The .22 pistol and round for self defense...My take on it.

[Harryball]

he .22 long rifle as a defense round. Hmmm. Let me start out by saying that people have died
from the .22, there is no doubt about that. It is a great little varmint round, a great practice round,
all in all it is a wonderful round to shoot. Everything that I just said in my opinion are truths..

What about self defense. Is the .22 good enough? Some would argue, that it is fine for self
defense, I would argue that it is not, because there are better offerings out there. Allow me to explain.
In self defense we want the threat to stop what they are doing. We do not want them to get to us
no matter what. Right? With pistol rounds being somewhat anemic why would we use the bottom
of the food chain for a defense round. Ill touch on that. Some people cannot handle anything bigger
than a .22 for what ever reason they have, in my opinion these people have NO other choice. I'm
fine with that, they are making an attempt at self defense and should do what ever training with
there weapon that they can do. .

There is a difference between lethality and incapacitation. Some of you may have heard that statement,
some may not have. Lets looks at both.

Lethality is a term meaning how capable something is of causing death.
We all know the .22 can cause death. No one is arguing that point.

Incapacitation is to deprive of capacity or natural power. What does this mean, it means to stop an action,
or the ability of something or someone to be stopped.

How does this statement about lethality and incapacitation apply to us. Earlier I mentioned stopping the
threat. If the bad guy has a weapon, lets say a knife. Lets also say that he is 15 feet from you and has a
full head of steam (drug, alchol, or just a mean guy) Do you really believe that a .22 will stop this man
from killing you, or would you rather have a service caliber to end this threat? At 15ft, you are liable to get
stabbed no matter what caliber you are using. For me, I want something with a little more mass and energy.
To me it makes more sense. If the bad guy dies from his attempt at your life, well, he dies, but did he stop
doing what he was doing, that made you have to shoot him? After all we are trying to STOP THE THREAT,
not just kill him.

So if you can handle a full service caliber I would recommend you do so, it stacks the odds in your favor
a little more, and to be honest we can all the help we can get. If you find that you cannot handle a service
caliber from some sort of physical disability and the .22 works, by all means use it. It is your choice to
use whatever you would like. Just make sure you are making a wise choice for your self defense needs

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[CLASS3NH]

10 lethal hits with a 22 is a lot better than 2 misses with a 44. Just my .02

[Poseidon]

.22 is better than being unarmed.

[suntzu]

We discussed this at work a few years ago. One of the guys wife had degenerative arthritis. The only recoil she could handle was from a .22. Well, being deployed all the time he was concerned about her for home defense. She was so frail that she could not hold a .22 pistol. He tried having her fire an AR but that was too much. He said from loading mags to even the mild recoil and clearing malfunctions.
So he set her up with a Ruger 10/22 with a 30 round mag. It was on a bipod and sat on the dresser. If a BG came in she could get up and just point and shoot. The dresser was by the door at 90 degrees so the BG would have to enter and turn to fire. She could have plugged him with 30 rounds quickly.

I guess that is not a bad use of a 22 cal for HD.

[Brad426]

Yes, a hit with a .22 is better than a miss with a .44 and a .22 is better than going unarmed. But shoot the largest caliber you can shoot accurately and quickly. A hit with a .44 is better than a hit with a .22, after all.

[Harryball]

10 lethal hits with a 22 is a lot better than 2 misses with a 44. Just my .02

All things being equal, and you had 10 lethal hits with both, which do you think would stop the threat? Not Kill, just stop the threat.

[10thmtn]

The issue with a .22 LR from a handgun is that it usually will not get to the FBI penetration minimum. From a rifle, however, the .22 LR deserves more respect than it typically gets. A Ruger 10/22 with a high-cap magazine and quality ammo is a formidable weapon for sure.

As stated above, for those who have issues with recoil or other medical problems, then a .22 handgun is a whole lot better than nothing.

[stanislaskasava]

.22 LR is a horrible choice for self-defense, if for no other reason than the fact that rimfire primers are very unreliable. Centerfire calibers should be used for self-defense. An average box of .22 LR has a whole handful of duds in it.

[First Sgt]

Harryball.....+1 on all points in your OP

However, like you, I want to approach it from a different angle. Perhaps, just perhaps, IF you can encourage and be successful in teaching someone to shoot a .22, whether it be semi-auto or revolver, AND while doing that teaching, convince them to get their Concealed Weapons Permit, then you have successfully added another person, that is obviously a believer in their 2nd Amendment rights and understands the necessity of having a weapon to protect themselves and their loved ones, to the ranks of a "carrier". Now, take it a bit further, let's assume they join a site like Defensive Carry and begin to read and read some more. Their enthusiasm for their choice to carry, begins to increase. They take note of our recommendations to train, train, and train some more, which takes them out to the range, brings them into contact with other like minded individuals, and really starts to whet their appetite for knowledge and expertise with a weapon. And THEN, VOILA, they ask to shoot different weapons while at the range. They begin to become comfortable with higher calibers, and the light bulb begins to glow as they recognize the importance of perhaps learning to shoot a larger caliber weapon, and they grow comfortable in shooting perhaps a 9mm...NOW all of a sudden, a .22 carrier has now reached that comfort level of shooting and perhaps carrying a weapon with additional stopping power....

