Update on my latest thinking
Hi Everyone,
Thanks again for all the posts on my future .22lr handgun. I had a chance to visit some stores and hold a variety of guns that we've been talking about and that you've recommended. I'll start of with the not so positive and then end on a higher note.
I looked at the Ruger SP101 22 revolver. As you would expect, the Ruger is very well made. I really wanted to like this gun, but as I suspected from the picture the grip is on the small side. It wouldn't be impossible to use by any stretch, but it didn't feel that comfortable either. I might be able to buy a larger grip for it. It also felt slightly barrel heavy, but not enough to be a deal breaker. Too bad really, because it's a beautiful gun and priced around $500. I wouldn't mind owning one if I could solve the grip issue.
I once again held various Browning Buckmarks. The grips on these Brownings are good for my hand. They're very comfortable. I really like the one with the fiber optic sites and could easily be happy with any of them.
I held a Ruger Mark III 22/45. Nice grip angle but the grip itself felt really skinny, uncomfortably so. I could live with it, but again, I really like something that feels great in my hand.
I also held the Ruger Mark III Hunter in stainless steel and a 6 and 7/8 inch fluted barrel. I've attached a picture of this gun. This gun felt very good in my hand. The grip was totally different from the 22/45 and felt much fuller. Despite the longer barrel, it felt well balanced and not barrel heavy at all.
I'd like to get anyone's experience with this specific gun. It's Ruger model 10118. Here's a link to the Ruger site:
http://www.ruger.com/products/markIIIHunter/models.html
Specifically, how well does this gun process a variety of ammo? Do you need to stick with the high quality stuff or will it also shoot bulk ammo. I assume the accuracy is good but would like any comments.
As an aside, I see there is fairly strong support for the S&W 617 10-shot revolver. It's not out of the running yet but at this point I think the main competition is the Ruger Mark III Hunter.
As always, any insight is greatly appreciated. I look forward to your comments.