I have a SR22 for training. It seems to be reliable and safe. Really, the only issue is 22 LR reliability and capability.

Rim fire ammo is not as reliable as center fire.

Of course, 22 LR will be weaker than you might want.

Do not count on bad guys being afraid.

A larger heavier center fire pistol might be just as easy to shoot.

Still, a SR22 is still better than unarmed.

The Ruger SR22 is a fine pistol designed by Carl Walther GmbH in Germany. If your mother trains regularly with it, she will be able to defend herself. Shot placement is critical and no bad guys in my 28 years of police experience ever challenged the caliber of the pistol pointed at them. Having said that, once she is comfortable and confident, introduce her to the Ruger LCP chambered in .380.

The 22 LR is not a self defense round but 10 CCI Stingers will ruin the bad guys day. I have run 1500 rounds threw my SR22p without any problems whatsoever and would consider it a great choice for a new shooter like your mom, it is light compact accurate and dependable, it is also easy to clean and maintain. If she ever wants something that is more of a self defense weapon i would recommend the LC9 or SR9c, they are more firepower and about the same size with mild recoil and they have a lot of great features.

Originally Posted by cjs1945

The 22 LR is not a self defense round but 10 CCI Stingers will ruin the bad guys day. I have run 1500 rounds threw my SR22p without any problems whatsoever and would consider it a great choice for a new shooter like your mom, it is light compact accurate and dependable, it is also easy to clean and maintain. If she ever wants something that is more of a self defense weapon i would recommend the LC9 or SR9c, they are more firepower and about the same size with mild recoil and they have a lot of great features.

A very fine self defense weapon - I regularly carry one loaded with 147 gr JHP Speer Gold Dot.

The LC9, that is. I don't own an SR9C (yet, that is).

Eh,
Instead of leaving your mom with a 22, you coulda got something like a .32 or .380 and took her out to the range acouple times properly training her.

No gun is unmanagable to fire if you practice acouple times. I see no reason why people equate a small caliber as a way to compensate for not training with the pistol.

.22 has killed alot of people, but there do exist a breed of criminal that will laugh at it. A strongman acquaintance of mine was shot with some .22s and still managed to beat up the shooter. Its not a horrible choice tho! A gun is a gun, good job getting her something at least!

I went through this same issue in buying a gun for a friend of mine - a single woman living alone. I ended up getting her an SR22 and feel it was a very good choice.

.22lr is not the best SD caliber but it is very likely to be enough. There are guys out there who can ignore being shot with that round but most people will quit after being shot anywhere with anything.

The stats on .22lr are that it is at least as effective as anything else below .380acp.

It's easy and friendly to fire, has a decent trigger and very accurate for a gun of that type. Actually it's a sweet little pistol.

It's DA/SA which means it can be kept with a round chambered, the hammer uncocked, the safety off and it's ready to fire but quite safe. Just pick it up and pull the trigger, no fumbling with the safety. The safety also decocks which is very useful.

It fits small hands very well.

.22lr is cheap which means she can practice and learn to shoot. IMO proficiency is worth more than caliber.

The main thing is to get her used to shooting and perhaps even enjoy it. After she's spent some time with the pistol, and knows a bit about shooting and gun handling, she might be ready for a heavier caliber.

I've shot hundreds of all sorts of ammo through the SR22 I bought and never had any issues. For practice she uses cheap bulk ammo. For carry, CCI stingers

Just my thoughts.

W/ a .22LR I'd try to get at least a couple of head and neck shots if possible. I agree w/ BigCityChief, he has credentials in been there done that. Likewise, Scottie is on point w/ the possible reliability issues of a .22lr rimfire in any semi-auto, especially a life and death scenario as opposed to plinking at paper targets and soda cans. Some seem to run very well, but in my experience .22lr rimfire in a semi can be hit and miss in reliability w/ semi-auto's. They were designed for revolver or non semi rifles, but the 10-22 Rugers run very well and others. I myself would much prefer a S&W 38 special+p revolver. That's what I got my mother, as opposed to the .22lr pistol she has. We both contemplated, but both agreed on a .38 special 637 snubbie. If you get tapped w/ a 38 special, I can assure you you'll know your hit and likewise it should make it through an interior door if needed.

