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Review of the GSG-1911 .22 Pistol

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[ This guest post was written by Chris Baker of Bull City Defense. ]

Devoted followers of the 1911 design will tell you that a pistol in any caliber other than .45 can’t be a “real” 1911. Well, maybe they’re right, but ammo prices being what they are, there is no shame in embracing a 1911 chambered for a round that won’t break the bank. I personally have a fondness for the 9mm variety 1911s (which, despite what some of the so-called “purists” may imply, have been around since the 1950’s), but for cheap plinking on a 1911 platform, you can’t be a .22.

For owners of centerfire 1911s who want to maximize their trigger time for training purposes, a conversion kit is probably the ideal route. With a .22 conversion, the grip and trigger pull are not altered by swapping out the slide and barrel. But they tend to be pricey (for only half a gun, anyway), and hit or miss in terms of reliability. It’s also not always convenient to swap out a barrel and slide in the middle of a practice session on the range. For the practically-minded, budget-conscious shooter, one of the .22 caliber 1911 clones is probably a better bet. There are a few options in this category, but the one that caught my attention when it was released in the US last year is the GSG-1911. You may remember GSG, or German Sport Guns, for their MP5 and AK-47 patterend rifles, also chambered in .22. The initial press for the GSG-1911 really set it apart from similar pistols, boasting 80% parts compatibility with standard centerfire 1911s at an attractive price point.

I don’t know much about GSG’s history abroad, but they don’t have a ton of name recognition with the American market, so for many, the GSG-1911 is a bit of a toss-up. It’s priced right around $300-375, depending on the model and retailer. The one I purchased came with the cheap black rubber grips, but for a few bucks extra it can be had with more handsome wood grips. There’s also a model with a tactical rail and a fake suppressor. All versions seem to be widely available at a number of retailers online, and several of my local shops have had them in stock consistently since they were released. Extra magazines are about $35 each, which is close to what you’d pay for most centerfire pistol magazines, and you’ll want to pick up a couple since the pistol only comes with one. At first glance, the GSG-1911 looks well-made, has a decent looking finish, and has close to the same “heft” as a real 1911 style pistol, though it’s a few ounces lighter.  But does it deserve to be in the same class as the more established rimfire legends that can be had in the same price range like the Ruger MKIII or the Browning Buckmark? Or is it even passable as a training substitute for a .45 1911? A few months back, I took the plunge and put down my $325 to find out.

First Impressions

After handling the GSG a bit, one of the first things I noticed was the tension in the grip safety. It sticks out quite a bit, and takes more force to activate than most other 1911 pistols I’ve handled. Besides being slightly uncomfortable, this won’t be a big deal for most people, unless you happen to have small hands. But more on that later. The other thing I noticed was that the thumb safety isn’t even slightly radiused, so that there’s a very sharp corner on it that digs into your thumb if you place it on top of the safety while firing. It’s an ambidextrous safety, but the right side lever has a much lower profile, so lefties may not have the same trouble that I did. Besides these two small gripes, I was, and remain very pleased with the overall build quality of the GSG-1911. Even the magazines seem very sturdy and I have no qualms about letting them drop free to the ground when performing reloads.

The trigger is nothing to write home about, but is still very usable. The overall weight of the trigger pull seemed to lessen a bit after shooting several hundred rounds, but there is still a “squishy” quality in it that might bother some people. However, I would imagine this will vary from one gun to the next. The sights on the GSG are a three dot style with yellow plastic “bumps” for the dots. They look pretty cheap, but might be a step up from the “convex hole with white paint” style sights that many pistols come with from the factory. The GSG ships with three front sights of different heights, so you can swap them out to get the point of aim that works best for your gun. The front sight sits in a loose dovetail, secured with a small hex screw, so to swap sights, you just remove the screw and slide the sight out. I tried all three different sights, and the only one that kept the shots even remotely on target at ranges from 5-25 yards was the medium height one. Again, your mileage may vary.

