I've got this new gun...

I thought I had written a nice review the other day. Concise and informative, or so I intended.  When I finished, I read it though and realized it had started well but morphed into a rather esoteric piece on the history of .22 pistol offerings from the big American firms over the last 70 years.  Yeah. 

A bit dry for a food blog. 

Instead here's a quick overview of the the S&W 22a pistol I recently purchased, and rimfire recreation in general. 

Along the way, most people that have the opportunity to shoot a gun end up shooting a .22 rimfire. .22's are inexpensive to manufacture, and sell well for informal shooting, pest control, and introducing new shooters to handguns. The .22 rimfire cartridge itself is equally suited to rifles and handguns, offers low noise and recoil, and it's cheap to shoot compared to centerfire offerings like the 9mm and .45acp. 

I've got .22 rimfire rifles, some of which I'm quite fond. As .22 handguns go I briefly owned a 70's vintage Iver Johnson revolver that I used to quietly dispatch several cute fuzzy bunnies tick harboring vermin in the yard. With a steady diet of .22CB shorts it was quiet and effective. Unfortunately like many inexpensive wheelguns, it was hampered by a timing problem that forced you to hand align the cylinder before shooting. Not acceptable from a safety perspective and a pain in the ass to boot.

When I started looking for something new, I looked at the current crop of autoloading handguns. Budget constraints are ever present and it seems you can get a good auto for half what you'll pay for a nice revolver. Funny, you can draw a comparison to watches here. Good analog watches are spendy while digital watches are robust and cheap... What is it about rotary motion that vexes modern manufacturing?...

After looking at the ubiquitous Rugers and Brownings, I chose the Smith&Wesson 22a. It's the least expensive of the group, and S&W offers great customer service. Good product support is important, as complex machines can be finicky. The S&W comes in a rather nice plastic case with two 10-round magazines, the federally mandated gun lock, a comprehensive manual, and some literature. My gun was a bit dirty; most people don't know that every firearm gets test fired at the factory, then packaged uncleaned. Some consider it piece of mind, others are put off that their “new” gun isn't new... It takes all kinds. 

The 22a wears adjustable sights and comes furnished with a rubber grip. Laminate wood grips are available as an upgrade.  The top rail is ready to accept optics if you so choose.  Optics make pistols heavy and unholsterable, both good reasons to leave them off an introductory plinker like this one. I'm sure I'll plop my Aimpoint on top one of these days for kicks, but I'll primarily be using the iron sights.

 I anticipate using this pistol to introduce new shooters, and as a low cost alternative to 9mm for defensive practice drills. It should shine in both roles. Thus far I've fired a sum total of three rounds, all out the kitchen window so it's a bit too soon for a complete review.   Stay tuned for a full range report when Cincinnati thaws.  

Until then, I encourage folks to explore these links for more information.

The 4 Rules of Gun Safety

The National Shooting Sports Foundation

Education and Training