Journey From Stock Ruger 10-22 to Custom

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I finally received the Stock for the new Custom Ruger 10-22 build. This was the final part I was missing to complete the build. I'm very happy with the outcome so far. It took over 3 weeks for the stock to be shipped, and then of course delivery fell across a weekend to delay the actual delivery an extra day or so.

Then the fun started. My goal was to build a custom semi-auto .22 rifle that would shoot as/or more accurate than most bolt actions AND that would have a threaded barrel for the suppressor I have at the dealer awaiting the final federal tax stamp approvals to bring home.
This is the finished product.
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I started from a very basic Ruger 10-22 Tactical model that I picked up at local "Big R" farm store for a great deal, just over 2 Benjamins. This had a standard barrel, and plain, black composite stock.
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The original trigger was as expected, a pretty horrible 5-5 1/2lbs. Ok for a plinker I suppose, but not what I am looking for.

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I did pop an old scope on it and shot a few magazines to have for comparison later. I have to admit that I was actually impressed with the performance of it out of the box at 30 yards.

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As expected though, it did start to open up at 50 yards. I didn't get a chance to test it any farther. It was already at it's limits from my standards.

So, first thing I did was order up the parts. I had been researching this for awhile, so already knew exactly what I wanted to do with it.
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The List:

  • Volquartsen Match Grade Barrel - THM Tension Carbon Fiber .920" bull barrel - 1-16" Twist - with threaded barrel and compensator.

  • Volquartsen TG2000 Trigger Assembly - 2lb trigger pull, w/overtravel adjustment, auto bolt release, and extended magazine release included.

  • Atlas Bipod - I just love these more than any of the 5 other models I've owned.

  • Blackhawk slingswivel to picatinney adapter (so I can mount Atlas Bipod and switch between Olight).

  • TacSol VBlock - This supports the larger diameter bull barrel better than stock and supposedly eliminates "barrel droop" over time.

  • Volquartsen Recoil Buffer - This is just a synthetic buffer pin that replaces the stock metal pin. Helps to reduce wear, slide noise, supposedly helps accuracy by reducing the shock.

  • Burris Xtreme Tactical Scope rings - Maybe overkill on this rifle, but I just like consistency. I put these on all my rifles. I like them because they have 6 screws on each ring instead of just 4 like most others. I used to strip them out all the time before I learned to use a torque driver and that way I had extra :). Now I have them on my high-power rifles and just like them for consistency and spare parts.

  • AlanGator TriMag Adapter - There are a few models of this type thing out there. I like this one because it just clamps three of the standard 10 round Ruger BX mags together, without having to take them apart, reconfigure, etc. which also allows them to be removed in just seconds if a single mag is desired. This is needed in my state, because some of the political idjits enacted a new law a few years ago that limits our magazine capacity to 15 in Colorado. My preference would be two of the 25 round mags that couple back to back with each other. This however proved valuable. California just won a court case to remove their mag capacity restrictions. As soon as that is finalized, hopefully more of our states will follow that lead.

  • Vortex Strike Eagle Scope - 5x25x56 - First Focal Plane (FFP) MRAD - I switched to using MRAD and FFP scopes about 2-3 years ago and will never go back. I just love the easy MRAD calculations (once I learned it) and love even more the direct correlation capability of the FFP scopes at any zoom value. This is certainly not the best scope on the market, but imho it is one of the best bang for the buck values out there. To get better you will have to double or triple the cost. These also have lifetime warranty that is transferable. I now have several on different rifles. Everything from pellet rifles, to this .22 all the way up to .338 Lapua Magnum. Again I like consistency, and can't afford to put a 4K Kahles on all (but wish I could!). I find these the best compromise of cost, reliability, performance and warranty.

  • Boyd's AT One Thumbhole stock - I not only liked the look of these (they are available in all kinds of color variations), but I like the traditional wood look and feel combined with the custom target features. Notice the adjustable length buttstock to adjust pull length, as well as the adjustable comb height at the push of a button. Slick. Also a great choice for young shooters to grow into starting with it collapsed and then extending as they grow older. There's also an extension version available for those with really long arms. I did have to do some minor fitting of the stock, just a very little bit of dremel and sanding for it to fit properly.

Here's some additional pics of the finished product and other stats:
The original version with the synthetic stock was 4.3 lbs as listed on their website.
My custom version with the bull barrel and custom stock weighs 6.2 lbs. bare without accessories.
Fully configured with custom wood stock, scope, bipod, rings and mag mine now weighs 9.4 lbs. and is 35" long, 37" with the compensator.
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The new Volquartsen trigger ended up between 1lb 15 oz and 2lb 7oz. Right on the money.

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As expected, the groups are better than the stock model. Here is the 30 yard version, definitely better than out of box.

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The 50 yard target is a big difference. I can't wait to get the customized version out to 100 yards to test and do some scope cam videos. This is with 38 grain CCI MiniMag Hollow Point ammo. Pretty much my go to favorite all around .22 ammo as it does ok for target, and well for hunting. I am very interested to see how this does with both CCI standard velocity (generally even more accurate), some even higher fps CCI Velocitors (my other rifle likes them), and then to test out some other target loads like Eley and others as well to see if I can get that legendary one hole group. My focus is usually on loads that also have good terminal performance, not just paper punching though.

Ruger1022CustomOlight01.jpg
One of the reasons for the sling mount picatinny converter is not only do I love the Atlas Bipods which do not currently have a sling mount option available, but by using the picatinny conversion, I can also swap out the bipod to my other rifles, or swap in one of my Olight flashlights for night time varmit removals by just flipping the lock handle on each.
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Very handy. I'm excited to try some night scope-cam and rapid fire/doubletap videos with this, stay tuned and follow for more.
Enjoy!
@ksteem



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21 comments
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Why aren't I your neighbour so I can borrow this beauty whenever I like?! Lol.

