1911Forum banner

Ruger 10/22

3K views 22 replies 19 participants last post by  ouluckydogu 
#1 ·
Ruger 10/22 – is it really that finicky, or do I just have a lemon?

I have an older secondhand Ruger 10/22 that I really enjoy shooting, sometimes.

It gets the occasional stovepipe when shooting Winchester high velocity ammunition (one or two per magazine).

It gets the occasional stovepipe with Remington Thunderbolt(one or two per magazine).

It gets the occasional stovepipe with Remington Golden Bullet(one or two per magazine).

It gets as much as 60% stovepipes when I use Federal ammunition (ANY Federal ammunition!).

I have gone so far as to remove the barrel and re-seat it to make sure that the extractor was not hanging up on the extractor cutout on the barrel.

I figured that there had to be something wrong with the way the barrel was seated because I have replaced the springs, replaced the extractor, replaced the firing pin, replaced the magazine release, replaced the magazine.... Basically, I have replaced everything except the receiver, the bolt and the barrel.

Then today, I decided to try some subsonic ammo, because I just happened to have a box of Winchester Super X 40 gr subsonic ammo with me, while I was trying one last time to figure what the problem was. Well, it worked flawlessly!

I would have thought that the high velocity rounds would have a greater chance of throwing the spent case out of the chamber because the bolt would be cycling faster. Guess I was wrong and this particular rifle does not seem to like the high velocity ammo. Is this normal for the Ruger 10/22, or do they usually “eat anything”?

I was thinking about picking up another one once I figured out what the problem was because I really like the rifle and magazine. But, if the Ruger 10/22 has a general history of being finicky with ammo then it is not what I want.

Yes, I know some guns, especially handguns can be finicky, but this is the first time in over 40 years of shooting that I have actually run into it.

For those of you who do have experience with the 10/22, is what I am experiencing normal or is it an anomaly? I am planning on calling Ruger and asking them the same thing, but I know that they will be a bit biased in their answer and I wanted to get some feedback from those of you that have experience with the 10/22 also. I am prepared to send it in to either Ruger, or a decent gunsmith, if the “problem” can be corrected for a reasonable price. However, if it is “just the way it is”, then I need to start looking for another semi-auto .22LR rifle to replace it. I would just prefer to have something that will “eat anything”, especially now since .22LR ammo is still scarce and I can not depend on always finding what I want/need.

Any input would be appreciated.

Thanks.
 
See less See more
#2 ·
I own 2 of them and they eat anything I feed them. I cannot remember the last time either gun choked on a round, regardless of brand.
 
#5 ·
The only time any of mine choke is when they start to get dirty. You discussed several thing you've done to correct the problem, and different ammo types, but not cleaning- does it run better freshly cleaned?

I'm not a fan of Remington .22 ammo of any flavor. I find it the QA/QC process to be lacking. I shoot suppressed subsonic almost exclusively, and it annoys the hell out of me when i hear the supersonic crack of a supposedly subsonic round, which is about 10% of the Remmy subsonics.
 
#9 ·
Every 10/22 I've ever seen absolute will cycle subsonic ammo with a velocity of 1050 fps. Thats all I use in mine since I run a suppressor; never have issues until it gets dirty.

The lower velocity subs (750 fps seems to be a the common spec) will not cycle.
 
#7 ·
I would dare say something is amiss. Mine is over twenty yrs. old to me, bought it brand new at Wally World. Up until two yrs. ago never cleaned it, just wiped it down. Really not a lot of ammo thru it (especially by .22 standards), maybe 2k rounds. Just a vermin shooter mostly.
Anyhow never a FTF,FTE, etc. Something is not quite right with yours, good luck finding the cause.:) Oh, I only have shot Federal Bulk in it, none of the good stuff.
 
#8 ·
Ok, the feedback I am seeing here reinforces the opinion I had on the 10/22 – that is should run fine with just about everything.

In my case it fails with just about everything. I'll try calling Ruger today and see if they can give me any suggestions.

Thanks.
 
#10 ·
I'm shooting a 20-yr-old stainless 10-22 that I bought at Wal-Mart. It's riding in a BC folding stock. Tried the Archangel and hated it. Had a smith cut off the barrel right behind the front sight and had him thread it for a suppressor.

Eats everything. I do use Mobil 1 for lubing. What are you using?
 
#12 ·
As mentioned, an extractor upgrade cures most woes.

I've had one for almost twenty years and it has just started to mess up on me. Usually it takes a few hundred rounds before it starts giving me any issues. Currently trying to sort it out. ..
 
#15 ·
Factory-stock 10/22s with the rotary magazine are usually jam-proof with all but the weakest loads. Assuming your rifle is clean and well-oiled I'd be inclined to blame the ammunition first. In my experience CCI is about the only company making high-quality .22 rimfire ammunition these days. I literally gave up on all the other brands two decades ago, after getting frustrated by all the misfires and squib loads. Try your rifle out with some CCI ammo (assuming you can find any) and see how it performs.
 
#16 ·
It does sound like your extractor is not grabbing the case properly to eject it. Its not hard to remove the extractor, or failing that, pressing it out against the spring tension and flushing it out, then lightly lubing it. If that fails to solve the issue, I would replace the extractor and spring.
 
#18 ·
Mine have to be REAL dirty before I get a hiccup... I have run every different .22LR that I have been able to get my booger hooks on for years and years, and they have all just ate it up without a failure. The only time I ever had one stovepipe was after a buddy's kid ran about 2500 rounds through one of them in a weekend. He had it stovepipe, I gave it a good cleaning and handed it back to him to keep on plinking... Oh, the good old days when 2500 rounds of .22 was cheap entertainment for a kid so we could keep him busy and get some work done.
 
#19 ·
Have you tried simply sending it to Ruger?

I hate to think of all the money and time wasted on replacing nearly everything when Ruger would have done the same on their dime. Ruger backs their guns 100%. Aside from tinkering just to tinker, if any of my Rugers had any issue, no matter how small, the first thing I'd do is call them and arrange for it to be sent in...
 
#21 ·
I like to keep my extractor well oiled with FP-10 or another clean & lube product. Keeps the gunk from getting thick.
I've had mine for about 10 years and it's been extremely reliable, more so than my Mark II.
I use everything from Rem subsonics to Stingers & Velocitors, it really loves the hot stuff.
Just wish it had last shot bolt hold.
 
#22 ·
What extractor did you use to replace the original?
I would take a very close at it.
The Ruger extractors will round over pretty easy, very possible the replacement wasn't much better than the first.
I would get the Volquartsen Exact Edge extractor before I spent big money sending it back to Ruger.
 
#23 ·
Try scrubbing the camber really good. Sometimes the bolt drags on the overspray in the receiver too. A little scotchbrite and oil will polish the receiver to get rid of the overspray. I use a dry lube on my bolt. About all I shoot is sub-sonic ammo. The back of the bolt where it contacts the hammer has been rounded off a little.
As mentioned before, go to rimfirecentral and you will find anything and everything about the 10/22.
Be warned tho to keep your wallet tightly closed as on that forum they will spend your monies freely.

Lucky
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top