Walther .22LR Uzi Copy – New Gun Review

Authors Paul Helinski
Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
You would think that this is a real, suppressed, 9mm Uzi submachinegun, but it is not. This is actually a .22LR copy of the Uzi made by Walther, licensed by the actual Israeli Weapon Industries (IWI) maker of the real Uzi, and imported by Umarex.

Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
The guns are made by the real Carl Walther in Germany, and are not brought in by the same channels as the Walther pistols that until recently were being marketed by Smith & Wesson.

Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
Both the rifle, which we shot, and the pistol, which we didn’t shoot, come with this 25 round magazine. It is easy to load with the side slider, and you should bounce the rounds on the spring to settle them for the gun to work properly all the time. .

Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
The folding stock is nice and solid, but the finish is different from the gun (it is blued) so it looks a little odd. Folding it back in is a little tricky. You have to pinch the bars to collapse the rear section.

Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
Walther chose to make the palm safety functional on this Uzi copy. It works, but from the shoulder with the buttstock extended, especially shooting prone, it is a little awkward to disengage.

Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
The rear sight is drift adjustable and works well, but the finish is easy to scratch off. If you make the picture bigger you can see the scratches already in it from casual use.

Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
The front sight can be adjusted up and down with an AR tool, but because of the finish you are better to use your fingers if possible.

Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
This is the spring to release the top cover.

Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
The bottom assembly comes apart with one AR style pin, and you can clean the gun easily with both top and bottom removed. As you can see, it gets quite dirty.

Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
We shot the Umarex Walther made Uzi with six different types of ammunition, five of which are on this target. You shouldn’t consider this a close to MOA gun, but we did get great accuracy using Fiocchi Canned Heat .22LR.

Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
The magazine is plastic on this Uzi, but everything else (except the grips of course) is nicely finished, very solid feeling metal, including the magazine release and safety.

Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
The trigger was fairly consistent at about 6.5 pounds, and is pretty crisp for a replica rifle trigger.

Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
This is the blued steel stock fully extended.
Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
You can move the sling swivels to two different locations on the gun.

Walther .22LR Uzi Copy - New Gun Review
The suppressor is fake but the gun does have an actual 16″ rifle barrel, which is probably why we didn’t see stringing of the groups as the gun heated up.


Carl Walther IWI
https://www.waltherarms.com/uzi

You have to be careful with what you believe on the internet. That goes for gun reviews as much as anything else. I was shocked last week when a gun dealer friend of mine said that he had been unable to sell a really nice looking copy of the Uzi submachinegun in .22LR, made by Walther in Germany. He said that he read on the internet that it extremely picky with ammo, and that this was probably why it hadn’t sold. Hogwash! … I said to him. Walther isn’t some fly by night company that puts out guns that don’t work. They would never put a gun into the market that didn’t function flawlessly. The street price of the rifle version we were able to test is about $650, and the pistol version, which we didn’t test, is about $200 cheaper.

Upon firing this rifle version with a half a dozen different types of .22LR, I was in fact correct. Over more than 500 rounds we experienced only one stovepipe, and even that was suspect because our resident hunting guide Dwayne Powell shot the gun like a sissy. We can’t speak for the pistol version, which we again, we did not shoot, but this rifle version is extremely reliable and quite a handy little dandy. If you already own an Uzi that is too expensive to shoot, or if you have been thinking about a real Uzi but the price tag is too steep, this is an IWI licensed Uzi copy that is as close to the real thing as you are going to get, and it is an extremely well made and well put together firearm. Because it is is a Walther (imported by Umarex), this will be a price book catalogued gun, and it will have collector value, and it is also fun to shoot.

