Handguns

Few things are as pleasant as shooting a sizable .22 handgun, particularly a revolver. And with a 55-ounce weight and 10-inch barrel, Dan Wesson's V22 is sizable indeed. Still, a 55-ounce .22 is still a .22. And since that pretty much limits what can be done with it from the standpoint of power, there's really only one other performance standard by which to judge it. And that would be accuracy. Fortunately, the V22 delivers.

Dan Wesson revolvers have long been associated with the metallic silhouette game, and it would appear that the V22 is no exception. The gun, with its enhanced sight radius and excellent Patridge front/micro adjustable rear combination, is well equipped for scaled-down metallic targets (although it does a pretty good job on paper targets and tin cans as well).

During a range session, I shot a series of six-shot groups at 25 yards from a sandbagged rest and was quite impressed with the inherent accuracy of the V22. Although the 51/2 pound trigger was slightly heavier than I would have liked (the double-action pull, incidentally, is a stagey, creepy 15 pound or so; but it's unlikely anyone's going to do much shooting with the V22 in DA mode). The trigger, incidentally, is adjustable for overtravel.

The ammo I brought along included Winchester Power-Point, Eley Match Xtra, PMC Rifle Match, CCI Green Tag and Remington Yellow Jacket. The best single group I got was from the Power-Points--a five-shot three-eights-inch cluster that was ruined by a sixth shot flyer which opened things out to a still-respectable 11/4 inches. All loads (with the exception of the Remington Yellow Jackets) seemed to like the V22.

After grouping the V22 I spent some time shooting assorted metallic silhouettes and gongs from an offhand position. I found the V22 to balance fairly nicely, despite its 15-inch-plus overall length. The hammer is downturned nicely for single-action cocking; but the coarse stippling is a bit rough on the thumb. Functioning--loading, ejecting and cycling--was flawless throughout my range session.

Dan Wesson revolvers have long been associated with the metallic silhouette game, and it would appear that the V22 is no exception. The gun, with its enhanced sight radius and excellent Patridge front/micro adjustable rear combination, is well equipped for scaled-down metallic targets (although it does a pretty good job on paper targets and tin cans as well).

During a range session, I shot a series of six-shot groups at 25 yards from a sandbagged rest and was quite impressed with the inherent accuracy of the V22. Although the 51/2 pound trigger was slightly heavier than I would have liked (the double-action pull, incidentally, is a stagey, creepy 15 pound or so; but it's unlikely anyone's going to do much shooting with the V22 in DA mode). The trigger, incidentally, is adjustable for overtravel.

The V22 is a superbly accurate revolver, although its size and weight does limit it to fairly specialized applications. It's no backpacker's trail gun, although it would serve as an admirable plinker or small-game getter. Despite its accuracy potential, the V22 would be a bit wearying to contend with over an extended bulls-eye session. For two-handed metallic silhouette shooting, however, it would seem well-suited. And, of course, you can always switch to a shorter barrel if you get weary of the weight afforded by the 10-inch tube.