Anyone Bought A New Ruger SP101 .22 LR?

[sigbear]

I am thinking of ordering a new .22 LR SP101 with a 4" barrel for my wife who is recoil sensitive and am wondering if anyone has bought one and what their opinion is of the gun? I have a SP101 .357 mag. with a 3" barrel and do like it.

I know .22 LR is not the best caliber for self defense for her but if she gets comfortable with the gun and can hit the target it's better than a larger caliber and not hitting the target.

She has tried all of my .38, 9mm and .45's but anticipates the recoil and hits the ground every time. She gets pissed off at me when I try to correct her and gets frustrated with herself. She does prefer revolvers which brings me to the SP101.

Sigbear

 

[WNC Seabee]

I got one within a week of release. I love it! Accurate, feels good in the hand.

I swapped out the factory hammer spring for a 10# Wolff and swapped the grips for a Hogue.

 

[Gary A]

I have one and like it quite well. Keep in mind, however, that being a 22 rimfire, this revolver has a quite heavy double-action trigger pull. Something to consider when someone with less than ideal hand strength is going to depend on it for self defense.

 

[GEM]

What's it going for as compared to MSRP?

 

[DPris]

She will not like the DA trigger.
Denis

 

[BCRider]

In the great majority of relationships husbands should never try to teach wives to do much of anything. It just leads to a sense of misunderstanding and a feeling of being "talked down to". Far better off to have a friend of the family that shoots well do the coaching.

SeaBee seems to like the improvement of the trigger feel with the spring change so that would be the place to start if she finds the trigger heavy to pull.

Beyond that a .22 is a great gun to work on accuracy and to develop the proper sense of detachment for the coming recoil. I know that shooting lots of .22 greatly helped me kick my flinching early on. And when I feel it coming back even a little some quality time with my .22 plinkers helps me re-focus on the basics.

Print out or show her this next bit. It may help to read it from someone else.

One trick I've done with recoil sensitive folks as an RO is to tell them to pull the trigger all the way back and hold it there for a good second before releasing it for the next shot.

The idea is to not just pull it to the BANG! since then you are pulling the trigger in expectation of the recoil which is bad. By concentrating on pulling the trigger to the travel limit instead and holding it there for a half to one second you are focusing on the control of the pull instead of the upcoming BANG!. It's actually a mental switch you take to do this. You want to concentrate on the trigger and try to detach yourself from the BANG!.

The companion hint that goes with this is that the idea isn't to actually pull the trigger. Instead you should build pressure against the trigger. Just allow it to move as it wants. Once the trigger reaches the travel limit and yoiu hold it there for about a second for the recoil shock to subside then equally slowly and with the same control release the pressure and allow the trigger to push your finger ahead.

Working with the trigger in this manner you can more easily develop the sense of mental detachment from the BANG and recoil which is actually the whole point of this trigger control method.

Certainly the control you gain with this method over your sight picture awareness and trigger control aids your shooting accuracy. But in the end the focus on the sight picture and the trigger control is more of a mechanism to aid in gaining this sense of focus and detachment from the noise and recoil.

A good starting point for this sense of control is do work on the sight picture hold and trigger control by "dry firing" an empty gun. Really concentrate on a smooth and even build of pressure from your trigger finger and the post travel hold and equally controlled trigger release.

Don't worry about doing this fast at first. But try not to do it TOO slowly. Ideally you want to build pressure on the trigger such that it reaches the travel limit in about one and a half to two seconds, hold the trigger back against the travel limit for about one second then take a second and a half to two seconds to release the trigger with the same control as you did the pull, hold at the release point for one second then repeat the cycle. Work on your trigger focus during this dry fire exercise. Try to feel all the little scratches and changes in the trigger's pull and remember to keep the concentration even as the hammer falls.

When you're ready for it a big boost to aid in reaching your goal of shooting the center fire guns with good control is to use the .22 to get into this Zen like state where you feel a sense of detachment from the recoil of the .22.

Then, while you feel you've got it and you're still in the "Zen Zone" pick up a .38Spl revolver and shoot a few rounds. Keep in mind that the important point here is to maintain your concentration on the sights and the trigger finger control. Try to keep your mind in the "Zen Zone".

At first you may not make it through even 6 shots of the center fire if you're sensitive to it. But just switch back to the .22 and get back your sense of control and detachment and when you feel right try a few more shots of the center fire. And as soon as you feel your mind start to anticipate the recoil just go back to the .22 to get back into the "Zen Zone".

Double stuffing your ears is also not a bad idea at first. Especially if you're sensitive to the loudness of the BANG!. "Double Stuffing" means you put in ear plugs as well as wear the muffs. And maybe see if you can find some .38Spl wadcutter target shooting loads for the first while. They recoil quite a bit more softly than normal defense shooting ammo. So they would be a good stepping stone up from a .22.

 

[MCgunner]

I don't think you'll find a .22 of the SP101's size that will have a light DA trigger. It's the nature of the beast, the rim fire system needs more hammer strike. I'd think .327 and get some .32 log for her to shoot in it, or .32 H&R if she can handle that level, work her way up to the .327s. Just a quick thought, but the .327 would be easier to work the trigger on to get a good pull for her, I'd think.

 

[GEM]

I'd agree with the 327 argument. I have a SW 632 with a quite nice trigger pull and with 32 Longs, it is just a baby for recoil. Of course, it's sometimes hard to find but I got a case of Fiocchi at a gun show and it works fine.

I had a SW 317 and had to use a pulley to pull the trigger in DA.

 

[roaddog28]

I would have too agree with others that most 22 SA/DA revolvers will have a heavy double action trigger. The only revolvers that I have ever tried that had a decent double action trigger is a S&W model 17 or 18. And even then there double action trigger is not as good as my S&W model 10, 13, 19 and 66.
I recommend going to the range with her and renting a S&W model 10 4 inch. Also bring target ammo like wadcutters for her to practice. Once she gets use to shooting the model 10 she may like it better than a 22 revolver. The double action trigger on a model 10 is going to be better than just about any 22 revolver made.

Just a thought.
Howard

 

[JohnStapleton]

Sigbear,

The 22SA is quite heavy but do you think that would be an issue for your wife? Would she be able to handle a gun with a heavy revolver ? If so, then it is as you said a good gun to get started on?

John.
My site on ear plugs may help you when looking for shooting plugs.