Most Reliable 22lr Semi Auto

[Dusty Rivers]

S&W 41

[Jim Watson]

Kind of big, heavy, and expensive for non-enthusiast self defense.
Mine is a fine target pistol, reliable with the right ammo. But not real flexible.

[Ricklin]

I too lean toward the revolver.

Yes I have a Taurus 94 two men and a boy for the DA trigger pull. Not bashing Taurus, I like that little 9 shooter.

The issue is the frame size and the force required to touch off the rimfire rounds. Lightening the trigger results in poor ignition, that's a deal breaker esp. in a self defense weapon.

A larger .22 revolver may be your answer. Hearing good things about the Ruger double action .22 revolver. I have not shot one.

I like the S+W .22 K22? My old friend had one, a .22 in a .38 frame. Nice but I'm sure pricey as well.

[osbornk]

I know it seems strange but my Ruger Mk.III 22/45 is my least reliable 22. My Phoenix HP-22A didn't have a malfunction of any kind in the 3,500 rounds I shot through it before I traded it to my brother. My Heritage Rough Rider is also very reliable. I have changed several parts and cleaned the gun a lot but my Mk III still occasionally has a ftf.

[geologist]

Smith & Wesson 34 Kit Gun .22LR.

[Carl the Floor Walker]

My SR22 just went down. Have parts ordered. Ruger would not give me a shipping label to them as the gun is old. They would repair it and send it back for free. I opted for the parts. A great gun, shoots anything and extremely reliable.
But you want a fun as heck gun to shoot and really reliable. Then say no more and get the LCR22. I am have a blast with this 22.cal and a great trainer for my LCR9mm.

Shooting 8 rounds rapid fire with this is a great option. I love it.

[wmg1299]

I couldn't agree more. While looking for a gun for mom, I saw the LCR 22 for a good price at Academy. I went ahead and purchased that one. The trigger pull is still fairly stout, but is much smoother than the Taurus.

I found a range within driving distance that has rentals of several semi-auto models. We'll see which one she likes best.

[Jazzgun]

https://www.sportsmansoutdoorsuperst...-DEFAULT-l.jpg

From a woman's point of view. S & W Ladysmith .38 hammerless.

No worrying about a bullet in the chamber, or jamming or safeties or having to rack the slide. Just a nice revolver that isn't scary looking but powerful enough to stop a home intruder.

No pistols if she isn't going to carry. And why limit her to a .22?

Yeah...I know it's an old thread but no woman replied to it.

[Jazzgun]

Originally Posted by wmg1299

I couldn't agree more. While looking for a gun for mom, I saw the LCR 22 for a good price at Academy. I went ahead and purchased that one. The trigger pull is still fairly stout, but is much smoother than the Taurus.

I found a range within driving distance that has rentals of several semi-auto models. We'll see which one she likes best.

Ohh just saw that you got your mom a gun. How does she like it?

[GarandTd]

I have an M&P 22 compact that has been very reliable. Very reliable for a 22. I would say 22s in general are going to be the least reliable of all firearms and this is just a limitation caused by rimfire ammunition.

[Siggy-06]

+1 for the Ruger SR22. Easy to rack and shoot. Eats everything I feed it.

[Bill DeShivs]

There is a lot to be said for a Ruger 10/22 and a factory 25 round magazine.

[Bamashooter]

Shot a friends Ruger SR-22 the other day and was very impressed with it. Functioned flawlessly and was very accurate. I know its not a target gun but for a fun and accurate plinker its a great gun.

[PSP]

The Ruger SR22 has proven very reliable through a variety of ammo. I shoot mostly high velocity CCI. The slide and controls are easy to use. Most impressive is the ease of loading the magazines. Excellent design for kids or elderly. Sights are good and the rail means a light /laser could be added. Takedown is very easy too so that the pistol can be maintained well.

I'd buy one for my mom.

[kymasabe]

If mom's not carrying it and is only home defense, what about a small light youth sized .410 shotgun?

[riffraff]

I have an SR22 and I love it enough I just ordered a 2nd one in the longer barrel. Sure if you go this route an SR22 is a no brainer.

But I think you should consider a centerfire caliber instead. At one point I'd say a .22 is perfectly fine - generally anyone is going to become neutral upon seeing the pistol, if not after being peppered with .22 or if they take one to the face. I still believe that. My issue is reliability from .22 in general - I don't care what is shooting the stuff, .22 isn't as good for reliability and that only goes downhill in a small pistol.

Some small caliber centerfire - maybe 25, 380, 32, 9 - and preferably in a simple to use revolver, would be my choice for teaching/arming a senior citizen who is new to guns.

If it had to be a .22 I'd be going revolver - reason being .22 auto loading pistols are finicky, making things less reliable - I'm not saying they are unreliable, but something as simple as a little extra oil and 100 rounds of ammo and my SR22 can start throwing fits if a little powder grit lands in the wrong place and sticks. Cleaning it is not hard but requires one to really look closely - does not seem like a good gun for a senior citizen and my guess is other .22LR auto loaders are similar. A revolver on the other hand would not have such potential cycling problems.

