Walther P22

[ProactiveReactionary]

i'm looking at .22's for fun and what not and i'm looking at the Walther P22.

has anyone ever used this gun? i'm kinda liking the 5" barrel model but i like the 3.4" barrel model as well.

for some reason i want a .22 just to have something different to shoot at the range and this one really caught my eye and looks darn interesting.

and how much does this bad boy cost?

best i could figure was around 300 bucks. a local shop has one WITH a suppressor for 600 bucks or 325 for the suppressor alone. but didnt give a price on a regular ole P22. i dont want or need a silencer. (or do i????)

i'm guessing they're around 275???

 

[joegerardi]

There were some magazine issues when they first came out causing lots of jams, but that's been resolved. When you buy one, just make sure that the mags have a "-A" at the end of the part number imprinted on them.

That said, the P22 tends to favor higher-velocity ammo. I use CCI Mini-Mags in mine and they work fine.

It's a really fun pistol. They can be found around $250.00-$300.00, and a little more if you buy both barrels. I use mine when I'm teaching someone to shoot. It' gets them into semi-auto style shooting quickly.

Supressor or not, the can adds a touch of wickedness to the pistol, but I personally can't justify $400.00 plus dollars for it. Remember: There's an additional $200.00 Federal tax stamp and usually around a $100.00 Class III transfer fee to get a can.

..Joe

 

[usp_fan]

Two of the women in my CCW course brought these pistols to the class. Since OH doesn't require you to shoot the qualification with the gun you carry, the .22 was easier for them to qualify with.

I got to shoot one of these pistols. It felt good, functioned fine, was very accurate and was a lot of fun. For the price, I think the package with both barrels is a steal.

It's a neat little gun that had some issues when it first came out, but seems to be fine now.

--usp_fan

 

[XLMiguel]

I've got the short barreled one. It's a fun little gun, but as joegerardi pointed out, it likes med-hi-velocity ammo. CCI MiniMags, Stingers, Velocitors, PMC Zappers, Win. SuperX all work fine in mine. I have heard they're more tolerant of regualr fodder after about 1000 rnds of hi-vel stuff, but I haven't tried that yet. It's fairly accurate for it's size, fine for plinking, decent trigger. I got mine for $239

 

[Joe Demko]

I have seen it stated on several gunboards that the P22 was actually initially produced as a blank firing gun. As such, it is made out of zamak and other low-cost materials with resulting durability and reliability issues. I do know that I have seen a crapload of posts on various boards from owners complaining about various problems with their p22's. When this gun first came out, I was enchanted with it, but after reading all the complaints, I've decided to pass.

 

[NEtracker]

The P22 is ok for a plinker. Even with the 5" brl (actually a bit less than 5), it's not a target gun. It is fun, and I've had both the 3.4" & 5" on my P22 (got it Sept. '02). After about 500 rounds of something like CCI mini-mags, Velocitors, Stingers, I was able to use CCI stds, Greentag, Winchester target, etc. I use the P22 for BP classes also. Most students seem to like it. A few have gone out & purchased them after getting their LTC.
Note: that the ejection pattern can be a bit wild, and some hit your head (wear a cap).

 

[countertop]

My father in law has one (I think it is the 3 3/4 barrel) with an extra 5 inch barrel.

Its an ok gun, not really my favorite.

First, its very very picky about the ammo it likes. Don't even try to use bulk pack 22lr. As someone else said, it likes the high velocity stuff.

Its also got way to many safty mechanisms, making it somewhat of a hassle to operate - there is a chamber indicator, a integrated trigger/barrel lock, you can fire without a magazine in (that was a hassle while trying to clean it), etc.

Its ugly. Its not terribly accurate.

That said, it does fit a role. He uses it as a backup carry gun and has pretty much given it to my wife to use as her primary carry piece. She, of course, much prefers my Mark II and usually lets me fire the P22 at the range while she runs off with the Ruger.

 

[CZFreak]

P22

I got one a while back for my wife (to encourage her to learn to shoot with me)-she liked it for about a month; she then informed me she wanted a larger gun, preferably my Glock19; I never really liked the P22, it did not seem accurate at all to me; though it was fun to shoot, I much prefer to use my AA 22 barrel on my 19 for plinking; I sold it for quite a bit less than I paid for it; it also had both barrels and neither was too good in my opinion.

 

[sturmruger]

P22

I have a buddy that bought one of these. Between the both of us we have shot around 500 rounds of Winchester bulk .22 ammo. It has been very reliable and is fairly accurate. My only complaint is how small grips are. I have medium to large hands and my buddy has large hands we both have problems shooting it very well just because it is so tiny. Our wives love shooting it because it fits their hands perfectly. If you are looking for a good first gun for a wife or kid this would be a perfect gun.

 

[mfree]

I have one with ~3500 rounds through it. Keep the barrel wrench handy, and a pin punch or two.

