Walther P-22 jam-o-matic

[chestnut ridge]

I traded for an almost new P-22. Now i understand why it was in such good
condition. It is hard to wear out a pistol when it stove-pipes or over-rides
75%. ammo was winchester super-x hp.
What is the "word" on these walthers? it is not heavy enough to be a
boat anchor.

 

[hksw]

I got my P22 about a year after they came out. When at the range for the first few time, the number of failure to ejects and feeds was disappointing. Upon further examination, it appeared the firing pin safety plunger was hitting this small bump milled into the upper right of the zinc alloy frame. I had shaved down the corner of the bump that the plunger was hitting and this had fixed my problem. (Since the frame is of relatively soft metal, I actually was able to scrape a bevel on the bump with a cheap knife.)

After further research on the net, this was one of a few problems with the then realatively new gun. One of the others problems that was fixed was a modification to the mag (new mags have '-A' suffix).

 

[XLMiguel]

Do a search on P-22's. You'll find that P-22's want high velocity fodder, especially when new. My wouldn't run worth a damn until I started using hot ammo (CCI miiniMags, stingers, velocitors, PMC zappers, etc). After several hundred rnds of hot stuff, it started to 'tolerate' normal .22 fodder, but it still likes the hot stuff best. Don't give up on it until you've run a bunch of HV stuff thru. Once broken in, it's a fun little gun> Good luck.

 

[wally]

Since it was a used gun, make sure the mags are not the older model without the -A suffix. This is important.

My P22 was nearly 100% out of the box -- had a feed failure on the third shot with Winchester Wildcat then finished the brick without a bobble. I lube mine with "Dupont Performance Teflon Dry Lube" $5 a can at Lowes, seems to work well and keeps the powder fouling of cheap ammo from turning to oily mud.

I've had no problems with Remington Bulk Pak HP (~$9/525), Federal Champion (~$7/500), of Remington Thunderbolt (~$8/500). Haven't seen any Win Wildcat at these prices lately.

--wally.

 

[kart racer]

p22

Main 2 problems with them are normally the phillips head screw on the rt side of the receiver comes loose or the barrel nut comes loose.these two things create the most problems-trust me I know from experience.cci stuff runs best in mine,althought believe it or not thunderbolts are a close second-but are an absolute bitch to get all the leading out of the barrel.if the screw on the rt side comes loose just a little ,it will jam constantly,put some blue loctite on it and be done.

 

[boo17]

chestnut, i think this will help you out. I had the same problem an now it works perfectly with all ammo.

http://www.sju.edu/~bc165187/

 

[pauli]

you put a p22 and winchester ammo in the same room, and you're surprised it jammed?

cci minimags. remington golden bullets. if you're not going to stick to those, sell the gun.

 

[chestnut ridge]

thanks for the good information

i will print off all of that and start working with the walther. i will let
you know. i do remember a early 2002 date; so it may need up-dated
mags.

 

[TwoGun]

I bought one for my daughter last year and it certianly does like prefer high velocity ammo. The model has the factory comp so I was not surprised by this. However it shoots very well with just about any high velocity stuff. She shoots mostly cheap Remington Viper and it runs just fine with that. Since she's not doing anything more than plinking and occasionaly shooting my plate rack there's no reason for me to fool with finding different ammo for it. I kind of like it, its a neat little gun.

 

[chestnut ridge]

P-22 the fix

I found a groove cut into the left frame rail; caused by a pin located
on the left of the slide. the pin is apparently there to prevent the slide
hold open notch from rounding off. the pin was out about 20 thousands
or so, and when the slide went into battery, it was tight, as the pin
was binding. i used a small punch and tapped the pin flush.
i used aguila super max, and some cci hyper-velocity with the bullet
that splits in three. both functioned without any trouble.
it is a really nice pistol, i like it. thanks again.

 

[pauli]

be careful with hypervelocity stuff - you stand a chance of the gun battering itself to death. stock to high velocity if you can.

 

[TimboKhan]

my dad has a P-22, and like a couple of other people have said, it required hi-vel ammo to shoot worth a hoot. After quite a few rounds of that, my dad says that it is broke in enough that it is feeding everything reliably, so there is light at the end of the tunnel, although the old man had to fire quite a few more rounds to break it in than I would ahve had patience doing.

 

[RecoilRob]

Mine came with the updated -A mags but all production at that time was destined for new guns and I had to buy a couple of original style to have extras.

Found that the only difference between them was a slot on the sides at the rear of the mag to allow the rims of the first several rounds to displace sideways. The original mags lacked these slots and the rims would stack up and push the nose of the top round down. They tried to increase the spring pressure to compensate but this had limited success as it made the first few rounds very difficult to strip off when feeding.

The mag springs are the same except the newer -A's are several inches shorter. Cutting the slots and clipping the spring made the old mags work just as well as the -A's.

Oh, the frame bump peened on mine too. A few swipes with a file to take off the displaced metal and several thousand more rounds have not made it any worse. Nice little pistol!