Ergonomics

Since buying the GSG, I’ve used it to introduce a few new shooters to the basics of handgun shooting. One aspect that some have appreciated, especially the women, is how easy it is to rack the slide. Racking the slide seems like such a simple thing to most experienced shooters, but to small-statured people who are unfamiliar with firearms, it can be both difficult and intimidating. The GSG’s slide is so easy to rack on my particular pistol that I can show people the proper technique and they don’t feel like there’s a huge risk of a heavy slide under great spring tension ready to snap their fingers off. The problem is that the people who appreciate the easy-to-rack slide the most are the same people who have trouble with the grip safety. For those with small hands, the grip safety can often barely be activated with the strong-hand thumb on top of the thumb safety. The grip they have to assume in order to activate the safety is awkward, to say the least, and for most of these shooters, I’ve just gone back to the Buckmark (which has a far less friendly slide). Part of the problem is most likely the curved mainspring housing. I have recently replaced it with a flat mainspring housing and hope to see a difference in the ease of use for shooters with smaller than average hands.

Surprise Safety “Feature”

Swapping out the mainspring housing also took care of another minor gripe I had with the pistol. Unlike any other 1911 patter pistol I’ve encountered, I was surprised to find that the GSG-1911 comes equipped with a magazine-disconnect safety. A small mechanism in the side of the factory mainspring housing prevents the trigger from engaging when there is no magazine inserted. This may have been done to make the pistol compliant with certain states’ laws, but aside from that, I find it completely unnecessary. Fortunately, one does not have to completely replace the mainspring housing in order to deactivate the safety. By simply removing the extraneous parts from the cavity in the side of the factory MSH, the safety will no longer pose a problem. Normally, I would not publically advocate disabling a factory safety mechanism in a firearm, but since millions of 1911 pistols are handled safely every day without such a safety, I feel confident in promoting the removal of the magazine safety on the GSG-1911.

Reliability

After firing a couple of thousand rounds of varying brands, I would rate the GSG-1911’s reliability as perfectly adequate. With the spotty reliability of .22 ammo, it’s sometimes hard to know whether the ammo or the gun is causing the problem, but with quality ammo, the GSG functions quite well. I fired a box of Remington “Golden Bullet Value Pack”, a box of Federal “AutoMatch Bulk Pack”, some standard velocity CCI, a few boxes of CCI “Mini-Mags”, and a few boxes of Remington “Thunderbolt”. I had the most reliability problems using the Remington “Golden Bullet”, and the Federal “AutoMatch”, with several ignition failures and a few failures to eject (stovepipes) with both brands. Reliability was not flawless with the other brands, but seemed very consistent as long as the gun was well lubricated before use. I noticed very early on that in order to ensure proper feeding, it’s very important to make sure all the rounds are seated as far back in the magazine as they can go. The top round, especially, must be pointed up at an angle and not nose diving down into the mag before it is loaded. I’ve found the best way to do this is to use the thumb stud on the magazine spring to relieve tension on the mag after loading, and tilt the whole magazine backwards so the rounds fall all the way to the rear of the magazine. This only takes a second after loading each mag and results in much better performance.

Accuracy

While I wouldn’t consider the GSG-1911 to be a dedicated “target” pistol, it’s certainly accurate enough to fill the role of a training pistol for centerfire 1911s. I did a quick bench rest test at 15 yards using CCI mini-mags and got decent results, with most five shot groups coming in around 1.5 inches. Not particularly impressive when held against many other .22 pistols in the same price range, but certainly “combat accurate”.

For me, what holds the gun back in the practical accuracy department is the sights. At first, I thought the rear notch seemed abnormally narrow, making it difficult to quickly acquire a sight picture. However, when I measured the width of the notch compared to another 1911, they were the same, as well as the width of the front sight. It was when doing that comparison that I realized the shape of the rear sight on the GSG slopes inward on the sides, which seems to trick my eyes into seeing the notch as narrow. Without understanding the exact physiology behind it, I have to assume that there is a reason most rear sights are not shaped this way. All that said, both the front and rear sights are secured into standard dovetail cuts in the slide, so users can swap the sights out for whatever replacements they wish.

Additional Features

Fortunately, many of the complaints I’ve had with this pistol are easily fixed by replacing small parts with other standard 1911 parts. I don’t know if GSG’s claim of 80% parts compatibility is accurate, but as far as I can tell, most of the parts I would like to see changed are standard. It’s annoying to buy a pistol with features on it that I don’t like, but it really does make economic sense both for GSG and for the consumer. By using cheaper parts, GSG is able to keep the price for this pistol extremely competitive. Many users will not notice or care about the cheap parts, and those that do can easily swap them for their favorite standard 1911 parts. It may take a little doing, but the majority of customers should be able to simply spend a few bucks on parts (maybe some fitting here and there) to get the GSG set up similar to their favorite centerfire 1911. Some missing features, of course, will require the intervention of a skilled gunsmith, such as the lack of any texturing on the front strap, or the absence of forward cocking serrations.

