Walther P22 opinions

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Blackstone

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I've been offered a second hand Walther P22 by a guy at my club. I've been looking into getting a .22 so I can practice the fundamentals without burning a hole through my wallet. The thought had been to get a CZ Kadet conversion kit as I already have a CZ 75 Shadow, but this used P22 could be had for probably a third of the price of getting a brand new Kadet kit.

The trigger pull felt okay, but I'm not sure about the short barrel and accuracy. Looking for opinions from the denizens of THR :)
 
The P22 is:
-inexpensive
-a good match for the ergonomics of larger autos
-fun to shoot
-a ready-made host for suppressors

The P22 is not:
-a target pistol
-as durable or well made as Ruger MkIII, Buckmark, etc.

I had one, I enjoyed shooting it, but I was more accurate than the mechanical limitations of the pistol, and that bothered me enough to sell it to a friend who was looking for a suppressor host. I never had issues with reliability, just not as accurate as I would have liked.

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2
 
The suppressor thing is actually very interesting for me. Where I live, you can't get suppressors for pistols, but you can get them for rifles. I was told that Walther have a .22 rifle line that uses the same suppressor as the P22. See where I'm going with this? :D
 
I had one but it was too ammo sensitive so sold it. Now have a Ruger SR22 that is very similar in design but in my opinion a much better pistol.
 
Don't do it. The P22 is one of the few guns in my collection that I wish I'd never bought. The damn thing is too picky about what ammo it will run and is a pain to take down because it requires a tool for reassembly.

I've heard that they have durability issues too and a quick google search returns tons of cracked slides. Just for kicks Google "Walther P22 cracked slide" before you make your decision.

The Walther P22 is a comfortable and attractive gun that IMO is too unreliable and fragile to be trusted as anything besides an infrequent plinker...at the price point of the P22 there are several better options.
 
Mine wasn't picky and really did enjoy using it for plinking and teaching newbies; even carried mine a few times due to clothing but....We got 2 new recently sold back at the LGS where the slide had basically come apart (blown UP) and it scared me enough sell the pistol. I was not so much afraid for myself but was very concerned with a new shooter or young person having the pistol go kaboom when using. Just my experience. The LGS said he had stopped selling them.
 
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[✔] D.) The P-22 is a P.O.S.

Mine took two trip back to S+W before they still didn't get it right and i sold it.
 
In my opinion, the only thing one needs to worry about when getting a .22 handgun is how it feels in your hand and whether or not you like the way it looks. Are there some that are better than others in terms of quality? Of course. But when it comes down it, it really doesn't matter - they'll all shoot just fine, assuming they've been taken care of.
 
I use my p22 way more than my buckmark bullseye. No problems with it yet. It is super easy to carry on hikes unlike my bullseye. If you want a 22 for target practice get something besides the p22, but if you want something to hunt small game it works.
 
Blackstone said:
I've been offered a second hand Walther P22 by a guy at my club. I've been looking into getting a .22 so I can practice the fundamentals without burning a hole through my wallet. The thought had been to get a CZ Kadet conversion kit as I already have a CZ 75 Shadow, but this used P22 could be had for probably a third of the price of getting a brand new Kadet kit.

The trigger pull felt okay, but I'm not sure about the short barrel and accuracy. Looking for opinions from the denizens of THR :)
Click to expand...
Save the dough, whatever the cost, buy the SR22. It's in a different league.
 
OP,
See this post I made about my Walther P22.
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=663659

Short story -- mine has been great. Finally had an issue at a pretty high round count - Customer service sent me the part, gun repaired and back in service. I use it mainly as my suppressor host. I find that it handles any kind of bulk ammo just fine.

I know that the early ones had some issues and problems. My buddy has one that had a consistent issue with the safety engaging on its own.

You might want to find out where it falls in the serial number range. If early, then think it over, if later and your buddy hasn't had any major issues with it - and the price is good - go for it.

Eddy
 
g_one said:
In my opinion, the only thing one needs to worry about when getting a .22 handgun is how it feels in your hand and whether or not you like the way it looks. Are there some that are better than others in terms of quality? Of course. But when it comes down it, it really doesn't matter - they'll all shoot just fine, assuming they've been taken care of.
Click to expand...
I am really picky about cleaning and maintaining my firearms, the P22 is still unreliable for me despite being squeaky clean. It only functions properly with one ammo type.
 
They're nice little guns. Mine works nearly 100% with everything I've tried except cci blazer it loves golden bullets though. Not terribly accurate with most ammo but it gets pretty good groups with mini mags. I'm sure the gun could do better seeing as I don't shoot handguns much. I bought mine used so I got it for a good deal. Perfectly good little plinker and definitely not a POS. Lots of fun busting clays with it. I also ccw it for the fun of it when im out and about and might get out shooting.
 
Mine was initially ammo sensitive and would only shoot CCI mini-mags or stingers. After shooting about 2000 rounds through it, it gained the ability to shoot just about any other type of .22 ammo. If I want high accuracy I use my Ruger Mk II. Its a good gun for target practice. I probably won't be able to pass it on to my descendants (If I had any):rolleyes:, but for 300 and change I ain't complaining.
 
Blackstone said:
Because of how difficult it is to acquire a gun here, I'll probably pass on this as it seems like a bit of a gamble...
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If you can get a Ruger MK3, that is your best bet. They are by far the best quality .22lr pistol and will hold up well to frequent use.
 
kokapelli said:
That's really a different animal when compared to the P22 or the SR22.
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I know, I'm just saying that with the reported failures of Ruger SR22 takedown latches that require factory return and the P22 being what it is, I wouldn't recommend either of them. Maybe Ruger has the issue fixed with newer SR22 pistols, but maybe not.
 
Kiln said:
I know, I'm just saying that with the reported failures of Ruger SR22 takedown latches that require factory return and the P22 being what it is, I wouldn't recommend either of them. Maybe Ruger has the issue fixed with newer SR22 pistols, but maybe not.
Click to expand...
I hope it is fixed on the SR22 because I have one and really like it.
 
Mine has run like a champ out-of-box, not at all picky about ammo, with just north of 3,000 rounds through it.

I have the extended barrel version, and accuracy is just fine for plinking at the range or on the back-40 of my BIL's family farm.

Still, I wouldn't ignore reports of quality and reliability issues. See if you can do a "try-before-you-buy" with that gun just to make sure you're noy getting a lemon unloaded on you.
 
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Kiln said:
I know, I'm just saying that with the reported failures of Ruger SR22 takedown latches that require factory return and the P22 being what it is, I wouldn't recommend either of them. Maybe Ruger has the issue fixed with newer SR22 pistols, but maybe not.
Click to expand...
I've had mine since April. 3000 rounds later, it has not failed. This takedown latch problem you speak of has not ailed mine.

Sadly, I shy from the Mark series if possible, due in no small part to their horrendous field stripping. That, is why mainly, I sold mine. I'm no more accurate with them than the SR, grip issues for me. After the reviews of the SR22, I bought one and have had nary a disappointment.
 
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