Mr. Curious,
The Mdl. 83, once called the Mdl. 252, is a good one, probably the most accurate .22 revolver ever made... maybe even the most accurate .22 handgun, certainly rivaling the T/C's with match chambers and the very best of the Ruger Mk. II Targets. It owes much of its fantastic accuracy to the fact that it is furnished with "Match" chambers, wherin the bullet is a very tight fit in the chamber mouths. This is both the good news and the bad news. If you have the patience to sit at a target bench force feeding ammo into the cylinder, perhaps even using a wooden dowel to accomplish this, then the 83/252 may be just the ticket for you to shoot small groups. If you want the gun for field use and hunting, then you may consider this tight chambering, and possibility of the cartridge rim dragging on the breechface and tieing up the gun, a nuisance. Some heavily waxed "target" ammo can't be made to fit, no matter what.
In my own case, I've always considered my own 252 "Varmint Special" a hunting gun, although I have shot a few silhouette matches with it. After 7 or 8 years of owning it, primarily using it for squirrels and prairie dogs,I tired of the nuisance and sent it back to FA to have the chambers opened up to "Sporting" dimensions about 3 or 4 years ago. It probably cost me a bit of pure mechanical accuracy, but I can't tell it in the field, and probably not on the range, although I never did exhaustive testing after it was returned.
I would recommend that you also consider the Mdl. 97, with Sporting chambers. It's a 6 shot, with a transfer bar. I own both, and find the 97's accuracy to be outstanding also. Personally, I prefer the size and action of the 97 for small cartridges like a .22. Some have said that it's harder to get a good trigger on a 97. I have found that to be absolutely untrue with the 83's and 97's that I own and have owned.
In any event, keep buyin' 'em.
