The .22 TCM (.22 Tuason Craig Micromagnum) is a bottle-necked cartridge that was created by custom gunsmith Fred Craig and Rock Island Armory (RIA). It was chambered in RIA’s semi-automatic 1911s and the Rock Island M22 TCM bolt action rifle. The original name for the round was the 22 Micro-Mag.
Here it is next to a 40 Cal
The 22TCM was based on the 5.56×45mm NATO case. It was cut short and then the case necked down and is about the same length as a .38 Super cartridge. The process is similar to making 300BLK cases – cut, neck down and de-burr. I have not tried making my own casings like I have with 300BLK but probably will in the future.
The .22 TCM is longer than the 9MM and designed to be fired from RIA’s 1911’s and a bolt action rifle they also produce. Most of the 1911 pistols sold by RIA come with a 9mm barrel and spring so that they can shoot either caliber. One thing to note is that there are 2 recoil springs – 1 for 9MM and 1 for the 22TCM. And if you swap them on accident the pistol won’t function correctly.
It is odd to me that there is no designation on the recoil springs at all. No drop of paint on the end or some other way of telling them apart. So if you don’t keep track when cleaning after the range and confuse the two it can cause issues. The only real way to differentiate is to lay them next to each other. The heavier looking spring is actually the 7Lb 22 TCM spring, it has fewer coils so it acts like a lighter spring even though the wire looks thicker. RIA should figure out a way to mark them to avoid confusion. In the meantime I am trying model paint and we will see how it holds up.
The fit and finish of the weapon are great. No rattling, no loose parts. The grips are very good VZ grips and the screws are torqued down. I like the positive traction of the grips, it is very aggressive.
It is heavier than my SA 1911, although it helps keep it on target so I think the tradeoff is worth it. The trigger has very little creep and brakes clean at what I would guess to be 4 or 5 pounds. The reset is almost nonexistent and follows up shots are very fast.
On my second trip out with the gun for testing with factory loads, I was all over the paper. I could not figure out why it would not group at all until I looked at the sights. The front sight was sliding around in it’s milled out slot. I decided to send the gun back for warranty rather than taking it to a smith. RIA’s customer service is great, they responded to my request in about a day and sent me a shipping label and instructions and I sent it off. When it came back the sight was replaced and has been good to go ever since. Future use will show how it holds up, especially when I start holster draws.
I have bought a few RIA magazines but they are a little pricey. From some of the research I have done it is said that Mec-Gar P18 38 Super mags will work in their place, and they are a lot cheaper. This is unconfirmed by us at this time but different gun forums have made the claim. So if you have some and have used them let us know how they worked so we can pick up some spares. These same mags will be used when you’re shooting 9MM out of the gun with the barrel swap. They definitely are long for the 9MM but after a few hundred rounds there have been no issues with feeding.
Recoil is slightly more than semi-auto 22 pistols, that is to say, there really is none. However part of that is that the gun is heavier than most 22 pistols so that helps suck up some of the recoils. It was absolutely surprising how little recoil there was the first time I pulled the trigger.
The muzzle blast, however, is magnificent. Fireballs light up the area around me at night and make for a great light show.
So now the bad. This round jams or fails to extract constantly. I have yet to get through a full magazine. I have used multiple boxes of factory ammo and the slide will not fully close or the round will not feed almost every time. The most shots I have managed in the string was 4 and I was ecstatic when that happened. You can see the video for examples. It is very frustrating because I really want to like this round. It’s exotic and fast and fun – everything I look for when buying a new gun. I have tried everything – new magazines, polishing the feed ramp, more oil when cleaning, slightly tweaking the lips on the mag. None of it makes a difference, I can not get this gun to function well when shooting 22TCM.
As for handloading – the load data that was supplied with the reloading dies seems a bit weak. The low to mid-range loads did not always have enough power to knock the slide back all the way and eject the casing. I am wondering if a hotter primer will help that. I need to work on some max loads to see if that alleviates the issue.
The 9MM conversion is perfect. It’s accurate it is reliable and it’s fun. I can mag dump on a steel target and group it well. I have yet to have any issues with extracting or chamber using the RIA mags and normal ammo. I have used a few different factory loads with great success. I like the pistol enough I will be competing with it in the future with no modifications.
All in all, I am happy with the pistol. It’s frustrating that the 22TCM is a hassle to shoot and early functions correctly. I will continue to work on getting it to function correctly and if I do what I ended up doing. If I had to do it again I would it is a fun gun and the saving grace is that its dual caliber. the 9MM has been flawless and accurate, I really enjoy shooting it.
Video review with more info
Sweet write up.