walther p22

[trigga]

i have been wanting this little gun for a long time. main purpose will be for training, especially for new shooters. I know that the first couple of years they came out they had issues like any gun, but it's been many years since. anyone buy one recently and how is it? i was also looking at the ruger sr22 but prefer the p22.

other than that i have also been looking at the walther ppk-22. haven't heard much on them but perhaps plan on buying one as a backup ccw and the 22 would serve as a great trainer.

 

[Kiln]

Buy the SR22 and save yourself some trouble. The P22 is an overpriced piece of zamak garbage. I don't mind zamak being used in the construction but when the gun costs $350 and has tons of cracked slide pictures all over the web it is a good idea to consider something else.

Mine was horrible, it was an 09' model and I tried every ammo type and every generation of mag available. It is the only gun I've sold because it was such a POS. It looked and felt great but the performance is awful.

 

[JERRY]

got this for my daughter when she was 8, shes 11 now and we still have this gun. I forgot how many rounds have been put through it....

 

[Centurian22]

I got a good deal on a used Walther P22 with a crimson trace universal rail laser (for $285) and have loved it. It's the newer model (supposedly the p22q) and has shot everything I've fed it, quite accurately for its size. Great controls, comfortable grip, smooth action. From my experience I would say to go for it.

 

[trigga]

thanks Kiln, I've heard of many mixed reviews and like anything, you usually hear the complaints a lot more than the complements. I would like the sr22 but i don't like how it looks. sure a buckmark or mk ii/iii is more reliable but those things are ugly. i had a sw 22a which is the only gun i sold. it too had it's problems but over time things loosen up and worked flawless.

i would have to say i have had good luck with guns that are deemed unreliable aka junk, like the gsg-5 and the chiappa 1911-22. i think both are made of zinc but have held through several thousand rounds. after initial break in they were about 95-98% reliable given the ammo. (mostly federal and winchester bulk) I just hope they improved the newer p22 in the last couple of years.

 

[trigga]

you usually hear the complaints a lot more than the complements

which reminds me since i work in retail, all the good things i've done that i never get credit for and then one complaint, makes the front page.

 

[Fishbed77]

Buy the SR22 and save yourself some trouble.

This.

Neither the P22 or the new .22LR PPK/S are actually made by Walther. They are both potmetal guns made by Umarex, who is better known for making airsoft toys and starter pistols.

 

[chris in va]

My friend had a P22. Very finicky with ammo types. The flimsy takedown slide lever and front sight snapped off when he dropped it in the dirt.

Get the SR22.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

My buddy has not one, but two. They misfeed often.

 

[sniper69]

I must be in the minority as I love shooting my P22. I've had it at least 7 years (I would have to dig through my records for an exact date). Heck, it even has been eating up Remington bulk pack and remington thunderbolts at the range without any problems. It was a little finicky at first, but the more I shot it, the less finicky it became. Last Saturday my son and I put another 350 rounds through the P22. Would I buy another one? Yes, but YMMV.

A good resource to have for the P22 is the P22 Bible. It is available as a pdf doing a google search.

 

[trigga]

is the sr22 a steel slide?

 

[Centurian22]

A good resource to have for the P22 is the P22 Bible. It is available as a pdf doing a google search.

I'll second this.

 

[Theohazard]

Up until December, I worked at an LGS for two years. Our gunsmith hated the P-22 because of the sheer number of them that came in for repairs. On more than one occasion he ranted to me about how cheaply made they were. I also heard more bad stories from customers about the P-22 than any other .22 except for the SIG Mosquito. I'm sure there are some people who have had good experiences with their P-22s, but there appear to be a large number of people who haven't. I would avoid the P-22 if I were you.

 

[evan price]

My p22 has been accurate and reliable since 2006. probably 25k through it.
My sig mosquito sucked and I sold it.

 

[Kiln]

which reminds me since i work in retail, all the good things i've done that i never get credit for and then one complaint, makes the front page.

There are hundreds of people complaining online for a reason. I don't trash a gun because it is cheap or cheaply made as long as it works. I have a Bryco J22 and it works really well. I'd rather buy two of them (if I could find CCI ammo) than buy another P22.

 

[Field Tester]

I had a great experience with the SR22. Borrowed it from a friend for a rapid fire rimfire match. I used Federal Champion and it ran flawlessly. I want to say around 300 rounds. No cleaning in between.

I however am more partial to the Ruger 22/45. I'd buy the Lite Edition if California allowed it. It's factory threaded. Something to think about.

 

[MCgunner]

i was also looking at the ruger sr22 but prefer the p22.

So, you like zinc slides? Not me, thanks. The SR22's slide is aluminum, very strong and light. It's an accurate, reliable, and sweet little pistol. I have NO doubt that it'll last longer and be more trouble free.

