ruger 10/22s are good guns

triggerman42

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I've always liked the ruger 10/22s. I don't think they're target rifles , but plenty accurate for most applications including hunting. I bought my first one ( a used gun) about 1973 , put several thousand rounds of ammo through it , and was so impressed with it I bought a brand new one in 1978 that I still own today.
It is still in original factory configuration , with the exception of sling + swivels + a 4 power Bushnell scope.
The only other thing I ever bought for it , was a eagle brand 30 round magazine which was a real bad idea , as it never functioned properly , had periodic feed jams , and was just basically a bad idea , as it ruined the functional dependability of the gun. Back to the ruger rotary magazine I went and presto , hours upon hours of perfect function and dependability.
I realy dont understand the current craze to buy one of these nice little rifles , and systematically remove and replace parts on these , with aftermarket parts made by an array of other companies ,untill there is almost nothing left on the gun ,that is made by the original manufacturer.

Is it because they're just so damn easily taken apart with no special tools , that anybody can do it?
This was always a great feature I thought. So easy to strip down + give it a good cleaning now and then.

Or is it just because all these other parts and modifications are all over the place now , as well as threads in forums on "building a ruger" Lets face it. They're not building a gun. You dont even need tools to do most work!
A screw driver and a punch maybe.

Or is it that ruger has completely dropped the ball on quality control lately , to the point that a stock gun is no more than a starting point , and needs serious alterations to become funtional + dependable.
I still like my ruger. It doesn't get out much any more, but it always had it's place.
Years back when me and a couple of buddies coon hunted at night, the little ruger's dependability was a necessity, and it never let me down.

Don't get me wrong. To the guys that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars on modifications, please...have at it !
If that's what you enjoy, do it.

But to me, Id just buy a semi auto I liked , then take those extra hundreds and buy something else.
Maybe a BSA martini.22 for targets , or one of the fine old Mossburgs with aperture sights , like the 146b maybe.
Or go for something a little different , a Gevarm , or a Vostok.

Ruger's been making 10/22s since 1964. There is somewhere around 5 million of them out there.
I am worried that some of these fancy , expensively dressed up ones are lonely.
Guns need friends. Buy them some buddies. Be a humanitarion..... restore a Cooey !
 
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My original ruger 10/22 is from 1986.
My 2nd one is from 1992 (stainless one this time)
I made a custom one last winter.
I purchased a brand new one this past spring to make another project one.

So I have 4 right now.
And I can tell you with all honesty the quality of my 80's and 90's ones are night and day to the current offerings.

Between the plastic parts and the mill marks they arnt even in the same ball field.

To be brutally honest if I had purchased the one I did in the spring as a shooter instead of a base for a project I would have took it back or flipped it I was so disappointed in it.
As it was I swapped out all the parts that where crud and now have another perfect 10/22 to plink with.

So ya, I think that most new purchases you pretty much have to do some upgrades too them to even get them on par with the older offerings.

That and there are some fantastic add on's now.
Hogue over molded stock..... It's like getting a hug from a old friend.
Fiber optic front sight's...... I'm getting older and the eyes are not what they use to be.
I won't even start in on the new plastic trigger group.
 
The new ones have a crappy plastic trigger group the old ones were metal. The pull sucks so a modded or better yet upgraded metal group like vq or timiny is a must for me at least for a new style one. They come in target wich to me seems like a not bad rig for target shooting. However I liked to modify the 10/22 because I love there magazines and the way they fit so tight it's just perfect. Plus 10,25,50 round mags keep things interesting. For that reason alone I'd rather mod one into a tack driver vs buying something else. Plus my m77 takes the same mags so two birds with one stone sort of deal. I like them stock as well for let's say shooting some prarie dogs. It's just after having a good one I cannot go back. I'm a no compromise type of guy. I'd like to try some high end clones they might be good. Have a a couple others cooeys, lake fields there good to but when ya love something you just love it shortcomings aside. It's like one of those sky's the limit or I just want a barrel, stock or trigger group type deal. Versatility is endless and ruger makes like 15 different factory flavours. I always keep the original parts ;)
 
I guess I'm lucky I've hung on to my old one then. Had it 35 years now.
I'm sorry to hear that about the quality.
I know alot of companies have gone way down hill on quality.
Look at the old remington 870 Wingmasters. They were smooth as melted butter on a plate , with exellent blueing + beautifully finnished wood. Now look at the 870 express . How the mighty have fallen !
 
I guess I'm lucky I've hung on to my old one then. Had it 35 years now.
I'm sorry to hear that about the quality.
I know alot of companies have gone way down hill on quality.
Look at the old remington 870 Wingmasters. They were smooth as melted butter on a plate , with exellent blueing + beautifully finnished wood. Now look at the 870 express . How the mighty have fallen !
It's just because they had a million firearms back ordered since about 2010/11 and then the buying spree happend. They had to double or triple production. I'm sure quality will return in slower times. Still it's not a bad rifle I just don't care for plastic, and some aren't shooting as accurate as they maybe should. Other then that its not an 870 story it's just not as smooth as it once was. Like fit and finish is rougher that's about it. I think this is really aparent in the take down as it seems some are great, and others not so much. New employes are hard to train on a large scale when your trying to double production. Just my 2 cents I still always buy em when I have a chance it's a cult following kinda thing for me
 
