Interesting .22 LR Rimfire Handguns — New for 2020
At SHOT Show and Media Day at the range, hundreds of new pistols were on display. We were pleased to see a variety of new .22 LR rimfire choices. For training, fun plinking, and target work, a .22 LR pistol offers many advantages. First, the ammo is inexpensive — you can get decent ammo for under $3.00 a box these days. In addition, barrel life is excellent with the little .22 LR cartridge. Finally, .22 LR has very low recoil, and less noise than centerfire cartridges — though you should still always wear eye and ear protection when shooting rimfire handguns.
Here are five new-for-2020 .22 LR Handguns from Browning, Ruger, Keltec, and Glock. Though it appears to have some reliability issues, we included the new Glock 44, because many of our Forum members asked about this new handgun.
Browning Buck Mark Limited Edition Buck Mark Plus Vision
This is a new Limited Edition of Browning’s classic Buck Mark semi-auto rimfire pistol. This features a ported barrel shroud. Along with the blue version shown, this new pistol is offered with a Red or Black finish. This Editor shot this Buck Mark Plus Vision Ltd. Edition on Range Day and were impressed. It balances well, has a great trigger, and was very accurate. See Full Review on GunsAmerica.com. With lots of close-up photos, the GunsAmerica Digest review provides very complete information on the Limited Edition Series Plus Vision Buck Mark.
Ruger Mark IV .22 LR with 10″ Barrel
This new Ruger Mark IV has a serious sight radius — the 10-inch barrel is near twice the length of the Mark IV’s typical 5.5-inch barrel. Even Ruger’s Mark IV Hunter and Competition models only offer a 6.88″ barrel. These new 10″-barrel guns still use the standard Mark IV one-button takedown for quick and easy field-stripping. The upper receiver comes drilled and tapped to mount Weaver- or Picatinny-style rails for optics. These new long-barrel Mark IVs will be available soon from Guns.com.
Ruger Lite Rack LCP II .22 LR Pistol
For SHOT Show 2020, Ruger introduced a new ultra-compact .22 LR pistol, the LCP II “Lite Rack”. This rimfire version of Ruger’s popular .380 ACP pocket pistol gets its name from the easy-to-charge slide. Initial testing shows this little rimfire has a decent trigger and good accuracy. With a 10+1 capacity, the Lite Rack .22 is very reliable, as you can see in this .22 Plinkster video. If you’re interested in a “Deep Cover” .22 LR carry pistol, the Lite Rack LCP II, with its $319.99 street price, may fit the bill.
Keltec P17 — Compact, Budget-Priced .22 LR Pistol
Keltec’s new P17 rimfire pistol is lightweight, easy to handle, and features a fiber optic front sight and an adjustable rear. Priced at just $199.95 MSRP, the .22 LR P17 has 16+1 round capacity and ships with three, 16-round magazines. This is a small pistol — it weight just 14 ounces and OAL is 6.65″. Keltec states: “The new, affordable P17 pistol makes range days a lot less expensive and far more fun.” With low cost .22 LR ammo and a 16+1 capacity, this should be fun to shoot.
Glock 44 — Glock’s First-Ever .22 LR Handgun
Glock surprised the world with its new Glock 44, with a form factor similar to the Glock 19. Glock’s first rimfire handgun has a 4.02″ barrel and 7.28″ OAL so most G19 holsters will work with the G44. There is minimal muzzle flip, accuracy is good, and the trigger is decent. OK, that’s the good stuff. The negatives? There have been reliability issues with bulk-type, inexpensive .22 LR ammunition. Reviewer .22 Plinkster was disappointed with his G44. He had dozens of malfunctions with bulk .22 LR ammo (see 9:00 time-mark) and the gun shot high with normal sight alignment (9:20 time-mark). He says the new G44 needs further development: “I… had high hopes for the Glock 44 when it was released. Hopefully, Glock will remedy some of the issues with this handgun.” And in the Pew-Pew Tactical video below you’ll see a malfunction at 6:50. The reviewer stated: “I struggled with the rounds that were cheaper and lighter, but I didn’t struggle with hot stuff or the good stuff.” Lesson — if you are considering the G44, be sure to use quality, hotter .22 LR ammo such as CCI Mini-Mags.