I shoot my SR22 all the time, great fun. My range is i my back yard, so I shoot when I feel like it. I quit keeping a round count soon after I bought it at 2K. Had it a couple of years now. Lord knows what the round count is. But, for a while, until I could hoard some ammo off the net, my shooting of rimfire was attenuated by the lack of .22 at stores. Bummer.

 

[wally]

i would have to say i have had good luck with guns that are deemed unreliable aka junk, like the gsg-5 and the chiappa 1911-22. i think both are made of zinc but have held through several thousand rounds. after initial break in they were about 95-98% reliable given the ammo. (mostly federal and winchester bulk) I just hope they improved the newer p22 in the last couple of years.

Your definition of "good luck" is a lot different than mine! 98% reliable is one failure every 50 rounds, 95% is one failure every 20, which is about what my Chiappa 1911-22 did -- totally unacceptable!

I find with rimfire pistols 1 failure in 500 is about the worst of what a decent gun should do unless you are only shooting premium ammo (Mini-Mag or better). I can live with 99.8% reliability at the range to get 2X+ more total shots. When shooting steel plates "quantity has a quality of its very own!"

While I see the appeal of the P22 as a training analog for a sub-compact pistol, and ours has been good, I think there are lots of better choices for the money.

 

[Schwing]

Buy the SR22 and save yourself some trouble.

Another vote for this.

My P22 is the worst gun I have ever purchased. It has never cycled properly regardless of ammo and already has severe wear marks in the slide with less than 2k round through it (I would estimated FTFs on at least 300 of those rounds.) I sent it in under warranty and got it back after a couple of weeks with a single spent test casing and a note saying that they could not find an issue with it. They were unwilling to look at it again. It soured me enough on Walther that I will never buy another product from them... regardless of whether they actually manufacture the gun or not is irrelevant once they put their stamp on the side.
Even though they have resolved some of the design issues, it is still a cheaply built gun. A pot metal slide? Really?

 

[desidog]

The only worse gun than the P22 i bought... was the G22 i bought at the same time.

I won't be buying anything more from Umarex. Ever.

 

[Kiln]

is the sr22 a steel slide?

I think another poster mentioned it already but I'll go ahead and repost it anyways. The SR22 uses an aluminum slide that will likely stand up better in the long run than the P22. There are even better options available in a similar price range (like the Ruger MK series) but they aren't really similar to combat handguns, which seemed to be your main concern. The main thing is, Walther's warranty on the P22 is one year. There are literally thousands of broken slide pictures online of the P22. At least Ruger is known for standing behind their products if they have an issue.

 

[Fishbed77]

It soured me enough on Walther that I will never buy another product from them... regardless of whether they actually manufacture the gun or not is irrelevant once they put their stamp on the side.

That's the sad thing about Umarex foisting their junk on the unsuspecting buying public while using the "Walther" name. It sours people against REAL Walther products (like the P99, PPQ, and PPS), which are some of the highest-quality pistols on the market. Folks who swear off Walther due to the substandard Umarex products are really missing out on some great firearms.

Unfortunately, Walther doesn't really have a say in the matter, since Umarex owns a majority stake in Walther, and can use the Walther name as they please (though this doesn't excuse Colt, HK, S&W, and others who are all to happy to license their name for use on Umarex products).

It's up to the consumer to know what they are buying. This is actually pretty easy with Walthers, thanks to German law. Real Walthers (made at the state-of-the-art Walther factory in Ulm, Germany) carry the "staghorn" proofmark of the Ulm proofhouse. Firearms made by Umarex in Arnsberg, Germany (near Cologne) carry the "shield with three crowns" proofmark of the Cologne proofhouse.

Just remember:

Staghorn: Good.
Shield/3 Crowns: Bad.


P99 with Walther "Staghorn" Ulm Proof:





Umarex P22 with "Shield/3 Crowns" Cologne Proof:

 

[Doogledog]

OP Have you looked at a s&w m&p .22 pistol?
Both the sr22 and the p22 are pretty small and not as much like their full size counterparts as you would think. However, perhaps you are looking for that. But, in my opinion, the m&p 22 is almost exactly the same size as the full size m&p line of handguns an makes a much better training pistol because of that. YMMV

 

[CajunBass]

I don't say this about many guns, but I have looked at the Walther P-22 a couple of times. I would not buy one. I had cap guns when I was a kid that were made at least as well, if not better.

If you want something like it...get the Ruger.

 

[Fishbed77]

OP Have you looked at a s&w m&p .22 pistol?

FYI - this pistol is also made by Umarex. Reports don't seem to be as negative as the P22, but there are a lot fewer of them out there.