10/22 Barrel Choices

[esq_stu]

I've been looking at the options out there for a .920" semi-target barrel. I say "semi" because I don't want to compete - I just want to have fun, but decent accuracy with open sights such as the Tech Sight. (The purpose of my 10/22 is mainly practice exercises using AR-type sights.)

I know there's basically all steel, fluted steel, aluminum, fluted aluminum, and polymer, and some barrels have muzzle brakes or are threaded. My main want is reasonably light weight and no plastic; I do not want a muzzle brake.

Here's my question: I've read several reviews that said fired cases may be hard to extract, resulting in a frustrating loss of reliability and "fun factor." Should I

A - buy any barrel I like and then do something to slightly polish/loosen up the chamber if the cases stick; or

B - is there a factory barrel that meets my criteria (light but no plastic) and does not have the case sticking issue?

 

[mainmech48]

I wanted to do something very similar with one of my 10/22s a few years back. I didn't want one of the then-available 0.920" bbls, mostly for personal preferences re: weight and balance.

At the time, only Butler Creek offered a 'middle ground' between factory contour and 'bull' 0.920" that I could locate. It was called the "Light Varminter". It was a 20" steel (carbon or stainless) tapering from 0.920" at the breech to about 0.750" at the muzzle.

As the 10/22 I wanted to use for the 'base' was a ss 'International' model and I didn't want to ruin the stock, I chose to get the new barrel as part of a package deal including a Butler Creek synthetic sporter stock with the correct bbl. channel from Cabela's. It was a pragmatic decision based on the price of the combo versus just the barrel plus the cost of a good quality wooden sporter stock. I also didn't care for the idea of having to spend several hours modifying a factory contour channel to fit the barrel or living with the look of a tapered barrel in the bull contour channel.

The whole project was an easy DIY and resulted in a carbine which balances perfectly just ahead of the mag well, delivers consistent 5-rd. groups of 1/2" or slightly less at 50 yds. from a bench and bags with its preferred fodder and weights in at 7 lbs. 4 oz. complete with 3x9 RF scope and sling.

I've never experienced the extraction problems you refer to, even with the Federal and Remington 'bulk' ammo from my local Wally World. I've used several brands of premium HVHPs for hunting too, with no functional problems whatsoever.

My barrel has the Bentz chamber specs. Some makers' "Match" chambers may be just enough 'tighter' to be more tolerance-sensitive to slight dimensional variances in ammo brands. IMO, it would be more practical to buy a barrel with slightly greater tolerances than to pay someone to 'loosen' it for you or take the chance of ruining it with an 'oops!' while doing a DYI.

Some folks install an aftermarket extractor and spring from Volquartsen, Power Custom, Clark, etc. and swear by them. As mine works just dandy with the stocker, I never considered spending the extra dough.

None of the heavy contour replacement barrels I've seen have had the provision for iron sights. My guess is that you'll have to have a ramp installed or a dovetail cut to get it. I have the Williams "Guide" receiver sight and FO front bead on my other 10/22 International and it's a very nice setup.

For AR-type sight arrangements my guess is that you'll have to pick your components and have whatever work is necessary to adapt them to your rifle done by a pro for the best results.

Bottom line: Check with several manufacturers about chamber specs before you buy. All the other stuff (fluted or not, all-steel or aluminum-over-steel, length) is gonna have to depend on your personal preferrences and finances. That's what "custom" means, and only you can decide what you need and want in a "custom" rifle.

 

[esq_stu]

None of the heavy contour replacement barrels I've seen have had the provision for iron sights.

The tech Sight is exactly that. http://www.tech-sights.com/

And it uses an AR front post and aperture.

 

[Markbo]

The carbon fiber barrels from Volquartsen & Magnum Research meet your criteria. They will outshoot any of the aluminum shrouded ones from Tacsol or Whistlepig.

You can also get fluted sporter weight barrels from Green Mountain or go to Shooters Solutions and look at Skeeter's stuff. OutSTANDING quality components.

 

[Jubjub]

Fired cases extract fine from a Bentz chamber, it's unfired rounds that you may have trouble with. In a Bentz chamber, the bullet touches the rifling, making it difficult to extract a round without firing it. It's one of those things with lots of variables. Different ammo may work in a given chamber, sometimes an aftermarket extractor may work, sometimes they break in after some shooting. Two of my bull barrels are not a problem, one is, but it only has a few hundred rounds through it so far.

If you want to keep it light, and use aperture sights, you might consider starting with one of the Wal-Mart Special 10/22's. It's a 22" sporter contour stainless gun, with a more adult size stock than the standard carbine. The rifle sells for around $230, and occasionally you see the barrels for sale for $60 or so. The extra barrel length is going to give you more sight radius, a help with precision using irons. I have one set up with XS sights and a different stock, and it's just about as much fun as you can have with trousers on.



Weight is right at 6.5 pounds as it sits, and it points like it has eyes.

 

[mainmech48]

Up until a minute or two ago that was true, I had not seen any. Gave you, truthfully, the best info I had. Never claimed that it was the definitive word.

Ask for opinions and you get opinions. If you just want validation for one you've already formed, talk to a mirror.

 

[pgeleven]

the butler creek barrel is the economic way to go. aftermarket barrels WILL eat normal ammunition just like its stock counterpart, just be aware of rounds with solid ribs, such as the CCI Stinger and SGB bullets. after the first shot pops out it will extract, feed another and it will freeze in the barrel. it wont fire, extractor wont pull it out, and its a VQ aftermarket extractor! i ended up sitting there like a dummy at the bench using a dental pick to try the round out. most sources of information you will find on these kinds of rounds will advise you not to use them in bull barrels and unfortunately i bought 3 boxes before i researched the problem and found out i was SOL with 3 more boxes of this stuff.

