Ruger’s SR22 makes for a great training gun for new shooters and a great plinker gun for those who’ve been going to the range for years but want something more economical to shoot.
The SR22 is a polymer-framed, hammer-fired, double-action, .22 caliber pistol with an overall length of 6.4 inches and a weight of just 17 ounces (unloaded).
Like the M&P 22 Compact that I wrote about a few months ago, the SR22 is a gun that I often keep in my backup holster when teaching students on the range. They’re similar in many ways, including caliber, size, and approachability for new shooters.
Unlike the 22 Compact, the SR22 has an exposed hammer and can be shot in both double and single-action modes. It also has a manual thumb safety that doubles as a decocking lever.
Some find a decocker to be worrisome, fearing that by pulling on the lever and lowering the hammer, there’s a chance the hammer will slam into the firing pin and fire the gun anyway.
Fortunately, firearm engineers are smart and designed the lever system to simultaneously bring up a little device that blocks the firing pin as you lower the decocking lever, preventing the hammer from coming into contact with it.
Ruger’s SR22 also has a visual inspection port on the top of the barrel/slide that allows one to physically see if there’s a cartridge in the chamber. Of course, you should always treat every gun as though it were loaded anyway; the inspection port is simply to help you know for sure.
Overall, the SR22 is a great little pistol and generally retails for around $450 so won’t break the bank. It could be a good plinker gun for your range bag, a great training tool for instructors, or could be a cool Christmas gift for your kid this year (hint hint, Santa).
