I’ve wanted a “PDW” style .22 for a good number of years now.
I had an early Ruger Charger, but it was before braces were common, and it didn’t have a threaded muzzle. I sold it at one point and always intended to get another newer model once the braced chassis became available.
I’ve looked at a bunch of build options over recent years but was glad I waited when I saw the new Franklin Armory F22 Pistol at SHOT Show this year. It was exactly how I would have built my “PDW” concept, and came complete with a binary trigger from the factory.
The F22 Pistol
Let me start by saying I’m not really advocating a .22LR build as a PDW. Not that I’d want shot with one, but I fully realize the limitations of the round.
While I’m using the term PDW, it’s more to define the style than indicating that you should be using a .22LR for defense. I know some folks do, but that isn’t what I’m looking at here. I look at these builds as a fun SMG/PDW-style gun that’s easy and affordable to shoot.
Franklin Armory’s F22 is built on the familiar Ruger 10/22 style platform. With that said, Franklin makes their own receiver, with some improvements over a stock Ruger model.
It comes with a built-in Picatinny receiver rail, so it’s ready for the optic of your choice. The left side is marked F22, Franklin Armor,y and Minden, NV, where it’s made. The finish is matte black anodizing.
The F22 uses an 8-inch barrel, which is threaded to the popular 1/2-28 pitch. It comes with an A2 flash hider, but accepts other common muzzle devices or suppressors. The bolt assembly uses an enhanced firing pin that improves primer detonation reliability. Attached to the bolt is an extended knurled charging.
The trigger, of course, is the Franklin Armory BFSIII 22-C1-P. Not only does it allow binary fire, but it also gives a nice, crisp trigger pull in semi-auto. The safety is a 3-position lever similar in placement and operation to that of the later M1 Carbine safeties. The trigger pack also features an extended magazine release lever.
The F22’s barreled action rides in an SB Tactical chassis. The chassis has a Picatinny rear rail compatible with M1913 accessories, and comes with an SB Tactical FS1913 brace installed. The chassis has an integral ambidextrous steel QD sling socket above the B5 Systems P-Grip 23 pistol grip, and two MLOK slots on each side of the forend.
Franklin Armory’s F22 ships with one 10-round Ruger BX-1 magazine and comes in a padded plastic hard case. It is compatible with many aftermarket Ruger 10/22 components, so you can tweak it however you like. MSRP is $1,089.99.
First Impressions
When I saw the F22 at SHOT, I knew I would have to get one. While it is compatible with most any 10/22 parts, it was already configured exactly how I would have set one up if I built it from scratch. The 8-inch barrel and side-folding brace make for a handy and compact setup. It can be easily stuffed into a backpack, making it a handy camp gun.
Build quality is very good. I’ve used Franklin Armory’s triggers before, but had never worked with their complete guns. Looking over the F22, you can see that it’s a premium setup. Fit and finish are excellent, and the features are well thought out. They added all of the custom touches that users would add to stock 10/22’s, but nothing superfluous.
The Gideon Storm DPP
Since the F22 doesn’t come with any sights, I had my choice of what to mount on it. I’ve been messing with Gideon optics this summer and had a Storm DPP green dot available that looked like a good fit. The Storm has an easy-to-pick-up 6 MOA dot.
It’s made from 7075-T6 aircraft aluminum housing, features IPX7 waterproofing, and is shock-resistant to 1000 Gs. It features a power-saving Shake-to-Awake mode that extends the life of the CR-1632 battery to tens of thousands of hours by entering sleep mode after 255 seconds without movement.
When you need to shoot, the reticle automatically returns with a simple wrist gesture. The Storm features a side-loading battery tray, eliminating the need to remove or re-zero the optic for battery changes. MSRP is $229.99, and it’s backed by Gideon’s lifetime warranty, which is hard to beat.
The Storm DPP is designed for direct slide installation on the Sig Sauer P320 and other Delta Point Pro-machined slides, and it also features a Picatinny mount. With the Pic mount added it was quick and easy to drop on the F22’s top rail.
The optic height worked out well with the F22’s SB Tactical brace. The big open window and crisp dot made target acquisition easy, either from the shoulder or when using the pistol with the brace folded.