Also similar to the traditional 1911 is the GSG’s field stripping procedure, with the exception of a little twist. After removing the slide stop, you must also remove an additional pin that’s underneath the slide stop, and a small hex screw that’s just forward of the slide stop. After that, the slide comes right off, and the rest of the disassembly is fairly straightforward. It’s a tad annoying to have to use a tool for breakdown, but really only an issue if you happen to need to tear down the pistol somewhere away from your normal workbench.

As I mentioned earlier, one version of the GSG comes equipped with a fake suppressor. GSG may have been at least partially motivated to create this version just so they could highlight a unique feature of the GSG; the inclusion of a factory threaded barrel. All versions of the GSG come with a threaded barrel, and include a small wrench to remove the thread protector. The threads accept the same adapter as the Walther P22, so silencer fans have one less step to set up a super-cool, super-quiet 1911. If you don’t care to attach a suppressor, then no problem. The thread protector is secured very firmly to the barrel and you can completely ignore it if you wish.

Usability Comparison

If the GSG-1911 is to be used as a practice stand-in for a centerfire 1911, then they have to function and feel similar the range. Of course, as Todd Green points out in this excellent article, a .22 is only a good training substitute for a defensive handgun in certain disciplines. Any skills that require fast follow-up shots or recoil management can only be improved by using the “real thing”. However, skills like drawing from the holster, speed reloading, and to some extent, shooting on the move, can benefit greatly from training with a .22. With that in mind, I have been using my GSG-1911 to warm up at the range before transitioning to my current centerfire 1911 of choice; a 9mm STI Trojan.

While there are some definite ergonomic differences between the two pistols, I don’t notice them a great deal while shooting unless I am going for a more lengthy practice session. The most notable difference between the two pistols when shooting is the sights, but as I mentioned earlier, that can be easily remedied. I believe I’ve gotten the biggest benefit out of using the GSG to practice my draw stroke. Since the GSG has a standard 1911 profile, it fits perfectly into my Blackhawk CQC holster. My 1911 mag holders work fine for the GSG magazines as well. When switching from the GSG to the STI for draw practice, I do notice that the STI feels much heavier out of the holster. Those ounces of difference in the weight feel a lot more like pounds when trying to get the pistol on target quickly. However, I timed myself several times drawing from the holster and putting a single shot on target at 7 yards and the average was only .03 seconds slower with the STI. So while the all-steel STI “feels” heavier and slower out of the holster, it doesn’t seem to make much difference practically, and adding extra rounds to my draw practice with the GSG over the last few months has definitely improved my overall average times.

Overall Value

When compared to other .22 handguns in the $300-400 range, it’s hard to say that the GSG-1911 comes out on top in any specific category. If a new shooter were to ask for a recommendation at that price point, I would almost certainly point them toward something like a Ruger 22/45, which comes in several varieties, some of them significantly less expensive than the GSG. However, though there are more accurate, more durable .22s out there, there are few available in that price range that have the same feel and controls as serious defensive handguns. This makes the GSG better not just for training, but in my opinion, also makes it a really fun gun to shoot. The fact that I can use the same holster, the same mag holders, and run the gun in the same drills I use for my “real” 1911 makes it a blast to have out on the range. When I look at the rapidly degrading finish and the cheap sights on my GSG, it’s hard to love it. But then I look at the ammo boxes on the table and wonder how they got empty so quicky, and I realize that I’ve gotten more than my money’s worth.


The Marlin Golden 39A Rifle Review

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NOTE: This product review was made possible by GunsForSale.com.  To get up-to-date information on where to find Marlin rifles for sale, please visit GunsForSale.com.

There has never been a rifle with a more appropriate name. This rifle is “Golden” in a lot of shooters memories. The 39 is the oldest rifle still in production . In fact when Remington purchased Marlin the 39A was the only lever action Marlin had in production until the factory geared up.