On the Walther website in Germany there is a PDF product announcement about this gun with both a short barrel and a shoulder stock, but I am unaware that such a thing exists in the USA market. If you don’t already know this, the “short barreled rifle” laws of National Firearms Act (the thing that banned machineguns back in 1986) are downright silly. You can’t have a rifle with a barrel under 16″ without a special federal permit application and a $200 fee. They are classified as “Short Barreled Rifle” under the NFA, and it is a Federal crime to violate the statute. What makes a rifle legally a rifle is that it has a shoulder stock, so if you flip the whole thing around, you come up with the law of the land, which is that any firearm with a shoulder stock must have a barrel over 16.” The rifle version that we reviewed has a very elaborate folding shoulder stock, so it comes with a long barrel disguised a short barrel with a fake suppressor (a suppressor would be an additional application and $200 tax under the NFA). Understandably, the pistol version of the gun, which we did not review, does not have the ability to add a shoulder stock.

At 7.7 pounds, this Uzi copy is not a casual .22LR rifle that you might buy instead of a more tried and true Ruger 10/22 or other semi-auto. The gun has a lot of beef that it doesn’t really need, and while this gun is nowhere near as egregious in that department as the STG-44 copy we recently reviewed, the overall construction of the Walther Uzi copy is far more sturdy and solid than it needs to be. It comes with one 20 round magazine that is easy to load due to a functional slider for the follower. The sights are AR-15 style with a windage adjustable rear and height adjustable front. Point of aim zero fell well within the range of adjustment at 50 yards, but my one big complaint on the gun is that the finish on the sights is far too easy to scratch. You can’t use an AR sight tool on the front sight without scratching the finish off, and even the rear sight lost some flakes of black with casual use. If you expect to retain the collector value on the gun, you will have to be extremely careful not to mar that finish.

We shot a total of six brands of .22LR ammo through our new Walther Uzi and the accuracy was fairly consistent across all the brands. It is a pure coincidence that we happen to be running Fiocchi Canned Heat ads at the same time that our tightest group with the Uzi came out to be Fiocchi Canned Heat .22LR. Fiocchi has been a constant performer over the years in our tests, but this gun head and shoulders liked it better.

In fairness to the noise floor out there, the gun does say .22LR HV on it, for “high velocity.” This could be the source of the ammo sensitivity reviews, which probably were not actual reviews from firing the gun, but speculation. Our worst group was with high velocity CCI Stingers, which is often the case in our tests. Velocity with a .22LR is more a product of bullet weight than actual power or recoil. A lighter projectile flies faster with the same amount of powder than would a heavier projectile, and that is why they label them “high velocity.” In larger caliber weapons a “high velocity” load might produce better function in a gas operated recoil system, but in a straight blowback .22LR there is no real effect in a gun this size. The ballistics of the Stingers, 32 grains traveling at 1640 fps, isn’t substantially different from a standard .22LR 40 grain bullet at 1300 fps. Even the Blazer .22LR, which is listed at 40 grains flying at 1235 fps. worked fine in the gun, except that one shot from Dwayne. He didn’t really shoot it like a sissy. Most likely he just didn’t tap the magazine after he loaded it, which is always a good idea.

Because the gun is straight blowback, there is no gas system to clean. A simple spring release and one AR-style frame pin allow the gun to be taken down easily for cleaning without a complicated disassembly. You will want to clean it because regardless of the ammo, the gun runs dirty. pretty quick. Our trigger pull measurement came in at just over 6 1/2 pounds and it was surprisingly crisp, with not a lot of takeup or drag. It is overall a very pleasant gun to shoot, and the folding stock locks in tight with no play or jiggle at all. A neat feature on the gun are the sling swivels. They are the ball bearing, pushbutton type, so you can configure your sling for a side or front slung carry. It is built as a serious firearm, apparently for a cheap shooting alternative for a gun with the real weight and feel of the real thing that you can shoot cheaper (assuming we can ever by .22LR ammunition again).

