Walther P22?

[ds92]

Hi all,
My interest was recently sparked in a walther p22 for general fun at the range and maybe some pest control down the road. Does anybody have any experience with them? They seemed pretty cheap for a pistol but then again i'm pretty clueless when it comes to pistols. Any opinions or advice is appreciated!

 

[Big Daddy Grim]

My Walther was not my best buy had major extractor problems. I sent it in and they sent it back still having the same problem just less often.

 

[Prepster]

My buddy's P22 is a little stubborn when it comes to field stripping, but other than that its been reliable. The P22 seems like a very inconsistent pistol (some say it's great, others say it's terrible). I wonder if this is a factory quality control issue?

 

[CannonFodder]

I've owned a P22 for three years - it was my first gun.

It's a terrifically fun, utterly ergonomic pistol that just feels right in your hand. I love it for introducing new people. Its internals are a smidge more complicated than they probably need to be.

I got mine for 279 bucks. Now, they go for 300 new. For 279, I'd say they're great. For 300... it's no longer a Definite Buy, now just a pretty decent buy.

The initial run had problems, but it looks like Walther worked out the bugs by the time I got mine. I'd definitely say to go new over used, if only to guaranty that you won't get stuck with one of the first flight.

Be aware that if you get one, you should break it in for the first 500-1000 rounds with CCI mini-mags. That's what I did, and it then ate bulk pack ammo pretty well.

Long term?

Well, in the last 1000 rounds, I've started getting FTE's. I'm not that disquieted by that, mainly because it's been 3 years and close to 20k rounds before they started popping up. I called S&W, and they said to send my pistol in.

Also, if you decide to start collecting stamps, the threaded barrel offers lots of tasty options. (Provided you're not in CA.)

So, final analysis: Used to be a DANG GOOD value, now just a decent value. Good plinker. Treat it well, and you should have a fairly darn decent pistol that S&W/Walther will stand behind. My P22 always goes with me to the range - in fact, that's why I haven't immediately fedexed it to S&W - I have too much shooting to do before my local range closes for renovations this weekend.

If you want a dedicated target pistol, you might want to take a step up. If what I've described is what you're looking for, then you'll like it.

My single slug's worth of lead

 

[searcher451]

Two words: Pot metal.

If you want a throw-away handgun that at some point will have to be discarded because of the inferior metal used to produce the #*&)%&#( thing, then have at it. Lots of folks swear by them; lots of folks swear at them. And it should be noted that the gun is produced by Walther's parent company; it is not a true Walther, in the same sense that a P1 or a P4 or a P5 or a P88 or a P99 is a true Walther.

 

[atblis]

Yep

Zinc+plastic = lumpocrap

Umarex makes it, NOT Walther. Interestingly enough they also make a blank firing pistol that is very very similar. In fact, there's a good possibility that they took the blank firing pistol, and adpated it to be a 22. Hmmm.

 

[wditto]

go with browning or ruger - do NOT buy a P22

 

[mbpautz762]

My P22 was my very first pistol. it's had about 10,000 rounds through it, with only a few problems. It's not particularly accurate, but a ton of fun to shoot. that being said, the slide is made out of zinc or some alloy, and is completely chewed up in several areas where the frame rubs on it during firing. it looks terrible in those areas, but hasn't caused any malfunctions yet. in fact, there's only been a few times where I had a failure that wasn't the ammo, and it was the magazine's fault. I must have gotten a good one, because I hear a lot about how the P22 sucks, and I have no idea what they're talking about

 

[FieroCDSP]

It does have cheap metallugy. However, the thing is fun, and the easiest 22 to pop a suppressor on. I got mine primarily for cheap defensive practice, as it has similar design and controls to full-size semi-autos.

The accuracy of the 3.5" barrel could be better. The five inch is a waste of cash, as the extender has been unofficially linked to slide cracks.
The P22 is extremely ammo sensitive. Some ammo won't work at all, others will work perfectly. None have the same preference for a particular ammo, with the possible exception of hotter ammo being better.

There is a PDF file called "The P22 Bible" that lists numerous things you can do to make it like to shoot more, more consistant, and extract some direction other than completely random/always in the worst place. These fixes range from a bit of emery paper and dremel work to modifying the firing-pin block to reduce internal drag.
I did a couple of these steps and it helped the gun immensely

OVerall, if you're looking for a target/plinker, go with something else. If you're looking for a cheap plinker that resembles a carry piece, the P22 is it.

Don't say we didn't warn you though.

 

[burningsquirrels]

see what i wrote over at gundirectory.com, i like it, but if you want to compete... use something else. perfect training pistol.

 

[Baneblade]

I own two Walther P22's and have been very unhappy with both. Each has feeding problems and very poor slide to frame fit. I sent both in for warranty work and one was partially fixed, the other was not.

I don't shoot either of them any more and would highly discourage anyone from getting one. My wife bought me a Ruger MKIII and that is my 22 of choice now.