 

[Sharps Shooter]

My wife's P-22, which she bought shortly after they came out, jams in every conceivable way when she tries to run any of the cheap, $5.99 a brick ammo through it. On the other hand, I don't think it has ever bobbled with the Federal "Classic" High Velocity ammo - both the hollow points and the solids work great. And .22 Federal "Classic" ammo isn't that much more expensive either. It seems like we pick it up for around $10.00 a brick.

 

[lyricsdad]

I have over 40,000 rounds through mine.. just purchased a used 3 inch barrel for it.. it seems to like the original 5 incher barrel.. I like it i mean for under 300 bucks and that many rounds how could i go wrong. My son and daughters love the pistol, and its an excellent training tool. I cut my handgun teeth on this pistol. So i likes.
yes use cci mini mags for the first 1000 or so rounds. lightly lube w/ remington rem oil. to much oil is just an added problem.

 

[Exposure]

I am amazed at the amount of problem reports I have read about the P22. I bought one for my wife 2 years ago and it has fed every ammo we have put through it, including the Winchester white box stuff. This thing just seems to gobble up everything with no questions asked. In probably 2000 rounds I can't remember a single FTF or FTE. Did we just get a ringer? No sarcasm meant here at all, just curious.

I also find it to be one of the most accurate handguns in our collection. By no means am I am great shot but 3 inch groups at 80 yards are not unheard of, hell I can't even shoot some of my rifles that well!

That P22 is one gun that won't be leaving my arsenal anytime soon.

 

[bigjim]

By no means am I am great shot but 3 inch groups at 80 yards are not unheard of...........
I have over 40,000 rounds through mine

 

[rick_reno]

Try various types of ammo - 22's are funny.

 

[Exposure]

Great reply there bigjim. Maybe next time you could offer some constructive comments instead of smilies that contribute nothing to the content of the thread.

I have, on two seperate occasions put 3 rounds into a 3 inch circle at 80 yards with my P22 and there were others there with me to back it up. Believe it or not as you see fit.

 

[bulbboy]

Apparently you have to have a newer model. I have put 3000 or so rounds through mine with ZERO jams or misfeeds. I use CCI Stingers and it loves em! Wonderful fun plinking gun!!

 

[albanian]

"I have, on two seperate occasions put 3 rounds into a 3 inch circle at 80 yards with my P22 and there were others there with me to back it up. Believe it or not as you see fit."

I don't qustion that it can be done but a "group" is normally 5 shots not three. What does you average 5 shot group at 80 yards look like? That is the improtant question. I could put three shots close together at 80 yards with almost any .22lr pistol once in a while, that doesn't mean the gun is outstandingly accurate. More importantly, what does your average 25 yard or 10 yard 5 shot group look like compared to other .22lr pistols? That will tell what the accuracy is like more than an freak three shot group once in a blue moon. Not trying to taunt you, just explaining what some roll their eyes with smiles.

I almost bout once of these P-22s until I saw once in person and wasn't impressed. Cheap plastic junk is what I thought. After hearing all the problems, I am glad I didn't waste my time or money on one. I have been doing far too much of that lately on guns. For my money, the Bersa .22lrs are a much better deal and better quality. They are all metal and DA/SA with decocker so you can use it as a trainer and they are accurate and reliable. I have two and love them.

 

[hksw]

In all fairness, some folks do still consider 3 rounds enough for a 'group'.

Personally, I prefer anywhere between 5 rounds minimum to a full mag (if it uses one and if it is more than 5 rounds) maximum for groups. Also, a minimum of 5 groups for an official average groups size.

 

[Soap]

Functioning seems to be hit or miss. Luckily, my P22 works just fine.

 

[albanian]

Three rounds may be a group with some rifle shooters but I don't know any pistol shooters that consider three rounds a real group. For pistols, it is sort on an unwritten rule that groups are at least 5-6 rounds. I think 5 rounds is a group in a pistol and 80 yards is not a normal shooting range. 25 yards with 5 shot groups would be easier to compare since that is longest distance where most people shoot groups. I could be wrong but out of a small "service" type pistol like the Walther, 25 yards is probably max for any accuracy.

That being said, I have shot a old beat up Jennings J-22 at 100 yards using a rest and was able to get hits on a half gallon plastic jug about 5 out of 7 rounds. I could do it mag after mag and it shocked the hell out of me. I don't want to come off like I don't believe the guy who said he got those groups but I think 5 shot groups are more legit groups, anything else is cherry picking. If I could gets hits on a half gallon jug at 100 yards with a crappy Jennings J-22, I have no doubt that a better 22lr pistol could do better groups at less range. The shots that missed the jug only missed by inches so I was getting 10-12" 7 shot groups at 100 yards with a beat up old Jennings J-22 using cheap bulk packed ammo! That means I could get head shots on a man at 100 yards with the Jennings! It shocked me that it would do it and my brother couldn't believe it either but he saw it. I am not an expert pistol shot but I am good. I think a better shot could have done a little better. I had to shoot a mag or two downrange to get my elevation but after that, it was pretty much on.