What are your thoughts on the Ruger LCP II chamber in .22LR? Reliability, EDC, comfortable factor, etc.
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The Ruger LCP is a nice gun, small, comfortable to carry, and all in all, not a bad little gun.
However, the issues will largely be discussed surrounding 22LR ammunition. The potential for misfire/squib rounds is much higher than for centerfire ammunition - it’s one of the reasons they developed the .25. Then there’s the amount of damage a 22LR causes which means that shot placement is much more critical - and this is where the gun comes back into play. Can you, under stress, reliably get good shot placement sufficiently good enough to make the 22LR effective with the LCP?
I’m 100% for carrying a 22LR EDC if you don’t have another option that will perform better. It’s better than what you left at home, but is it the right weapon for you and your situation will be determined by a lot of factors that don’t always translate well to a forum discussion.
However, most would suggest the LCP in .380 or similar over the 22LR though recoil would be much higher.
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Is there a specific reason you want/need to go with .22LR?
I have an LCP 2 in .380. It is supper easy to carry and reasonably easy to shoot accurately. The new LCP Max in .380 is only a hair bigger but carries a lot more rounds and is even easier to shoot.
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@Migloo9 If you use quality .22 ammo, think CCI 40grn. solids, of the many thousands I fired I do not remember a misfire. 
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@Migloo9 >> I have a LCP 22. I have fired well over 500 rounds thru it without cleaning to see when or how it would fail and it’s still going. It also has a safe on it. I also Chronographed a few types of 22s and CCI Stingers were the fastest. >>> as fare as a 22 for self defense that’s your choice.Remember a bird in the hand is worth a 45ACP LEFT At HOME.
( 10 round mag. + 1 in the pipe )
PS: fun to shoot and surprisingly accurate.
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Not a huge fan of the LCP in 22 or 380. Too small and uncomfortable to shoot for me.
I have an S&W Compact 22 that’s really comfortable to shoot.
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I’m with @BRUCE26 . Go with with quality over cheap stuff and you never get problem.
The other thing to remember is how you store 22LR rounds. If you keep them loose you may end up with misfires even with ammo from good manufacturer. But this is is how rimfire ammo works.
I’ve been successfully shooting CCI and Aguila high velocity range ammo, having some problems at very beginning, but I found the problem sitting in faulty chamber in my M&P22 handgun. Once I fixed it - no single issue.
There is a big debate about self defence 22LR reliability… but Federal came with “Personal Defense Punch Rimfire 22 LR” which seems to be a very good choice.
If you are not able to carry any centerfire (.380 or bigger) - it’s better to have 22LR than nothing. Just use best ammo available.
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I like! I carry 9 mm, but accurately placed 22 rounds will do the trick.
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Thank you for your input. I’ve heard that about .22 ammo being unreliable.
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No. I actually don’t have an LCP II in .22lr. I carry a 9mm, was just curious what others thought.
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Right on!
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Thank you for the input!
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Was just wondering why you were looking into a .22 as a potential EDC?
If you are looking for a very small easy to carry and shoot self defense piece, I think the LCP Max is impossible to beat. Only a hair larger than the LCP .22 but with the same 11 round capacity but with a much more effective round. Plus you can up the capacity to 13 if you use the extended mag. But for someone with recoil or racking issues the LCP .22 is probably one of the better options available though I have not tried it myself.
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I’m not a fan of the LCP 380 either, it’s a little snappy. I really do like the 22. It’s light and easy to carry. Bigger bullets are better for self defense but we need bigger handguns to fire bigger bullets. Most of the time I forget to take it off when I get home or don’t even bother. The LCP 2 isn’t the only handgun I carry but I do like it cause it very easy to carry for low exposer travel.
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I have both the LCP2 lite rack (22lr) and the LCP Max.
The lite rack is pretty finiky with ammo. Went through several brands before finding ammo that could be counted on. Good gun, just stay with better ammo. Fast target recovery even with light pistol. I have also replaced the extractor spring to improve ejection issues. 22 ammo is simply cheeply made in many cases.
The max is slightly wider and of course a but heavier wth 10 380 rounds in the magazine. Same holsters and stoll a pocket pistol. Fires nicely, but have not run as much ammo through it thanks to ammo cost. Would like more range time with the max.
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Had to try.
