NAA's .22

Roy favored the larger “target” grips but found the smaller
rubber ones to be more comfortable for pocket carry.

North American Arms literally created a new category of small arms with their line-up of watch pocket single actions in .22 calibers. From the tiniest .22 Short Mini-Revolver to the biggest .22 Magnum — The Earl — NAA offers a line-up to please any mini-gun aficionado. While they also offer the small semiauto “Guardian” .32 and .380s, this is all about the Ranger.

As we get grey in our mustaches, I think I can speak for many of us when I say our tastes become more refined, more specific, less tolerant of the mundane and more enamored with the unique, the eclectic, indeed, the things that most appeal to our more discriminating nature. And why more discriminating? I think it’s because we have more time to enjoy things as we get older. It’s as if after all these years of hustle and bustle, we’re beginning to realize we need to take the time to appreciate things for their own sake.

While none of that would be news to people like Louis Comfort Tiffany, or Frank Lloyd Wright, it has struck like a lightning bolt I think, and I see it reflected in the industry, with finer leather, carefully crafted guns and accessories to match, becoming more and more available — and demanded. I have finally learned … finally … it’s better to buy one good something, than six mediocre somethings. You will not enjoy the six, and regret your purchases. Yet one, single, correct decision, one “yes, that’s what I really wanted” purchase, pays dividends for decades.

Which, finally, brings us to this seemingly modest .22 revolver.

The short throw of the ejector in the Ranger doesn’t fully
eject the brass, so you need to invert it to help toss ‘em out.

Elegantly done, the Ranger is nicely fitted and works like a watch.
The sights, though small, are actually quite useable.

Sneaky Peek

It was, say, two years ago at the SHOT Show when I stopped to visit Sandy Chisholm, the personable president of North American Arms. I’ve always admired Sandy for the fact his company makes unique products that work, and the fact at trade shows he’s always out front, at the counter, engaging customers, the tire-kickers, laughing with old friends, making new ones and flying the flag. He’s one of the rare company presidents you can meet, visit with, and never feel hurried about it.

Sandy greeted me warmly, and then, with a glint in his eye, reached somewhere secret and brought out a little revolver. At first, I thought it was one of their standard single actions, but then my eye caught something peculiar. What were those tiny knobs on the top? Suddenly, it dawned on me — Sandy had made a top-break .22 Magnum revolver. Ha! Double Ha! I was immediately smitten. And he knew it. It was — and is — simply put, as elegant as a pocket watch, as compelling as a shiny silver dollar and as addictive as free pallets of .22 magnum ammo. I told Sandy to go for it, people would buy it and I needed it for Handgunner.

“I thought you’d say that,” he said with a big smile. It’s not going to be cheap though. List price is going to be $499.” “Cheap is relative,” I countered. “A cheap Mercedes is $65,000 and a cheap T-shirt is $5. I say let the market decide what’s cheap and what’s not. But if I was a betting man, I’d say you’ll sell these like 75-cent gasoline.”

While it might be tempting to rely on the .22 Magnum for personal protection — don’t.
Here’s how the Magnum load compares in size to some others chosen at random:
(L-R) .22 shot, .22 LR, .22 Mag shot and Federal, .32 ACP, .38 S&W, .38 Special, .
44 Special and shot and 9mm.

Roy was pleased to see a modern iteration of the classic top-break design,
done-up with modern steels and CNC engineering. What if someone did a .44 Special?

The Ranger

It arrived finally and I was delighted. Funny how with all the fancy guns, all the hype, mysterious product releases, factory secrets, “This will change the world” new products … it’s funny how a simple thing like this can be so anticipated. But why is that?

One of the very first handguns I remember is one my dad bought when I was six or seven. It was a S&W top break .38 S&W snubbie, nickel with pearl grips. It was something I held in great esteem and with no small amount of mystery as I grew up. It was something I was allowed to hold (a real gun) during those gun-crazy pre-teen years. The top break was smooth and buttery, the cam snicking that ejector star out smartly. I engaged Bonnie and Clyde in battles, held off endless numbers of fedora-wearing bad guys as I held it carefully on my lap. Something stuck to me, I think. I’ve been a sucker for top breaks ever since, and am a bit embarrassed to tell you how much I’ve spent on old revolvers with .32 S&W stamped on their barrels. So I won’t tell you.

Sandy and NAA has finally made the magic happen again. And with modern steels, modern design, engineering and in a caliber we can all afford. The Ranger is all-things cool, while still being most things practical. Frankly, I think it’s what their other — dare I say more plebeian revolvers? — might aspire to be one day. The Ranger is a revolver of history, heritage and usability. Now, there was no need to disassemble your gun to load or unload it. Now, you had a “real” gun in your watch pocket.

