GUNS Magazine Identical Shooting Twins

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Uberti has a .22 Single Action Army (top) every bit as much fun as the
.45 Colt models and a lot cheaper to shoot.

The lady was being stalked. Encouraged by her husband, she made an appointment with me to learn how to shoot a gun. Although she agreed with the concept of being armed, she thought she might be more afraid of the gun than the stalker. I was at the shop waiting for her when the distinctive sound of an approaching Harley got my attention.

I watched through the window as the rider parked at our curb, took off her helmet and shook out a headful of curls. My client who was afraid of a little bitty gun had shown up for her first shooting lesson comfortably riding a big Harley Softtail. Later when we had gotten to know each other a little, I questioned her about it. Her response was, “I’ve had training on the Harley.” Smart lady. She was now about to get some training on handguns.

The .22 1911 by Walther (bottom) is a great trainer for shooting .45 ACP and 9mm 1911s.

School In Session

This was a perfect situation where having a .22 caliber handgun mimicking the size and operation of a centerfire defensive handgun was perfect. After some classroom training on safety and gun handling, we moved to the range. One of the guns she handled and dry-fired in the classroom was a 9mm Smith & Wesson M&P. She liked the way it felt and was interested in seeing how it shot.

Several of the shooting lanes were active when we made our way to our assigned lane. Even though she was wearing hearing protection, Elaine flinched every time a gun went off. I quickly perceived handing her a 9mm for her first shooting experience would just scare her away from shooting for life — so I didn’t.

I loaded up a full-size .22 caliber S&W M&P for her to shoot. Even after assuring her the gun wasn’t going to be as loud as the ones she was hearing in other lanes, she asked me to put my hands on the gun with her for her first shots. I did, and after three or four uneventful shots, she was ready to go solo.

Flying Alone

We worked together with the .22 for several shooting sessions before graduating to the 9mm. Due to the progression from the smaller caliber, she handled it fine.

I’ve had many similar experiences when introducing people to shooting, especially kids and women shooting for the first time. But this isn’t the end of why .22s mimicking larger guns are great for training. In fact, I use them myself. Shooting any gun correctly and being accurate will improve your skills as a shooter. If you shoot the .22 twin of a larger caliber gun, the transference of any developed skill is going to be high. Your training won’t cost as much and it won’t put as much wear on your hands and shoulders.

David purchased a conversion kit from SIG allowing him to shoot his 9mm P229 as a .22.

Choices

What kind of rimfire/centerfire identical-twin combinations are there? Many of the .22s in my collection are fun to shoot but they don’t have a direct correlation to any centerfire guns.

As a trainer I’ve found the M&P a great platform. The fact made a .22 version in the same size and configuration as their centerfire models really made it a winning combination for me.

One good rimfire/centerfire matchup I found was the Colt .22 1911 made by Walther, paired with any of the thousands of Government model clones. A relatively new combo also working well for training is the Taurus G3 and TX-22. The G3 is a purpose-built, full-size defensive 9mm handgun while the TX-22 is a .22 of the same size and roughly the same configuration.

SIG SAUER, GLOCK and others have .22 conversion kits consisting of a .22 slide and magazine for some of their centerfire pistols. The conversion kit I have for a SIG P229 makes shooting the gun both cheap and fun because it’s a SIG and it’s recoil free.

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With a bucket of cheap .22 ammo, David’s grandson Josh polishes
both his revolver and semi-automatic skills.

Wheelguns

Having a .22 caliber revolver matching the operation and ergonomics of a larger caliber of the same model is also beneficial. Ruger’s SP101 is available in multiple calibers starting with the .22. For single-action fans, Heritage, Uberti and Ruger all offer .22 versions of the single-action army-style revolver.

Working with a .22 rifle can help hone the skills needed for hunting with a larger caliber.
The Henry .22 (bottom) nicely compliments the Rossi .44 Magnum lever-gun.

Shoulder Arms

It works for long guns, too. I started shooting .22 rifles at around nine. Hitting a squirrel with the rifle required more concentration and a steadier aim than with a shotgun. At Boy Scout camp I went through hundreds of cheap rounds earning progressively higher junior marksmanship badges until I had them all. The time shooting .22 rifles as a kid meant when I started shooting an M16 in basic training, the Drill Sergeant didn’t have to spend much time with me before I qualified.

I’ve got a few centerfire lever-action rifles and also have a Henry .22 lever-action I encourage the grandkids to shoot and enjoy shooting myself. Plinking with the lever-action .22 results in hours of fun and every trigger pull ending with a pinged aluminum can or hole near the center of a target means a much better chance of success when shooting my .30-30 at a deer or the .44 at a hog.

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yellow text on dark background that reads

Identical Shooting Twins

Enhance your training with rimfire/centerfire pairs

School In Session

Flying Alone

Choices

Wheelguns

Shoulder Arms

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