P-22 problems

[Sky]

As many of you know I have enjoyed the little Walther P-22 and actually carry it sometimes depending on clothes worn.

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=559447

I was at the gun range today and the owner had an AK-74 I had thought about trading for but upon inspection I thought the sights were off; further inspection it was not the sights, the barrel had been pressed in the receiver crookedly. Needless to say I changed my mind.

I did sell a 45acp RIA commander size 1911 with a really nice trigger to a Constable after letting him put 5 rounds down range. The owner was very busy with inbound shipments. The 1911 was $449.00 + tax out the door.

Now to the topic. There were (2) P-22s only one of which I actually held in my hands that had basically blown up!!


sorry for the bad news.....promise... These were all new guns that were sold this year.

During firing/shooting the upper slide right side was completely broken off from approximately 1.3" in front of the chamber all the way back to the third or 4th serration of the right side over the grip. The slide had split almost dead center on top of the slide. I did not have my camera or I would have taken pictures for sure. The other P-22 I did not see and was only told it had a catastrophic malfunction also.

The owner had been shooting at the range when this happened and did have safety glasses on but still got some stings in the face. No blood thank you.

The P-22 is very popular with women and kids and has been popular with me too and is a fun shooter for sure. It is a great size and weight and we have individuals right here on THR that have several thousand rounds through their P-22s. After seeing what I saw today I will be trading my P-22 away as soon as I can.

This is my observation..Not a bash on a weapon I have honestly liked but no longer trust. If you have a child recommend you make them wear shooting glasses and if you are handling the P-22 think about how this one came apart and watch how and where you place your hand on the frame and grip. The one I held came apart rather dramatically.

 

[evan price]

The slide cracking is a known tendancy in high mileage P22s, especially those that fire a lot of high velocity ammo. The design of the pistol means especially when new that it can have some feeding problems and a lot of people run high velocity ammo to overcome this (Stingers, Velocitors, etc). There is no buffer in the P22 recoil system; the slide gets battered against the stops with high velocity ammo- when the recoil spring gets weak it can make the battering worse. Eventually the slide cracks from the slide stop notch or from a corner. The long-barrel with the fake compensator is worse because the slide will batter on the compensator, especially if the screws start to loosen up- and they do.

I've got over 7000 rounds of Federal bulk pack through my P22 with no problems- except a new recoil spring, and some careful fluff & buff when new.

 

[rangerjake]

I'm sure if you Google "(gun name) failures" you'll get plenty of results for any gun out there. They are mechanical and once in a while do fail. If you sell a gun every-time you hear about another one like it failing, you won't have many guns. Like Evan says, I wouldn't shoot high velocity through it and keep it maintained and you should be fine. It is a great gun to go out and shoot cheap ammo through. Also might be useful for training if you carry a P99, eg same controls, similar layout.

 

[Sky]

"Was he using high velocity ammo," was the first question that had been asked when the guy came in from the range. His answer when asked was, **** NO!

I agree anything can come apart if mechanical or abused. I did not see the type of ammo being used so I only have his word for it.

Evan Price that was a great explanation; thanks. Before this all the pictures I have seen of failures seemed to be around the front serrations but not the whole top slide splitting....it was very interesting or, maybe it could be said, it certainly got my attention!

 

[Canon4487]

The P22 was my very first gun and I regret selling every time I buy a box of .22 rounds. Id say I put a good 2,000 rds through it with no problem. Sold it to a friend of mine and he has not had any problems either (but he also just gone through 500 rds or so, he also doesn't take good care of it at all). I miss that little guy (the gun that is), and wish I still had the gun that started it all for me. =(