Our accuracy tests were at 50 yards and the dispersal of the shots ranged from about three inches with the CCI Stingers to less than an inch with Fiocchi Canned Heat. Most of our testing was with bulk packed Winchester, Blazer and the Canned Heat, and the gun clearly preferred the Fiocchi, but performed pretty well with everything we put through it. Bulk rimfire ammunition can vary significantly batch to batch so the takeaway is more that that the gun is a fairly consistent shooter than any specific performance guarantees with any one type of ammo. Heating the gun up didn’t appear to effect it a great deal, probably because the barrel is sheathed with so much steel with that fake suppressor. This shooting was rested, but not careful. Umarex doesn’t market the Uzi copy as a tack driver and it shouldn’t be considered as such. What you can expect is a very sharply made firearm made by a stellar company in a classic Uzi look and feel. The nicest thing about these guns is that they actually currently available, so grab one while you still can.

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  • Tom Pyke February 26, 2020, 9:32 pm

    Is anyone going to copy the Walther 22UZI magazine at least a twenty round but a drum would be more fun.

  • Thomas Pyke April 7, 2018, 2:13 pm

    Why can’t someone make the magazines for the LR 22 UZI ITS IMPOSSIBLE TO BUY MORE AND MINE ONLY CAME WITH ONE. IF YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION ON WHERE TO GET SOME PLEASE E-MAIL ME THANK YOU!

  • Tom cahill October 7, 2016, 6:49 pm

    I have a pre ban Uzi 9mm model A that could be had

  • tuna February 13, 2016, 7:22 am

    before ya buy one, removed the barrel cap and take a look at the barrel. its basically the thickness of a mcdonalds drinking straw,,,how lame is that??? seriously,,,,this is junk!!!

    • Mark Dorsey January 26, 2017, 12:10 pm

      It’s actually a match grade insert ,2000 + rds with no problems, it’s 22lr,you can’t even get it warm doing a mag dump,really if you don’t have one don’t comment.

  • Warner Miner November 3, 2015, 8:46 am

    Very nice and informative article here. You touched on a topical issue. I would appreciate if you\’d written about how to fill a form online. BTW, there is an online service through which you can fill out a 2013 NOAA Federal Permit App for Vessel Fishing in EEZ, the fillable blank is here NOAA Federal Permit.

  • Tom Nagorny July 12, 2015, 3:58 pm

    Hi Guys,

    I have one of these guns and yes it runs like a dream. However I have kids and on top of my shooting regularly, they have run literally 1,000’s upon 1,000’s prolly in the 20k range and this thing still has the cool factor going for it! Its always the 1st gun they look for when on my range, and she still hits paper plates out to 100 yrds But as anyone would expect I need to purchase more mags can you help me out? Possibly a replacement barrel as well wouldn’t hurt. I would love to dress it up further tactically if possible too like a reflex sight top or even a laser dot under or side mounted if they exist or am I making my own mounts?
    Thanks for your time,
    Tom N.

  • Lucas June 13, 2015, 10:44 am

    I own this rifle, and it is a good looking toy, but it sucks, I shoot it four different times, and the last two times it jammed, after the 9th round the rifle doesn’t do the full cycle, and the next round shoots through the old shell. and that happens even when the rifle has been cleaned perhaps it’s the ammo, or the mag, but I really think is the mechanism in the gun itself, however if you guys can give me a tip to get it fix that would be greatly appreciated.

    • Justin McNeal May 27, 2017, 3:22 pm

      I’ll buy it from you. Just email me.

  • Gary June 10, 2015, 5:33 pm

    Pictures don’t do this Walther replica UZI rifle justice. It looks mean out of the box! Looks real bad-ass and streamlined. I don’t care if it is a .22 replica.

  • Tammy April 13, 2015, 4:00 pm

    I have a umarex iwi 22lr uzi. Where can I buy extra magazines? I can’t seem to find them anywhere

  • t w carroll January 23, 2015, 9:02 pm

    I bought both the rifle and the pistol. You couldn’t ask for a better .22 fun gun. Shots and handles very well. I’m proud to own these fine pieces.

