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Ruger SR22 Pistol Review

80K views 31 replies 17 participants last post by  Denvernic 
#1 ·
I have had this little guy for four days now and have put 700 rounds through it. I personally would not consider using such a small caliber for self defense but for those who do, here is my review:

Ergos are great, and it comes with two grips. I put the larger one on and it works great for my hands. Has a smaller one for people with smaller hands or who like a smaller grip. it is very comfortable. Also comes with 2X10 rd mags and two finger extensions which really aren't needed so I didnt put them on.



The sights are three dot and you can reverse the rear to all black. the rear sight is easy to adjust for windage and elevation using a small armorers flat head screwdriver.



The trigger is a nice steady pull. It is easy to find the reset and bring it back to shooting position. It isn't match grade but it is great for a small rimfire pistol. I have not yet measured the pull.

The 10 round magazines have little thumb buttons to make loading easy



Day 1 I wasn't able to shoot it, just admire it because I was hunting for bobcat and fox in the Globe area and didn't want to take the time to test it out in the area we were in for fear of spooking animals. I ran a boresnake through it and lightly lubed the rails with slip 2000 EWL

Day 2 once I got home I put 50 rds of CCI mini hps 36gr chp, 30 federal 550 box 36gr hp, 20 winchester 500 box. 36 gr hp... no issues at all. Fed everything right out of the box. I got the sights adjusted at 15 yards.

Day 3 I put 350 rounds of the federal and 50 rounds of the CCI. I tested it from 75, 50, 25, 15, and 10. All with stellar results.

Today, Day 4 I put 200 more of the federal 550 box 36gr jhp through it. No cleaning, no extra lube, and this thing gave me 700 trouble free rounds. I tested mostly at 15 , 40 and 50 yards.

Here are some of the groupings I got out of it:

15 yards



25 yards



40 yards



Today I also took it apart. To clean it.

Items of notice:

BEEFY extractor. 10/22 style



Barrel is one piece but also mounts 10/22 style via an allen wrench in front of the trigger.





Solidly built with good solid springs



Ejector is also very solid and not flimsy.



Recoil spring stout with polymer guide rod



SEE NEXT POST FOR PART 2
 
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#2 ·
CONTINUED

Dis-assembles by pressing down a lever under the frame.... and pulling the slide back and then up off the rails. I did find my fingers/nail couldn't get it to pop down so I had to use a screwdriver tip to do so. A key or a knife would work too but I didnt want to scratch it so I used a flat head tip. The lever is polymer.







Slip 2000 does wonders.... 700 rounds later and still not that dirty..... had desert dust/dirt/grit in it and not ONE single FTE or FTF.



Slide is aluminum but not flimsy. very thick and solid as well

Reassembly is easy. Simply ensure the hammer is back, put the spring and guide rod into a hole in the frame, align the front of the slide with the barrel and recoil spring assembly and pull back and drop the slide onto the frame. Then push the lever back into place



Cleaning was simple as well. A boresnake and 9 swabs to clean. One swab to lightly apply the SLIP 2000 to the barrel, rails, and other areas that show wear

Caveman simple.

Bottom line is I took this thing out of the box ran a boresnake through it, lightly lubed it with slip 2000 ( in conjunction with rugers factory grease) and fired no less than 700 rounds through it the past four days of various manufactures, mostly federal 36g bulk pack HP and cc mini max 36 gr chp without a single cleaning. I experienced NO FTF or FTE. No issues whatsoever. Everything about this weapon is solid and nothing screams cheap to me. if i had to pick a few things that were weak points, it would be the rear sight assembly and the takedown lever... both polymer and unkown to me how long they will last under the kind of abuse I give my hunting weapons. Only time will tell But for the price point under 350 it cannot be beat.

The only safety mechanism it has I do not like is a mag disconnect safety, however this is a training, plinking, and small varmint hunting weapon only so it is not a huge factor as I will never use it for self defense purposes.

It also has ambi mag release and and ambi safety.

It is much more solid and better shooting the sig mosquito and walther p22 I have handled/fired. Accurate, good groupings and reliable..... Another major win for Ruger and for me as I am the owner of it.

I think this is a must own for anyone who wants a reliable semi auto rimfire.
 
#3 ·
Great review!! How much do they run? I've been kicking myself for selling my Browning Buckmark and have been looking for another 22 for el cheapo practice. Looks like a good possibility.
 
#6 ·
Great review azchevy! I have been really liking what I have been hearing about the new SR22 on the different gun boards and thinking this might just be my next .22lr semi auto. I would really like to see Ruger make a 5" barrel version of the SR22 (or at least 4.5"). Of course the extra slide weight might throw things off and not make it as reliable (not cycle correctly) I suppose. Might be why it is only 3.5" in the first place.
 
#7 ·
Thanks for the review AZ! I've been contemplating an auto rimfire and the SR22 seems to fit the bill nicely. Congrats on the new purchase!
 
#8 ·
I paid 340 otd. The safety works with an upward thumb sweep. It is also a deckocker so once I chamber a round in put the safety on and decock it then put the safety off and the first shot is da. No issues. But can see how someone used to a 1911 down is off could experience memory function issues.
 
#10 ·
The recoil is non existent. It is a .22LR. As for holsters, ironically it fits right into the high noon mr softy I bought for my old LC9 I sold so I am good.

Airsoft Airsoft gun



It will mostly be hanging off my spectre gear g17 holster which it also fits into that I have on my ats warbelt when I am hunting though. I really don't plan on carrying this concealed.
 
#12 ·
I have been through most of the compact semi .22LR models. I was stuck on an H&R sa/da revolver for a while due to reliability. This is the first one didn't have ftf or fte problems in the first 200 rounds and thereafter.... I am up to 700 and gonna go hit 1K this afternoon. I didn't even clean it. I couldn't be happier with this thing..... I just hope ruger sets the spare mags at a reasonable price because I want to stock up on them.
 
#17 ·
#18 ·
I agree with just about everything in this review except the take down lever I found to be rather easy. I picked up mine for $315 OTD. Using three different types of ammo I've ran about 300 or so rounds of thru mine with no issues. I cleaned it with MilCom due to this is all I use on my Sig. I plan on finishing the Wally World bulk ammo sometime next week. One thing I must say if for 700 rounds you sure missed the target quit a bit. LOL!! Sorry I had to. LOL!!
 
#24 ·
Pity they can't do a double-stack magazine in a .22LR gun like this. I know I'll catch flack for saying this. But if there were a gun like the Ruger SR-22 that was extremely reliable, no larger than the gun we're talking about already, and held 20 or more rounds.... I'd probably prefer to carry that as a self-defense weapon. My philosophy is that in a crisis situation I may not be able to aim reliably and I'd like to know I have the ability to pull the trigger a whole bunch of times if needed. I'd rather put 5 small holes in a person than 2 bigger ones. I think I'd stand a better chance of one of those holes hitting an area that would stop the threat.
 
#26 ·
Just a quick update on this one, I have two and a half bricks of federal through this weapon now. That is 1400 rounds plus the other 200 misc rounds I have put through it for a total of 1600 rounds. It has not had one single feed or ejection issue. 2 thumbs up Ruger for getting it right.
 
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