New found appreciation for the Ruger 10/22

Mine used to shoot sub .4" MOA at 50 yards, but doesn't do it anymore. I haven't searched for a great brand/type/lot of expensive ammo for it since leaving the Rimfire Benchrest game, but had one batch of Lapua Match ammo that was perfect for the rifle back then.

Took second place at last weekend's local NRL22 match with my 10/22. Not bad for my first NRL22 match.



It's a nearly 40 year old 10/22 with an old Japanese made Tasco scope that is almost as old. The barrel and stock are only about 20 years old.

Years ago I bought a very nice 10/22 with target barrel. It was to be my primary squirrel rifle. I reasoned that it would enable follow-up shots more quickly. It did work that way, but I found that I let the assurance of readily available follow-up shots make me too casual about the first shot; hence more misses. My fault. I also realized that I didn't really like the 10/22 as much as I loved my Remington 541S, so I experimented with better quality ammo (SK Standard Plus) and now hit almost every squirrel eye I shoot at. So, I sold the 10/22. BTW, I just bought a Bergara BXR semi-auto .22, which is a 10/22 clone with better barrel, better trigger, better composite stock. You see, I'm not good at changing things in a 10/22 like you guys, so I just buy one with all the improvements already done. It shoots great and killed the first squirrel I shot at. Now I have 5 great squirrel rifles.

Here's a little jewel for ya:


My wife bought this gun for me a few years ago, on our anniversary. I put a little 1.5x4.5 Bushnell on top of it, and it shot .5" at 40 yards (the furthest my homemade range allows me). A little later, I found a NOS Williams peep set for a 10/22, and mounted it on the little carbine. I felt like the scope just didn't "belong". Still, at 25 yards the little rifle will put 10 shots in a dime, box stock other than a home-brew trigger job and a fuel line buffer. I can honestly say I've never had an ounce of trouble from this rifle. Its always fed, fired, and ejected. Over the years, its claimed a lot of squirrels, rabbits, and varmints.

Mac

Love that mannlicher stock!
I recently acquired an older used 10/22. It had a bad magazine that I couldn’t repair. I acquired a new mag, stuck a bargain scope on it sighted it in with cheap bulk ammo and tuned the trigger. Shot ok and stuck it in the corner beside the gun racks.
Bought some CCI Minimags when they became available.
Last week I took it to the range to put a better scope on it. Wow! Shot several 1/2” groups with 4-shot clusters spoiled by a single flyer. It’s a late ‘70’s vintage with a Walnut stock, and aluminum butt plate and barrel band. It’s now a lot more interesting, but not quite as good as the CZ 452 American.

Legionnaire said:

Mine is like @PapaG's. Ruger 10/22 with a Midway accuracy barrel (years old), Fajen laminate stock, Volquartsen internals. Receiver and bolt are original. Shoots well, and really fun with a suppressor.

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I bought 2 of the midway/fajen stock deals back then... a coffee stock/stainless and a blue barrel gray laminate stock... both trigger jobs by an old friend

Find ammo they prefer and they are as average as the others, stock.

https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/side-by-side-597-10-22-model-60.811602/

My Clark Custom one is very accurate.

Ruger's flush-fit magazines on the 10/22s and Minis are so goofy and I love them for it.

I like how the factory stock feels and mine has yet to find 22 ammo that it won't eat. You can make the 10/22 into any gun you want, but I like mine as is.

I cant figure out what scope I should put on mine. NIB 10/22 deluxe sporter from about 30 yr. ago.

I don't know how one just owns one 10/22

It seems to me that a stock 10-22 is just a rimfire rifle like any other.
With a properly rifled barrel (not hard to accomplish), it should shoot as well as any other semi-auto, pump, or lever action .22.
I do know that you need to check and torque the screws that tighten the wedge that holds the barrel in place.
My rifle came with one screw only lightly tightened and the other not at all.
Not conducive to accuracy.
And, of course, you should look at the crown under magnification.
A rough crown on any rifle could mean the difference between excellent or mediocre accuracy.

MacAR said:

Here's a little jewel for ya:
View attachment 937349

My wife bought this gun for me a few years ago, on our anniversary. I put a little 1.5x4.5 Bushnell on top of it, and it shot .5" at 40 yards (the furthest my homemade range allows me). A little later, I found a NOS Williams peep set for a 10/22, and mounted it on the little carbine. I felt like the scope just didn't "belong". Still, at 25 yards the little rifle will put 10 shots in a dime, box stock other than a home-brew trigger job and a fuel line buffer. I can honestly say I've never had an ounce of trouble from this rifle. Its always fed, fired, and ejected. Over the years, its claimed a lot of squirrels, rabbits, and varmints.

Mac

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My 10-22 didn't come with a "fuel line" to buffer, so used the shank part of a nylon bolt the right size for a bolt buffer. I didn't think the buffer would last, but it's been in there for about 10 years or so and still in good shape.

tallpaul said:

I don't know how one just owns one 10/22

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I only have one 10/22, it is an AllWeather.

Picher said:

My 10-22 didn't come with a "fuel line" to buffer, so used the shank part of a nylon bolt the right size for a bolt buffer.

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A small piece of rubber fuel line slipped over the stop pin works quite nicely in my opinion. While I've heard of the nylon bolt trick, I've never tried it. Might have to one day. So far though, the fuel line is holding up nicely, and hasn't given me any problem. Plus (and maybe best), it didn't cost me a dime. Give it a try sometime, you might like it too.