The Marlin Golden 39 started out life as the Marlin model 1891 and was used by Annie Oakley in her shooting exhibitions. It was again renamed this time the model 1897 “Bicycle Rifle”. Yep you heard it right the “Bicycle Rifle” with a canvas case for an extra $1.75 made from duck material and lined with red felt. This folks answers the question of why they made this rifle with the large takedown screw on the side. The owner would take the rifle down, place it in the canvas type case and attach the specially designed handles to the V shaped bicycle body.

Late model Golden 39A

In 1922 it was again renamed to the model 39 then finally the last change in 1939 to the model 39A, which finally stuck to this day. When first made it had a straight stock in American Walnut. Of course this rifle and all Marlin lever rifles had the highest quality American Walnut stocks. In 1946 the 39A offered a fluted comb rear stock. In 1950 a white cap was added to dress the rifle up a bit. Oh yes, the “Golden” part of the name was because of the gold colored trigger added later.

My second rifle was a Marlin 39A and a rare one at that. I doubt you’ll ever see one but we—well most of us know how popular Westerns were in the late 1940’s and 1950’s. The Rifleman was one of the most popular TV shows at the time. If you’ve ever seen the intro to the show you’ll see Chuck Conners working that lever at light speed :)

My early 1950’s model had an addition most people have never heard of. At the inside bottom of the lever just under the trigger was a pinned small lever that could be folded out so when the lever was worked this piece tripped the trigger automatically firing a round. As a 12 year old this was very cool! This little factory addition only lasted a few years because of liability concerns I imagine. If I had only known that rifle would still be with me.

Specifications
Action Lever
Caliber .22 LR / Long / Short
Capacity 19 / 21 / 26
Finish Steel/Blue
Barrel 24″
Stock American Black Walnut
Twist 1:16″
Overall Length 40″
Weight 6.5 lbs
Sights Adjustable folding rear sight. Ramp front sight, brass bead, Wide-Scan brand hood

Boys back in my youth would pickup Coke bottles and sell them back to the grocery store for a nickel a piece. We would also cut yards for a $1 if we could get that much. With these funds we would buy our .22 long rifle ammo to feed our precious rifles. Speaking of ammunition the 39A holds 19 rounds of .22 long rifle which is a good number of rounds. It would feed any type of .22 for a total of 26 rounds of “shorts”. Loading was accomplished by turning a small knob in the feed tube under the barrel towards the front that freed the brass tube allowing you to move it to the front until the bullet shaped hole was clear. Then you just dropped the rounds into the tube until you couldn’t get another round in. Push the hollow brass rod back in the tube and turn to lock and start shooting!

Even when I got mine for Christmas in 1961 it wasn’t cheap for the time at $75 used. Of course current prices are nearing $600 with older used guns as high as $750.

The sights are worth mentioning. They did change a bit over the years to a small degree. The rear sight is the “Buckhorn” type with elevation adjustment only. Later the front sight was notched on either side to slide a hood over the front sight to reduce glare. Sometime in the late 1950’s Marlin included a pre drilled receiver for scope mounting along with a mounting plate and two screws to attach it to the top of the receiver. Of course even as a kid this was a horrible thing since no Cowboy would ever use a scope!

Conclusion

This rifle is probably the most accurate .22 I’ve ever shot or owned. Micro-grooved rifling was added in the mid 1950’s and whether that had any effect on accuracy I have no idea but mine was super accurate. They do have a long sight radius with a 24 inch barrel. They weigh almost seven pounds that gives a bit of heft to steady the rifle. I know mine brought home its share of small game☺

To me it’s the last of the old forged steel rifles with real American Walnut stocks and a bit of actual hand fitting. This just appeals to me a great deal and always will. It harkens back to simpler times and guns that were almost all blue steel and high grade wood.

They are rare now and seldom seen in gun shops. In fact I haven’t seen one in years. People who own them now keep them as family heirlooms to be handed down to sons and grandsons and just maybe great grandsons. I just know these rifles are a class act with more than it’s share of history.

J Bunting Machine Ruger 10/22 Bullpup Stock

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A reader brought my attention to Jim Bunting, who is producing a nifty bullpup stock for the Ruger 10/22. The stock chassis is CNC machined from aluminum. The stock has a simple design, which I think looks much more attractive than the futuristic curvy design of bullpups such as the FN2000 and Walther G22.

The stock makes use of an AR-15 compatible pistol grip. The aluminum trigger is skeletonized. The standard package includes a 10″ top rail and 2″ under rail. Side rails are optional.

