Ruger LCR 22

[gbran]

I guess Ruger now has an LCR in 22lr. It's an 8 round gun with a 1.9" barrel.
I have never understood the use or need for a 22 snubbie, especially a DA with a 7 lb trigger.

I'd be interested in hearing why one would want one or these and what they would use it for.

 

[vicdotcom]

To train with it for one thing. Sometimes I am at the range and shooting badly. I pick up my .22 and fire off a few dozen rounds to get me back on track. It would be nice to match the same firearm also so you can still keep consistency.

And though I don't condone ccw a .22, some people do.

 

[rcmodel]

+1

Cheap practice for the centerfire LCR you can't afford to shoot 500 rounds a week.

Maybe 8 rounds of CCI snake-shot for the fisherman's chest wader pocket too.
Sometimes those pesky black watersnakes try to get in your waders with you!

I even had a very large timber rattler try to climb over the transom of my bass boat once.
I'd of give my left gonad for an 8-shot .22 snubbie full of snake-shot just about the time I decided beating him with a fishing rod was just making him more determined to get in my boat with me.

rc

 

[vicdotcom]

I even had a very large timber rattler try to climb over the transom of my bass boat once.
I'd of give my left gonad for an 8-shot .22 snubbie full of snake-shot just about the time I decided beating him with a fishing rod was just making him more determined to get in my boat with me.

LOL that made me laugh. Hopefully it was an Ugly stick and not a G-Loomis rod!

 

[Salty1]

I checked what the dealer cost is on these and it appears that they will sell in the neighborhood of $410, the same as the 38 LCR. That is a pretty expensive gun to "train" with. That money could be used for many 38 popcorn loads for the 38 version. Ruger hit some home runs with their LCP, LCR and
LC9, not sure about this one though. For the record one of my carry guns is an LCR in 357 so I am very much a fan of the platform, just not the 22 caliber and associated costs........

 

[vicdotcom]

I checked what the dealer cost is on these and it appears that they will sell in the neighborhood of $410, the same as the 38 LCR. That is a pretty expensive gun to "train" with. That money could be used for many 38 popcorn loads for the 38 version. Ruger hit some home runs with their LCP, LCR and
LC9, not sure about this one though. For the record one of my carry guns is an LCR in 357 so I am very much a fan of the platform, just not the 22 caliber and associated costs........

I personally don't feel that that $400 is out of line for a quality .22

 

[ElrodCod]

I personally don't feel that that $400 is out of line for a quality .22

Quality???????????????????

 

[vicdotcom]

Quality???????????????????

Love or hate the plastic composite revolver design, LCR is reliable and there aren't too many problems or complaints about it. Great trigger and good grip that soaks up some of the felt recoil.

 

[Old Fuff]

Guys... It this way.

Long before Ruger got serious about a .22 RF LCR they had a market study done, and maybe more then one. They needed to know if there was a market for such a gun, and if so how big it might be. The undoubtedly discovered that the opinion of "ordinary" buyers (or potential buyers) was much different then those found on "serious" firearms forums, such as The High Road.

Frankly they didn't care about our opinions as much as those that aren't involved enough to share our values. Apparently they learned that there were enough folks out there who would be interested and willing to spend the money to buy a .22 LCR to support the cost of developing and marketing one. If that wasn't the case it would have never seen the light of day.

So are they kidding? No way! They are in business to make guns that sell and make money, and over the long run the company has a strong record of success. At least at the moment I have no intention of running out and buying one, but I doubt that's giving them any sleepless nights.

A soft economy may damage sales, but I think that over time they will cry all of the way to the bank.


http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=631453

 

[oldfool]

yo, Old Fuff
Even amongst us "serious" firearm forum folk, there are lots who are much attracted to practice companion clones. I won't rush out and buy the LCR-22 myself (not until I get a LCR 38 1st that is), but like you said, Ruger knows their market

as for rcmodel..
he must have spent some time on bassin' water in south Georgia and Texas, like me
I thought I was the only one who attracted them moccasins during mating season like that, but a friend of mine did shoot a hole slap thru the bottom of his boat one day, when when one dropped off a overhanging branch... he then left the boat to the snake and went for a swim

 

[Old Fuff]

Even amongst us "serious" firearm forum folk, there are lots who are much attracted to practice companion clones.

Sure there are, but the thread title and some posts seem to suggest (if not outright say) that Ruger is out of their minds to market a pocket snub by in .22 R.F. My point, is the company, contrary to some opinions, knows exactly what they are doing, and will probably turn out to be right.

 

[vicdotcom]

Sure there are, but the thread title and some posts seem to suggest (if not outright say) that Ruger is out of their minds to market a pocket snub by in .22 R.F. My point, is the company, contrary to some opinions, knows exactly what they are doing, and will probably turn out to be right.

I agree, especially since the GP100 is also has a .22 offering now.

 

[BCRider]

There's a GP100 in .22 now as well? I don't see anything on the website.

There's also the new SP101-22 with 4.2 inch barrel which seems to be getting good feedback from the folks at THR. Threads I've read since I took up shooting and found THR about 3 years back always seemed to have someone waxing on poetically about the old SP101 in .22. Now that it's back I guess we'll see.

I do know that it'll be one to add to my own collection when it comes north of the border. The LCR won't make it though as the short barrel it has makes it fit in our "prohib" status which means no one is allowed to import them.

