22lr Carry Gun?

[scotrinaf]

Because penetration is spotty at best, especially through clothing or other barriers.
Because rimfire rounds are inherently less reliable than center-fire.
Because the goal in a defensive shoot is to stop the threat as quickly as possible and there are many many better options for that purpose.
Because other calibers exist.
Because I'm not willing to bet my or my family's life on a physiological stop.
Because Appleseed ammo shouldn't be wasted on mopes.
Because etc.

Exactly!!! ^^^

OP needs to do some online research about the ballistics difference between .22 LR and 9mm, .45, .40, etc. A large man will not be phased by a .22 unless you just so happen to hit him in the eye... And if he's wearing a thick leather jacket and other clothes, I doubt the .22 would penetrate and do any significant damage... 1,200fps is not hard to stop when the lead is the size of a pencil eraser...

 

[MCgrease08]

Paging BehindBlueI's.

 

[chezuki]

1,200fps is not hard to stop when the lead is the size of a pencil eraser...

And 1200fps is still pretty optimistic out of a pistol barrel.

 

[chezuki]

Paging BehindBlueI's.

Oh what the hell does he know about it?!?

 

[mjblazor]

Tell me why I shouldn't carry a 11rd 22lr pistol. I am very accurate with it and practice a lot. I can unload a full magazine in a very tight group at 5 to 10 yards very quickly and reload very quickly with the extra mag I carry.

I would think you could spray off .22 rnds faster and more accurately than any other round. I would not want to be aiming my .45 at someone who is firing off 10 rounds to my face more quickly than I can accurately fire my 1911 in a gun fight situation. In a typical civilian vs. civilian encounter would one or two 9mm hits be more severe than 10 .22 rnds? I believe death would be more certain with the .22 unless the 9mm was a perfect hit. The goal may be stopping power but a miss with any caliber is not much stopping power unless just the presence of a gun is enough? If you could fire off 10 quick accurate .22's to the face of anyone they would probably not be standing still aiming at you. If a civilian is using a gun in self defense is it assumed the assailant always has a gun pointed at you? If so, he already has the advantage? If not, and he has no gun at all I would think several .22's and your own physical ability to either fight back or run would get a victim out of a lot of situations. Not all physical attacks or fist fights are life threatening either. Is an attack of any kind a reason to pull out gun? I ask myself that question all the time. (I may start a new thread on that). I watched a video today of a shooter with a semi-auto .22 accurately placing 10 shots to the head of silhouette target very quickly. Got me thinking the same question about the .22. If I was a cop a .22 would not be an option as my goal would be to not get away but to stop the threat and apprehend him. As a civilian getting out of a life threatening situation is the goal.

 

[T-DOGG]

If you want to carry a .22lr for self defense, go for it, but I strongly disagree. While shot placement is important, not all of us are "smooth operators" under pressure, and will most likely not have perfect shot placement during a high stress, adrenaline pumping, defensive situation. I like playing the odds, and for me that means higher caliber defense rounds, 9mm or larger. Because no matter where I hit the attacker, I want it to have some good solid stopping power and be an effective round. Sorry, but I feel that .22lr is far from ideal for self defense, unless you're attacker is a squirrel.

It's like driving one of those cute little Smart Cars, sure it will get you by, but I don't like my odds if I'm involved in a traffic accident.

 

[mjblazor]

Exactly!!! ^^^

OP needs to do some online research about the ballistics difference between .22 LR and 9mm, .45, .40, etc. A large man will not be phased by a .22 unless you just so happen to hit him in the eye... And if he's wearing a thick leather jacket and other clothes, I doubt the .22 would penetrate and do any significant damage... 1,200fps is not hard to stop when the lead is the size of a pencil eraser...

My brother in law (a cop) investigated a crime scene of a death of a very large 300+ lb man who was shot and killed. They looked all over the body but could not find the entry wound. The coroner found a small hole under one of his man-boobs. A .22 to the chest and heart did a lot of damage dropping him instantly according to his wife.

 

[MCgrease08]

[video=youtube_share;0y1eqYPxCxI]http://youtu.be/0y1eqYPxCxI[/video]

 

[T-DOGG]

