Winchester 9422 22LR are great guns!!!!

by JD, Western Washington, Wednesday, April 13, 2016, 15:12 (3085 days ago) @ Gary G

I bought one shortly after they came out, so I've probably had mine for 35 years or so. I consider them to be the best 22 lever gun ever made. I have owned several Marlin 39's, but none were as accurate or nearly as smooth as the 9422, so the Marlins are long gone, but the 9422 remains.

I currently have one in both 22LR and 22 WMR. They are VERY smooth guns. My 22 LR gives 5 shot groups in the range of 3/4" at 50 yards, depending on the ammo. Mine has had a trigger job, so it has a very crisp 2.5 pound trigger. The gun is all steel with workmanship that is better than my Winchester 61 and 62 that were made in the late 1950's. It is really nicely done and feels like a real rifle should.

The only complaint that I have is that the magazine tube insert is a little too easy to rotate and come out when there is no ammo in the magazine tube. If you were to roam out in the field with no ammo in the mag tube, you could run the risk of losing the mag tube insert. I always have ammo in the mag, so it's not been a problem for me, but just to be on the safe side, I add a small "O" ring to the forward end of the mag tube insert that adds just enough resistance that it won't come out unless deliberately removed.

I'd buy another in a heartbeat if they weren't so dang expensive. I consider them one of the finest 22's ever made, and I have some pretty nice 22's in my collection....