Gun Review: Grand Power K22 X-TRIM .22LR Pistol

Yes, it’s another Grand Power review. Am I paid by them? No. Do I like their guns? Yes. I’m willing to take criticism for potential favoritism when you accept that I like them after having reviewed hundred of pistols and spent hundreds of hours in training at various institutions.

I like Grand Power for reasons. Given the comments from folks who thought the Q1S was a new release I thought I’d dig out another existing Grand Power you might not have heard of.

The Grand Power K22 was the first .22LR semi-auto I ever encountered that ate just about anything. Some of the super-soft shooting subsonics wouldn’t cycle, but otherwise the pistol was unstoppable.

That’s largely due to the Beretta 92-looking open slide design. It’s nearly impossible for a round to fail to eject unless it also failed to extract.

The K22 X-TRIM is a more competition-oriented design with a “complete” slide that has been heavily skeletonized to reduce weight. No matter how skeletonized the slide is, it still has more mass than the regular K22 design. On my scale the X-TRIM’s slide is .8 oz heavier. More on that later.

What is it? 

The Grand Power K22 X-TRIM is a semi-auto .22LR pistol that mimics the handling, size, and control of the Grand Power K100. The frame, billet-steel internal chassis, controls, four backstraps, and all things user-related (aside from weight) is the same as the Grand Power main battleship including complete and truly-ambidextrous controls.

The “X-TRIM” designation is used for their competition-oriented models which generally includes skeletonization, a fiber-optic front sight and adjustable target rear sight, and sometimes enlarged safety levers to serve as thumb rests for quick shooting.

Magazines are ban-state-friendly 10-rounders sized to fit the regular full-size frame. Because the frame is the same size and the slide is the same shape of a duty-sized 9mm pistol, it fits holsters made for the K100 (providing there’s clearance for the threaded barrel. A tabletop look at the gun can be seen in the video below.

As you saw, aside from a fixed barrel and blowback operation, the Grand power K22 X-TRIM provides the feel and scale of a full-size gun with billet chassis to ensure long life. The pistol has a crisp trigger and is stamped with the initials of the smith who built it.

It’s a .22LR, but it’s not built like a toy. That’s a refreshing change that seems to be catching on in the industry. Though there is no de-cocker on the hammer-fired K22 X-TRIM, it is capable of firing in double action which is a nice feature with rimfire.

On the Range

I was looking forward to a repeat of my past experience with the regular K22 and curious if the extra .8 oz of slide weight would have any impact on reliability with weaker .22LR ammunition. To test that we tried eleven different loads ranging from 36gr to 60gr.

We had issues with poorly-formed Remington Gold Bullet rounds not wanting to feed. Aside from that, some loads seemed to be just a tad too soft for the K22 X-TRIM. The empty would eject, but the slide didn’t travel far enough to pick up the next round.

To see which loads worked best jump to the What’s For Dinner section of the Shooting Impressions video.

We also found the standard enlarged safety levers get in the way sometimes. With my larger hands I had to engage the safety to reach the slide lock. Fortunately low-profile safety levers are included in the box.

The range trip went about as expected. Being chambered for rimfire, the pistol is, of course, very comfortable to shoot, and you can’t fault a higher-trim gun for wanting higher-end ammunition.

For a competitive or defensive shooter wanting a .22LR to match their K100 or K100 X-TRIM, the K22 X-TRIM is a logical choice. I can also see a fit for those wanting a .22LR semi-auto that doesn’t feel like it was intended to be a youth trainer.

Specifications: Grand Power K22 X-TRIM Pistol

Caliber: .22LR
Weight w/o magazine: 23.63oz
Width through controls: 1.42″
Height w/o magazine: 5.25″
Overall Length: 7.38″
Barrel Length: 4.6″
Slide Treatment: Tenifer QPQ
Capacity: 10+1
Price: found online as low as $450 retail

Ratings (out of five stars):

Reliability * * * * 
Like most .22LR semi-auto pistols not all loads will cycle reliably. The Grand Power K22 X-TRIM seems to prefer higher velocity ammunition of good quality.

Ergonomics * * * * *
Having carried and trained with the exact same frame size for years I might have some bias here, but between the four included backstraps I’m confident most normal human hands will feel at home, left or right.

Accuracy * * * * *
With .22LR this is be very ammunition dependent. I was able to create a ragged hole with SK ammunition.

Concealability * * * * 
A bit large for some, but no larger than the Grand Power K100 I’ve carried for years, climate and attire permitting.

Overall: * * * * 
The Grand Power K22 X-TRIM is a possibly overbuilt gun (who else uses a billet chassis in a .22LR?) that mimics a full-size gun as closely as possible, aside from weight and capacity. If you’re just looking for a plinker the regular K22 is less ammo-sensitive and costs $100 less.