Kris, you've done a great job turning a basic and quite boring firestick into a firecracker!

I'm trying to decide what to like the best, the Boyd's stock or the CF barrel...I can't decide so I'm going with both!

This is a perfect example of someone doing it right when it comes to building up a rifle. You've used great products and whilst you could have spent more money, you could have spent a lot less too...But you chose to go for quality.

I'm a bit jealous mate, but happy for you at the same time. This has come up a treat!

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Thanks. this was tremendous fun to build and took really no technical skills. The trigger replacement was a simple drop in unit that only required removing two pins and replacing. No messing with small springs, sears, etc. The only tricky part at all was having to dremel/sand the wood stock just a bit for the barrel and action to fit into it. Now just waiting for that Suppressor to top it off! Yes, could have spent more money in a few areas, but I like working for best value for the money not just highest price. Although I have to admit I didn't find the Volquartsen trigger assembly much better than the BX trigger I put in my other rifle at less than half the price.

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You've done a good job and yeah I agree, the most costly isn't always the best, however my buy once cry once ethos usually seems me buying better equipment over the cheaper variants. I wonder what sort of effect the suppressor will have on the sound? I would imagine it to be very quiet.

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Yes, the one I bought, a SilencerCo Switchback is multi-configurable with a special config designed to reduce .22 rifle loads even more than most. I will be glad for the day when it is not a 200 dollar tax stamp and 8-12 months of wait for approval to own them legally. The wait is painful and of course without merit in today's technology. Just another example of repressive government trying to make things difficult to discourage ownership that they don't understand is actually helpful for all. Protects the hearing for shooters, and reduces complaints for neighbors.

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I hear you. Suppressors are not permitted here...Well, they are since pretty recently, but the government don't know how to register and regulate them and so no one can have one yet. It's dumb. I'd have one on my culling rifle for sure. It would knock the noise down and would mean I'd not scare the others away each time I fired, and also would mean people don't have to ear me banging away on the gun. It's such a stupid law.

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That little $200-250ish price tag seems cheap at first but the next thing you know...

In the back of my mind, a Takedown custom build is lurking.

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(Edited)

Yes, but much more satisfying than buying off the shelf pre-built. Probably about 1,500 into it overall including the scope. I actually initially intended to build a takedown model, but so many folks complaining about drifting zero issues, and limited stock options that I decided to not take the chance this go around.

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Oh... Great job and nice post!!!
It seems I really need .22 rifle... Because only one .22LR I have is Beretta 71 as a plinker ;)

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Everyone does! I'm guessing that Beretta should be a pretty nice plinker! Post some pics and video of it!

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Yes, it is small gun, but great plinker.

I have only one photo in my phone, but maybe write some post for you in the future 😉

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Nice, I've shot quite a few 9mm Beretta's, but not any .22's. They were wonderful. Would love to hear more about it.

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Impressed I am. The transformation and the results. You know your stuff that's for sure. Original, cheap looking and not so accurate. Transformed into a beauty that's way more accurate. As I said you know your stuff so knew what to do and with what but weren't sure what the results would be or at least how good they would be. Will you be posting the videos soon?

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Thanks, I'm hoping to get out this weekend for some video's and for some longer distance if work or weather doesn't intrude!

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that'll be good to see. You think it'll be good for more range?

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I'm thinking/hoping that it will hold under 2" at 100 yards. Would love to see under an inch (MOA), but probably not likely with actual hunting ammo and this short carbine style barrel (18").

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Whoa this looks really cool! I love the look of the wood stock versus the black one.

Pardon my ignorance but why do you buy a basic rifle to then put lots of custom stuff on it? Is it cheaper to do that then buy all the different pieces? I don’t know anything about firearm builds so I’m not too sure. I’ll eventually do something like that someday when we own property but at the moment it’s not something I have experience with.

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It is cheaper to do it this way, plus there isn't anyone that offers this exact build or reasonably close out of the box. There are a few companies selling some custom builds, but usually still only a portion of this and at significantly more cost because of course they want to make a profit on each add-on or customization. Just take that list I provided and add an additional 20% - 30% markup or so which is what they would want to make for putting it all together. The Ruger 10-22 is a great place to start. There are lots of mods available, and most are simple to perform, even for a novice. Jump in when ready, you'll be fine!

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Oooo, that's gorgeous! Nicely done, and great groupings. Ruger's are a sentimental favorite of mine (my first handgun was a Ruger SP101) and now I'm thinking about telling my hubby he should think about getting a wood stock or three...lol! And I'll be sure to point him in this direction when you have some videos up - might be a good way to get him more involved on Hive (I think he did one whole post back when this was that other blockchain). Happy Friday and hope you have a great weekend!

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Thanks for that. This stock was from Boyd's. This is AT-One Thumbhole. They also have a non-thumbhole adjustable model and about a dozen different laminate color schemes. My favorites were this one, blue shaded, and coyote brown colors. They also have some awesome reds and greens, etc. Was worth the wait. Plan is to get out and play with it more this weekend. Enjoy!

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Just seen this nice job, being a brit its hard to get into propper guns, this is about as close as I getIMG_0623.jpg

Out of interest what was left from the original gun on your conversion?

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I hadnt' thought much about that, but I guess only the action at this point. Hmmm if I replace that, I may be able to put the old rifle back together! Just more hassle because that is the licensed and restricted part.

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