Smith & Wesson Performance Center® SW22 VICTORY®

Living in rural Maine requires residents to embrace the notions of self sufficiency and self reliance. Having a phone number handy for a good handyman, for help when the work gets too heavy or too oversized for one, is also a good idea. Landscaping, insect control, vehicle and equipment repair, masonry and carpentry work, metal working, generator servicing… challenge that initially are a mystery eventually get sorted out.

Cheap tools and gadgets give way to quality, durable shop tools, equipment and machinery. The quality of work improves and project end goals become more refined and a lifetime of learning begins. The same applies to firearms. They can provide recreation, casual or organized, and they can provide self defense and put food on the table. Subsequently, preferences are more about utility, reliability and practicality for their owner’s intended applications.

Discrete purpose versus system firearms…

 

Smith & Wesson Performance Center SW22 Victory Target pistols are designed for popular rimfire challenge events. A product line in production only since January, 2016, it has already found itself in popular use. Being not much of a socialite and not feeling the need to bond outside of the handful of people I know, competition is limited to family and friend recreational shooting bragging rights. That said, the there are many ways the Victory Target fits into my scheme of things.

This S&W Performance Center configuration is supplied with a Vortex Viper 6 Red Dot and fiber optic front and adjustable rear sights. The Picatinny rail can mount a scope as easily as a red dot sight and the S&W custom brake can be removed and fitted with the supplied thread protector or a silencer can be affixed. Within this mix of options is a configuration for recreational target shooting, small game and varmint hunting and, with Maine permit, this extends to use of a silencer.

Smith & Wesson SW22 Victory Target Pistol
Company	Smith & Wesson
Point of Manufacturer	Springfield, MA
SKU#	12079
Type of Action	Blow Back Semi-Automatic
Caliber	22 Long Rifle
Capacity	10+1
Barrel Length	6.0″
Barrel Material	400 Series SS – Fluted
Rifling Twist Rate	1:15″ 6 Groove RH
Slide Material	400 Stainless Steel
Frame Material	400 Series Stainless Steel
Finish	Matte
Grips	TandemKross Hive Grips
Front Sight	Green Fiber Optic
Rear Sight	Adjustable Green Fiber Optic
Optical Mount	Picatinny Rail
Red Dot Sight	Vortex Viper 6 MOA
Weight of Firearm	38.2Oz.
Trigger Pull – Measured	4 Lbs 2 Oz.
Trigger Adjustment	Over Travel
Overall Length	11.3″
Overall Height	5.6″
Width	1.2″
Safety	Thumb
MSRP	$429

The subject pistol is supplied with a 6″ fluted stainless steel barrel, capped with a custom muzzle brake. The weight of the barrel offers good balance and a steady sight picture. The brake is effective in keeping the barrel level and countering torque on discharge.

Versions of the SW22 Victory Target Pistol are available with a carbon fiber barrel, with and without red dot sights. The red dot assists rapid target acquisition, even if simply by eliminating the need to align sights or too be concerned with parallax; if you can put a red dot on a target, and it’s within sight in range, it will be a hit.

I was concerned with the 6 MOA Dot where technology has reduced these to 1 MOA. Six minutes of an angle at 100 yards is 6.283″, which is a lot of target to conceal. Then I remembered this is affixed to a 22LR rimfire pistol and the 6 MOA made a lot of sense as being appropriate and faster in use at 25 yards or even 50 yards than a 1 MOA sight.

The Viper has multi-coated optics, an an auto shutdown feature. At the highest brightness setting the battery lasts up to 150 hours. At the lowest brightness setting that is extended to 30,000 hours. I did my shooting about midway in brightness, so battery life would be more than the first and less than the second.

Most everything stays still…

Disassembly/assembly detail of the SW22 Victor Target, down to barrel and receiver removal, was covered previously in “Smith & Wesson SW22 Victory Target Pistol Part 1” when the pistol was first introduced. This also details the difference between the Performance Center and non-Performance Center versions.

In general overview The Victory’s barrel is fixed, as is the receiver, leaving the slide/bolt assembly and reciprocating motion the tasks of loading, ejecting and cocking. The flat faced trigger has an adjustable overtravel stop. The TandemKross Hive Grips are comfortable. Soft, conforming, but mounted to a poly substrate to provide structure for a repeatable grip. I did not like them when I saw them, they were… different. Then I shot the pistol and now I really like them.

Controls are where the thumb wants to find them… always nice, and they are positive in actuation. The oversize mag release is optimal for competitive shooting, not so much for day to day use as any nudge from laying the pistol on a bench, left side down, will eject the magazine. Five minutes of use and getting your brain on board minimizes this issue and it would be an easy task to swap out for the standard Victor mag release. Again, perfectly appropriate for a competition pistol, just me grumbling from out of application use.

The Victory Target is a flexible piece of hardware. I indicated previously that the pistol is supplied with a set of fiber optic sight for those who do not want to use a red dot or scope set up. In fact, the rear of the Picatinny rail is notched so it can be use as a fixed rear sight if only the front sight is installed.

The pistol shot well with the brake off and thread protector on, even better with the brake keeping the barrel steady.

With silencer installed, the pistol is longer; with the slide closed, 17 3/4″. Still, between the red dot, the accuracy of the pistol and the quiet of suppressed shooting, it made for a rural back yard tree line rodent router. The assembled combination of pistol and silencer fits nicely in the soft case that is supplied with the pistol.

Shooting the Victory Target…

Three types of ammunition were used to check out the Victory, representing high, standard and subsonic velocity. They all cycled cleanly with no failures to feed or eject. The pistol polished feed ramp contributes to its reliability and a beveled magazine well enhances handling.

I would have to say there were few surprises when shooting for accuracy off of a rest and using the red dot sight. The dot at 6 MOA is not made for precision shooting, but centering on the target grid lines to cent, The Victory is an easy pistol tp shoot. Shooting from an unsupported position the brake configuration was my favorite and yielded the best results. The muzzle stayed down and recovery between shots was quick.

Conclusion – Everyone who is involved in shooting sports should have a quality 22LR rimfire pistol. They are fun and relatively inexpensive to shoot. They are terrific for training new shooters and they are good for building marksmanship proficiency. The Smith and Wesson Performance Center’s SW22 Victory Target is a good one.