Ruger SR22

[rjohnson4405]

So my roommate went to the gun store this weekend and handled one, decided he liked it and the price so he bought it.

He bought it as fun gun/something to plink with. He shoots a 1911 normally so he's not even practicing reloads/draws with this .22.

What I like:
Good ergonomics - small grip even with large backstrap but works with the controls
Decent trigger - it's DA/SA with a safety/decocker
Good fit and finish - For a ~$300 gun I'm surprised at the level attention Ruger gave it
Easy to load magazines
Last round hold open
Surprisingly good factory sights (adjustable)
Can dryfire with the magazine in

What I don't like
Magazine disconnect
Slide release is currently very stiff
Magazine release is small and recessed (only a problem if you're practicing reloads which we're not)
Safety is backwards of 1911 (down is safe, but it decocks smoothly)

Summary:
I was ready to dislike this gun being brand new and a Ruger, but it's winning me over with good ergonomics and a well thought out design. It's been flawlessly reliable but we've only shot ~150 rounds of federal bulk .22 and some CCI subsonic HPs. Being used to Sig DA/SA guns with a decocker this one was remarkably smooth and definitely shootable/usable. The fixed barrel design is cool! We'll see how well it holds up. Lastly, this thing burns ammo, recoil is non-existant so you never lose the front sight and you can really fly through a 10 round mag.

[peterb]

How do you think it would be for someone with small hands?

[rjohnson4405]

Perfect. That's part of why he bought it for his nieces and nephews.

DA will be heavy for young kids and new shooters but after you load it it's in SA so unless you put on the safety it's good to go.

Also the DA is light to start and heavier at the end, a little like an M&P..

[JodyH]

Looks good.
But if my boys P22 ever craps out I'll be buying him a Glock .22 conversion.
The biggest problem with these little .22's is the super heavy DA trigger pulls.
They make the grips for small hands, then put a 15# DA trigger in them.
Makes no sense.

[rjohnson4405]

According to gunblast the DA pull is 7.7 pounds. I think it's light but that doesn't mean much.

[hufnagel]

I'll just tack on to this thread rather than create a new one.

I picked up a Ruger SR22PS a couple weeks ago. Now that I've put a full box of ammo through it I can say, I REALLY like this little guy! It's easy to shoot, easy to hold and is actually FUN! 525 rounds shot and only 2 failures to extract... not the gun's fault, Remington Golden Bullets the cases split and stuck in the bore. Spent a little time adjusting the sights so they "match" what my P30 and P2000SK shoot and it'll now tear a nice ragged 1" hole out of the middle of the paper target at 10 meters very easily. It has forced me to make a small change to my gun handling method... i'm ditching the slide lock release lever method of dropping the slide after a mag change and going to the slingshot method... maybe. Being that I'm left-handed the slide release on the SR22 isn't really usable so slingshotting is the only way that works for me that I feel is safe. I'm also not finding the button vs. lever mag release being an issue, so i'm pleased about that. I run mine with the large backstrap and WITH pinkie plates on the mags. I don't have Bear Paw sized hands but my fingers are long so the bigger backstrap makes it fit better. I can run it with the smaller one though without any issues. Regarding the trigger weight, the DA pull feels LIGHTER than the DA pulls on my P30 or P2000SK (both with the light FPBS installed.) My only real complaint is the 10 round mags... you can rip a mag through the gun ridiculously fast. Oh and Remington Golden Bullet is some SERIOUSLY DIRTY AMMO! Overall for $306 I'm VERY pleased.