Which do you find more all around useful, a 22 pistol or a 22 rifle?

breakingcontact · December 8, 2012, 11:51 PM

Like them both, but which one is more useful in practical ways.

I'm leaning towards rifle, but the compact nature of the pistol is nice too and it still retains some of the function of the rifle.

Rob228 · December 9, 2012, 12:13 AM

My .22 rifles typically take care of backyard varmints and get shot for general fun purposes, my .22 pistol really only gets shot for fun at the range.

22-rimfire · December 9, 2012, 12:18 AM

I find a 22 rifle more useful overall than a revolver.

I do like 22 handguns quite a lot however. I went through a phase of mostly buying 22 handguns. Had a couple 22 rifles. Then I started getting more interested in punching paper and groups, and I shoot the rifles much more often now.

jasmith85 · December 9, 2012, 12:54 AM

I have to say a 22 rifle. The only thing I ever use my 22 pistol for is targets. A 22 rifle can do that as well as being great for varmints and hunting some small game.

North East Redneck · December 9, 2012, 10:29 AM

Rifle. Pests, squirrels and rabbits. Also punching paper targets or cans in the woods. I do however shoot my .22 pistol a lot. Loaded with CCI mini mags, it is a nice small backup gun. If I could only have one, bye bye pistol. Rifle stays.

**Bud Helms** · December 9, 2012, 11:00 AM

Ditto: Rifle.

Sparks1957 · December 9, 2012, 11:04 AM

For small game and other such useful applications... the rifle

**hogdogs** · December 9, 2012, 11:05 AM

Another rifle guy here... Actually, the .22 pistols I have owned were bought for "fun"... Fun was not really ever a consideration when deciding I "need" a .22 rifle...

I couldn't so easily get one shot kills with the pistol as I do with the rifle...

Brent

Jo6pak · December 9, 2012, 12:16 PM

Easy choice for usefulness = Rifle

Easier to shoot well, better range and accuracy, more options for sights/optics

Hansam · December 9, 2012, 12:25 PM

My Ruger Single Six .22lr gets shot the most of all my handguns (used by every member of the family except the baby boy on almost a daily basis).

That said its almost always used to dispatch cans, plastic bottles filled with water, swinging targets and/or paper. I DO use it to dispatch varmints that end up in my traps when they come after my garbage cans but that's fairly rare.

My 10/22 (rifle) though has taken more animals than ALL my other firearms combined. Its my varmint rifle and I've killed everything from squirrels and rabbits to possums and coons to yotes with it. Basically if its in my back yard and its a varmint its getting at least one bullet from my 10/22. In fact my 10/22 hangs on a hanger I put by the back door specifically for that purpose.

So which is more useful? It depends on what you consider useful. For me I'd say it was a toss up - I taught my kids how to shoot handguns with the Single Six and we still shoot a lot out of it every day. I think that's darned useful. Of course my 10/22 has kept rabbits out of the garden, coons and yotes away from the chicken and feral cats and possums out of everything else. That's pretty darned useful too. Were I to lose either one of those I'd be very deeply saddened at their loss and would move to either recover or replace them ASAP.

L_Killkenny · December 11, 2012, 03:57 PM

No brainer, rifle hands down. I have gotten by with nothing more than a 12ga. Then it was a 12ga and a .22 rifle. I went on from there but if if I had to I could go back to the 12ga/.22lr rifle combo again. .22 handguns are fun and a pleasure to shoot but far from a must have.

Hal · December 11, 2012, 04:49 PM

Pistol.
No question about it.
It's not even close.

In fairness though,,,,,I'm not all that hot with a rifle.

twobit · December 11, 2012, 07:05 PM

Rifle...Winchester model 190 with 4x scope and a red laser is my daytime and night time varmit gun. I live on a ranch and all skunks, porcupines, feral cats, raccoons, etc that are found near the house are dispatched with it almost exclusively.

22-rimfire · December 12, 2012, 12:46 AM

The rifle is more useful. But in my younger days, carrying around a rifle would have been just plain stupid in my vehicle for occasional plinking. So the choice is situational.

alex0535 · December 12, 2012, 01:05 AM

Rifle.

my .17 HMR rifle sees more use than my .22LR. Both have taken a lot of squirrels.

I also have a Taurus Tracker .17 HMR revolver. It is fun, but it isn't the most practical revolver.

SPEMack618 · December 12, 2012, 07:24 PM

I never realized what Pops meant when he harped on how much fun it was to shoot a .22 caliber rifle until I went off to college and had to supply my own ammo.

