a Beretta 21A owner, the only mechanical gain it has over the Taurus is the longer hammer throw from the single action cocked position. Which in my experience has less "light strike" failures than when the hammer is pulled through in double action with its shorter hammer throw. Maybe the Taurus overcomes some of that with a heavier hammer spring? But I have no idea if that's true.

I gotta admit that if I had an LCP in .380, I'd probably find an excuse to own the LCP in .22LR.

Since you mentioned DA/SA .22 LR, going up a notch in size to something in the Bersa Thunder class may be worthy of consideration. I bought a Bersa .22 years ago and it is on another level of reliability and shootability than my Beretta 21A.

Have had a number of tip-barrel Berettas over the years; neat concept, but the only one I recall being stone reliable was a 950 in .25 ACP.
The .22 LCP's role is as a trainer for its .380 cousin, which truly isn't any fun to shoot.
Because of the nature of the .22rf, (getting it to feed/getting it to ignite), it's a bad idea for defense, except perhaps in a revolver.
Moon

Depends on a few things.

21a threaded version that is out now is nice if you have something to put onto those threads so I would give it the nod in that case.
If I had the LCP then the .22 version of that would make sense.

Like many firearm decisions a lot come down to personal preference.

The Bobcat is a little gem compared to the LCPII. Beautiful fit and finish on the Beretta compared to the loosey-goosey cheap plastic Ruger. I have an older 21A and it wasn't too reliable with bulk ammo when new, but after many bricks fired through it, it's now as reliable as any most other semi-auto 22s. That said, the LCPII 22 has its share of reported problems as have many other Rugers. My Max-9 had to have the frame replaced after a few hundred rounds, as have many others, and I had to make a new rear slide plate after the original got munched due to it having a poor fit in the slide. Recently bought an LCRX 22 and though it shot fine, it had an overly strong trigger pull and printed high with the rear sight adjusted all the way down. That was with all ammo I was testing, from CCI high velocity, standard, Stingers, WWB, Federal, Aguila and several others. After some trigger work, and making a taller front sight, it's actually a decent pistol for extended range use. That's going to be my last Ruger until they get back on the quality track.

I would be all over a LCPII in 22Lr if it didn't have the manual safety on it. Just a personnel preference on my part.

WB

I saw a grandpa and grandson shooting a 22lr LCPII at the range the other day. They seemed to be doing okay with it.

I didn't care for the horrible DAO trigger on my Taurus tip-up 22. The Beretta is nicer and is DA/SA, but I can't shoot it worth beans. Very nice little pistol, almost elegant. It's just not suited to my hands/eyes, apparently.

I;m actually more accurate with my LCPII in 380 than my Beretta 21a, so I personally would go with the Ruger.

Everyone's hands and grip and aiming techniques are different, so YMMV.

I have a couple each of both, along with several other small .22 autos.

I like them all and especially the Beretta, but the Ruger is the better pistol. Slightly more reliable, accurate, slimmer, much better sights.

The Beretta DA feature is cool but of little use to me. I do like the tip up barrel.

Around the place I almost always have an LCP II .22 in my pocket.

My PT22 is far more reliable than my Bobcat. Both were purchased used, so I don't know their histories.

I bought one of the Bersa Thunder 22s a couple of years ago, also used, having been nothing but impressed with the Thunder 380 I bought back in 2008. The rimfire one isn't as reliable, but may not have been broken in yet and I haven't really tried much (too many guns, if that's even possible, and not enough shooting time.)

I've been eyeing the Ruger. The last time I saw it for a price I was willing to pay was on July 1st of last year, the day Ruger announced the LCP-MAX. I left it and returned for it the next day. It was gone, and the MAX was there, so that's what I walked out with. I still think the .22 LCP would be nice.

Love the 21A

MedWheeler said:

My PT22 is far more reliable than my Bobcat. Both were purchased used, so I don't know their histories.

I bought one of the Bersa Thunder 22s a couple of years ago, also used, having been nothing but impressed with the Thunder 380 I bought back in 2008. The rimfire one isn't as reliable, but may not have been broken in yet and I haven't really tried much (too many guns, if that's even possible, and not enough shooting time.)

I've been eyeing the Ruger. The last time I saw it for a price I was willing to pay was on July 1st of last year, the day Ruger announced the LCP-MAX. I left it and returned for it the next day. It was gone, and the MAX was there, so that's what I walked out with. I still think the .22 LCP would be nice.

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Seems like the Bersa .22 prefers hotter ammo such as CCI MiniMags. Mine runs 100% (so far) with hotter ammo. My little Beretta 21A never ran anywhere that good with any ammo.

And yes there was a bit of a break in process with my Bersa, but mostly with the oversprung magazines. Downloading them to 9 rounds was necessary for a few hundred rounds through each mag (have 3 mags).

I shot this today, renting at a gun range. Sweet little shooter. It’s not easy to shoot well though.

