colt diamondback .22

klou812@chartermi.net

July 14, 2003 16:52

Can i switch a .22 lr cylinder with a .22 mag cylinder, have been told it will work. have a colt diamondback in .22 lr, but i would like to shoot mags, or can i have it bored out?

thanks,
kent

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  RancheroPaul

  July 14, 2003 19:34

  When you have a gun that can shoot both, you have a gun that has a slightly larger bore. This is needed to accommodate the larger diameter of the .22 mag bullet.
  
  The Diamondback Colt .22 was not designed originally to be a "dual" purpose gun capable of shooting both. I'm sure you could get a good gunsmith to fit a cylinder that would make your second cylinder. The proper inside diameter of the barrel bore might be a bigger problem. If it were me, I would not mess with the Diamondback for several reasons. First, you would be messing up the value of a gun that is very Collectible with little chance of getting the gun to do what you really want it to do accurately. Second, you would "de-valuing" the gun because of the conversion. And, Third, you would be diminishing the value of the gun.......no longer Original! Fourth, you would be causing the gun to be unacceptable to a Collector, thereby limiting your market should you ever decide to sell the gun, thereby diminishing its value.......See where this is going?
  
  If you desire a gun that shoots both cartridges, sell the Diamondback and use the money to buy a Factory Gun manufactured to do just that. The .22 Diamondbacks seem to bring a good price in good to better condition. Remember, because of the slightly different diameter of the bullets between these cartridges, you will not have the very best accuracy, as that is impossible because of the different bullet diameters. Good Luck ..... Hope this helps!
  
  "Life is FRAGILE!" Handle With Care!

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  25-06

  July 14, 2003 19:39

  To the best of my knowledge, Colt never made any 22 Magnum Diamondbacks. I do believe they made a couple of tool room guns for testing, but no regular production. I read an article some time ago that said that one of the reasons the Colt 22 revolvers never shot as good as they should was because they used regular .224 barrels instead of the smaller size recquired for 22 LR's. Do not know if this is true, but you could slug your barrel and find out what size it is.

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  k.stanonik

  July 14, 2003 19:40

  Please, Please, Please, dont do that to a diamond back, if you want a dual purpose gun buy a ruger or some thing like that, it would be a shame to damge such a great gun like a diamondback

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  Pearyw

  July 15, 2003 05:53

  I have a 6" 22 Diamondback and the barrels on these guns were rifled for the 22 magnum. This is one reason that these guns are not that accurated with 22 Long Rifle. I remember seeing the 22 Diamondbacks sold with 2 cylinders. If you could find a 22 Magnum cylinder, you could probably use it. I would not try to modify the origonal cylinder as it would affect the collectable value.

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  Delta514

  July 15, 2003 07:49

  There is Little to Nothing to be gained from converting the Colt DiamondBack to a 22 mag, (yes there were some Factory Guns with both cylinders, rare). The 22 DiamondBack in Excellent condition will net appx. $750 - $850. If you ream it to 22 mag, the value will drop to about what an 9 hot H&R is worth.
  
  Not my Idea of a Prudent move, but then: It's not my Gun![:0]
  
  Ronnie G. Perkins

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  my-handyman

  July 15, 2003 15:25

  If you like Colt's, Keep the Diamondback as is and just buy a Trooper. They were made in 22lr,22mag and some with interchangable cylinders in those calibers. Same with the S&W model 651 stainless steel
  
  "Ask not what your country can do for you" JFK

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