The system is compatible with Ruger 10/22 extended magazines and regular magazines. Judging from the photos, an extended charging handle is required.

I would love a rifle like this with a 14″ barrel registered as a Short Barrel Rifle. It would be the ultimate pack gun.

The basic stock costs $295. A vented for-end (pictured above) costs an additional $80 and side rails costs $40-$50. According to the website there is a waiting list.

[ Many thanks to Kody for emailing me the link. ]

Anschutz MSR RX22: Modern Sporting Rifle

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Earlier this year Anschutz unveiled their first tactical-style semi-automatic target rifle. The Anschutz MSR (Modern Sporting Rifle) RX 22 is clearly inspired by the AR-15 design. It has an upper aluminum receiver and lower polymer receiver. The folding stock and handguard is made from an attractive grey laminate wood. UPDATE: The MSR RX22 is a variant of the ISSC MSR MK22.

The upper receiver is grooved for Anschutz 6834 front and rear target sights but also has a picatinny rails for mounting optics. The charging handle can be can be moved into 6 different positions (you can see the holes for the charging handle above the handguard in the photo above).

I really like this design and in typical Anschutz style I am sure is it super accurate, which will appeal to benchrest shooters in the USA.

Thanks to zbranekvalitne.cz for the photo.
Specifications
Caliber .22 LR
Capacity 10 rounds
Finish Polymer/Aliminium
Barrel 16.5″
Stock Folding / Adjustable
Overall Length 32.3″
Weight 6.9 lbs
MSRP (Price) Not yet announced.
Availability Europe

The Anschutz MSR is the ISSC’s MSR MK22

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It will shock many to you to learn that once or twice in my life I have made a mistake1 . Yesterday you bore witness to that rare occurrence. I blogged about the Anschutz MSR RX22 but completely missed the fact that is it clearly a variant of ISSC’s MSR MK22 rifle patterned after the FN SCAR.

ISSC’s MSR MK22
Anschutz MSR RX22

In retrospect, I don’t know how I missed that! In my defense, the last time I fired the MSR MK22 was about 18 months ago, and I have a bad memory! Fortunately I have you, my intelligent readers, to catch my mistakes quickly.

I suspect the reason Anschutz licensed another gun is that the ISSC’s MSR MK22 can be produced much cheaper than their .22 semi-automatic Model 520.


  1. Thats a joke. I make LOTS of mistakes. 

Volquartsen introduces Lightweight Target Frame for Ruger MKIII

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The VC Target Frame is CNC machined from aluminum alloy. It is available either as a bare frame (includes trigger pin and spring loaded magazine ejector only) or as a complete frame with the following features: Accurizing Kit (includes Extended Bolt Release, CNC machined Target Trigger, wire EDM cut Target Hammer and Target Sear), Titanium Disconnector, Built-in Spring Loaded Magazine Ejector and Extended Safety. The VC Frame is shipped with a clean, crisp 2.25 lb trigger pull. The magazine disconnect has also been eliminated from this frame.

The bare frame weighs only 4 oz!!! It is available with or without grips and available in Silver, Black, Red, Blue and OD Green.

The frame is available for preorder at $425.

Ruger LCR-22 .22 Revolver

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Ruger has announced a .22 LR version of their Ruger LCR revolver. It is virtually identical to the low-end .38 Special LCR. If you own a LCR-38 or LCR-357, the LCR-22 is the perfect range companion.

Michael Bane writes about the Ruger LCR-22 …

The solution to the challenge is, as it pretty much is with all guns, to shoot them a lot. A .22 option allows you to shoot them a lot, and cheaply. I’m going to go out on a limb here and suggest that if you’re new to CCW and think a snub revolver might be the way you want to go, I might get the .22 LCR first…no, .22 isn’t the world’s best self-defense cartridge, but it is substantially better than harsh language. Secondly, you will have a gun that you can shoot a lot and that you will keep even if you decide to go to a semiauto for CCW. If you feel comfortable with the .22, it’s an easy transition to the .38 (which I’ve been carrying for a couple of months now) or the .357 version.

Specifications
Caliber .22 LR
Capacity 8
Finish Black / Advanced Target Grey (Cylinder)
Grip Hogue Tamer
Barrel 1.875″
Overall Length 6.50″
Weight 14.90 oz.
CA / MA Approved No
Front Sight Replaceable, Pinned Ramp
Rear Sight U-Notch Integral
MSRP (Price) $525

Ruger SR22 .22 Pistol

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Ruger has just announced a new .22 chambered plinker / tactical trainer pistol. This gun completes Ruger’s line of pistol, they now have a pistol for every occasion.