It's accurate, very repeatable, and after some kitchen table smithing, feeds and fires darn near anything. The trouble with the smithing was that the edge of the chamber was machined so sharp that even a hardened lead bullet would shave a sliver off or get caught up. believe me its strange to look in the port and see the jam is the bullet seeming hanging in midair on it's way into the chamber. Soft leads would leave a 1/8" deep gouge.

That said, very fun gun. But it is what it is, and that would be a *toy* gun. I don't consider it reliable enough for life-preserving roles nor is it accurate enough for other roles such as hunting.

It's the only gun i own that I can fire as fast as i can physically pull the trigger and keep the shots within a 3" group at 7 yards. I have to admit it's enat firing 10 shots off in a couple seconds, and slapping the other mag in before the paper shreds have hit the ground for 10 more

 

[countertop]

It's the only gun i own that I can fire as fast as i can physically pull the trigger and keep the shots within a 3" group at 7 yards. I have to admit it's enat firing 10 shots off in a couple seconds, and slapping the other mag in before the paper shreds have hit the ground for 10 more

I just can't sitch mags in it very fast either. I don't like the trigger guard magazine release, but I can understand what they were trying to do.

 

[wally]

My only complaint is the safety rotates "backwards" from the way JMB intended!

Mine has been fantastically reliable with the cheapeast of the cheap .22lr ammo -- Win Wildcat, Federal & Remington Walmart bulk pak, and Remington Thunderbolt.

My wife like the Beretta Neos better, but probably because of the Red Dot sight on it. Safety is also backwards on the Neos and if you thing the P22 mag release is strange ....

--wally.

 

[possenti]

I'm thinking about buying a P22 also. I still haven't made up my mind.

My heart says "yes", but my head says "no" - especially when I see all the negative comments. I've been researching this gun for a few weeks, and I've read some real horror stories. It's such a cool-looking gun, though...

 

[ProactiveReactionary]

i'm still thinking about it and i might get it and if i dont like it, i can always sell it or trade it in for something else so its not a big deal.

i'm just looking for a little .22 to shoot around and have something different to shoot at the range. and the rounds are pretty cheap for a .22, so more rounds means more shooting and that means more fun.

and i also figure my wife could use it, she has small hands so it might be perfect for her.

 

[Shmackey]

If you're planning to use it as a trainer for another DA/SA gun, keep in mind that the DA pull is abysmal. If there's a heavier, worse DA trigger out there, I'm lucky enough not to have encountered it.

I don't do DA, so that's not why I sold mine.

 

[ProactiveReactionary]

how quiet is that supressor? its a AAC.

they got em already attached, you can get em by themselves, you can have em put on...

i think i found a use for the suppressor, possums.

 

[ftierson]

Also, check out the comments at:

Walther P-22

There are several threads at falfiles.com that discuss the P-22.

 

[Greymoor]

The Walther P22,

I have a P22 with both the 3.5 and 5" barrels. Three -a mags with the pinky extensions. So far the weapon has been a great little pistol. It has about 2500 rounds of cheap Remington Golden Bullet and Winchester Wildcat ammo thru it. It has performed well. The pistol does have a few idiosyncracies of it’s own however.

First off it will throw brass at all angles. As I always wear a hat and glasses when shooting it is not a big deal but I sometimes find myself chuckling about brass rolling off the brim of my hat. Secondly it has a DA trigger pull that is long and stiff. My wife and I were shooting double taps at paper plates from 7 yds. We use a kydex belt paddle and pull and double tap at a series of 3 to 5 plates. The first time she pulled the P22 and went to engage her first target there was a long delay before the shot went off. I started laughing as she let out a “Geeez†at the DA trigger pull. It was the first time she had ever fired the weapon in DA. Now she has no problem as she knows what to expect. Thirdly you need to make sure the barrel nut is tight as it will work loose if it is not tight. And lastly the changing between 3.5 and 5 “ setups is not a quick change over. If I had it to do again I would stick with one size or the other. The 3.5 being the easiest setup to clean.

For what it’s worth the pistol has been a fun plinker. As I will never carry a .22 for defense I don’t worry about the DA trigger. How many of us really fire in DA when plinking anyway? I usually slap in a mag, rack the slide, and have at em. What ever you pick make sure you get to handle it first. I gotta touch ‘em before I bring ‘em home

Be well . . .

 

[mfree]

I'm pretty quick with the mags on mine, generally I've got the other one sitting on the bench in front of me, I'll hit slide lock then kind of rotate the pistol in my hand with my trigger finger along the frame and jab the mag release with my middle finger, let the mag fly out into my hand, set it down and smack in the new one, "rack" the slide, good to go. I think the reason it works well is that the *important* part of the grip doesn't change, which is the planting of the grip into the web of the thumb/forefinger, and you can't really drop the pistol because you're squeezing it with those two as well.

Only grip problem I have is every so often I'll rub the slide with my thumb and it'll hang up on the edge of the hammer where the safety bar crosses. Eventually I may take some files and increase the radius on that edge.

EDIT: Mine was a part of a $350 package deal with a beautiful condition CZ52. P22 was 3"barrel only, so best I figure I paid $239 plus tax/paperwork.