.22LR for self defense

[Asphodel]

Originally Posted by Win231

Someone did. Ronald Reagan was shot through the lung with a .22. He didn't realize he was injured for several minutes...and he was over 70 at the time. What could a younger, stronger adversary do in several minutes?

That's a good point......I've said that I 'wouldn't feel helpless' if all I had was a .22, when facing a human assailant, and having no realistic choice other than to fire on him.......but, I've never had to do that, and the thought that the circumstances might be such that a knife-wielding assailant could cut me into neat filets as he was dying from .22-grade lead-poisoning is a rather exceedingly discomforting thought....to put it mildly.....

Could I 'stop the threat' with a .22? The truth is, 'I don't know'....and I really don't want have to find out 'the hard way'. If I had to be in a situation in which it was necessary to go armed, it would be with something a bit stronger..... .38spl, or, at the very least, the humble little .380.

Actually, if I really had to fear serious danger of deadly attack, I'd accept the discomfort of the weight and mass of the N-frame Smith.

The 'ladies' model' of the N-frames, the .41, can be loaded hot, to .44 mag power levels, and its recoil, whilst 'no joke' serious, can be endured with a bit of practice.....well, quite a bit of practice, actually,.....working up from some really light loads, to keep from developing an unconscious flinch. You can see videos of some rather slim young women firing full-charge .44mag, on the internet.....handling recoil is a skill all its own, which can be learned with practice.

(back in the mid-1960's, the N-frame M58 Smith, in .41, was an issue weapon for the San Francisco PD. It was adopted, or so the story goes, after some criminals using certain kinds of drugs literally 'couldn't be stopped' by the .38spl.)

More to the point, tho......just as one person's opinion.....the striking power of a weapon is far less important than is the skill, and 'presence of mind' of its user.

In 'threat simulation' drills at our local range, all too many people would simply 'freeze', and not be able to process, and respond to, the threat. (getting someone well and truly distracted, then quickly presenting the 'no shoot' target, would lead to some people just 'shorting-out', with 'eyes like burnt-out fuses'.....not a 'good thing')

cheers

Carla

[danez71]

The security daurd that was stabbed at MIranda Kerr house used a walther P22 CA edition to stop the attacker. Scroll down for pic or look at pic #5.


While not ideal, they can be effective.

http://m.tmz.com/#article/2016/10/16...oting-stabbing

[sixoclockhold]

A single .22 lr round gets the job done.

http://www.wistv.com/story/15140008/...k-kills-robber

[Librarian]

A repost of a 2010 article, https://www.shootingillustrated.com/...-self-defense/

Doesn't say a lot different from what has already been said in the thread, but it does have some ammo suggestions and ballistic gel results.

[KevinB]

10 years ago when my wife got her permit she had to take a shooting class. The gun she still shoots to this day is a 8 shot mdl 43 Smith & Wesson.

I was amazed by the guns that I saw the ladies had at the class. Full size 9mm and 357 and even a 1911 .45 There were several small 38 and 9mm smaller autos. My wife was worried her gun was not big enough compared to the rest.

I left her and told her I would be back to pick her up for lunch. At lunch I asked her how she shot. all 8 in the center ring at 15 feet all 3 times she shot. She does shoot a lot and I made her take lessons. She still shoots once a week with me.

After lunch I took her back to class and the instructor had all 3 of her targets hung on the white board. Above them he had printed " Does anyone still want to be shot with Gabby's little gun.

Several of the ladies barely hit the target at 15 feet. Nobody had more than 3 center mass except Gabby.

She has been taught that if she fires once, shoot them all. I have confidence she will do just that. At home she is really fond of her Lavender colored AR 15 carbine and she is deadly accurate with it.

I would much rather her be shooting a gun that she is really good with than a larger one she is marginally proficient with. Her carry ammo are thee Anglia 60 grain .22lr .

[Win231]

Originally Posted by danez71

The security daurd that was stabbed at MIranda Kerr house used a walther P22 CA edition to stop the attacker. Scroll down for pic or look at pic #5.


While not ideal, they can be effective.

http://m.tmz.com/#article/2016/10/16...oting-stabbing

Couldn't get the photos, but the text tells more of the story & it doesn't support your views. Suspect was shot several times. Perhaps if the security guard used an effective caliber, the suspect might have been stopped before he was able to stab the guard.