  • john dendy October 6, 2013, 4:02 pm

    Your comment about the “egregious” weight of the STG 44 and this Uzi leads me to conclude that you don’t understand the people that like military replicas. We don’t want some Mattel plastic, light weight toy gun. We want a gun that looks and feel like the real thing. I have the STG 44 and it seems to be the real thing (until you fire it of course). Personally, Would rather have the real thing but the last real STG I saw went for over $10,000.

  • m7491 August 27, 2013, 5:09 pm

    Why would anyone who has matured beyond adolescence WANT a fake suppressor?

    • Administrator August 27, 2013, 6:41 pm

      Your first point is well taken, but there isn’t a huge upside to being a grownup. They are boring.

    • Stu Studebaker March 1, 2015, 7:20 pm

      For looks you tard!

      • Mark Dorsey January 26, 2017, 12:12 pm

        Yep.

  • marv April 22, 2013, 5:56 pm

    Hogwash! … I said to him. Walther isn’t some fly by night company that puts out guns that don’t work. They would never put a gun into the market that didn’t function flawlessly.

    UMMm… never heard of the P22 I take it? head on over to rimfire forums and read the pages and pages about what must be done to get this walther to work. Mine runs, but only after a full tear down to fix it’s problems.
    I’d like to have a .22 uzi, but if it has the walther name, I’ll try before I buy. Picky with ammo would be consistent with current walther products.

    • Administrator April 22, 2013, 6:26 pm

      Perhaps the rimfire forms are full of people who feel they must take apart a gun before they go shoot it. A few very vocal people can steer a discussion and credentials are not part of being vocal. This gun is not ammo sensitive at all.

      • gordon April 22, 2013, 8:55 pm

        I have a pistol version of the 22lr uzi walther and it shoots great! i also have the 45/9mm pistol uzi and can’t hardly hit anything small but the 22 is awesome.Dont dryfire the 22 or you can screw up the barrel.As long as you shoot it with a magazine it stays open on the last shot and you wont damage it.

      • Nick October 29, 2013, 7:23 am

        Or perhaps the author has never met a gun he didn’t like. Just look back at some of the reviews he has posted. He talks about Mossberg shotguns as if they were works of art. This is a mass produced,stamped out copy, that’s a .22 and our reviewer is telling us that this will be a collector’s item LOL…seriously? You get what you pay for. If you saved your money every time this author told you something was worth buying, it wouldn’t be long before you’d really be able to buy something that actually would appreciate in value. You also wouldn’t have to tell everyone at the range, “no, it’s only a .22 and a fake”. I’d rather spend $600 on ammo for what I have than ever utter those words.

        • Stu Studebaker March 1, 2015, 7:19 pm

          Ignorant comment from an ignorant person!

  • Carl Walker April 22, 2013, 12:48 pm

    Great little weapon, accurate quick trigger. It is heavy, but you will learn to handle. First use 125 rounds with 3 bad bullets. Sweet gun, I also have the Chappa pistol that I think I prefer, jury is still out.

  • Steve April 22, 2013, 12:35 pm

    “Walther” as you think of them ceased to exist around 1997 when Umarex took them over and started applying that name to all sorts of blank firers, CO2 guns and .22s. Why do you think S&W started making the PPK/S under license?

    Which is not to say the stuff they make is junk but you’re never going to see anything like the Walther P88 or P5 again. I have one of the very first Walther CP88 CO2 pistols and it still works great after 15+ years of use.

    • Mark May 30, 2013, 5:02 pm

      Yeah Steve The fact is Umarex bought the Walther company in 1993. Sounds to me like you probably bought a Walther since then. Surprise! Surprise!

      • Mark Miller June 6, 2013, 2:52 am

        Another thing Steve the PPS is made in Germany, I have one, you can see for yourself on Impact guns on the inter net it says right on the handle or on wikapedia. I think the reason that S & W make the PPK is because Walther wanted them to be the distributer for their handguns in the U.S. and S & W wanted a piece of the action and bargained to produce their most popular handgun (the PPK).

