TargetTalk

We might be soon in a position where the women's shooting team of Kenya (being newly formed right now) will need their set of .22 pistols (of course, everything pending the allocation of funds, and the gracious presence of donors and sugardaddies :-P ...).

Due to financial constraints, the acquisition of ANY new .22 sport / standard pistol is entirely out of question. Do not even ask. If they had _that_ kind of money, they would play polo.
Europe and especially Germany is awash with used .22 pistols however, which can be had at bargain prices sometimes.

My question is now: If we start out with buying 5 used pistols (they will be checked out on a German range here before), which recommendation would be made?

The guns should span the range from entry level, up to African continental championships and Commonwealth Games. That means that frugal beginner's guns are out of the question (like MC Margolin, Star FR, Ruger, Chinese TT Olympia, FN 150, Hämmerli Xesse, S&W 41), no matter how accurate they might be considered, barrelwise.

Exotic dancers - like the Danish Agner or the East German Ziegenhahn Mod. IV / Mod. 5005 - are probably also out of the question, however sexy they may appeal to me (or you).

Presently, there is a slight penchant towards Hämmerli 208/215, but that is merely due to two old farts, one of which probably I am myself.
I would also think about Baikal's IJ-35 resp. IZH-35 and/or their permutations (Walther KSP). If necessary, with new grips fitted.
Walther GSPs are many around here, but most on the used guns' market have been EXTREMELY used. And even a .22 pistol can wear out after a long time...

Important considerations: the guns should be
- sturdy and robust even in grubby beginners' hands ("unbwogable", in Kenyanese)
- easy to handle and balance
- error-forgiving (which is why e.g. in AP, I prefer an old side-cocking FWB 65, to a Morini or to the FWB 34 which the Kenyan club uses for their better shooters)
- not very ammo-sensitive
- repairable with local means.

Any advice with a few arguments and considerations will be very gratefully heard. :-)

Alexander

The Hammerli's are ok, but getting parts for them can be terrible..I waited 4 YEARS for recoilsprings..
You consider High Standards? The Victors might be old but very accurate. I prefer them above our gunclubs Hammerli 208's.
There are also the old Erma's but same problem: parts.

Yes, there are many Erma ESP 85 around here at low prices (the norm is 250 €), waiting in the market for buyers that never come; it seems nobody wants them anymore. Am not sure about their ergonomics and the rather high barrel. I think one German dealer (CDS?) has spare parts.

High Standard Victor would appear to be in the same class as FN 150 and Ruger Mk. II: a bit too frugal in terms of "interface", I would feel. With its steep grip angle, probably much better suited for NRA "Bullseye" than for ISSF type shooting. Also psychologically problematic; I learned to shoot with our club's FN Browning 150, and always yearned for a "real" sports pistol instead.

With a low budget, it appears to me you are setting your sights too high.

There is that sugerdaddy thing...

Not too high. On the used market, I can get IZH-35 here for 100-250 Euros, and Hämmerlis from 200 to 500 Euros.
I agree with you that finding each shooter a personal sugardaddy is still a ponderable alternative, though...

I've found Browning Buckmarks pretty reasonable, never tried to adjust the trigger however.
Our university club used Ruger MkIIs extensively with no troubles, again never tried to do anything with the trigger.
Izh35s do wear out, and are a bit hit and miss in terms of build quality.

James' last half-sentence is indeed a bit of concern for me... past postings in this forum seem to corroborate the impression of not always even quality of the IZH-35?

The IZZY at those prices of 100-250 euros is a great option, even if it needs some TLC.
Somebody that can carve some decent grips will be a necessity, affordable grips are also available from Marschalgrips.
You might want to install wider rear sites, and might have to align the front ones.
You will need a great machinist around since there are very few spare parts available, if you have a great gunsmith go for it.
The usual functional problems are: double fires, and a broken extractor (accurate blue prints have been made available here).
I went through booth and they can be fixed by almost anyone mechanically inclined.
The gun can shoot X's with cheap ammo, CCI SV gives me great results.
This gun has very little recoil.
I find the IZH35M gun to be competitive, some days it shoots better than a AW93.

Why do not ask some companies? It could be a good publicity.

Sponsoring is a realistic option; especially ammo manufacturers regularly sponsor high-class shooting teams or individual shooters. These ladies however need the sponsoring to develop their potential, rather than to win a 5th in addition to already existing 4 medals... and this makes it a bit more difficult.

James' last half-sentence is indeed a bit of concern for me... past postings in this forum seem to corroborate the impression of not always even quality of the IZH-35?

Build quality is variable and some things can't be adjusted - eg the rearsight on mine is on at an angle, the trigger dovetail was skewed, it has two different serial numbers - one a jumble of the other.

The main gripe I've heard on the ranges is the metallurgy is variable, some seem not to wear however much they are used, some the breach face and slide face peen themselves into new and interesting shapes.

You do need spares, the extractor, plunger and spring for example.