Quote:
Originally Posted by zukiphile
TT, not to talk you out of your position, but here is the other side.
I've built a (small) bunch of 10/22s. They can be made accurate and can get expensive very quickly. The magazines are durable, but not the easiest to load. The bolt manipulation can be less than intuitive.
A dedicated AR in 22lr with S&W magazines is easier to load, easier to clean,. can be reasonably accurate (less than 2 MOA), has the ergonomic superiority of the AR (which makes a difference in three position shooting), uses a bunch of good two stage triggers that don't cost $300, and unlike the S&W 15-22 is strong enough to sling up very tightly with and maintain POI. The shortcoming of the CMMG 22lr I am finding is the frequency of firing pin replacement.
10/22 are a good layout overall; the dedicated AR22 offers a different set of virtues.
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Hey, no offense taken. When it comes to this type of arrangement with .22 LR, it's a different strokes type of deal.
You hit on a lot of good points, the trigger one especially. I think if Ruger is going to sell a BX-25 trigger, it should be half what it currently is. The cleaning issue isn't a big deal to me because I can drop a bolt into the ultrasonic and it's done. Does it take longer with dedicated .22's over an AR? Yeah, but it's only a few more mins and I have many of those to give in life.
The biggest dislike I have of the AR-22's is the magazines... they're ridiculously oversized for the cartridge. It's part of the reason I hate the 25 round mags for the Mossberg Plinkster so much. The 10/22 on the other hand, while still bulky, are reasonable in size.
I think when you bring up the expensive of increasing accuracy of a .22 LR you can make that argument for any .22 pistol or rifle. The .22 cartridge, given it's light weight, the way the cartridge fires, the whole package... you're dealing with an inherently inaccurate cartridge. IMO, it doesn't matter what you shoot it in, it's what you're shooting that matters.
Some .22's are just able to handle any ammo well, some can't be accurate with anything other than Tenex match ammo, and then you have the rest. The dedicated .22 LR rifles and pistols are built to be good with a wide variety of ammo. Converted guns... I can't say the same.
I will say a polymer lower AR .22 pistol does intrigue me, but I'm already entangled with the Ruger Charger and because of the ubiquity of that platform, I think it's the better choice over an AR.
But an AR .22 is not far behind the 10/22 and I think given the QC issues Marlin has had recently it has surpassed the Model 60 in many ways. Mossberg Plinkster brings in the Bronze for low cost, reliable, great 10 rd magazines, and lightweight.