I registered here just so I can give my two cents worth regarding the SR22. My wife and I started going to the range regularly about 8 months ago, when I purchased a Browning Buckmark. Coupled with a 35 year old Ruger 10-22, it made for a great date and little impact on the wallet compared to shooting .380, .357 or 9mm. While I try to get a few rounds in with the bigger pistols, we mainly shoot .22lr and rarely leave without shooting 500 rounds between us.

It was obvious we needed another .22lr pistol and had decided on another Buckmark. When we arrived at BP, they were out of stock on the Buckmarks so we decided we would wait until they restocked. My wife started window shopping and next thing I know she is filling out the paperwork on a SR22.

I wish I could comment on how it shoots, but the truth is I haven't put 50 rounds through it in three months, seems she is a bit of a range pig when it comes to her handgun. At least now I have the Buckmark all to myself. Several of her girlfriends have come to the range with us from time to time and they all love both the SR 22 and 10-22, both are very easy to use especially for first time shooters learning the fundamentals.

What I have noticed for those with weaker wrists is a tendency for failure to eject with the SR-22, no problems when my wife shoots it as she has found her groove with her grip aligned with her arm, if she doesn't her wrists begin hurting after the first 100 rounds. I think the key is spending a consistent amount of time at the range and just getting comfortable with it.

The 10-22 is the Golden Retriever of firearms, just loves everybody regardless of experience. Every single first time shooter could shoot consistent groups with it after 30 or so rounds at 50 feet. It will fire anything you feed it and is dirt simple to clean. I realize this is a handgun forum, but since we are talking mom guns I'd vote for the 10-22 for a first gun, an SR-22 for a first handgun.

Originally Posted by JMessmer

My moms shot VERY few times in her life, but with threatening possible gun laws on the horizon me and my father decided to get her, her very first gun. After hours of looking at guns for her, I ended up buying my self another ruger MK III 22/45. Me and my father then left to a different shop, and we almost bought the walther p-22(I think that's the model). But we decided to pay an extra 20$ for the ruger sr22 because I was in the ruger mood. Was this a good decision, ruger over walther? and the purpose of this sr22 will be self defense . I know that .22 isn't at all a practical self defense weapon, but she couldn't handle more. We put a laser on it so that it will at least have an intimidation factor. So, my question is, was this the best choice for my mom?

Better than her fist or a baseball bat. Load it up with Stingers and she'll be fine. JMHO.

The ruger is a fine choice. I use cci mini mags in all my 22's. They are a 40gr bullet. I found they cycle better in the pistols. I guess tge heavier bullet helps.

Originally Posted by 95chevy

The ruger is a fine choice. I use cci mini mags in all my 22's. They are a 40gr bullet. I found they cycle better in the pistols. I guess tge heavier bullet helps.

Not a challenge or anything, as every weapon is different, but with my wife's SR-22 we tried to break it in with CCI Mini-Mag, would not consistently cycle, usually failure to feed, would eject the casing no problem but would not pick up the next round. We switched to Remington Golden Bullet bulk and it works perfectly with it. Also a 40 grain round nosed fmj, just seems to be more consistent.

To this day all the Buckmark will take reliably is CCI.

The 10-22 just does not care, shoots American Eagle just as well as Mini-Mag.

Originally Posted by JMessmer

I know that .22 isn't at all a practical self defense weapon, but she couldn't handle more.

If that's the case and she wouldn't be able to handle more than a .22, I would get her a revolver in favor of a semi auto just to increase the reliability a bit in a self defense situation.

Ruger makes a good little 8 round .22 revolver in the LCR 22. Load it up with 8 CCI Stingers and she's good to go- just point and pull the trigger.