One of the Best Little .22 Long Rifle Semi-Auto Pistols on the Market

It was a lady’s shoot and boy it was going to be fun…and boy was I wrong. Yes, we had fun but it was like I was training three teenagers who envisioned themselves as “Charlie’s Angels”. Dads you know. They are on their cell phones, it is too hot, I have a date night with my husband etc. Now they say they are “Clint’s Angels”. Well they are very nice ladies who are members of my Life Group from Church. If we have Angels physically on Earth then these three would be my choice.

I picked up “Clint’s Angels” and drove to the gun-range. For today’s fun we were shooting the Ruger LCP II chambered in .22 Long Rifle. Ruger sent me four of these small little balls of fire for the three ladies to shoot. We did this to avoid the, “When do I get to shoot?”, “How come she gets to shoot first?” and other interesting questions. The ladies and I did discuss gun safety several times. I explained why the bullets were small, how to load the magazines, and my fav, which end does the bullet come out of. One Angel’s faced her fear of guns like a Warrior. One Angel had been shooting with me before for a magazine article. The other Angel was spunky and just rolled with what was presented.

Ruger Firearms

Overall, we had fun shooting in the hot Oklahoma weather. The ladies enjoyed their fun time together but liked the air conditioning in my “Jimmy” better. In shooting the Ruger LCP II we experienced some malfunctions. Ammo problems was a major factor and some problems with one of the LCP II. The LCP’s slide would lock back when there was ammo still in the magazine. I then decided to return to the Range another day after I cleaned and oiled the LCP II .22 pistols.

My friend Dave, also from my Life Group, and I returned to the gun-range after I cleaned and lubed the LCP II pistols. One LCP II was just not going to work. I sent this one back to Ruger who is investigating the problem as this article is being written. The others did good by the time we finished firing 100 rounds each. So, as I said, the three remaining pistols all fired good with no malfunctions. As an experience combat shooter, I would not have a problem carrying this the LCP II as backup. In the attached YouTube video, you can see me firing the LCP II as fast as I could pull the trigger. As for jamming Dave and I did not experience any in the last 200 rounds fired. Dave was very happy with the LCP II’s performance as I was, to the point he bought one.

The LCP II in .22LR is not a target pistol. The front and back sights are basic with a short sight radius. Within the 10 feet average combat range, this little fireball will serve you well. We ran some CCI Stinger ammo through all three remaining pistols with no jams. The returned pistol had problems with all ammo. As you know, CCI .22LR Stinger’s cases are slightly longer and will be a problem in some .22 LR type firearm. I always try the Stingers in .22 firearms to see if they are compatible while testing at the range or in the field.

The “Ruger Lite Rack” is a feature I like. It is very easy to rack in a round. This is good for those who have weaker grips. “Clint’s Angels” liked this feature sold them on this pistol right from the start. I believe the Ruger Lite Rack for the LCP II .22LR is an excellent innovation.

For those of you poor souls who live in California and Massachusetts, no Ruger LCP II .22LR for you. Your Government apparently does not trust its citizens with small quality firearms. This is too bad as you are missing out on a high quality, fun shooting and well-engineered firearm.

Here are some of the features of the LCP II .22LR pistol. As I stated, the Angels and I like the Lite Rack system. You can get a good grip on the side serrations. The 10+1 .22 LR capacity is perfect for those who will be carrying this pistol for defense or keeping it at the house for home defense. (In the video I said 9 but it is 10. My bad.) One or two extra magazines of ammo will complement the defense usage. Once the last round is fired the slide locks back just like its big brother Ruger LCP family. When released, the magazine falls freely. The recoil on this pistol is very light and was acceptable to “Clint’s Angels”. Dave and I liked how you could easily recover on target for a quick second shot.

There is a manual safety on the left side of the LCP II .22LR semi-auto pistol. To engage the safety to fire this great little gun, you just push it forward. To place it on safety, you pull the safety back. The safety has a crisp snap to help you know the safety is engaged or placed on fire. Another safety is the magazine disconnect. If the shooter removes the magazine the pistol cannot be fired. For a house with untrained children, this is a good feature.

Ruger sells the LCP II .22 with one magazine. I would suggest you buy two more for just grins and giggles. When you go out shooting tin-cans three magazines will make the shoot more enjoyable. Also included with this pistol is a simple loading tool which works really great. Dave using this tool was keeping up with my rapid firing in the testing of this pistol. Check out our shooting on the YouTube attached to this article.

Conclusion

The Ruger LCP .22 in Long Rifle is very fun pistol to shoot. It is a perfect pistol to introduce new shooters to the sport. I suggest you use quality ammo which comes in 50 to 100 round boxes. The bulk ammo is likely not going to work well. I tried some bulk ammo with about one out of ten not working well. The LCP II .22 firing pin did its job but the rounds just didn’t go off. One time while cycling through the rounds, a projectile (lead bullet) moved slightly causing a “stove-pipe”. Quality ammo worked without a flaw. If you like these little .22 semi-auto pistols, you will have to check out the bad-little-boy Ruger LCP II .22 Lite Rack.

Specs:

  • Barrel Length: 2.75 Inches
  • Overall Length: 5.20 Inches
  • Slide Width: 0.81 inches
  • Height: 4 inches
  • Weight: 11.2 ounces
  • Capacity: 10+1 .22LR
  • Grip Frame: Black, High-Performance, Glass-Filled Nylon
  • Grooves: 6
  • Twist1:16 inch RH
  • Slide Material: Alloy Steel
  • Barrel Material: Stainless Steel
  • Sights: Integral
  • Feature: Lite Rack™ System
  • Slide Finish: Black Oxide
  • Barrel Finish: Satin Stainless
  • Available in CA: No
  • Available in MA: No

MSRP: $349.00

Ruger
https://www.ruger.com/

RUGER LCP II .22LR
https://www.ruger.com/micros/liteRack/

Some photos provided by Ruger.

Ruger Firearms