WB
When I was a kid Dad had a FIE .22 SA that
Monday, January 28, 2019, 15:55

was larger than the normal "Buffalo Scout", maybe full Colt SA size. Made before 1970, I'm certain and remember it. Besides the priss factor it looked a lot like a real Colt and had a perfect fitting basket weave leather hip holster. I found it acceptably accurate. It was shiny blue with walnut-ish two piece grips (I think) and had a gold plated cylinder, trigger, hammer, cylinder pin, and maybe a couple action pins too. It had an extra cylinder marked .22 MAG. When I got to be 12-13 yrs. old they let us loose out in the country with .22 handguns provided we only carried "rat-shot" cartridges. As kids we could live with that, for a while, and merrily popped away at mice, rats, wood bees, and hungry sparrows in the barn. We were able to expand the cartridge selection to CB caps a bit later. This allowed us to truly begin terrorizing squirrels, turtles, and rabbits. The CB's taught us a lot about shooting, usually you could SEE the bullet in flight! A pack of (100) cost us $1.25, Western brand (not Super-X).

We grew bored with this and being mischievous began sneaking out REAL .22 ctgs., and hid them in the barn. I remember sneaking out the .22 MAG cylindered gun (I habitually shot .22 LR from the MAG cylinder) and a yellow box with red X. Super-X 45 gr. JHP, man did it make my ears ring. It also sprayed my forearms with stinging powder spray. Boy it had to be powerful! I felt 10 ft. tall so armed. Much later we found CCI marketed some blue capsule "Rat-shot" in .22 Mag. It was actually pretty effective to around 20 ft.! But very expensive. It was my reckoning, by seat of the pants testing and how long it made my ears ring, the .22 Mag. was the LOUDEST cartridge there was.

Later in life I found the 45 gr. WMR in a revolver seldom breaks 1400 fps but the real jacketed bullets do perform way beyond any heel type .22. They expand pretty reliably and seem not to shed jackets too bad either. The .22 WMR holds a special place in my youth. No telling how many Whitetails have fell to so chambered Marlins. No, really no telling, as it is highly illegal, although proven effective.

I've never seen another FIE like that. Mine was stolen when I was 17.