During the past two years, I’ve spent a great deal of time training with carry optics. It’s a fascinating field, and one I admittedly came to a bit late. While some shooters take an immersion class and emerge proficient, I took the long route. I bought a quality .22 pistol, set it up with a carry-style optic, and practiced consistently for months. The results were gratifying. I now have a dedicated practice handgun that uses a sighting system similar to my carry guns, and that similarity may be more important than matching grip frame or trigger characteristics. As a bonus, the pistol is accurate enough for small game and a pleasure to shoot recreationally.
Many shooters treat the .22 Long Rifle pistol as a second fiddle to the 9mm. It’s viewed as a stepping stone—useful for training, then left behind once the shooter moves on to centerfire. That mindset overlooks how valuable a rimfire can be. The .22 is a superb trainer and, in the right roles, a capable standalone pistol. No one truly outgrows the .22. Still, it pays to choose carefully. Buying the cheapest rimfire on the shelf rarely ends well. There are solid options available.
I own a GSG 1911 .22 that has helped me maintain familiarity with the 1911 platform, and the Glock 44 is another good rimfire. Neither, however, is optics-ready in a practical sense. A classic .22 that has always delivered for me is the Browning Buck Mark. This single-action design features a rigid barrel and excellent accuracy potential. Modern Buck Marks include a rail for mounting optics, but that setup generally favors tube-style red dots or requires special bases.
To make the pistol more useful as a carry-optic trainer, I ordered a mount from Outerimpact. After removing the factory rail, the mount installs in a manner similar to an optics-ready slide, allowing the use of a handgun-type open emitter red dot. You do give up backup sights, but on a .22 training pistol, that isn’t a major concern.
To keep the training relevant, I mounted a Hi-Lux TD-3C. This gives a closer analog to the optics used on defensive handguns than the tube-style dots often seen on rimfires. I’ve used several Hi-Lux products over the years, and this one has consistently performed reliably across multiple test guns. It has now found a permanent home on the Buck Mark.
The TD-3C is an open reflex sight with a 28×19mm viewing window. Like any quality red dot, it allows fast target acquisition—both eyes open, place the dot on the target, and press the shot. You retain your full field of view, there’s no need to shift focus between front and rear sights, and issues like cross-eye dominance become less of a factor. Sight radius is no longer part of the equation.
Construction is 7075-T6 aluminum, and the sight has held up well even when mounted on 9mm pistols. Recoil hasn’t been an issue. The optic offers a 3 MOA dot, with the option to switch to a 32 MOA circle-dot reticle. Windage and elevation adjustments are positive, with each click representing 1 MOA. Battery life is rated at 50,000 hours under moderate settings. As with any carry optic, running at maximum brightness or with the larger reticle reduces runtime. The sight uses the RMR footprint, which makes for a solid, direct-mount setup. It’s not the most expensive optic on the market, but it delivers a real advantage and has proven durable.
Practice and Training
When training with a .22 rimfire, approach it with the same seriousness you would a centerfire handgun. Maintain a firm firing grip. Don’t relax simply because recoil is minimal. Focus on trigger press, grip consistency, follow-through, and sight alignment. If you train properly, those fundamentals carry over directly to centerfire shooting.
I don’t blaze through magazines. I concentrate on each individual shot. Only the shot you are firing at that moment matters. The Buck Mark is an excellent platform for this kind of deliberate practice. It has good weight, solid balance, and is easy to shoot well offhand.
In terms of accuracy, it’s a tackdriver by handgun standards. From a benchrest at 15 yards, the Buck Mark/Hi-Lux combination will consistently put five shots into 1.25 inches. I’ve been genuinely impressed with its performance as a carry-optic trainer. It’s inexpensive to shoot, offers real training value, and doubles as an excellent target and recreational pistol.
Specifications
- Weight: 29 ounces unloaded
- Magazine capacity: 10 rounds
- Finish: Black (stainless steel available)
- Caliber: .22 Long Rifle
- Features: Fully adjustable sights, optics-ready configuration
Ammunition Testing and Notes
The .22 Long Rifle cartridge, with its rimfire ignition and heel-based bullet, has never been the most reliable round in terms of feeding and ignition. That said, modern rimfire ammunition is far more consistent than it used to be. Part of the fun is picking up several boxes at a modest cost, running them over a chronograph, and shooting for groups. Often, the most affordable loads prove accurate enough for most tasks.
Tested loads and average velocities
Aquila 40 grain — 990 fps
A high percentage of failures to fire.
Blazer 40 grain RN — 969 fps
A solid choice for practice.
CCI Mini-Mag 36 grain HP — 1110 fps
A good small game load.
CCI Mini-Mag 40 grain — 998 fps
Among the most accurate loads tested.
Fiocchi 40 grain HV — 1001 fps
Superbly accurate.
Fiocchi 38 grain HP — 1038 fps
Accuracy on par with the 40-grain Fiocchi load.
Winchester 40 grain M22 — 1057 fps
Clean-burning and designed for reliable function in AR-style .22 platforms.
Winchester 37 grain HP Super-X — 960 fps
An affordable hollow point available in 100-round boxes.
Final Thoughts on the Browning Buck Mark
The Browning Buck Mark has always had a reputation for accuracy and reliability, but pairing it with a modern carry-style optic turns it into something more than just a range gun. It becomes a purpose-built training tool that reinforces the same visual and mechanical habits used with defensive handguns, without the cost and fatigue of constant centerfire practice.
With the Outerimpact mount and Hi-Lux TD-3C in place, the Buck Mark provides a realistic optics experience in a platform that’s inexpensive to run and easy to shoot well. The fundamentals—grip, trigger control, follow-through, and dot presentation—translate directly to carry guns when practiced with discipline. At the same time, the pistol remains what it has always been: accurate, well-balanced, and enjoyable for target work or small game.
The .22 rimfire shouldn’t be treated as something to move past. Set up properly, it can be one of the most valuable training tools you own. In this configuration, the Buck Mark proves that a rimfire can do far more than fill the role of a plinker. It can quietly become the most-used and most productive handgun in your training routine.
Read the full article here