Iver Johnson TP22 Pistol
(Walther TPH Imitation)
There has been a meme circulating on Facebook asking what’s the “worst gun you have ever owned?” Well, for me there really has not been a standout disaster, thankfully.
I have some stories from various weapons, some with resolved issues, some not. One gun, an S&W revolver, I sold out of ignorance way back in the day because I didn’t realize how easy it was to ship it back to Smith & Wesson for repair – possibly under warranty.
Live and learn…
At that point in my life it would have sat in cold storage never to see the light of day for quite a while anyway.
The gun pictured above, what I believe to be an early version of the Iver Johnson TP22 double action .22LR pistol is one such gun that I had a problem with and no longer have.
What I Liked About The TP22
When I first got the TP22 I thought it was a really cool imitation Walther that I think sold for around $99 (early 1980’s dollar!). A buddy and I both got one.
This is the gun by which I found out that ankle holsters work a lot better in the movies than they do in real life!
The gun was small, probably held 8+1 of .22LR if memory serves, with the option of the first shot being double action. The DA shot had a pretty tough trigger pull but after that you could snap off the rest of the mag very quickly and right on target.
It was a fun little gun to shoot, small, not that heavy and easy to control.
What I Did NOT Like and Why I Sold It
The problem I encountered, and this might be related to my Iver Johnson TP22 being an “early” version, was that after a couple hundred rounds – by far the most of it in single action mode – the double action trigger failed to cycle the hammer!
What happened was the connecting rod inside was not strong enough and would flex and disconnect, failing to draw the hammer back for that first shot.
Iver Johnson was good about getting it repaired, and, this was back when shipping firearms was no big deal and not that costly.
When I got it back, though, my confidence in the gun was lost. I figured it would likely be a short time and it would happen again. We didn’t have the internet back then to connect up with gunsmiths, other owners and even the manufacturers to find out what was really going on.
The company unfortunately did not explain that they did anything different to keep it from happening again and so, since it was sort of popular at the time, I sold it to someone who was excited to get it. Full disclosure being made as to what had been the history of the gun.
Iver Johnson
Understand that this was NOT a Walther (though I’ve got a story with one of those too…) and was rather inexpensive. The company was good about warranty service.
Yet, I really have no interest in a gun I cannot trust or have every reason to believe it will go bang when I press the trigger.
Iver Johnson is NOT known to be the highest quality and I have another story about one of their carbines.
That said, I’ll give every company a fair shake and evaluate based price, performance and overall value.
And – seeing the picture of it after all these years of not thinking about it – made me kind of miss it.
I have one of these, and I don’t disagree with any of your assessment. I haven’t shot hundreds of rounds, nor do I see many situations where I would. It’s been in my family for years, and it had a lot of use.
I keep it next to my chair in my living room. If I have to use it, I’ll probably empty the clip to distract until I get to my primary weapons. Probably not in a steady pull, though.
It will stun an intruder, but it’s not what I’d want for my primary defense. I prefer gaining a strategic advantage, though. This little .22 isn’t going to kill an intruder, but it will set a tone (if it shoots!).
If this little pos doesn’t shoot the first time, I’m either dead or I can fix it.
If someone breaks in and they try to use it against me, I hope it doesn’t work, and they don’t know how to clear a jam. By that time, they better have an exit strategy.
I put two or three rounds through mine to kill rats pretty often (I’m not a good shot), and it always works. I generally think it’ll perform if I need it to.
Thanks for your review, but, while it might not be the ideal personal defense firearm, it’s not a terrible gun. Certainly not “the worst gun I’ve ever owned” by a long shot.
I have one that I’ve had since 1984. It worked well but now I get light strikes. You can see where the firing pin strikes the shell but not enough discharge it. Various gunsmiths have looked at it but say it is to old to work on.
I had one I bought new in 81. I put thousands of rounds through it, and never had a misfire, jam, or any other problems. It was stolen in 08, but still worked like new. One of my favorite guns of all time. Wish I still had it.
I have one also. Bought it new, way back when.
I keep in my trout fishing gear and have fired it many times. It did have a short break in period, but after about 50 rounds, it has been very reliable. I prefer to shoot the first shot single action however.
I found my Iver Johnson TP-22 at H&K GUN shop in Forest Grove Oregon back in the winter of 2015. This GUN was literally brand new in the box. The old lady who put it on consigns had passed away. She had bought it brand new for her Husband in 1983 as a Christmas gift. She forgot about it and he passed away in 1990. So like I said, she put it on consign and I got it for 75 dollars, brand new in the original box that included the shell from the first bullet the factory fired through it. I have put around 500 rounds through it. I absolutely love shooting it and conceal carrying it. I use the CCI hollow point 22LR. I only have one magazine for it, but I plan to buy 2 more.
I have one of these BUT it’s made by AMERICAN ARMS ..mine has been EXTREMELY RELIABLE.& ACCURATE out to 50 Ft AMERICAN ARMS took over production after IVER went out of business..I have shot over a Thousand rounds though Mine & still functions flawlessly! I carried it daily for 4 years. Loaded with Remington yellow jackets & CCO Stingers …then started to carry my .38 j frame instead..but still shoot it occasionally..