I also found them to be very inaccurate. I shoot competitively as well as instruct. The Walther P22 has been my single biggest firearm disappointment.

 

[pistolero6869]

Walther

Its sad that walthers name is even on that turd. I had one for a short time sold it to a friend who just had to have it. Got a Browning Buck Mark all the differance in the world buy a browning you cant go wrong,

 

[Mickstix]

Also check out the Sig Mosquito.. It also gets alot of grips, like the P22 though.. If you want a .22 that has that same look, but is a really good gun, look at the CZ 75 Cadet.. (And yes, Im just passing along info that I obtained when asking about a P22 as well)

Side note: My buddy has a P22 and it's fun as heck to plink with! I actually want one myself!! The day I shot his, we went through a bunch of mags w/o any hiccups.. (And he never mentioned having any problems with it, only saying it was tricky to take down.)

 

[Thernlund]

I like mine. Real hoot to plink with. And if you have little ones, it's a neat little starter gun for small hands.

Not really good for anything else though.


-T.

 

[OOOXOOO]

Buy any other .22. I have one in pieces. I shot about 2k bulk pack ammo out of it. The fake compensator cracked the first time I shot it. The phillips screw inside the slide backed out and stopped the action third time I took it out. The slide cracked right behind the muzzle at about 2,000 rounds. My friend had nothing but problems as well.

 

[evan price]

Anybody wants to get rid of their junk P22 I'll give you $100 shipped for it, complete, to my FFL. PM if interested.

I have over 6K though mine, pretty much trouble free. I guess I got a good one. I am looking into suppressing it for the heck of it.

 

[searcher451]

It's again interesting to note that some people absolutely love the gun, while others absolutely love to hate it.

If you want another take on the P22, take a trip over to the RimCentral forum; there's an entire section devoted to the gun (don't call it a Walther), with reams of copy written on its charms and pecadillos, both good and bad. Here's a link:

http://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=48

Happy hunting.

 

[JImbothefiveth]

http://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums...splay.php?f=48

Check the walther forum too, a lot of p22 stuff gets posted there also.

 

[CannonFodder]

Indeed. It truly amazes me how one little .22 pistol can evoke such ire.

Hell, my Colt 1911 had more problems in its first 500 rounds than my P22 (that is to say, none for the P22, some stovepiping on the 1911).

To hear some speak, you'd think it ran over your dog and then flipped off a box of kittens after punching a baby.

 

[whichfinger]

I'll wager the majority of detractors haven't even held one, much less fired it. I have two and both are fun plinkers. Early runs had problems, but S&W people monitor the Rimfire Central forum and they incorporated many of the user fixes there. New models are much better. As others have said, it can be (and usually is) ammo fussy, but after break-in with CCIs most will eat bulk Remington Golden Bullets (NOT Remington Thunderbolts!) all day long. Mine even likes Aguila Subsonic Sniper rounds. Oh, and I was in my local toy store today, and they had a P-22 in the case for $250.

 

[swiftak]

I own a P22, buy a ruger MKIII. Not alot of difference in price.

 

[Aka Zero]

Put half a brick of 22 through mine the other day.

A FEW failure to feeds with winchester experts. No problems in 250+ rounds of federal cheapo.

Little trouble feeding the first round, if you let the slide go slow. Feed ramp still needs a bit or bullets to smooth it out.

I also want a mark III. Because I like the look, and they are more accurate.

 

[orvpark]

I like my P22, and my wife LOVES it. It has shot everything I fed it and has been one of the funnest guns I have owned. I ran two boxes of bulk through it in one day without cleaning and the only failures were when the ammo failed to fire. Every now and then you get a week shell and the slide won't lock, the sights suck, but it is a cool little gun to plink with. Just last night I put one between the eyes of a racoon with it that was after my cat.

That said, If I hadn't planned on suppressing it I would have bought a Ruger, if only for the good sights.

I think the early P22's had the most problems, they are date coded and the new mags are much improved. Check out the rimfire central link and do your homework before you buy one so you are sure you don't get an older one.

 

[blkbrd666]

I've got a Walther P22 and I love it!!! Awesome gun! Oh wait, there's a PK/S between the P and the 22...nevermind.

 

[burningsquirrels]

i usually do a while brick at a time, but not so much anymore now that i reload and shoot my main calibers now. i think there are so many detractors because people walk in expecting a little 22 to run like a ferarri. fact i found is, cheap 22 ammo sucks. on the $12 federal brick in the first 1k rounds i had lots of FTFs. if i ran CCI Mini mags, it was 100% and ran miraculously. after shopping around, it seems that most any semi-auto 22 with a full slide has problems with 22 ammo. even the sig mosquito. i think part of it is that the barrel is so short, the weak and cheap ammo doesn't cycle it right. once the gun loosened up the cheap stuff works 97% of the time. the 3% it doesn't work, is running into a round so weak it didn't cycle the slide back all the way, and you can feel the lower recoil.