.22 Handguns

TTv2 said:

There's nothing wrong with having a few .22 handguns, I have... lemme think... six, three revolvers, 3 semi's, and I plan to get the CP33 when they become available for under $450.

I just got a Phoenix .22 this weekend and for $120, it's the best $120 you'll ever spend and is probably the best small .22 semi auto you'll find for the money. .

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You are singing to the choir about he HPA 22.cal. Hard to believe a inexpensive gun can shoot so well and be so much fun and reliable. A fantastic trainer for small barrel center fire guns for point and shoot skills.
Have been training with mine for 10 years. Drives some folks totally mad when these guns are talked about with admiration.

I'm another lover of the HP22a. The redundant safeties are easily worked around. The worst (and most useless) is the mag safety which can be modified in 5 minutes from a you tube video. Keep the slide safety off and use the frame safety like any other safety. Done this way and there is only the frame safety to deal with.

And another fun trainer.

for you guys who have and like a phoenix hp22, had you compared it to the jimenez ja22 first? i researched the two before i happened on a new ja22 a few months ago for $90. it’s been...ok. my problem is pairing with a ruger sr22 when i go to the shooting range. needless to say the sr22 is excellent, so the ja22 pales in comparison when it occasionally ftf. i really like the size and feel of the ja22, and i feed it good ammo and keep it clean, but i simply don’t have much confidence in it to be anything more than just a dispensable, occasional range toy. should i have passed over the ja22 for the hp22?

As a HP22a owner I have never shot the Jiminez for comparison.

If you keep the HP22a relatively clean (wipe down after each range session) and change
the recoil spring every 800 or so rounds, mine has been nearly 100% reliable with almost any ammo I fed it.
Back when I went to the range weekly, I always opened up my session with 100 rounds thru my HP22. I even had
10 mags (x10 rounds) to keep it fun and fast. I never left unsatisfied with my HP22. Other, larger caliber guns, yes,
but the HP22 always made me smile. My original HP22 was sold to a buddy who was so impressed with it that he had
to have it. I mean he had to. It had almost 3,000 rounds thru it at the time so I sold it to him for $100. I then bought a
new HP22a and to this day, it is still fun and reliable. The mag safety has to go and the recoil springs are about $2 each
(free if you write the factory) so it's just that fun gun you always take to the range with you.

Basic 22 semi-auto fun gun: Ruger SR; it is a plinker or something to tuck in your pocket on a walk.
Better shooting 22 semi's: Ruger Mark II, III, or IV. 22/45 if you prefer that grip style.
Better 22 revolvers: S&W M617, M63 or the older M17's and M18's. I personally enjoy the M63 which I have in 3" and 5". That tends to be what's shot the most these days if I want to shoot a revolver. Forget about Taurus....

Couple observations.

The recent Walther PPK/S 22lr pistols seem to be made in Ulm rather than Arnsberg. Umarex does own Walther but it looks like at least the PPK/S 22s are being made now in the Walther plant. Both Walther and Umarex have a headquarters in Fort Smith. So far I have had no issues with my recently purchased PPK/S 22lr but I only shoot CCI Mini-Mag ammo through it. I will probably try some others as I find them on sale.

I sold long ago two 22lrs, both S&W; a K-22 and a Model 41. The 41 was amazingly accurate but really finicky about ammo. The K-22 was simply perfection. I still have an old H&R 923 and my little Taurus 'Annoying Cricket' PT22.

AbE: Interestingly the Proof mark on the Walther is from Cologne and not Ulm.

I Love the looks of the old S&W 22 lr revolvers like the 17 blued/wood grips.......gorgeous!

We have 4 HP22A pistols in our family. 1 bought one for each of my adult kids and my wife and myself. Extra magazines cost about 10 bucks and every part of those guns can be purchased from the factory shipped to your door except the frame for next to nothing.
Never had a problem with any of ours.

jar said:

Couple observations.

The recent Walther PPK/S 22lr pistols seem to be made in Ulm rather than Arnsberg. Umarex does own Walther but it looks like at least the PPK/S 22s are being made now in the Walther plant. Both Walther and Umarex have a headquarters in Fort Smith. So far I have had no issues with my recently purchased PPK/S 22lr but I only shoot CCI Mini-Mag ammo through it. I will probably try some others as I find them on sale.

I sold long ago two 22lrs, both S&W; a K-22 and a Model 41. The 41 was amazingly accurate but really finicky about ammo. The K-22 was simply perfection. I still have an old H&R 923 and my little Taurus 'Annoying Cricket' PT22.

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AbE: Interestingly the Proof mark on the Walther is from Cologne and not Ulm.

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I've read folks say that the new walther ppk .22s have a slide made from pot metal [zamak?] is this so with yours or is it steel?

ontarget said:

We have 4 HP22A pistols in our family. 1 bought one for each of my adult kids and my wife and myself. Extra magazines cost about 10 bucks and every part of those guns can be purchased from the factory shipped to your door except the frame for next to nothing.
Never had a problem with any of ours.

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The low cost of the spare parts and mags really surprises me and for anyone on a budget who needs something for protection or to being learning to shoot, these Phoenix pistols are hard to beat. If more gun stores would stock them and put them on display, they'd sell tons of them to first time gun owners and we all know people can't just stop at one, they'd just keep coming back for more guns. Every gun store I have gone to, there is never a Phoenix to be seen. I guess they don't make much on them.

But yeah, a Phoenix .22 and a 9mm Hi Point YC9 will go a long way for people low on funds.

JERRY said:

I've read folks say that the new walther ppk .22s have a slide made from pot metal [zamak?] is this so with yours or is it steel?

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It's an alloy but no idea if it is zinc based or aluminum based. But Zamac gets a bad rap. When used properly it is quite often a better solution than steel. An example are the heads of the Gillette double edge razors made beginning around the time of the Korean War. The heads are Zamac and designed to position intentionally sharp edges right next to your face. I have several of them and have been using them now for longer than some of our members have been alive and they still perform better than any of the modern multiblade poly wonders.

jstert writes:

..or you guys who have and like a phoenix hp22, had you compared it to the jimenez ja22 first?

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I have the older version, the Jennings, which differs only from the Jimenez in the safety lever operation. I also have the Phoenix.

The Phoenix holds ten rounds in its magazine to the Jen/Jim's six. The Phoenix is hammer-fired, with a real hammer you can actually thumb-cock or lower. The rear sight is windage-adjustable, and I find the sights on the Phoenix to be sharper and easier to pick up than the rounded, rudimentary ones on the Jen/Jim. I also find the HP22A's trigger to be much more light, crisp, and consistent. The magazine release on the Phoenix is also in the spot where we usually expect it, on the left side behind the trigger guard, versus the heel-mounted one on the Jen/Jim.

The Jen/Jim guns were created pretty much strictly for self-defense, meaning concealed carry, and is an easier gun with which to do so, being smaller, lighter, and more "smoothed over." The Phoenix is more of an "all-around" gun, for plinking, practice, and defense; it's even available in a "Target" configuration with a five-inch barrel. Its weight, sharp lines, and multiple, redundant safeties can compromise ease in concealed-carry.

I had a Phoenix for a time but found something I wanted worse and sold it for funds. I didn't have a minute's trouble with it and shot it quite a bit. I did follow the owner's manual and used standard velocity ammo only, usually CCI-SV.

I have the new version Walther PPQ/s and also a Ruger SR 22. If either of these doesn't go "Bang" it's the ammo, not the gun. Both do require HV ammo though.

Like there are various aluminum alloys there are several zamak alloys. Evidently one of the versions of the alloy is capable of handling the stresses of 22 rimfire pretty well.