To Brrt or Not to Brrt
I’ll be honest, with a binary trigger on a .22LR platform, it’s hard to just not shoot binary all the time. The video above shows a full 25-round mag dump, which took under 5 seconds. Aside from burning through a lot of ammo, you’ll also miss out on everything else the F-22 is capable of, though. I will say, though, that binary is fun!
.22s can be feed-picky sometimes, especially when you’re running rounds through as fast as you can with Franklin’s BFSIII trigger. I did get the occasional jam but generally speaking, it runs like a beast with the right ammo and mag combination. With factory 10 round BX-1 mags, like what come with the gun, it pretty much runs perfectly. However, 10 rounds is no fun, so I definitely used larger magazines for much of my binary shooting.
I had one Ruger BX-25 mags and three High Tower Armory RM-25 round mags. I was told by the factory rep that the Ruger BX-15 mag was a sweet spot for balancing capacity and function, but I didn’t have one of those on hand to try.
The BX-25 performed well and generally ran fine. I found, though, that the High Tower Armory mags were a little more consistently reliable. I used a Speed Beez Lever Loader for much of my shooting with the F22. After the first session and manually loading a bunch of 25-round mags, I picked up the loader, which made things go a lot faster. Not to mention easier on the fingers.
Feed and Reliability
CCI’s AR Tactical and Federal’s Automatch rounds ran best on binary in thew F22. CCI Mini Mags were my next best option, followed closely by Federal’s American Eagle load. CCI’s Clean loads were okay, although the subsonic variant wouldn’t cycle the F22’s action. That isn’t uncommon though.
Most .22’s I’ve used don’t cycle in semi with the subsonic Clean load. Mt Ruger 10/22 doesn’t cycle it either. I also had some old Remington Thunderbolts and I had mixed reliability with those. Shorter “bursts” helped with reliability too, versus just working that trigger as fast as you possibly can. Although mag dumps are pretty fun.
In semi-auto mode, Franklin’s F22 pretty much everything except the subsonic load ran just fine. And that’s where I’d again say not to get fixated on the binary and try out the F22 as a regular semi-auto too. The trigger is quite decent with a crisp let-off. Franklin’s 8-inch barrel produced very good accuracy results as well.
Accuracy (Plus a Bunch of Plinking)
While the old Remington Thunderbolts were the least reliable rounds in binary fire, they actually produced surprisingly accurate results. From a bench rest at 25 yards I was getting ½ to ¾ inch groups from those.
The CCI AR Tactical was my next best load with groups averaging ¾ to 1 inch. Federals American Eagle averaged 1 1.8 inch groups and CCI Red Clean rounds were right behind them at 1 ¼ inch. CCI’s Minimags averaged 1 ½ inch groups and Federal’s Automatch 1 ¾ inch groups. The subsonic CCI Blue Clean load brought up the rear with 2 inch groups. That’s okay though since I won’t be using those anyway since they don’t cycle the action.
Shooting groups is necessary sometimes, but kind of boring. Sorry serious target shooters. I much prefer shooting steel or reactive targets and Franklin Armory’s F22 thrived in those settings.
Running my clubs plate racks with the F22 was a blast. It was fast in semi, and the Gideon’s green dot and big window made transitioning from plate to plate quick and easy. Switching to binary was fun. I’d either hit the plate with a fast binary double or sometimes two before they’d drop, then I’d move on to the next plate.
I also did a bunch of shooting at empty plastic jugs and my Caldwell Self healing Targets. If you settled down on a jug in binary mode you could literally shred it. If I wanted to keep them around a little longer I’d hit them with a couple quick binary doubles and get them bouncing, then chase them across the backstop. I’d do the same with the Caldwell targets, which stood up to the rapid fire .22’s much better than the cheap plastic jugs.
It’s Not a Real PDW, But….
I know I started by saying that the F22 Pistol isn’t really a PDW, but it does handle like one. While it’s a binary, and not a forced reset trigger, you can still spit rounds out amazingly fast if you want to.
Probably the more practical way to use the F22, though, is to use the binary for fat double-taps. That worked well on the plate rack. Just make sure to stock up on mags and ammo that your gun likes. You’ll need them.
You can check out the F22 Pistol, or the rifle versions, at Franklin Armory’s website.
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