For what it cost to run four mags out of my Glock, my lady friend could push around Diet Coke and RC cans all afternoon with my 10/22.

My 10/22 has dispatched more wayward critters than any other gun I own, even the 77/22 I bought for that exact purpose.

Not to say my 22/45 doesn't get a lot of range time too, but that 10/22 I got for Christmas in the sixth grade is by and large my most used and useful firearm.

treg · December 12, 2012, 10:41 PM

Tough call but I'm going with the pistol. Easy to tote while working, woods loafing or riding horse. Sees plenty of small game time too.

Hogeman · December 12, 2012, 10:47 PM

Rifle

Rifleman1776 · December 13, 2012, 10:25 AM

Not possible to answer.
They are two different critters designed for different uses.
My Ruger 10/22, like so many others here, is my backyard rifle. It gets shot a lot more than my Single Six. Previously, when I had a farm, it was my truck gun.
But, while working on the farm, hunting and hiking the Single Six was with me. Shot less but it's value was in being with me when needed. Three times, over the years, it was pulled for defensive purposes. Never shot as such, just the presence made the agressors change their minds and leave. I had it when I would not have had a rifle.
Get both, you won't regret it. Except for the prices of the SSs today.

wayneinFL · December 13, 2012, 11:14 AM

More useful? Rifle. More portable? Pistol.

I had an uncle who used to carry a 22 pistol on his farm. He shot a lot of rabbits, because he had it with him.

Short answer is buy both. A Savage 22 is $120 at Wal-mart. And buy a pistol, too.

Old Grump · December 13, 2012, 02:07 PM

What a question....well what is handier, your left shoe lace or your right shoelace. I've killed squirrel, rabbit and pigeons by the thousands with both and dead is dead. If you are not a pistol shooter you need a rifle. If you are a pistol shooter both will do you just fine and the pistol has the advantage of being easier to carry around even if you do give up some range advantage.

CajunBass · December 14, 2012, 12:17 AM

Most useful? Rifle.

Most used? Pistol.

breakingcontact · December 14, 2012, 08:21 AM

Interesting distinction.

Kind of like how a tool with the most uses in out toolboxes is not necessarily the most used tool.

Win73 · December 16, 2012, 05:58 PM

For me it would have to be my S&W Model 317 Airlite. I use and carry it much more than my 10/22 or my 39A Golden Mountie combined. Whenever I am out and about in the woods or fields for whatever reason, it is on my hip. It is so small and light, I don't even feel it being there. It never interferes with anything I am doing. Even during gun deer season when I have my .45 Blackhawk on my hip, the 317 is in my pocket.

MOshooter65202 · December 17, 2012, 12:32 AM

I'd have to say my Ruger 10/22T rifle is what I reach for the most,although the Ruger MkII side slab gets a lot of use target practice as well as hunting squirrels and rabbits.

December 8, 2012, 11:51 PM	#1
breakingcontact Senior Member Join Date: October 25, 2012 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 657	Which do you find more all around useful, a 22 pistol or a 22 rifle? Like them both, but which one is more useful in practical ways. I'm leaning towards rifle, but the compact nature of the pistol is nice too and it still retains some of the function of the rifle.

December 9, 2012, 10:29 AM	#5
North East Redneck Senior Member Join Date: June 6, 2012 Location: Berkshire Hills Posts: 303	Rifle. Pests, squirrels and rabbits. Also punching paper targets or cans in the woods. I do however shoot my .22 pistol a lot. Loaded with CCI mini mags, it is a nice small backup gun. If I could only have one, bye bye pistol. Rifle stays. __________________ NRA Life Member Goal Member SAF Member

December 9, 2012, 11:00 AM	#6
Bud Helms Staff Join Date: December 31, 1999 Location: Middle Georgia Posts: 12,908	Ditto: Rifle. __________________ "The irony of the Information Age is that it has given new respectability to uninformed opinion." - John Lawton, speaking to the American Association of Broadcast Journalists in 1995

December 9, 2012, 11:05 AM	#8
hogdogs Staff Join Date: October 31, 2007 Location: Western Florida panhandle Posts: 10,691	Another rifle guy here... Actually, the .22 pistols I have owned were bought for "fun"... Fun was not really ever a consideration when deciding I "need" a .22 rifle... I couldn't so easily get one shot kills with the pistol as I do with the rifle... Brent __________________ Finally have designs going up in the Hogdogs Outdoor Apparel online store. http://www.cafepress.com/hogdogsoutdoorapparel Thanks for lookin'...