I would think you could spray off .22 rnds faster and more accurately than any other round. I would not want to be aiming my .45 at someone who is firing off 10 rounds to my face more quickly than I can accurately fire my 1911 in a gun fight situation. In a typical civilian vs. civilian encounter would one or two 9mm hits be more severe than 10 .22 rnds? I believe death would be more certain with the .22 unless the 9mm was a perfect hit. The goal may be stopping power but a miss with any caliber is not much stopping power unless just the presence of a gun is enough? If you could fire off 10 quick accurate .22's to the face of anyone they would probably not be standing still aiming at you. If a civilian is using a gun in self defense is it assumed the assailant always has a gun pointed at you? If so, he already has the advantage? If not, and he has no gun at all I would think several .22's and your own physical ability to either fight back or run would get a victim out of a lot of situations. Not all physical attacks or fist fights are life threatening either. Is an attack of any kind a reason to pull out gun? I ask myself that question all the time. (I may start a new thread on that). I watched a video today of a shooter with a semi-auto .22 accurately placing 10 shots to the head of silhouette target very quickly. Got me thinking the same question about the .22. If I was a cop a .22 would not be an option as my goal would be to not get away but to stop the threat and apprehend him. As a civilian getting out of a life threatening situation is the goal.

Your logic makes my brain hurt and you forgot your purple.

 

[MCgrease08]

I've seen several comments about putting 10 shots into an attacker's face. What if there is more than one assailant?

If you need 10 rounds per BG, you're sunk.

What about reloads? .22lr mags are thin and awkward making it tough to carry spare mags (no after market mag pouches) and to reload under stress.

 

[T-DOGG]

What about reliability? Take the "most" reliable .22lr handgun out there and run 500 rounds through it by doing nothing but fast mag dumps every time, then do the same with say a 9mm Glock/M&P/XD. Now tell me which gun is most likely to have ZERO malfunctions in those 500rds of mag dumps. I know where my money would be bet.

 

[bwframe]

I'm gonna go with the .22LR self defense handgun that;
...the cops use...
...Feds...
...Military...
...Instructor recommended...

Hmm...

 

[chezuki]

My brother in law (a cop) investigated a crime scene of a death of a very large 300+ lb man who was shot and killed. They looked all over the body but could not find the entry wound. The coroner found a small hole under one of his man-boobs. A .22 to the chest and heart did a lot of damage dropping him instantly according to his wife.

Another classic! The "But I heard that this one time there was an exception to the norm, so now that's the new norm." argument.

And bonus points for it being a murder instead of a self-defense shoot against an attacker.

 

[Roland of Gilead]

Tell me why I shouldn't carry a 11rd 22lr pistol. I am very accurate with it and practice a lot. I can unload a full magazine in a very tight group at 5 to 10 yards very quickly and reload very quickly with the extra mag I carry.

Can not give you any reason not to carry a 22lr. As has been stated it's the bestest ever for stopping dangerous game and attacking armed humans.

The invention of the 22lr was to kill 150+ lbs. mammals that are trying to kill you.

And don't forget that there has been more people killed by 22lr than A-bombs.

I have a SR22 and love it, but don't have a holster for it and probably never will.

 

[sig-guy]

If ya hit'em with two .22's, does it equal a .44?

 

[Redhorse]

.22 sucks. It's honestly as simple as that so good-bye.

 

[T-DOGG]

If ya hit'em with two .22's, does it equal a .44?

 

[Expat]

Let's ask this question... Does anyone want to be shot with a .22? NO! I say if your comfortable with the gun and want to carry it, then by all means do it. If I had a small .22 like the SR22 or S&W I'd carry it.

Will you stand there and let me shoot you with my pellet gun? I guess it is ready for HD for more than ground hogs.

 

[danielson]

If its all you have, or all you feel comfortable with, then carry it. Any gun is better than no gun, when you need it. But don't trust that a .22 will save your life if you need it to. It might, but its not as sure as a stronger caliber is. Think of it like fire insurance.. A larger caliber is like a 25# extinguisher, you stand a much better chance with it, than a bucket of water, which is what a .22 amounts to in a self defense role, and just like in self defense ammo, fire extinguishers are not a sure thing. I once had the need to put out a fire, I used 4 25# extinguishers, and 2 of them didn't work. So just because you have a 25# extinguisher doesn't mean your guaranteed anything. Same with handguns... None of them are anything near a sure thing, short of 10mm up, which are more like man portable cannons, than handguns. All handguns are a matter of compromise, its pros and cons. Your picking a gun that's not THAT small, and a caliber that is... Not the best choice, but better than nothing. You really should shoot all the calibers and pistol sizes you can, and pick the biggest you are comfortable carrying. But until then, if all you have is a .22, then carry it. The .22 on your side, is better than the .45 you left at home.

 

[BigMatt]

[video=youtube_share;0y1eqYPxCxI]http://youtu.be/0y1eqYPxCxI[/video]

I think this guy overstates the reliability factor of .22 ammo. I am not defending .22 for self defense, but he says he can't get through a box of .22 without several malfunctions. Well, honestly, I can't remember the last time I had a malfunction from CCI Mini Mags.

IMO, modern, quality .22 ammo is very reliable in a good gun.