Unlike its centerfire cousins, the SR9 and SR40, it is a single action with an exposed hammer, not striker fired. It has a polymer frame, adjustable sights, picatinny rails and rubberised grips. The gun will compete with the Walther P22 and the S&W M&P22 pistols.

Specifications
Caliber .22
Capacity 10
Finish Black
Grip/Frame Polymer
Barrel 3.5″
Twist 1:16″ RH
Overall Length 6.40″
Weight 17.50 oz.
CA/MA Approved No
Sights Adjustable 3-Dot
MSRP (Price) $399

Whilst I like this pistol, I am slightly disappointed that Ruger did not pattern it 1:1 on the SR9/SR40 pistols. The grip, controls and, of course, the action are not the same the larger centerfire pistols. The 10 round magazine is also disappointing but I fully expect that Ruger will announce a larger capacity magazine later this year. My last complaint is the name. Ruger also has a SR-22 rifle, so googling for “SR-22″ will return two years of webpages and videos written about the SR-22 rifle.

The press release …

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE: RGR) is proud to announce the new Ruger® SR22™ pistol, the do-it-all .22 pistol for the shooter who appreciates style and demands reliability. The SR22 is a rugged, scaled-down version of a full-sized pistol, perfect for plinking, target shooting and small game hunting. The lightweight SR22 has modern styling and is fun to shoot while using inexpensive rimfire ammunition.

“Ruger has built a solid reputation for excellence in rimfire pistols with the Mark III™ and 22/45™ product families, and the new SR22 will contribute positively to that reputation,” said Chris Killoy, Ruger Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “This pistol is feature-packed and an incredible value – consumers won’t find a similar product with everything the SR22 offers at a comparable price. It functions with all types of .22 LR ammunition for extreme reliability; once rimfire enthusiasts pick it up, they won’t want to put it down,” he concluded.

The SR22 has light double-action and crisp single-action trigger pulls. Its external hammer is designed with a rounded spur for easy cocking and single-action shooting. The SR22 features a polymer frame and two interchangeable (no tools required) rubberized grips with angled serrations, allowing shooters to select either a slim or wider palm swell option. The aerospace-grade aluminum slide has serrations on both front and rear for better grip and slide manipulation. The easy-to-use underside Picatinny rail features multiple cross slots for variable mounting of most popular accessories.

The 3-dot sight system has a fixed front sight and a rear sight that is adjustable for both windage and elevation. A reversible blade allows shooters to select two white dots or a solid black blade. Other SR22 features include a stainless steel replaceable barrel, an ambidextrous manual thumb safety/decocking lever, ambidextrous magazine release, plus a visual inspection port to determine the load status of the pistol. The SR22 includes two finger grip extension floorplates that can be added to the magazine for comfort and grip. Each SR22 is also shipped with two 10-round magazines and a soft case.

[ Many thanks to everyone who emailed in this link. ]


Umarex / IWI UZI .22 LR Rifle and Pistol

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Umarex USA are importing .22 pistols and rifles patterned on the famous UZI machine gun. The guns are manufactured by Carl Walther in Germany but are branded IWI (the official UZI manufacturer). There are two models. The rifle model modeled after the UZI carbine and includes a folding stock and faux suppressor. The pistol model is modeled after the Micro UZI machine pistol.

UZI Pistol
UZI Rifle
UZI Rifle

Both models include 20-round .22 LR magazines.

UZI Pistol

Pricing has not yet been finalized. They expect that the UZI pistol will retail for around $480 and the rifle will be about $645.

I am looking forward to trying these guns. They look a lot of fun.

GSG Stg44 rifle

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Last year American Tactical Imports announced they were importing the German Sport Guns Stg 44 patterned .22 rifle. ATI now has ATF approval and it will go on sale shortly.

The rifle will be shipped in a wooden crate. The crate is handmade by a Amish community in New York state.

Its MSRP is $599.

GSG Golden AK and MP5

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No longer do you need to be a dictator of a small country or a drug lord to afford a gold plated AK or MP5. ATI will soon be importing gold plated versions of the GSG-522, GSG Kalashnikov and GSG-5PK. It is real gold plating, not a faux-gold finish.

