.22 Conversion Units

[4DSJW]

I have an old, 70's, Colt .22 conversion unit that I use on my Commander. It has a chamber bushing that is supposed to simulate the recoil of a .45 when using the .22 ammo. In reality the recoil is more like a .38 than a .45. Still, it does provide a recoil impulse that you have to deal with.

My question, are there any companies that make similar conversion kits for other semi-autos? It SEEMS like a good idea, but the only conversion kits I have seen are straight .22 with no increased recoil. Was the increased recoil idea proven to not be worth the effort or did it just die out?

Thanks for Your Help!

[RickD427]

I have an old, 70's, Colt .22 conversion unit that I use on my Commander. It has a chamber bushing that is supposed to simulate the recoil of a .45 when using the .22 ammo. In reality the recoil is more like a .38 than a .45. Still, it does provide a recoil impulse that you have to deal with.

My question, are there any companies that make similar conversion kits for other semi-autos? It SEEMS like a good idea, but the only conversion kits I have seen are straight .22 with no increased recoil. Was the increased recoil idea proven to not be worth the effort or did it just die out?

Thanks for Your Help!

IMHO, the Colt unit that you have is the most realistic feeling of the conversion units out there. The slide and other components have the same heft, look, and feel, of their .45 counterparts. The other conversion units tend to employ alloy construction and function with a straight blow-back design. Your unit is also a blow-back, but the floating chamber adds some mass and that produces the increased recoil feel.

The only issue with your unit is that you need to keep the floating chamber clean. It's a little more finicky than some of the more modern units.

[MrOrange]

It was just an unnecessary complication, and much more expensive to manufacture. I've never owned one, but I've read the floating chamber tends to gum up, has that been your experience?

I have a Ciener conversion on a SAM gummint model, just for plinking, works most of the time. Usually a lot better with high speed ammo.

[4DSJW]

I've never owned one, but I've read the floating chamber tends to gum up, has that been your experience?

The chamber and floating bushing do need to be clean... but I always shoot copper plated .22 ammo so I don't have a problem with things getting gummed up quickly. I have only used High Velocity ammo and don't know how much difference there would be if we went to Hyper Velocity ammo. Truth-be-told we usually shoot .45 through the Commander and are only now considering going to .22's as the price of ammo keeps going up.

The reason for my question- we have a Colt Commander as well as a M&P45 for SD. We are considering getting a M&P22 so that we can practice at a lower cost. We shoot around 2K rounds a year through these two guns and we prefer to practice with the pistols we have for SD. If we could find a M&P .22 conversion kit that had some kind of recoil impulse we would probably get it, but just going to the M&P22 doesn't really do all that we want.

Thank You for Your Thoughts!

[RickD427]

It was just an unnecessary complication, and much more expensive to manufacture. I've never owned one, but I've read the floating chamber tends to gum up, has that been your experience?

I have a Ciener conversion on a SAM gummint model, just for plinking, works most of the time. Usually a lot better with high speed ammo.

There's no doubt that the floating chamber is more expensive the manufacture. It does make the weapon feel much more realistic (compared to .45 ACP) than the other units. But then, you tend to get what you pay for. The Ceiner and other units (including the recent production Colt units) just have a "cheap" feel that annoys me. Ciener's business practices also leave a lot to be desired. He went to jail recently, don't know if he's out yet.

The floating chamber will gum up if you don't keep it clean. That's a very common observation with the Colt Conversion units.

[Army]

The original Colt ACE was for less expensive practice for the military. As such, the floating chamber was developed to better simulate the recoil of .45 ammo. Obviously, it does not, but the concept was accepted as innovative.

Personally, I'll take less recoil---felt or actual---and far better accuracy over an ACE system. Love my Tactical Solutions conversion. Superbly accurate, almost no recoil from the weight of frame and conversion, and blasting 500 rounds in a couple of hours is fantastically cheap to shoot.

Heck, I even hunt ground squirrels with mine

[Kodachrome]

I don't believe there are too many recoil style conversions made any more.
They make conversions for 1911's 70 & 80 series, Glocks, Berettas, CZs,
and Hi-Powers. Maybe more but thats what I can think off right now.
I have the Colt conversion and its one of the best with recoil and heft.
Most conversions have aluminum slides, so they feel super light.
My Advantage Arms Glock conversion is light weight, but works excellently.
Try looking at the Marvel unit, but I think its blowback also.

Happy Hunting

[4DSJW]

Thank you for all the comments and info. I have .22 pistols that I shoot and I have the Colt Ace conversion unit, all of which I enjoy. My main question was why there are so few recoil producing .22 conversions available. The answer SEEMS to be that the higher cost, potential cleaning issues, and minimal recoil produced, limits their usefulness.

Ultimately I am looking for a S&W M&P conversion unit, from .45 to .22, that would give some sense of recoil. LOL, I think I am out of luck. Thank you again for your help.