22LR for concealed carry?

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I have on occasion carried my LCR in 22LR (mostly because I have one). I have no problem carrying it for self defense regardless of what is said about the puny 22LR.
 
I don't carry a 22lr, . . . but I would bet that no one wants extra holes in them, even if they come from a 22lr round. Use what you are comfortable with. Odds are, you'll never have to pull out a weapon to defend yourself.
 
jimbo has it right.

rimfire is not as reliable as centerfire. this is where the .25acp shines over the .22lr seeings how they have comparable ballistics from similar guns.

most current made rimfire semi-autos do not incorporate an extractor for some reason, this coupled with rimfire misfire possibilities...and the already low ballistics make a revolver in this caliber a better choice.
 
My first handgun was a Ruger Security Six in 22LR so yes I carried it. I also have carried a Western derringer in 22RF soon as I has some money I upgraded to a Davis 38 derringer as a minimum. The Davis and a six shot reloader easily fit in my shirt pocket and none of my professors knew.
 
They work great unless your attacker is shooting at you with a 17 shot glock. Then you will really second guess your choice. 95% percent of the time this wont happen, but I sure would feel bad if I was stuck in that 5%! I would hope he has one of those Hi point single shot automatics.
 
If one is seeking a small , light , low recoil CC , why even consider 22lr , when 22 mag fits the same bill but delivers a better product? I would consider carrying 22 mag(WMR) , but never 22lr. And - the delivery vehicle would be a revolver.
 
tpelle, . . . generally, I would agree with that. But for me, I've never had a failure to fire with CCI products. I've seen "left behind 22lr with a firing pin strike" left at the range, but most of the time, they are bulk rounds.

So I would suggest, IF you use a 22lr for carry, make sure you carry the best quality rounds that you can to offset the probability of the primer having a "dead spot".
 
Yep, almost daily. My NAA Black Widow carries as easy as a large pocket knife. The magnum frame, 2 inch heavy barrel, enhanced sights and oversize grips work for me. Very accurate and nice piece for pocket carry.

Mine is the .22 magnum/.22LR.
 
I don't conceal carry, but do open carry.
Most of the time with 2, 30 round, .22WMR semi-autos.
If one don't go bang, the other will.
I never had a Hornady Critical Defense round, or CCI in magnum fail to ignite.
STW
 
It's not so much that .22 is too small (or I wouldn't have a .223), but that rimfire is too unreliable.
 
most current made rimfire semi-autos do not incorporate an extractor for some reason
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They don't?
I own 23 semi-auto pistols in .22LR. All but 2 of them have an extractor.
The two I own which do not are tip-up barrels; Beretta 21A and its clone Taurus PT22.

.
 
The reason I've been asking about 22LR and 22 Mag is because my faith in tiny semi-autos had been shaken quite badly not too long ago. I know that 22LR/Mag are marginal at best but it's all a balancing act with size/weight/capacity/energy. I really wish some top tier company would make a double stacked 32ACP that is as small as the LCP but thicker and is just as if not more reliable as the LCP
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What is the reason why you are wedded to carrying mousegun (22 LR and 32 ACP)cartridges?
 
Regarding the rimfire ignition issue:

I've fired probably 15-17 thousand rounds of .22 ammo (probably 3/4 of which was CCI MiniMags), and half or 3/4 as many centerfire rounds in various handgun calibers.

Of all of those rounds, I have had two misfires. One was in a factory-new .380ACP round. The other was in a factory-reloaded .38 Special round. Both fired on their second strikes.

I understand the argument behind the "unreliability-of-rimfire-ammo" issue. It just hasn't been my experience, however.
 
MedWheeler said:
I understand the argument behind the "unreliability-of-rimfire-ammo" issue. It just hasn't been my experience, however.
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I think you're distinctly in the minority. I'd estimate that I ran through 12k+ rounds of .22LR in the couple years before the ammo market (and especially rimfire) went TU, and I had a whole lot more than one or two misfires. The California desert is covered in live .22 rounds, many with rim strikes, that were somebody's jam/dud clears.

Yes, they'll usually fire on the second try, but unless you're running a revolver or one of the few .22 DA semis it's a moot point because you'll never have the chance. On the flipside, I've also had a handful of rounds - maybe 20 or so, out of those 12k - which were well and truly duds, taking 4-6 indexed strikes around the rim without ignition.

I have no problem with the .22LR as a defensive caliber per se - dump ten rounds from a 10/22 into someone's COM and I doubt they'll have much fight left in them - but other than recoil force, it seems like handgun carry in .22 is a game of bad excuses.
 
They don't?
I own 23 semi-auto pistols in .22LR. All but 2 of them have an extractor.
The two I own which do not are tip-up barrels; Beretta 21A and its clone Taurus PT22.
Click to expand...

how many of those are currently being made, and how many of those fit in your pants pocket (without looking like you've stolen a small cereal box)?
 
Regarding the rimfire ignition issue:

I've fired probably 15-17 thousand rounds of .22 ammo (probably 3/4 of which was CCI MiniMags), and half or 3/4 as many centerfire rounds in various handgun calibers.

Of all of those rounds, I have had two misfires. One was in a factory-new .380ACP round. The other was in a factory-reloaded .38 Special round. Both fired on their second strikes.

I understand the argument behind the "unreliability-of-rimfire-ammo" issue. It just hasn't been my experience, however.
Click to expand...

all the more reason for a novice to carry a revolver. no failure to fire drill, just stroke the trigger again.
 
I feel many of the failures to fire with 22 LR 's are due to the gun not the ammo. Their are a lot of well used / abused, neglected old 22's seeing use. Things like tired springs and worn firing pins affect their reliability. I think part of the reason 22 Magnums have a better track record is because the owners take better care if them.

That said I would not choose the 22 LR for cc / personal defense as the 22 Magnum far outperforms it.
 
Long long ago I carried a Jennings that was 97% reliable. It was the other 3% that made me change. It was better than nothing, & better than a knife. If it had ever came to a gun fight I would've felt very under armed
 
A few years back, I bought a Ruger SR22 as a range toy. When my wife got her CCW, for one reason or another, she decided the SR22 was *the* carry gun for her, despite me offering to take her to every gun shop in the area to find something more appropriate. She kept coming back to the Ruger, so I brought it to the range last weekend and kept narrowing down which ammo it would fire reliably. So far, Remington Viper is what it likes best, so I loaded a mag of it, put it back in the case with the gun, and told my wife that if she insists on carrying the SR22, only to use that ammo. Once I see more CCI on the shelves, I will probably try some Mini-Mags, but until that time, all I can do is make sure I've provided the most reliable option available.

Personally, I find that there are plenty of suitable carry guns available in more suitable calibers, but there's no convincing some people.
 
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