They are far to gangster for my tastes, but I am sure they will fly off the shelves.

Magnum Research Magnum Lite MLR22AT .22

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Magnum Research’s latest Magnum Lite (premium/target Ruger 10/22 clone) is the MLR22AT.

From the press release …

The MLR22AT will give .22 LR rifle shooters something to get excited about. The new ambidextrous lightweight thumbhole 10/22 stock is made of polypropylene with fiber additives for maximum strength. The stock comb height is designed high enough to comfortably and properly shoot with optics. The new stock design also features a semi palm swell on both sides of the pistol grip, and a molded-to-fit hard rubber butt plate attached with screws.

This rifle will be equipped with the Magnum Lite™ revolutionary patented graphite bull barrel, exclusive to Magnum Research. The patented uni-directional graphite fibers, parallel to the bore axis, results in a barrel with six-times the stiffness of conventional steel. The lighter barrel weights (from 13-16 oz, depending on barrel length) are easier to wield and dissipate heat up to 43% faster than steel. The result is rim fire performance of extreme accuracy.

Other features include a .22LR Benz target chamber designed specifically for semi-automatics; full floating barrel for maximum accuracy, CNC-machined receiver from 6061-T6 aircraft aluminum forging with an integral weaver-type rail for optics and a black anodized finish. The MLR22AT has an approximate weight of 4 ¼ lbs, barrel length of 17 inches, and over all length of 35 ½ inches.

This rifle utilizes the 10/22 trigger group and 10/22 rotary magazines. MRI bolts are manufactured and machined from heat treated and thorough hardened 4140 steel with minimum headspace for better accuracy.

MSRP for the MLR22AT will be $562. The rifles will start shipping in spring 2012.

Beretta ARX-160 .22 Pistol

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The pistol-sized rifle craze is hitting Europe. Beretta has revealed that they are developing a .22 LR pistol based on the Beretta ARX-160 rifle. I do not think the receiver or internals will be compatible with the full size 5.56mm ARX-160.

A 7.62x39mm lower for the ARX-160 is also available overseas. The Italian website All4Shooters reviewed the 7.62x39mm model which uses standard AK magazines …

Intratec TEC-22 Makes The News

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A political scandal broke out in Mexico today when a photograph of a young congressional candidate posing with a firearm was published on Facebook. The politics of this is far outside the scope of TFB, but what I do find interesting is the gun itself. The Mexican press are calling it an “UZI submachine gun”. It is about as close to an UZI as it is to an AK-47!

I believe the gun is an Intratec TEC-22 / Scorpion. Back in the early 90s Intratec tried to capitalize on their infamous TEC-9 pistol by producing a cheap .22 patterned after it. It was mainly made out of ABS plastic and used Ruger 10/22 magazines. The TEC-22′s designer was none other than George Kellgren, the founder and Chief Engineer of Kel-Tec.

Kellgren was ahead of his time. Today just about every infamous gun of the 20th century has a plastic .22 patterned after it. A couple of years ago Ruger decided a forward magazine fed .22 pistol was not a bad idea and produced the Ruger Charger.

[ Many thanks to Ztryfe for emailing us the link. ]

Man drops dumbbell on bullet, shoots self

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UPI reports

Modesto Police said the 56-year-old man, whose name was not released, told them he was working out Wednesday night when he accidentally dropped a dumbbell on a rimfire .22-caliber bullet, causing the propellant powder in the bullet to be activated and sending it into his shoulder, The Modesto Bee reported Friday.

This man is lying to the cops. No chamber, no forward momentum of the bullet. A cartridge ignited outside a chamber will just blow a hole in, or blow apart, its brass case.

I know of an incident where a box of .22 LR was dropped on the highway and vehicles were setting them off, but as far as I can remember no tires were blown.

He was probably shot by a jealous wife or girlfriend, or as a warning from his dealer to pay up.

UPDATE: Mythbusters tried dumping a 100 rounds onto a fire, including .50 BMG rounds. They concluded that some of brass casings, not bullets, were thrown around by the explosions, but that even they might not have had enough force to penetrated skin, let along do serious harm. (Thanks to JM for the link).

You can’t cheat physicts.

