10/22 reliability help

[Picher]

I've done quite a bit of work on 10-22s and written up accurizing/improvement articles posted on Rimfirecentral.com Tips and Tricks Forum.

The major causes of FTFs in that rifle can be attributed to two major things: 1. Use of oils to lubricate the action. Oil collects grit from the blowback action and can quickly cause problems. Use dry moly or similar dry lube for any action parts. Do NOT lube magazine lips.

2. The extractor is another frequent cause of jams. A properly fitted extractor will not only pull the case out of the chamber, but more importantly, hold it in position against the bolt head until it hits the ejector. With the rifle disassembled, try putting an empty case under the extractor hook and see if it holds the shell pretty tightly. If it's loose, or falls out, chances of jamming are very high. The clearance can be reduced by placing it in a vise and heating the rear end of the extractor and tapping the lug gently toward the hook. It's a trial and error thing. If you make it too tight, a bit can be filed off the rear lug.

Contrary to popular belief, the primary ejector is really part of a magazine, not the "Ejector" on the trigger group. The "Ejector" is only there to eject a cartridge when the magazine is not in the rifle.

The rifle should be able to group inside 1 1/4" at 50 yards with a good scope, from a good front and rear rest, without doing any mods. Try Winchester Dynapoints or Super-Speed ammo, which burn clean and function well in my rifles.

Picher

 

[JackOfAllTradesMasterAtNone]

We still don't know if this is "New" or not.

I'll have to agree that recent 10/22's are a bit rough in the action. Shooting the old ammunition is the variable that can be eliminated. If there's a bur on the extractor, then yes change it out. I vote for the VQ. Order direct from Volquartsen. https://www.volquartsen.com/vc//pages/public/ListItems.jsp?id=33

But first... Break that rifle in. Shoot another brick or two through it.

Then thoroughly clean it. Use a bit less lubricant though. (about half as much)

There's a thread here somewhere that explains how to dissassemble the magazine and put it back together after it's clean.

Keep the buffer.

If this rifle doesn't function well with the above, then pull the scope mount and shoot again.

Personally I've polished everything inside my 10/22 action, and it does function incredibly well, but that's just me. I didn't do it to get rid of a fault. I did it since that's what I do to all my arms. They function absolutely flawless. I've also installed a VQ match hammer and done my own polish on the hammer and sear. Trapper makes a really good spring kit for the trigger set.

-Steve

 

[kannonfyre]

Mini-Mags Rock!

Taking some advice from the great gunnies over at THR, I did the following to my rifle:

i) Installed a power custom trigger upgrade.
ii) Brushed out the bolt and upper receiver to remove excess CLP.
iii) Shot 200 mini mag 40gr LRNs with 50 cci match pistol rounds for comparison.

Here are the results:

Trigger pull is now 40% lighter. When the gun was clean I fired the 50 match pistol rounds. On average the group size was 2 1/2" at 50 meters and I had a FTE at the 30th round.

When it came to the minmags however, the recoil was noticeably stouter and it's bark was louder HOWEVER....170 rounds fired slowly and 30 rounds fired rapidly showed NO FTEs, FTFs or STOPPAGES of ANY KIND!!!!! Additionally, group size while shooting seated from a table without a rest decreased to 2".

One last issue though, I noticed that after shooting the 50 match pistol and 100 minimags, the zero of my rifle changed about 2" to the left. I didn't knock my scope or drop my rifle so what do you guys think happenned? While my barrel was hot to the touch, do you think that was an issue for accuracy? Do stock sporter stainless barrels have accuracy issues when hot after 150 rds in quick succession?

 

[Ol` Joe]

Any rifle can have a change in the accuracy or point of impact when hot. I`d suspect the impact change though was caused by the velocity difference between ammo types.
I`m glad to see you`re getting the rifle to straighten up and act right.

 

[GunLocators]

A urethane buffer will NOT effect the function of your firearm. We use them in all our match rifles and never have a issue.

 

[Crosshair]

Remington Brick ammo is 100% in my 10/22, but I can't find any other brick ammo that works reliably. (I would like to use 40 grain bullets.) Even the Federal 40 grain bullets that come in a box of 50 love to jam up my 10/22. I'll try the extractor thing and see how tight it is. Any other ideas?