The caliber fit right in with our large family’s collection. A “pistol” in that caliber and length was a gap we wanted to fill. For personal reasons, we went with Ruger. Though other brands of course are just as good or better.
One of the reasons we liked it was its shorter length, and the slide automatically locks back once the last round is spent, a feature we really appreciate for strong reasons.
10 round capacity was our ideal and preferred amount.
Functionality:
I find the quality excellent so far. However, we have not used it that often at the range, and as an EDC, as its relatively still new in our household.
For us, it’s an ultimate in conceal-ability, as the rest of ours are longer, heavier, and larger in caliber. I’m starting to feel the action getting smoother as time goes on, almost like getting through a “break-in” phase.
Accuracy: No problems.
Mags: We went with Ruger made mags for this exact model, for a good compatibility.
Loading: Not liking the mag loader it came with as it dents the casings, I don’t want the worry a dented casing could misfeed, so I hand finger load, but ordered a different loader to test if it will not dent.
Ammo:
As our colleague above has aptly pointed out, a main issue is sometimes unreliable ammo. It’s in the nature of .22
I would strongly recommend testing different .22 ammo brands to rule out less reliable ones, and ammo up on those which are more reliable.
So far, been liking more, CCI’s, CCI coppers, and Federal Punch, but would like to experiment more at the range. If you can find non-lead rounds, test it out. Smooth feeling and looking rounds could also “feed” better.
I suggest read up more on why .22’s ammo (rim-fire) sometimes fails, as one pointed out, that can itself become a very long discussion.
Others chime in here, but if you pull trigger, but no go bang, please keep that gun pointed toward the safe target, for at least 30 seconds, because that bullet could still go off. In fact, if you are going to have a .22 pistol (semi-auto), please rent or buy a .22 revolver and practice experiencing duds, so you learn to keep that gun pointed safely for a bit when experiencing a non-firing.
I wonder if having a .22 pistol can help one learn how to “clear”. Meaning, if you EDC center fire ammo guns and ever experience a jam, then having practiced clearing jams from .22’s might help you know how to clear faster if ever in a sentinel event.
I just could not find a .25 that I liked, nor one with an automatic slide lock back, or in 10 rounds. This string inspired me to take another look at .25’s.
Fit: I’ve a growing opinion, each person’s hands differ so much, the fit and feel of this one could range from good to bad. Rent, buy, or borrow if lucky enough to find someone with one. Make more friends.
Meantime, we did fill our mini .380 gap, thus we tend to reach for the .380 over the .22 for EDC, if and when we need to go small, though our .380 has fewer rounds.
I think it good to have versatility in the collection, pending one’s budget, to fit with the day, outing, season, and clothing one wears for proper discretion. Cleaning and oiling are important with this one.
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As an EDC or even a backup to an EDC? I’d have to pass. .22 is just not good enough. I’ve seen many comments about squib rounds in .22. I have had them, but usually with oversea ammo, not typically with domestic ammo, EXCEPT Winchester .22 mag, which I stopped using for that reason. Unless you have a condition that does not allow for control of a larger caliber, my 2-cents are that a .22 for self-defense is not worth 22 cents.
The last two posts in this thread sparked my memory and felt the need to share. It seems to be popular to bash rimfire and say how reliable centerfire is. BUT 380 is the caliber that I had a full metal jacket bullet hit the ground halfway to the target. So stick with revolvers, if you aren’t comfortable clearing jams.
Also the people using 22s because of poor hand strength should see if they can still rack the slide after a misfire. It is more difficult.
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Ruger LCP ii, 22LR fans:
Any updates from the past nine months?
Any particular reasons for jamming, or stove-pipes, light primer strikes, failures to feed, or
failures to eject?
Any particular ammo best? Any feedback on CCI Stingers, 32 grain?
Is it less likely to jam if the grain is higher?
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Light strikes from the start. Also extraction issues. Broke it down and cleaned the firing pin channel. There was factory gunk in there. Cleaning helped but still too light. CCI Minimag 40’s worked best. Aguila was the worst. I replaced the firing pin spring with a lighter one and the extractor spring with a heavier one. May replace the hammer spring with a heavier one. Prior to replacing the extractor spring it would not extract an unfired round unless you dropped the mag or held the gun upside down. Because of the light trikes I had lots of practice doing this until I changed the springs. I have noticed that Aguila shows less indent from the firing pin than other rounds. Thinner rim or harder brass?
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