Soooo, although, neither you nor I would necessarily be comfortable carrying a .22 caliber for self defense, other would ONLY be comfortable in that caliber for their own reasons and rationale, yet they remain exposed to the possibility of "stepping it up". IF a .22 was MY only alternative, based on whatever reasons, bet your bippy I'd be carrying a .22.....

JMO

[Harryball]

Harryball.....+1 on all points in your OP

However, like you, I want to approach it from a different angle. Perhaps, just perhaps, IF you can encourage and be successful in teaching someone to shoot a .22, whether it be semi-auto or revolver, AND while doing that teaching, convince them to get their Concealed Weapons Permit, then you have successfully added another person, that is obviously a believer in their 2nd Amendment rights and understands the necessity of having a weapon to protect themselves and their loved ones, to the ranks of a "carrier". Now, take it a bit further, let's assume they join a site like Defensive Carry and begin to read and read some more. Their enthusiasm for their choice to carry, begins to increase. They take note of our recommendations to train, train, and train some more, which takes them out to the range, brings them into contact with other like minded individuals, and really starts to whet their appetite for knowledge and expertise with a weapon. And THEN, VOILA, they ask to shoot different weapons while at the range. They begin to become comfortable with higher calibers, and the light bulb begins to glow as they recognize the importance of perhaps learning to shoot a larger caliber weapon, and they grow comfortable in shooting perhaps a 9mm...NOW all of a sudden, a .22 carrier has now reached that comfort level of shooting and perhaps carrying a weapon with additional stopping power....

Soooo, although, neither you nor I would necessarily be comfortable carrying a .22 caliber for self defense, other would ONLY be comfortable in that caliber for their own reasons and rationale, yet they remain exposed to the possibility of "stepping it up". IF a .22 was MY only alternative, based on whatever reasons, bet your bippy I'd be carrying a .22.....

JMO

Good points. You are so right about getting folks into the fold, the .22 can be used very effectively for that. As for the reasons for carrying a .22, it would have to be a big life changing experience. Thanks for the wisdom....

[Sky Pilot]

The .22 is my defensive round of choice if it's in my hand when the second hand bull feed hits the rotating air propulsion device.
I prefer something larger in diameter with a heavier payload, but there are situations when one must use what is available.

[CPanther95]

If you haven't drawn your weapon by the time a guy is 15 feet away from you, coming at you with a full head of steam, it doesn't matter if you a carrying a .45.

[sgb]

If the .22LR is your only choice then it's your best choice otherwise it's generally a poor choice for anything larger than angry squirrels.

[oakchas]

If you haven't drawn your weapon by the time a guy is 15 feet away from you, coming at you with a full head of steam, it doesn't matter if you a carrying a .45.

At 15 feet, I have to agree. You'd be lucky to clear leather with any sidearm. And at "raging bull" speed and mass, a .50 might not stop you from getting cut.

In the end though, I would also rather have a "service caliber" weapon as well.

[Ram Rod]

An average box of .22 LR has a whole handful of duds in it.

I'll agree with that statement. I shoot plenty of 22LR rifle and pistol, and my equipment is in excellent shape.

The .22 pistol and round for self defense...

Plenty of threads on this subject alone. Maybe more than any subject. Why? Alternatives are always good for reasons.
Thinking about shock, incapacitation, and stopping a threat. We can say those ideals don't always involve death, but many times it ends that way. Stopping a threat usually does involve shock, blood loss, or hitting some part of the CNS to have best effect and doing it rather quickly. Plenty of attackers have gone on to make the ham sandwich after they were Swiss cheese with or without mayo....even from centerfire rounds. The rimfire still plays a role, but it's skirting the edges of being effective in many ways. From a defensive standpoint, you risk more with the 22LR. What would you use on a brown bear attacking your tent on a camping trip?
I've talked before about the more effective headshot with a small caliber to reach the CNS......but there are risks there as well if you can't hit the mark. 40gr lead solids is just about the only thing you should contemplate if your SD is 22LR IMO. Even then it's risky at best. It's still better than nothing. Gauge that as you will on a scale of 1-10.