 

[Markbo]

uhhhh... what?

1. Butler Creek may be economical, but they have the unfortunate aspect of being crap. The wandering POI is well known and their 'carbon fiber' is not CF.. it is plastic.

2. What is normal ammunition? Do you mean SD, HV, HyperV, Stinger, short, long, Subsonic??? They are all normal. More correctly a 'Sporter' chamber will shoot everything including Stinger which are longer than standard but a Bentz (or semi automatic match chamber) will not because the Stinger is too long. This is true in a lot of other match type chambers. Stay away from Stingers and any match barrel can shoot anything else.

3. Your problem is not a solid rib... you have another issue. Unfortunately I don't know what gun you are talking about so I can't help you identify the issue, but if it is not firing, you have another issue entirely i.e. is the FP is not setting off the round or is the FP not being locked back upon recoil - presuming this is a semi auto?

BTW picking at a live round with a dental pick is bad ju-ju. I strongly recommend that you recock the action and try to shoot again. Worst case would be to use a cleaning rod from the muzzle to tap it loose.

 

[pgeleven]

we tried both those rounds in several 10/22's with after market barrels and the same problem kept coming up. recocking and firing did nothing. it took us taking the weapon to the gunsmith at Gander MTN to make us aware of the problem.

 

[Markbo]

Well that is two out of... I dunno... 100 available loads? Did you look to see if the bullets were seated deep enough to be firm against the breech? What did the FP indents look like? Can you post pics of those rounds that did not fire?

My guess is that it is not the ammo at all, but the Butler Creek barrel.

 

[brighamr]

take my advice. If your 10/22 is reliable now, don't modify it.

Every modded 10/22 I've ever shot has some sort of issue (failed to extract, failed to load, double load, etc).

If it works, don't fix it.

 

[pgeleven]

they were properly seated and cycled in as would be expected, but when we'd cycle the bolt, the hammer would drop with no pop. we'd slam the bolt in and the extractor would not grab onto the rim whatsoever. all other ammunition i have fed through both weapons has been without incident until i tried these 2 loads. unfortunately no, i did not get any photos.

for the record, i left the rubber caps on the picks, i wouldnt even chance prying out a stuck round with bare metal. i suppose what i said earlier raised a few eyebrows on that procedure.

 

[Markbo]

take my advice. If your 10/22 is reliable now, don't modify it.

Every modded 10/22 I've ever shot has some sort of issue (failed to extract, failed to load, double load, etc).

If it works, don't fix it.

Hmmm... I thought it was obvious that it is not working.

pg11 - what did the indentions on the cases look like? Were they as deep as fired cases or a little shallow? Try these things:

1. Clean the chamber. Take a wire brush and scrub the heck out of the chamber... not the entire bore, just the chamber. Make 100% sure the barrel face is clean. When it is dry, wipe a Q-tip across it to make sure there is no burr holding the round off the face slightly.

2. Do the same on the bolt face.

3. Remove the bolt and manually press the FP forward... is it extending far enough? Is the point nice and sharp? Do you have the capability to measure how far it is extending?

4. After everything is clean, clean, clean (use Brakleen on the inside of receiver and all over the bolt) put it back together and LIGHTLY coat it with a dry lubricant.

If all of this fails, put another barrel on it and repeat. It may very well be that BC barrel.


Finally - don't worry too much about the extractor not removing unfired rounds. This is pretty normal for a 10/22.

 

[pgeleven]

IF i can get to the range this sunday, ill try and get some video. i will get a brick of plinker ammo and rip through a 35 round mag without fault, then ill try the same with the stinger (with the 35 round mag and the 10 round drum mag). ive got the BC barrel on one and a VQ on another and it will jam-up the same way. if i buffalo the rounds (single hand feed) one at a time it will work, but thats not what the rifle was intended to do.

 

[jayofthejungle1985]

www.rimfirecentral.com
someone there will help you out

 

[Jubjub]

To get back to the topic of the original post, for me at least, the added accuracy of a barrel with a Bentz chamber would be utterly wasted in a gun with iron sights. This would of course be different for someone with better eyesight. The utter reliability of the factory barrel with the sporter chamber more than makes up for the slight difference in theoretical group size. When I'm shooting four to five inch groups offhand at 50 yards, it doesn't really matter whether the gun is shooting 1/4" or 1.5".

If you really have your heart set on a light acccurate bull barrel, it's hard to do better than the Volquartsen carbon fiber. It's no heavier than the factory barrel, and just stupidly accurate. Mine shoots .10-.12" at 25 yards with Wolf MT. Alas, were I to throw on a set of Tech Sights, I would probably do worse than with the factory barrel, just due to it being so much shorter.

 

[Confederate]

I've never experience any extraction problems with my 10/22, either. I'm sure someone will always be willing to sell you something to make you feel better about your gun. I bought a recoil buffer through eBay, but I'm keeping my steel recoil buffer handy just in case.

The sights that come on the Ruger are horrible, though, and I don't know why an innovative genius like Bill Ruger didn't nip that one in the bud. I put a Butler Creek folding stock on mine and just got a BSA red dot sight because it offers a quick line-up.

Just about any sight system is better than the one that comes with the 10/22. Since I don't have that much experience, I've just started a thread asking about scopes, red dots and zooms. If the red dot works well, it'll be a good solution. The peep sight, above, also looks tempting.