Does anyone own an S&W 22a?

[davek8s]

I saw a 22a at the LGS and I'm thinking about buying it. I'm a big fan of the Ruger MKIII and was planning on buying another 1, but the S&W was pretty cool.

I'm looking for info on quality and reliability.

Thanks

[Bikertrash]

I have a 22a and a 22a-1. The a-1 has a fiber optic front sight and is all black. I like them or I wouldnt own 2. Pretty finicky on ammo but great shooters.

[stilly]

I do not like them.

There are three decent types of 22 pistols, Taurus revolvers, Browning Buckmark semi autos, and Ruger MK-II series. The Ruger MK-III might also fit but I prefer my MK-II because it is cool.

If I have to choose to have ONLY one, then I would have to choose between the Buckmark and the MK-II.

The MK-II runs on magic and seems to run dry/dirty/wet/on its own. It is my only pistol that I keep a lock on because if I do not it will get out and shoot itself. That is how good it performs.

The buckmark tends to get dirty after about 400-600 rounds and you have to clean it up. BUT the Buckmark can be accessorised with different barrels, compensators, sights and what not by the user where the MK-II and prolly MK-III can not.

Then there are the other .22 autos. My dad has a Smith 422 I think, it has that big fish looking profiled barrel. What I see though is that S&W seems to have reinvented their 22 semi pistol. My friend has one of these too. He is always looking for mags because mages are hard to find for it unless you wanna drop about $35 or so.

If you are serious about getting one, I would wait for about a year or so and see if they change the design again. Did the 22A takeover the 422 that they had for a while?

Keep changing the design and new flaws will show up. That seems to be the way we are going nowadays. The buckmark and the MK series have been pretty much similar for a while now. I would stick with a trusted design that works well. As much as I hate ruger, I would have to choose between the MK-III and the Buckmark today. Any other brand would not fly especially with $30 mags being the norm. and anything that is new or not popular or on the roster might be hard to track down mags for. Hey though if you are employed and make enough then by all means, get one and test it out. If you do not like it then sell it. At least it is a Smith.

[R.D.A]

I love mine... 7in fluted barel and fiber optic sight, never had a ftf... Haven't seen one like mine before so if anyone has info please let me know... got it new about 10yrs ago

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[bill_k_lopez]

I have one or two..Quality is good, reliability is dependant on how well you take care of it. It requires a LOT of attention to detail in cleaning. If not well cleaned after each outing, you'll get failure to loads (slide will refuse to close), failure to fire (bullet will seat short). It does have some issues with functioning better with certain ammo. On the positive side, it shoots very accurate for a $300 gun. I also own a HS Supermatic Trophy, and I woudl say that in terms of accuracy this $300 gun is almost as good as my $1000+ gun (I've also shot it next to my buddy's S&W 41).

[davek8s]

Thanks for all the input guys. I'm a big S&W fan, so I'm going to sleep on it tonight, but I'll probably buy it tomorrow after work.

[Beelzy]

IMO, a tad chunky for a .22, finicky with less than the most powerful of ammo, and the slide
is a PITA to pull back with optics mounted.....other than that it's OK.

[gwanghoops]

Since I moved to Federal Champion Bulk ammo, no more feeding problems occurred. 100% reliable for me. Overall, a decent handgun at a relatively cheap price. Doesn't feel like a quality gun that will last forever, but it's done its job while S&W customer service has been good with free consumables (grip screws, spring retaining clip).

[Dave A]

Have one and like it, but as others have said a bit finicky about which ammo it likes best, then again a lot of pistols have that problem. If it fails, it will be on extraction usually. Never noticed any problem pulling the slide back with a red dot on it. Also have a model 41 and usually shoot Wolf extra match in NRA small pistol indoor matches. It seems to always fail to extract right after a good cleaning, but then settles down and just shoots. I may let it get dirty to see how long it takes to malfunction, instead of cleaning after every match. For comparison, have a Browning Buckmark and it is very reliable, but like the feel of the Smiths maybe a bit better.

[Bikertrash]

I like those wood grips!! Where do I get them?

[Maddog5150]

I had one. Biggest POS I ever owned next to Taurus. Sent it back twice. Last straw was when o got it back the last time, fired it and the slide stop sheared off. I sold it as is for $100 here.
Stick with a Ruger and you can't go wrong. I have one from '76 and still cycles everything