December 9, 2012, 12:16 PM	#9
Jo6pak Senior Member Join Date: August 5, 2010 Location: West Coast...of WI Posts: 1,146	Easy choice for usefulness = Rifle Easier to shoot well, better range and accuracy, more options for sights/optics __________________ NRA Life Member, SAF contributor.

December 9, 2012, 12:13 AM	#2
Rob228 Senior Member Join Date: May 29, 2010 Location: Broomfield CO Posts: 466	My .22 rifles typically take care of backyard varmints and get shot for general fun purposes, my .22 pistol really only gets shot for fun at the range.

December 9, 2012, 12:18 AM	#3
22-rimfire Senior Member Join Date: February 19, 2005 Location: Tennessee Posts: 4,334	I find a 22 rifle more useful overall than a revolver. I do like 22 handguns quite a lot however. I went through a phase of mostly buying 22 handguns. Had a couple 22 rifles. Then I started getting more interested in punching paper and groups, and I shoot the rifles much more often now.

December 9, 2012, 12:54 AM	#4
jasmith85 Senior Member Join Date: April 6, 2012 Location: Tennessee Posts: 244	I have to say a 22 rifle. The only thing I ever use my 22 pistol for is targets. A 22 rifle can do that as well as being great for varmints and hunting some small game.

December 9, 2012, 11:04 AM	#7
Sparks1957 Senior Member Join Date: September 4, 2011 Location: Vermont Posts: 1,396	For small game and other such useful applications... the rifle

December 9, 2012, 12:25 PM	#10
Hansam Senior Member Join Date: February 21, 2012 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 746	My Ruger Single Six .22lr gets shot the most of all my handguns (used by every member of the family except the baby boy on almost a daily basis). That said its almost always used to dispatch cans, plastic bottles filled with water, swinging targets and/or paper. I DO use it to dispatch varmints that end up in my traps when they come after my garbage cans but that's fairly rare. My 10/22 (rifle) though has taken more animals than ALL my other firearms combined. Its my varmint rifle and I've killed everything from squirrels and rabbits to possums and coons to yotes with it. Basically if its in my back yard and its a varmint its getting at least one bullet from my 10/22. In fact my 10/22 hangs on a hanger I put by the back door specifically for that purpose. So which is more useful? It depends on what you consider useful. For me I'd say it was a toss up - I taught my kids how to shoot handguns with the Single Six and we still shoot a lot out of it every day. I think that's darned useful. Of course my 10/22 has kept rabbits out of the garden, coons and yotes away from the chicken and feral cats and possums out of everything else. That's pretty darned useful too. Were I to lose either one of those I'd be very deeply saddened at their loss and would move to either recover or replace them ASAP. __________________ This is who we are, what we do.

December 11, 2012, 03:57 PM	#11
L_Killkenny Senior Member Join Date: February 2, 2007 Location: Iowa Posts: 2,556	No brainer, rifle hands down. I have gotten by with nothing more than a 12ga. Then it was a 12ga and a .22 rifle. I went on from there but if if I had to I could go back to the 12ga/.22lr rifle combo again. .22 handguns are fun and a pleasure to shoot but far from a must have.

December 11, 2012, 04:49 PM	#12
Hal Senior Member Join Date: October 10, 1998 Location: Ohio USA Posts: 6,974	Pistol. No question about it. It's not even close. In fairness though,,,,,I'm not all that hot with a rifle.

December 11, 2012, 07:05 PM	#13
twobit Senior Member Join Date: February 25, 2010 Location: Coyote Creak, SW Texas Posts: 476	Rifle...Winchester model 190 with 4x scope and a red laser is my daytime and night time varmit gun. I live on a ranch and all skunks, porcupines, feral cats, raccoons, etc that are found near the house are dispatched with it almost exclusively. __________________ Twobit, LEO, NRA member, Native Texan. Shooting and hunting for over 45 years!

December 12, 2012, 12:46 AM	#14
22-rimfire Senior Member Join Date: February 19, 2005 Location: Tennessee Posts: 4,334	The rifle is more useful. But in my younger days, carrying around a rifle would have been just plain stupid in my vehicle for occasional plinking. So the choice is situational.

December 12, 2012, 01:05 AM	#15
alex0535 Senior Member Join Date: November 4, 2012 Location: Georgia Posts: 618	Rifle. my .17 HMR rifle sees more use than my .22LR. Both have taken a lot of squirrels. I also have a Taurus Tracker .17 HMR revolver. It is fun, but it isn't the most practical revolver.