For the US though the LCR gives the guys an option for a gun with a shorter barrel than the SP-101-22. And with it having the plastic frame and all it would be a superb "kit gun" for woods folk and campers being both lighter and more compact than many other options. In fact it may just be a better "kit gun" than the original S&W model 34 for these reasons.

 

[vicdotcom]

There's a GP100 in .22 now as well? I don't see anything on the website.

There's also the new SP101-22 with 4.2 inch barrel which seems to be getting good feedback from the folks at THR. Threads I've read since I took up shooting and found THR about 3 years back always seemed to have someone waxing on poetically about the old SP101 in .22. Now that it's back I guess we'll see.

Whoops sorry might have bee the SP-101 in .22 not the GP.

 

[bikemutt]

.22 mag I could see buying, for dog walks.

 

[moxie]

Agree with the above posts on an LCR .22 for training and as a kit/snake gun.

But, more importantly, there are many people out there who simply cannot handle the recoil of a .38, let alone +P. It's called arthritis. Some gravitate toward the Beretta Mod. 21 tilt barrel and clones because of the light recoil and not having to rack the slide. But a revolver has the adavantage of moving on to a new round in the case of an FTF. Much more reliable. This is a great option for those who need a gun with negligible recoil, decent capacity and the ability to be carried in a pocket or purse.

As far as suitability for self defense, fire a shot with a Stinger or MiniMag at a 2X4. Look at the backside. Multiply by three, four, five, (8?) times. Center mass. Remember the context, not everyone is Sgt. Rock.

 

[FMJMIKE]

I e-mailed Ruger last year asking for the LCR in .22lr. I am sure I wasn't the only one requesting it. I will buy one......after the furor dies down. Thanks Ruger.....

 

[jimniowa]

I just bought my wife a LCR and she is now shooting 158g swc mid range reloads and factory 125g +p jhp and she has no problem now adjusting to recoil and she has AR in her wrists. For snakes and fishing I would just buy or load bird shot in a .38sp as both are available. If one was to put that kind of money in a 2" .22 I would advise them to get a real .22 shooter, MK2, S&W 617 on the used market for example.
Jim

 

[BCRider]

Now that you mention it I'm also a bit surprised that it's not a .22WMR. Mind you as Old Fuff mentioned not all that many actually shoot a lot of WMR. And the chief market for such a gun as this is as a practice gun for those with .38Spl LCR's and as a cheap to shoot plinker for others and as a cheap to shoot and NOT TOO NOISEY PLEASE kit gun for the sort of things a kit gun is used for. So likely they hit he market nail directly on the head.

I know that I've got an NAA "The Earl" that came with both cylinders. To date I've shot a half box of WMR that was given to me and have not even thought about running out and buying more.

I suspect I'm fairly typical of the folks that get guns with two cylinders like this. Or at most they'll buy a box or two of WMR, blow it out of their system and then the WMR cylinder gathers dust or finds a hiding spot in the bottom rear of some drawer of equally forgotten flotsam....

 

[Old Fuff]

I expect that we'll see a .22 WRM in the not too distant future. At this point most of the designing, development and tooling has been done.

As far as it goes, I remember that Bill Jordan (who knew his way around a gunfight from personal experience) recommended the .22 Magnum in ultra-light snubbies for back-up and off-duty carry.

 

[gbran]

I'm not completely opposed to the 22wmr in a short barreled gun and I do like the LCR. The 22lr isn't even comparable to the wmr. 4 inch is my shortest 22wmr. I've taken a lot of small game with it. Even got a yote with it.

 

[BCRider]

I must admit that I'm a bit puzzled over the choice to put out this LCR in .22LR only instead of as a convertable set with the WMR cylinder. Mind you with the Ruger website listing it at $525 the cost of the extra cylinder would have pushed it up to $600 to $625. Maybe the figure folks just won't pay that much.

Seems like if they put a Single Six like compromise bore barrel on it they could have done a .22WMR upgrade for maybe $125? How many would have jumped at such a thing? Likely enough to justify a small run of WMR cylinders. Maybe one in 10?

 

[ElrodCod]

How long is the extraction throw? The .22 mag cases might be too long for a good clean extraction.

 

[PX15]

JMOfartO:

I always love seeing a new gun hit the market..

The Ruger LCR22 will not appeal to a lot of buyers, but I'm betting Ruger has done their homework and at least they THINK the revolver will sell in sufficient numbers to warrant it's production.

I have found out in the past decade or so that being old and retired on a fixed income I cannot afford to go "out back" and plink away with my centerfire pistols and revolvers as I was once able to do. But I CAN still get "out back" and shoot 550 rounds of Federal bulk pack 22's cheaper than I can fire 50 rounds of centerfire ammo.

So, while I'm not in the "market" for a 22cal. snubby, I'm glad there's going to be one on the market should I change my mind.

I will say that I think there will be a goodly number of old folks, or folks who have hand strength problems for one reason or another, that the LCR22 will have an appeal to.

I should think that the Ruger LCR22 loaded with 8 rounds of "CCI Stingers" would be much better for self defense than harsh words alone... Or even better than a 25ACP..

Just personal opinion, no offense if you think I'm wrong. (Been wrong before :banghead.

Jesse