[ Many thanks to jdun1911 for emailing me the link. ]


Econo-Can: A $55 Suppressor

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American Specialty Ammo is selling a registered NFA suppressor for $55 (+ $200 tax stamp) that is nothing more than an adapter to attach a car oil filter to a 1/2-28 threaded barrel. The first bullet punches a hole in the end of the oil filter.

The price is now $55, not $75 as stated in the video.

You can buy “spin-on” oil filters for $10 – $20. A used oil filter (soaked with old oil) will only improve its efficiency. Internally oil filters contain fibrous material designed to filter out contaminates from the oil. I think they would eventually wear/burn out when used with firearms.

An oil filter cartridge

This is a very clever concept. It makes me wonder why someone doesn’t make a universal suppressor adapter and a range of tubes for various calibers.

Personally, I would rather buy a well-made suppressor rather than risking a oil filter exploding in my face.

[ Many thanks to jdun1911 for emailing me the link. ]

GSG STG-44 .22 LR now available

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It has been a long time coming, but the GSG STG-44 .22 LR is finally shipping.

Designed to precisely imitate the WWII Sturmgewehr, the .22 LR GSG STG-44 features a weight of 9.5lbs, a 17.2” barrel, an overall length of 37.2” and real solid wood furniture. It is available with 10 or 25 round capacity magazines and comes shipped in an Eastern Pine box hand-crafted by the Amish in the mountain region of New York state.

The MSRP is $600.

Magnum Research Re-engineeres Magnum Lite .22 WMR Rifles

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Magnum Research has apparently re-engineered their Magnum Lite .22 Magnum rifles. The Magnum Lite are high-end clones of the Ruger 10/22 and chambered in .22 WMR.

I am not sure what is new, but here is the press release …

The graphite rifle barrel utilizes uni-directional graphite fibers parallel to the bore axis, resulting in a barrel with 6 times the stiffness of the equivalent weight of steel. The lighter barrel is easier to handle and dissipates heat up to 43% faster than steel. The result is rimfire performance with extreme accuracy.

Features include: an 11-degree muzzle crown, a weaver-type rail for optics in a black anodized finish, and a patented gas system and block under the barrel that taps a small amount of gas through an orifice hole in the barrel. The result is higher efficiency and improved accuracy when using 40 and 50 grain loads (30 grain not recommended). The one-piece CNC-machined receiver with integral scope base has been manufactured utilizing 6061-T6 aircraft aluminum. MRI bolts are manufactured and machined from heat-treated and thoroughly hardened 4140 steel, with minimum head space for better accuracy. Engineering changes have also been made to various springs and the chamber, resulting in one of the most reliable semi-auto .22 Win Mag rifles on the market.

All models utilize the 10/22® trigger group and 10/22® rotary magazines. For 10/22® owners, the graphite barrels can be purchased separately through Magnum Research Customer Service or their online store.

Other options available among the five Magnum Lite MLR models include: thumbhole stocks on the Barracuda Nutmeg, Barracuda Pepper and Barracuda Forest Camo. The MLR Hogue® comes in an OverMolded™ black stock, and the stainless steel barreled model can be purchased in either the Hogue OverMolded black stock or Barracuda Pepper stock. The weight of the graphite barrel model in the MLR22 series is less than 5 lbs. and an overall length of 35.5 inches (38 inches on the stainless steel model and just over 7lbs). Prices range from $727 to $935 depending on the model.

Open Source the GMG (Fully Auto Airgun)?

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The makers of the GMG .22, a fully automatic air gun, are considering open sourcing the design. Sales have not been good and they think there could be more money selling plans, kits and parts than fully assembled guns.

I think they should open source the design and release the plans and any CAD models under a Creative Commons license.

If they can create a community of builders and modders there could be a profitable business in selling parts, kits and upgrades.

This business model has worked well in the hobbyist electronics market where mini-industries develop around supplying parts and kits for open source hardware.

The company is running a poll on their website, asking if people would be willing to buy parts, rather than an entire gun.

USFA ZIP .22 LR

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US Firearms has developed a nifty modular .22 firearms system called the ZIP. This little rectangular gun will be available in a pistol configuration or an SBR configuration. The SBR can be accessorised with a number of stocks or used as a secondary gun mounted underneath a rifle.

This video shows a number of different configuration.

It will be officially unveiled next month. The MSRP is expected to be between $199.99 and $219.99.

It is nice to see a company trying something new.

[ Many thanks to Doug for the tip. ]

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