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Thread: What Do You Guys Think of 22 Magnum?

  1. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dr. Bullseye View Post
    I am shopping for a hand gun. With the ammo shortage as it is maybe the thing to do is reverse engineer the gun starting with ammo and ammo availability. There are lots of videos and ads out there for cool looking plastic handguns using 22 magnum. What is the deal on 22 magnum for self defense purposes? Does it have enough stopping power. As a complete novice to hand guns I was told I need at least 38 caliber in a self-defense weapon but these 22 magnum rounds at least LOOK impressive. What is the real deal?
    A poor choice but better than throwing rocks. Far as I know, FMJ would be best bet and personally, I'd only consider a wheel gun as reliability of .22 mag semi auto pistols is fail. If that's one has access to, then it is what it is, but would be a hard pass as a choice if a choice exists.
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  2. #12
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    Where are you finding 22 magnum ammo? My PMR-30 is a jammomatic.
    Last edited by Nightvisionary; 09-15-20 at 14:04.

  3. #13
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    Look at the price difference between 22Magnum and 9mm. You wouldn't be saving much at all and you'd be greatly limiting your pistol purchase options.

  4. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by gunnerblue View Post
    .22 Magnum out of a handgun has never impressed me much, a longer rifle barrel fits the cartridge better, IMO.

    Stopping power really isn't a thing. What you want is a combination of expansion and penetration. The Speer Gold Dot .22 mag round (30 grain, as I recall) seems to meet the minimum requirements.

    In general, a properly constructed bullet in 9mm or .38 Special is the most commonly recommended starting point. I have no experience with the .380 but there seems to be enough quality self defense rounds available that it may be GTG as well.

    My .02
    Solid input, +1.

    CAN all these lesser calibers, all the way down to and including .22lr or .22 WMR kill? Absolutely. But the role of a defensive handguns is more about 'rapid incapacitation of the threat.' Meaning you need to stop them QUICKLY before they can do harm (not just poke holes in them with a knife, a .22, whatever, and hope they bleed out before they can do you a lot of harm). Agencies with a lot of experience in ballistics and folks like DocGKR (who now posts most of his research in the ammo forum at pistol-forum) will pretty much confirm that while the less calibers work at some level, the 9mm is the minimum caliber to increase your effectiveness, namely your odds of quickly stopping a threat.

    So what are the use cases for running something < 9mm?
    * Folks who carry in NPE's where only a much smaller, and thus smaller caliber than 9mm, handgun is going to be concealable. I.e., if you can only physically conceal a tiny .22 WMR revolver and not even a subcompact 9mm, then yes it's always better to have a gun than not have one.
    * Folks who want a defensive handgun but are physically incapable of managing 9mm recoil. Elderly, disabilities, neuro disease, etc.

    Other than those cases, I wouldn't run anything less than 9mm in a pistol or .38 special in a revolver.

  5. #15
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dr. Bullseye View Post
    I am shopping for a hand gun. With the ammo shortage as it is maybe the thing to do is reverse engineer the gun starting with ammo and ammo availability. There are lots of videos and ads out there for cool looking plastic handguns using 22 magnum. What is the deal on 22 magnum for self defense purposes? Does it have enough stopping power. As a complete novice to hand guns I was told I need at least 38 caliber in a self-defense weapon but these 22 magnum rounds at least LOOK impressive. What is the real deal?
    Never had much interest in it honestly...Ammo expensive for what it is- too expensive to "plink" with, not known for accuracy, loud and flashy in handguns generally. Not enough of a gap filler for me, I go from .22 LR to .223, keeps it simple.
    The truth can only offend those who live a lie.

  6. #16
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    Pmr30? You'd have a full-size unreliable gun in a weak caliber. Not what you want.

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