It helps if you can shoot with a friend who has them, or go to a range that rents them. You might find the grip angle on the Luger looking ones too extreme, in which case you will want a 22/45 instead. Another thought is the Browning Buckmark line, but I don't recall seeing a Browning with a slim barrel.
For nostalgia, I'd rather have an old 6 7/8" Mark I, but you have to watch out for fools advertising Standard Models as Mark I, because they think everything made before Mark II is a Mark I. In the beginning there was the standard model, in 4" and later 6". Then came the Mark I target model, in 5.5" bull barrel and 6 7/8" tapered barrel, with adjustable sights. Then around 1980ish, they were replaced with the Mark II and Mark II Target, later followed with a large assortment of variations. Then later in the 1980s they came out with a cheaper version with a more vertical grip, the 22/45. Example of a mislabeled standard model. This model was my older brother's first pistol, 6" Ruger .22, not a Mark I Target, notice the fixed rear sight, and no, it's not worth $300: http://www.gunbroker.com/item/658200402 This might be an acceptable price for a new MKIII, but you can get bull barrel 22/45 MKIII for less all over the internet: http://www.gunbroker.com/item/655470090 You might find that a 5.5" bull barrel is not objectionably front heavy, it doesn't balance much different from a 6 7/8" tapered barrel: https://www.cdnnsports.com/ruger-22-45-mkiii-22lr-5-5-sts-hvy-bbl-2-10rd-mags.html Outwardly, you can tell the originals from the Mark II and later by the taper at the back of the receiver on the Mark II, making it easier to grab the cocking tabs on the back of the slide. A quick Google search can give you the details on all the changes and upgrades that differentiate the four generations. After you get the hang of it, stripping a pre-MKIV isn't that bad, but you do need to know what you're doing. Mitch. _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