December 12, 2012, 07:24 PM	#16
SPEMack618 Senior Member Join Date: June 21, 2010 Location: Boy Scout Camp Posts: 1,260	I never realized what Pops meant when he harped on how much fun it was to shoot a .22 caliber rifle until I went off to college and had to supply my own ammo. For what it cost to run four mags out of my Glock, my lady friend could push around Diet Coke and RC cans all afternoon with my 10/22. My 10/22 has dispatched more wayward critters than any other gun I own, even the 77/22 I bought for that exact purpose. Not to say my 22/45 doesn't get a lot of range time too, but that 10/22 I got for Christmas in the sixth grade is by and large my most used and useful firearm. __________________ "Growing up as both a Southern and the son of a child of the '50s, I was imprinted with several things that have long stuck with me. The F-86 Saber Jet was the finest fighter ever flown, the National League is always superior, and Leslie Coffelt was the finest revovler shooter since Mr. Ed."

December 12, 2012, 10:41 PM	#17
treg Senior Member Join Date: November 26, 2006 Posts: 934	Tough call but I'm going with the pistol. Easy to tote while working, woods loafing or riding horse. Sees plenty of small game time too. __________________ "Courage is being scared to death and saddling up anyway." - John Wayne .44 Special: For those who get it, no explanation is necessary. For those who don't, no explanation is possible.

December 12, 2012, 10:47 PM	#18
Hogeman Member Join Date: December 1, 2012 Location: Ohio Posts: 27	Rifle

December 13, 2012, 10:25 AM	#19
Rifleman1776 Senior Member Join Date: April 25, 2010 Location: Arkansas Posts: 2,841	Not possible to answer. They are two different critters designed for different uses. My Ruger 10/22, like so many others here, is my backyard rifle. It gets shot a lot more than my Single Six. Previously, when I had a farm, it was my truck gun. But, while working on the farm, hunting and hiking the Single Six was with me. Shot less but it's value was in being with me when needed. Three times, over the years, it was pulled for defensive purposes. Never shot as such, just the presence made the agressors change their minds and leave. I had it when I would not have had a rifle. Get both, you won't regret it. Except for the prices of the SSs today.

December 13, 2012, 11:14 AM	#20
wayneinFL Senior Member Join Date: December 18, 2004 Posts: 1,694	More useful? Rifle. More portable? Pistol. I had an uncle who used to carry a 22 pistol on his farm. He shot a lot of rabbits, because he had it with him. Short answer is buy both. A Savage 22 is $120 at Wal-mart. And buy a pistol, too. Last edited by wayneinFL; December 13, 2012 at 12:43 PM.

December 13, 2012, 02:07 PM	#21
Old Grump Senior Member Join Date: April 9, 2009 Location: Blue River Wisconsin, in a little hut in the woods Posts: 3,129	What a question....well what is handier, your left shoe lace or your right shoelace. I've killed squirrel, rabbit and pigeons by the thousands with both and dead is dead. If you are not a pistol shooter you need a rifle. If you are a pistol shooter both will do you just fine and the pistol has the advantage of being easier to carry around even if you do give up some range advantage. __________________ Good intentions will always be pleaded for any assumption of power. The Constitution was made to guard the people against the dangers of good intentions. There are men in all ages who mean to govern will, but they mean to govern. They promise to be good masters, but they mean to be masters. --Daniel Webster--

December 14, 2012, 12:17 AM	#22
CajunBass Senior Member Join Date: May 6, 2005 Location: Chancellorsville, Virginia Posts: 3,103	Most useful? Rifle. Most used? Pistol. __________________ For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16 (NKJV)

December 14, 2012, 08:21 AM	#23
breakingcontact Senior Member Join Date: October 25, 2012 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 657	Interesting distinction. Kind of like how a tool with the most uses in out toolboxes is not necessarily the most used tool.

December 16, 2012, 05:58 PM	#24
Win73 Senior Member Join Date: March 2, 2009 Location: Alabama Posts: 368	For me it would have to be my S&W Model 317 Airlite. I use and carry it much more than my 10/22 or my 39A Golden Mountie combined. Whenever I am out and about in the woods or fields for whatever reason, it is on my hip. It is so small and light, I don't even feel it being there. It never interferes with anything I am doing. Even during gun deer season when I have my .45 Blackhawk on my hip, the 317 is in my pocket. __________________ (Luke 11:21 KJV) When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace: (Luke 22:36 KJV) Then said he unto them, But now, he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip: and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one.

December 17, 2012, 12:32 AM	#25
MOshooter65202 Senior Member Join Date: February 16, 2011 Posts: 428	I'd have to say my Ruger 10/22T rifle is what I reach for the most,although the Ruger MkII side slab gets a lot of use target practice as well as hunting squirrels and rabbits.