        • Administrator June 6, 2013, 9:17 am

          SW was the distributor of walther until last year when they went on their own.

  • Brian April 22, 2013, 12:16 pm

    Bought the pistol version at Cabela’s. Fun fun fun to shoot. One thing I have noticed is that you have to let the trigger return to the full pre-fire position which seems a little long (distance)- guess I’m used to shooting other triggers that seem faster. At any rate- very accurate. Extra magazines are a problem- backordered at Umarex, you only get one with the original purchase, like many they are available but at a premium. Easy loading, definitely tap the mag, check the position of the first round like the manual says and get ready to grin till your face hurts. I can only imagine how much fun a 9mm would be.
    On a side note, send my Governor (Hickenlooper- Colorado) a little note thanking him for assuming that law abiding firearms owners are only a breath away from being criminals and that criminals are really ticked that now they have more gun laws to obey. Tell him you’re more than happy to buy products manufactured in other states (can’t wait until Magpul moves) and that you have no intention of traveling to Colorado to spend your hard earned vacation dollars.

  • Mr Marshall B Johnston April 22, 2013, 9:48 am

    Where can you buy one? I live in southern Utah and at best you can buy are BB’S let alone any thing that resembles an assult rifle. If you want to buy 22 ammo Wal Mart gets ammo in every morning at 7am but they don’t know what it is until they unpack the crate. Sportsmans Warehouse and Dicks get their shipment’s in on Friday morning and you have to be there at 9 am to get anything.

    • Administrator April 22, 2013, 10:17 am

      GA has some.

  • Jon Guright April 22, 2013, 9:31 am

    I always wanted a Uzi but since its already ban where I live this is the next best thing. Although the metal folding stock looks really cool the feeling of it pressing on ones cheek is rather uncomfortable. I would get one if it had a wooden stock option.

    • Tom cahill October 7, 2016, 6:45 pm

      You want a real Uzi I have a pre ban 9mm that’s available

  • Steve Hlabse April 22, 2013, 8:13 am

    I bought a pistol version about 3 weeks ago.I also bought an extra magazine.I LOOOOOVE this little thing.It’s got some pretty good heft to it and for the shooting part of it,30 feet is what we use it for.It’s a beautyThe barrel is 5″ and the sights are the same as the rifle.Out of the bos it was dead on @20 feet w/remington HV22LR.As you stated in the article,CCI stingers shot a bit high but well within the acceptable range for what my wife and I use it for.Cleaning and disassembly is simple.Great little gun for the price and a whole lot more affordable than her 9MM counterpart.

  • Sanctus April 22, 2013, 6:57 am

    I bought one last month and love it- so
    Fun to Shoot and looks bad ass- accurate and like all 22’s ammo
    Sensitive but i look forward to
    Shooting it all the time and keeping it in shape for the haul!!

    • Patrick Duggan April 22, 2013, 7:28 pm

      they probably won’t buy it because you can’t get 22 ammo

      • john dendy October 6, 2013, 4:05 pm

        Not quite correct. You can get .22lr ammo. It’s just a little harder to find now and it’s more pricy. In the last 4 months i have bought about 3000 rounds at an average price of 9 -10 cents a round. If you can’t afford that, you are in the wrong hobby 🙂

  • Jeff April 22, 2013, 6:49 am

    A rifle with less than a 16″bbl would be an SBR, subject to a $200 tax stamp, not $5. Same with a suppressor. The $5 AOW category would be pistol-grip shotguns, with less than 18″bbl, and a few other niche guns…

    • Administrator April 22, 2013, 6:52 am

      thanks this was corrected already

      • TNinfidel April 22, 2013, 12:44 pm

        1934 NFA subjected us to the un-Constitutional regulations and a $200 tax stamp for SBRs. 1986 FOPA (Firearm Owners Protection Act) banned the production of new machine guns for us mere peasants.

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