I have owned a 21a and the ruger lcpII 22lr. The beretta was pretty reliable but it shot about 2 inches left at 7 yards. Now for the ruger that is another story. I currently have a lcpII and a lcp max in 380. I had a lcp II 22lr for about a month. First off the gun wouldn't make it through a mag without a light strike or or a jam. My second issue is the sights or lack of. The sights can hardly be seen because they are so small. You also couldn't eject a live round without dropping the mag. Ruger repaired it and I promptly sold it. I can recommend another small gun, the keltec p17. The p17 might be a little larger but it is a much better gun It is super reliable and accurate. It has a really good trigger, adjustable rear sight with a fiber optic front. It also has a threaded barrel. Really fun gun to shoot.

If you like the LCP or LCPII then the Ruger is the obvious choice. Might have to do a little work to get it reliable but the pistol will pay for itself as a trainer in the long run. Get it dialed in use ,the right ammo and you will be fine. Pocket autos are a lot of fun and anytime they can be bought in 22lr they are always worth having just for ammo costs alone. Anytime there is a small auto offered in 25acp and 22lr I typically buy both. Use the 25acp for pocket carry and use the 22lr for practice. If Ruger would get off their rear and offer this in 25acp along with the 22lr version I would be all over them.

Very early in my gun buying days (I'm a late bloomer -- didn't buy my first handgun until I was 50), I checked out a Beretta 3032 at the LGS. I liked it a lot but didn't end up getting one. Fast forward to the present: Having just received an unexpected bonus from work, I decided to splurge on a new firearm. I don't typically 'collect' firearms -- everything in my safe fits a particular hunting or self-defense niche, but this time I thought I would get myself a range toy -- just something to have fun with. After much thinking, I further decided I was much more likely to actually take the range toy to the range if it were chambered in .22 LR rather than anything else. That made me think of the 3032's smaller cousin, the 21a Bobcat. So, after watching many YouTube videos and reading many reviews, I reserved a new Bobcat Inox today. I am now eagerly looking forward to picking it up and punching some holes with it.

As much as I enjoy shooting my LCP II, it's not reliable enough that I would ever consider carrying it. For a range gun though, and a trainer for my LCP MAXs, it's worth keeping around.

I only have experience with the Beretta I've had 2 Tomcats and 3 Bobcats (long story) my Bobcats have all been good reliable guns.
My current one is not only surprisingly accurate it's sights are perfectly regulated.
This is a target I shot with it at the informal bullseye league. COF is 15 rounds @7 yards, 20 roundss @15 yards and 15 rounds @25 yards.

I’ve owned both, and each has its pros and cons. The Lcp has higher capacity and an extractor, which probably makes it a better carry option. The 21a has a grip that points better, and the tip up barrel makes loading and unloading less complicated. It also makes it easier for a new shooter to determine if the gun is loaded.

TTv2 said:

OP here, I have other .22 pistols, the smallest of them left once the Taurus is gone for good is a Phoenix, which I do like, it's just heavy. It's leaving a gap for a pocket .22 that's easily concealed and easy to carry. While I have no intention to carry them, I like the option of being able to have a small .22 for such a role and I like that it's cheap to shoot with said small .22 pistol. A revolver would certainly be more reliable the issue I'm having is finding any snubby .22 revolvers that aren't priced at Ruger or S&W levels now, the ultra lite Taurus 942 is unavailable, and I don't trust Charter.

Again, this isn't a I need right now type of thing, more a if I see one and it's a good deal should I consider getting either a 21A or LCP .22?

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Maybe, sometime in our lifetimes, some firm will start making xtra-small frames revolvers again like H&R did up until the mid 80s, in 22lr, 22wmr, 32mag and 32 S&W long.

I have one in 22lr and one in 32 S&W. Fits right in the picket, but too heavy.

My fiancee has the TX22 DAO Taurus and I understand why the attrocious DAO trigger pull. Its better for carrying it with the safety off. I liked that sized pocket pistol so I bought myself the Beretta 21a covert (blued and walnut with threaded barrel). Its a pretty little gun but here are some notes; 1- it needs hotter ammo (standard 22lr is iffy) Aguila Super Extra or CCI's hotter offerings it likes, 2- the safety is too small for me to reliably disengage while drawing so I carry it hammer down. 3- the DA pull is not bad the subsequent single actions is scary light (makes me really want o go play with a Beretta 92). I looked at the LCP II in 22 for me the safety is too hard to get to if you want to carry with a round in the chamber and the Taurus and Beretta fit my hands better.

TTv2 said:

I decided it was time to move on from a finicky old model (Aluminum frame) Taurus PT22. The Taurus had the tip up barrel and a DAO trigger that appealed to me for some reason, but lately I've been on more of a DA/SA kick and I can't think of too many small .22's that have that. I've been of the opinion that a DA trigger or an exposed hammer for a second strike is almost a necessity on rimfire pistols.

That said, I can't disregard the LCP II in .22 because I have the .380 LCP and could see the value in a trainer version.

I'm not looking to get either, just looking to get feedback from others if either are worth considering or if one is better than another.

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One problem with a double strike on a rim fire...you are striking the exact same place on the rim that has no primer

TTv2 said:

Occasionally, but I'd say 80% of the time I do a second strike it goes off.

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is this with an autoloading pistol?