[great scot]

I really like the M&P22 compact! Great gun! I also like my Ruger Mark IV, but quite a bit heavier.

[nagami]

Ruger MK IV,recomended

[Brian48]

I absolutely love my Ruger MKIIs. Have 3 of them. The latest Rugers are just as robust. I just like the simplicity of the MKIIs more.

[Carl the Floor Walker]

I am a pocket gun and 9mm micro enthusiast. And a dedicated range Rat. I train often with 22.cal especially for the Point and Shoot drills with I do 95% of my range time. I do love shooting my LCR, and my SR22 and others.
However one gun that I am particularly fond of is the gun featured below. Gun snobs will throw all kinds of comments toward the gun. Laugh at it, jeer at it, but the Little gun just does not care. It just shoots and shoots, and does it remarkably well. Very accurate at 7 yds. Even more than my SR22.
When I take it to the range, I will take a standard target and place 9, 3" reactive targets one it. Than as quickly as possible, I will rapid fire and try and nail all nine.
And when I am on my game I can do this. (7yds).
I like the gun so much I bought two of them and have ran thousands of rounds down range with them. They love cheap, bulk standard ammo. I love the trigger, even better than the SR22 and it is more accurate at close range. I love the way the gun feels in the hand. And reliable it is.
Here is the little gun that could. Please, go ahead and Laugh.
Oh, by the way, my first one only cost $85.00

[JJ45]

The most reliable .22LR Auto Pistol I have had was a Beretta 70S....they were also chambered in .32 and .380

About the size of a PPK. It had the Beretta open top strap similar to the 92 and I believe this eliminated stove pipe jams...the pistol shot way too high though, IIRC, about 5 or 6 inches high at 10 yards and I had to file down the rear sight to get it to hit POA.

I have had others including all the Ruger Marks. The only one I still have is a Mark II,.22/45 standard. I gave my son a 22/45 Bull barrel target model.

Other than the Beretta, NONE have been jam free...with any of the Rugers I could usually count on at least one failure of some kind every 100 rounds. Some of that might be ammo related.

[osbornk]

I am a pocket gun and 9mm micro enthusiast. And a dedicated range Rat. I train often with 22.cal especially for the Point and Shoot drills with I do 95% of my range time. I do love shooting my LCR, and my SR22 and others.
However one gun that I am particularly fond of is the gun featured below. Gun snobs will throw all kinds of comments toward the gun. Laugh at it, jeer at it, but the Little gun just does not care. It just shoots and shoots, and does it remarkably well. Very accurate at 7 yds. Even more than my SR22.
When I take it to the range, I will take a standard target and place 9, 3" reactive targets one it. Than as quickly as possible, I will rapid fire and try and nail all nine.
And when I am on my game I can do this. (7yds).
I like the gun so much I bought two of them and have ran thousands of rounds down range with them. They love cheap, bulk standard ammo. I love the trigger, even better than the SR22 and it is more accurate at close range. I love the way the gun feels in the hand. And reliable it is.
Here is the little gun that could. Please, go ahead and Laugh.
Oh, by the way, my first one only cost $85.00

I had one with both the short and long barrel. It was accurate and I don't think it ever failed to fire or had any other issues. It is designed for SV ammo but I used HV since it was all I could find during the "shortage". The slide cracked at 3.500 rounds and it was replaced with no questions. I mailed the slide and got one back in return mail in exactly a week (amazing it went from Virginia to California and back in a week). I sold it to my brother for his wife because she wouldn't carry anything in a larger caliber.

[Cosmodragoon]

First, does it really need to be a pistol? There are plenty of light carbines, including pistol-caliber carbines with very light recoil, that could be better suited to home defense.

Second, does it really need to be in .22 LR? This has already come up but consider previous recommendations regarding an appropriately sized revolver in .38 special. Also consider .32 H&R magnum or even .32 S&W Long, both of which can be fired from any of the new .327 guns. Those centerfire cartridges should all be more reliable and will all do significantly more damage to bad guys than a .22 LR.

Since those are all revolver recommendations, I think it is worth noting that revolvers might be the wrong choice for .22 LR in some cases. They tend to have heavier trigger pulls. That could be an issue for people with limited hand strength or orthopedic issues. In fact, be sure to have her check the trigger on any gun that's up for consideration.

If the answer to those two big questions are "yes" and she can handle the trigger on the SR-22, I'll be yet another person to recommend it. The SR-22 is fun, well-built, and more reliable than some other .22 handguns on the market. It also comes in all sorts of finishes, from respectable to ridiculous. For instance, here is one in a nice gray and another with the color palette of a bumble bee...

[sparkyv]

Originally Posted by Fishbed77

Assuming you are looking at this pistol for a defensive use. In that case the Ruger SR22 is a solid option that is built better than most of the potmetal .22LR pistols that mimic the look of popular defensive centerfire pistols.

I completely agree. Plus the SR22 is a great for the hands of the two females in my life. This is their favorite .22LR that they've ever handled.

[GarandTd]

Will the sr22 cycle subsonic rounds?