Mac

Yep carried the bolt buffer to "ACE" with me and got a nylon bolt with half the shank un threaded and used a single edge razor to remove the head and threaded part. I do not have accoustic gear to confirm it but am convinced this reduced action noise.

I used the vise/drill bit/ razor blade/file and stones method of DIY trigger job to reduce factory pull about 50 percent.

The thing I did that seemed to get rid of the most "grit" was, while I had the trigger group down, remove the trigger return spring and clean it and attempt to clean and polish the hole it fits in and the plunger....most work being done on the plunger to polish it. I have to believe that hole, spring and plunger are a major source of gritty trigger pull that should be checked and cleaned.

For the older models I like replacing the mag release to make it easier to use (and quicker for games and stuff like Appleseed) . I loath the original bolt stop and do the peanut mod on originals rather than buying a new one. The hard part is replacing the thing in the first place so why spend money on a new part?

I can not stress enough the helpfulness of the permanent posts on the 10/22 sections on RimFire Central. Also the general helpfulness of the folks there, usually as civil as this crowd.

Yes I have more accurate guns, but a 10/22 is "accurate enough" for hunting or plinking or most games and a lot of fun.

-kBob

MacAR said:

Here's a little jewel for ya:
View attachment 937349

My wife bought this gun for me a few years ago, on our anniversary. I put a little 1.5x4.5 Bushnell on top of it, and it shot .5" at 40 yards (the furthest my homemade range allows me). A little later, I found a NOS Williams peep set for a 10/22, and mounted it on the little carbine. I felt like the scope just didn't "belong". Still, at 25 yards the little rifle will put 10 shots in a dime, box stock other than a home-brew trigger job and a fuel line buffer. I can honestly say I've never had an ounce of trouble from this rifle. Its always fed, fired, and ejected. Over the years, its claimed a lot of squirrels, rabbits, and varmints.

Mac

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Since you hunt squirrels with a scoped rifle, at what distance is your rifle zeroed? How do you compensate for the vertical angle of the shot?

MacAR said:

A small piece of rubber fuel line slipped over the stop pin works quite nicely in my opinion. While I've heard of the nylon bolt trick, I've never tried it. Might have to one day. So far though, the fuel line is holding up nicely, and hasn't given me any problem. Plus (and maybe best), it didn't cost me a dime. Give it a try sometime, you might like it too.

Mac

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The nylon bolt probably cost me about 50 cents at the time, and it's still good about 20 years later.

My BIL bought a used Stainless 10-22 with the grey stock at a gun show and I offered to accurize it for him. I did all the usual tricks, including bedding, trigger work, extractor tuning/re-hardening, operating handle freeing to stop firing pin binding (reason for first-shot flyers), etc. It still shot like crap, so I blamed the factory barrel and picked up a bull-barreled stainless one at Cabelas. It was like MAGIC! The rifle then shot about as well as mine!! He eventually decided to stop shooting, so sold all his guns including that one. I almost bought it, but let it go.

Picher said:

Since you hunt squirrels with a scoped rifle, at what distance is your rifle zeroed? How do you compensate for the vertical angle of the shot?

The nylon bolt probably cost me about 50 cents at the time, and it's still good about 20 years later.

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I always used a 50 yard zero. It will give you a trajectory that will have the bullet within a bullet diameter of the line of sight from ~20 yard to ~55 yards. With that zero even shooting straight up you're still minute of squirrel out to ~25 yards.

Picher said:

Since you hunt squirrels with a scoped rifle, at what distance is your rifle zeroed? How do you compensate for the vertical angle of the shot?

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I zero all of my rimfires at 45 yards, simply because that's the distance of my back yard range. I like them to be dead on at that distance. As far as compensating for shooting up, I don't guess I do. Most of the shots I get are between 20 and 40 yards, and I always try for the head. When I had the scope on this rifle, I could hit about 85% of my head shots. With the peep, I really don't notice a difference. Generally if I put the bead on their eyeball they die. If I miss, they live another day. Unfortunately, the accuracy bug hasn't bitten me; if any rifle I own shoots minute of squirrel out to 50 yards, I'm happy with it. If they don't, they leave. Its also very likely that I only own one 22 that will shoot a group less than 1/2" at 45 yards but the rest seem to shoot well enough. I think my 10/22 does about an inch at 45 (with the peep) which suits me to a T. My 572 will shoot under 1/2", and my old Mossberg will also get reasonably close, but not less and I attribute that more to the old Weaver 2.5x scope that on it than anything. I've a 514 Remington that is also a decently tight shooter, and so is my Henry Golden Boy. But they're both iron sighted and my eyes just aren't that good anymore. Still, I can pop golf ball sized bullseyes all day long with any of them and to me, that is the much-sought-after Minute of Squirrel Head. YMMV, of course.

Picher said:

The nylon bolt probably cost me about 50 cents at the time, and it's still good about 20 years later.

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If I ever get another 10/22 (because, like potato chips, you can't just have one) I will try that. Local hardware store has the bolts you're talking about, and they're still about fifty cents each. Perhaps I'll even try one in my International as a comparison; the rubber buffer vs. the nylon, whether or not it affects operation and accuracy. That would make for an interesting weekend project. If we don't get blown away this evening I might even try it this weekend.

Mac