Got mine circa 1988, Trigger pull was much nicer than my buddy's from 4 years later. It always shot great, 100% reliable with factory mags, not so much with the other 25 & 30 shots. In about 2000 I mail ordered from stateside hogue over molded stock, spring kit, carbon fibre barrel, and tasco mil dot scope. The whole package was about $250-300. Heckuva a deal! It now has to be considered a tack driver, shoots moa with bulk pack ammo, out to 100 yards - maybe a bit more. The accuracy improved about 50%. The only thing better than rapid fire is accurate rapid fire, especially when as herd of gophers are about to attack! Mine has to have seen close to 20, 000 rounds, and is still going strong. She's got plenty of company in the toy room, but is the one that gets to go out and play the most! Highly recommend to anyone, in fact 10/22 ought to be included with every PAL! :)
 
I purchased a used 10-22 well over twenty years ago. It was in like new condition.
It functioned perfectly but it was terribly inaccurate, 5" group at 50 yards.
I tried every type of ammo that was available in it with the same results.
The little Ruger spent the next twenty years at the back of the gun safe.
About 3 years ago I found a company that had a Green Mountain barrel that would fit it
so I ordered the barrel and a Wolf spring kit as well.

I replaced the barrel and installed the spring kit and what difference! It would now shoot a 5/8" ragged hole at 50 yards.
I read about all the after-market parts but wanted to keep the rifle as original as possible.
I took the trigger group apart and using a diamond lap I changed the angle on the sear and the hammer reducing
the trigger pull from about 8 pounds to about 2.5 pounds. I also head spaced the bolt with the same lap to .043" from .055".
The bolt modification stopped the fliers i occasionally got.
I bedded the action with JB Weld using cling wrap between the stock and the action.
I also modified the bolt lock so when the bolt is pulled back it releases.
I found a heavier one piece scope mount for it and installed a Simmons 4 to 12 rim-fire scope on it.

It's very accurate and works well with every type of ammunition that I have tried in it.
Sadly the ammunition that I bought 20 some years ago was way more accurate as the same brands are today.

Terry
 
I have one thats less than a year old, so far Ive left it alone and have only added a 3x9 scope on it. I also have an Eagle mag for it but havn't tried it yet. I seen where you can sand off a bit on the plastic lips to avoid the jamming problem, we'll see if that works someday.
 
The new ones have a crappy plastic trigger group the old ones were metal. The pull sucks so a modded or better yet upgraded metal group like vq or timiny is a must for me at least for a new style one. They come in target wich to me seems like a not bad rig for target shooting. However I liked to modify the 10/22 because I love there magazines and the way they fit so tight it's just perfect. Plus 10,25,50 round mags keep things interesting. For that reason alone I'd rather mod one into a tack driver vs buying something else. Plus my m77 takes the same mags so two birds with one stone sort of deal. I like them stock as well for let's say shooting some prarie dogs. It's just after having a good one I cannot go back. I'm a no compromise type of guy. I'd like to try some high end clones they might be good. Have a a couple others cooeys, lake fields there good to but when ya love something you just love it shortcomings aside. It's like one of those sky's the limit or I just want a barrel, stock or trigger group type deal. Versatility is endless and ruger makes like 15 different factory flavours. I always keep the original parts ;)

That's one upgrade (trigger) that I feel is mandatory.. other than that we're good to go, it's a fun shooter (SS)
 
Ruger's been making 10/22s since 1964. There is somewhere around 5 million of them out the.
I am worried that some of these fancy , expensively dressed up ones are lonely.
Guns need friends. Buy them some buddies. Be a humanitarion..... restore a Cooey ![/QUOTE]

Great thread. I have a 10/22 in a Dragunov ATI stock. Just didn't care for the fit of the factory stock. I also just restored an old Cooey from my youth. Bought it used in about 1975 and feel good about bringing it back to life. It was the first gun I ever purchased.

Rimfires just make me happy, whatever the configuration. And you're right, they do need friends.
 
I just keep loading magazines, keep pulling the trigger... and the bullet just keep coming out the end!

if you happen to be a pop can at the other end its your day to go.
 
Why the hate for custom builds? Why the emotional blasphemy? People choose to mod their guns for their own reasons and shouldn't have to justify it. Myself I love modding my toys. Been doing it since I was 3. I like taking something and asking myself how I can make it better. That's my judgement call and need not be in tune with someone else's needs or taste. I rarely mod something that "needs" it like its imperative. I don't feel everything needs to be modded. If you like your guns bone stock all the power to you. None of mine are and I could care less what anyone thinks of them or how their resale value has been affected. My '89 10/22 has a polished receiver, bolt and trigger group, 2012 blued barrel, brass plug screws, Skinner lopro rear sight, Skinner brass front sight, blonde stock, radiuses bolt, trigger job and a PC extractor. It worked just fine before. I like shooting it more now. I don't feel bad about it either lol.
 
Looks like 10/22s are harder to find than Leprechaun these days. None of the online stores have them available and the smaller gun shops I've been at also can't keep them in stock. LeBaron offers a nice target tactical model with short heavy barrel, Hogue over moulded grips, etc, but of course, they don't have any in stock.

Any suggestions on where to look for one of those?
 
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