I don’t mean to disparage the other guns (I have them and use them) but this raises the bar indeed. If you like to shoot and use your .22 Magnum, this is the way to go.

The NAA Ranger is a real shooter. Centered groups are from
7 yards while shots at 10 o’clock are from 15.

The Design

If you’ve ever held a classic break-top wheelgun, you’d be right at home with the Frontier. It harks back to the S&W .38 Single Action 2nd Model, more than the cheap break-tops of the turn of the century. The ejector star cams out smartly, lifting the .22 Magnum empties, but due to the short reach, they are not quite “out” of the cylinder. I found it best to make sure the case heads faced down as you snapped the cylinder open. Sometimes a nudge or two with your fingers was in order to clear out the trash. Still, light years ahead of the old way of taking the cylinder out and poking out the empties!

The gun was tightly constructed, and fit and finish better than we should have expected. Always deliver more than you promise is something NAA is known for. It being a single action, you cock the hammer back (snick, snick, SNICK) until lock-up, then a press of the spur trigger sets things in motion. But use caution, the back of the cylinder is a bit sharp and an ill-placed thumb will get nipped. Sandy, break that sharp edge at the rear of the cylinder if you can? It’s the only thing I’d change, but even at that, a silly bit of nothingness to fret over. More of a “Let’s polish the diamond even more” sort of a thing.

The Ranger handled all sorts of .22 Magnum, but Roy thinks it’s most versatile
loaded with a couple of shot cartridges, followed by standard magnum loads.

The Ranger is more like a pocket tool than anything else. Team it with a small
light like this PT1AA from Streamlight, Key-A neck knife from TOPS and a
Thad Rybka pocket holster (holding spare ammo) and you have a nice field kit.

Shooting

Indeed. This is a one-of-a-kind, delightful design — but not a safe queen. It’s made to be used, enjoyed, carried and experimented with. But let’s be realistic here. I shot it at about seven yards and, pushing the envelope, at 15. I used some Winchester, Federal, CCI Maxi-Mags and even some CCI .22 Magnum shot cartridges. At seven yards, from a rest (why not give it a chance?) it delivers about 1″ groups, surprisingly centered. The only caveat is to make sure you press the loaded rounds to seat them completely or the slight movement of an ill-seated round softens the firing pin blow, causing a misfire.

I dared myself and moved the target to 15 yards and got a 4” group from the Federal load. The point of impact had moved to just outside of the bull, but honestly, who would use this gun at 15 yards? Still, if you paid attention to where yours hit, you could hit a jackrabbit at that range, and wouldn’t he — and you — both be surprised?

The shot cartridge just might be the most useful load. I have used one of the Pugs from NAA on our land here for almost two years. Loaded with shot, it makes quick work of snake-nasties and field rats. Perhaps even more importantly, it makes for no small amount of adventure when tacking flying wasps close at hand. Beware the shot spread though, as wasps remember who pulls the trigger. Some day I’ll do a video of me doing the “Wasp Dance” after missing one and fleeing into the house. It’s not pretty. “Run away! Keep running!” Bzzz … Slam.

Self Defense

We need to say it and I’ll do it here. I honestly wouldn’t ever recommend any .22 as your primary self-defense gun. As a second or third gun — absolutely, but not your “go-to” defender. With the pocket holster offered by NAA (or the even niftier one by Thad Rybka I begged) I find it comforting to keep the Frontier in my vest pocket virtually all the time around the property. There’s always a real gun close by, but hey, you never know. And this little charmer just might be missed during a search by a bad guy who gets the drop on you, or at least, as Clint Smith might say, give you something to fight your way to your real gun with.

And as a pocket critter-gitter, it works great. Plus, it’s just a darned fun bit of lockwork to play with, and that’s what we do with many (most?) of our guns anyway. I favor the bigger target grips, but the tiny rubber ones make it a tidy handful too, and at only 7.2 oz, it’s easy on your pocket.

The Ranger reminds me of a “worry” stone you might buy. One of those polished, smooth bits of the earth you can keep in your pocket to get your mind off the stresses of the daily grind. The Ranger is like that too. It’s small, comfy and delightful to contemplate. On your desk as you write, it’s a friend. In your pocket in the field, it’s a companion. And both are jobs of no small merit. So thank you Sandy. Thank you very much.

For more info: North American Arms, (800) 821-5783, Thad Rybka Leather, 2050 Canoe Creek Rd., Springville, AL 35146 (no website or phone); Streamlight; TOPS Knives

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Ranger Magnum Break-Top Beauty

Sneaky Peek

The Ranger

The Design

Shooting

Self Defense

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