[Dano3467]

I've had little FTF in 22lr, out of 1000's & 1000's of rounds maybe 2 per brick, many times none at all, except for 3 boxes of golden's a while back, Idk maybe I've been lucky, but see merit in 22, specially over nothing, or knife.

I have had zreo FTF w/stingers/velositor's

My choice is still 38 or 9mm

[danez71]

Originally Posted by Win231

Couldn't get the photos, but the text tells more of the story & it doesn't support your views. Suspect was shot several times. Perhaps if the security guard used an effective caliber, the suspect might have been stopped before he was able to stab the guard.

All you had to do was scroll... or google.


Perhaps.... if you knew anything about what you're trying to criticize, you would know that the security gaurd starting shooting after he was stabbed, not before, and that that bad guy stopped stabbing after he was shot.

In this case, the 22 stopped the knife attack that was in progress.


Next time, trying understanding before critiquing.

[Nopal]

Assuming that money is not the issue, why not go with a .22 WMR revolver? The .22 WMR uses a modern bullet (there are decent self defense loads available for it), it is noticeably more powerful than a .22 LR but still has a very manageable recoil, and since we're talking smallish revolvers (which typically have a 8-10 round capacity for this caliber), the reliability issue is not as crucial.

The double action trigger of a rimfire revolver is something to get used to, and may still be an issue for someone with arthritis, but it may be worth considering.

[Wlee]

Originally Posted by danez71

The security daurd that was stabbed at MIranda Kerr house used a walther P22 CA edition to stop the attacker. Scroll down for pic or look at pic #5.


While not ideal, they can be effective.

http://m.tmz.com/#article/2016/10/16...oting-stabbing

So the Guard in the article is actually one of my co-workers, he forgot his 9mm at home and only discovered it when he arrived at location. with no relief on site he chose to carry his Walther P22 instead of not carrying at all. He is recovering and should be back on the job in a couple weeks.

Oh and yes he was stabbed before he was shot and took all the shots while on the ground. Also it did not stop the attacker, the construction workers who ran to help him kicked the knife out of the guy's hand as he tried to stab a second time.

Despite what more articles reported, he is not Miranda Kerr's bodyguard and does not work for her. Cant go into much more detail but a google search on her should give the actual employer

[sixoclockhold]

Originally Posted by Wlee

So the Guard in the article is actually one of my co-workers, he forgot his 9mm at home and only discovered it when he arrived at location. with no relief on site he chose to carry his Walther P22 instead of not carrying at all. He is recovering and should be back on the job in a couple weeks.

Oh and yes he was stabbed before he was shot and took all the shots while on the ground. Also it did not stop the attacker, the construction workers who ran to help him kicked the knife out of the guy's hand as he tried to stab a second time.

Despite what more articles reported, he is not Miranda Kerr's bodyguard and does not work for her. Cant go into much more detail but a google search on her should give the actual employer

Glad your buddy is doing well.

Maybe clear some things up. What ammo was he using? Why only 4 rounds fired and not unloading the mag?

Without a head or spine shot while rolling on ground, I doubt many calibers would stop a second thrust of a knife attacker. Good the construction guy was handy.

[Wlee]

Originally Posted by sixoclockhold

Glad your buddy is doing well.

Maybe clear some things up. What ammo was he using? Why only 4 rounds fired and not unloading the mag?

Without a head or spine shot while rolling on ground, I doubt many calibers would stop a second thrust of a knife attacker. Good the construction guy was handy.

Not sure what ammo he was using, he got a glancing hit to the guy's head but it just left a gash. Assailant fell down and got back up, enter the construction workers. The 4 shots that connected, 2 were torso shots semi high up and 2 were into the shoulder associated with the knife.

[cvigue]

Originally Posted by JeffC

22lr is fine in terms of ballistics but it fails in terms of reliability. A rim fire is inherently less reliable than a primer fire.

This is why I'd use a revolver but not a semi in 22lr for self defense. Something like the S&W or Ruger LCR with 8 shots of 22lr is pretty decent for a pocket pistol IMO.