term “handgun” applies to any firearm that can be fired with one hand. Long ago, the term “pistol” was used to describe such a piece, and the pistols of that period had a single chamber and a single barrel that was loaded from the muzzle. As firearm technology developed, it was soon observed that one shot was quite limiting in some situations so double barreled pistols were made. At that time, they were still loaded from the muzzle. Further developments led to “pistols with revolving chambers” which we would now call a “revolver”, but they are still appropriately called pistols. Still later, pistols were developed that had one barrel and one chamber that could have several cartridges held in a magazine. While in some circles these and the single shot types are referred to as “pistols” and those with revolving chambers are called “revolvers”, the historical use of the term “pistol” was in the same sense that the term “handgun” is now used. It was a global term used to describe a piece with any type of action. It may be supposed that the old song, “Pistol Packin’ Mama” did not necessarily distinguish whether she had a semiautomatic or revolver! If I remember correctly, she had a 44 caliber, which indicates that it was of the “pistol with a revolving chamber” type.
Practical Considerations
Rimfire handguns are available that range from tiny derringers and revolvers to target pistols that are a foot long and weigh three pounds. One would neither choose the former for target shooting nor the latter for concealed carry. The choice of a rimfire handgun must be made with the primary end use in mind although there will certainly be some overlap possible. The selection may represent a compromise. For example, a rimfire handgun with a barrel of medium length and good sights could easily be suitable for informal target shooting as well as hunting. A rimfire handgun with a 3-inch barrel might serve for self-defense and pop can plinking. If a handgun with a 6-inch barrel and target sights is selected, it would serve well for small game hunting and formal target shooting. No one handgun is going to be the best choice for covering the entire spectrum of rimfire handgun shooting sports.
The principles involved in choosing a rimfire handgun are no different than those involved in choosing anything else. Personal preference weighs heavily in the decision as does intended use. A handgun for concealed carry should not have a long barrel and high, adjustable sights with sharp corners. A handgun for hunting squirrels or formal target shooting should not have a 3-inch barrel and fixed sights. The type of handgun should be matched to the functions it will perform. Fortunately, there is considerable overlap and one handgun can be used in a variety of ways even if some compromise is involved. For general sport use, the handgun chosen should have a barrel that is 4-6 inches long. Barrels shorter than 4 inches give short sight radius which makes accurate shooting more difficult while barrels longer than about 6 inches makes the piece too long for convenient carrying.
In recent years, the use of scopes on handguns has become more common. The reason is quite simple; there is only one distance at which the shooter’s eye can be focused. The target and the front and rear sights are at different distances from the eye so all cannot be in sharp focus simultaneously. In a scope, the crosshair or other type of reticule appears to be at the same distance as the target. It is simple to align the reticule on the target and squeeze off the shot. Just as in the case of rifles, the level of accuracy achieved with a handgun is much greater when a scope is used (see Chapter 15). While scopes are not part of the equipment allowed for formal target shooting, the hunter of pests and small game is under no such restrictions. A scope-sighted handgun can give outstanding accuracy which may equal that of some rifles. A brother of the author regularly hunts squirrels with a scoped Ruger Mark II 22/45. If you plan to engage in the growing sport of handgun hunting, you may wish to give some consideration to the ease of mounting a scope on the handgun you select. In this regard, the Smith & Wesson 22A and 22S Models are excellent because they are sold with a permanently attached scope rail in place. Only the scope and rings are needed to attach a scope.
Revolver or Semiautomatic
When one is choosing a rimfire handgun for plinking and pest control, the choice must first be made between revolver and semiautomatic. Revolvers come with one of two types of actions. A single-action revolver must be cocked manually for each shot while a double-action revolver can be fired simply by pulling the trigger. This action causes the cylinder to turn to place a fresh round under the firing pin while moving the hammer to the rear. When the trigger is pulled sufficiently far to the rear, the sear is released and the hammer falls causing the gun to fire. This action can be repeated to fire successive shots until the cylinder is empty. Any cartridge that fits correctly in the cylinder can be used. Therefore, Short, Long, Long Rifle and shot cartridges can be loaded in any cylinder that is designed to handle the 22 LR.
Single-action revolvers must be loaded one chamber at a time. On most current models, there is a loading gate at the rear of the cylinder on the right hand side that swings to the side to expose the chambers. A cartridge can be inserted in a chamber, the cylinder rotated to expose the next empty chamber and another cartridge inserted. The process is repeated until all chambers have been loaded. After the cartridges have been fired, the empty cases are removed by opening the loading gate and moving an ejector rod to the rear. This forces the empty case out of the back of the chamber. Rotating the cylinder to the next chamber and moving the ejector rod backward knocks out another empty case, etc. Loading and removing empty cases are slow processes with a single-action handgun.
Virtually all double-action revolvers of today have a cylinder that swings out of the frame on the left hand side. A latch, located on the left hand side of the frame behind the cylinder on most models, must be moved which unlocks the cylinder so it can be swung out of the frame. An ejector rod that is located at the front of the cylinder can be pushed backward which forces all of the empty cases out at the same time. As a result, loading and unloading are accomplished much faster than with a single-action revolver. However, for a great deal of sport shooting, rate of fire as determined by the speed of loading and unloading is of no importance.
Semiautomatic handguns hold cartridges in a magazine that is contained within the grip. In firing, the force generated by firing a round moves the slide to the rear against a strong recoil spring, and it also cocks the hammer (which may or may not be externally visible). The spring forces the slide forward, which allows it to engage the top cartridge in the magazine forcing it into the chamber. Therefore, the semiautomatic is actually a self-loading handgun. Incidentally, it is sometimes found that a particular semiautomatic handgun will cycle more reliably with some types of ammunition than with others. You may have no way to test this before you buy the piece, but if you find that your pistol “jams” with some particular brand or type of ammunition, by all means try a few others before you assume that the pistol is defective. The experience of this author with several pistols that have been fired with a wide range of ammunition is that most rimfire pistols are remarkably forgiving with respect to type of ammunition used. Of course, 22 LR semiautomatic pistols will not function reliably with 22 Short, Long, or shot cartridges.
Semiautomatic pistols hold the removable magazine in the grip.
In order to ready a semiautomatic for firing, the magazine must be loaded with cartridges. There is a often great deal of difference in the ease of inserting cartridges into the magazines of different semiautomatic pistols. A long spring inside the magazine places pressure on the magazine follower, and the spring tension increases as each successive cartridge compresses the spring. The magazines of some pistols have a small button on the side that allows pressure to be applied to compress the magazine spring that way rather than by applying force from the top by pressing on the cartridges. Some magazines have buttons on both sides of the magazines so that the follower can be pulled downward and held there as cartridges are inserted. Check the magazine of any semiautomatic pistol that you consider buying to see how easily it can be loaded.
After a loaded magazine is inserted in the grip of the pistol, a cartridge must be moved from the magazine into the chamber. Pulling the slide fully to the rear and letting it go accomplishes this. The strong recoil spring forces the slide forward and as it moves, it takes with it the top cartridge from the magazine. Here a word of caution is needed. Some pistols allow the slide to be