[CJ810]

I got a Ruger 10/22 when I was 13. I loved that gun. I can still remember how proud I was at camp when it was time for shooting class to get my own gun out of the camp's gun safe and carry it down to the range. It came with a scope as part of a special. I used to love using that scope. It was a cheapo and broke and has since been removed.

At some point in High School I quit shooting regularly and then I went to college, and it's been in a soft leather or vinyl case for 20 years. Last night I got it from my folks garage, took it to my father in law's house and pulled it from the case. I had expected and been warned of the possibility of rust.

I saw a couple of flecks that could be rust when I pulled it from the case. Primarily at the tip of the muzzle but they brushed off, and I could see no rust anywhere on the gun. I ran 2 swabs with Hoppes 9 in and out of the barrel, with a dry cloth before, in between and after. I never saw anything that looked like rust on the swabs.

I am paranoid about looking down the barrel of a gun. Even after I've checked the gun and swabbed the barrel there is just something about holding a gun up to my eye that I have a distinct aversion to (doesn't that break rule #2 Never point a gun at anything you don't want to destroy, in this case my eye and the brain behind it?).

If the swabs were coming out clean, is that sufficient, or do I need to actually peer down the barrel?

Also I dryfired it 4x total, and a couple times when I was running the rod down the barrel it hit the rear part of the chamber pretty hard. Are either of those things to be concerned about with this gun?

Right now the 2 clips I had with it are awol. But I am pretty sure they are in a memento box in my bedroom at the parents house, now that I think about it. How they originally got there, I'm not sure, but I'm pretty sure about that.

I had a 10 rd and an after market 25 rd.

Any help/tips/suggestions?

I got it out of storage to sell or trade. Now that I have it in my possession again the thought of selling it is difficult.

 

[C9H13NO3]

I usually just go off of when my patches come out clean. I have no problem looking down the barrel though. I prefer too look through the breech end, but if it's not possible, I'll just clear it, and double check it's clear. I don't worry then.

 

[Zippy]

Pick up a bore light that will go in the breech and then look down the barrel with that in there. If there is a light in the chamber then it can't go bang.

 

[searcher 45]

If a 10/22 has set up for a while the trigger may need some work. They can become very hard to fire and throw you aim off. This can be fixed by breaking down the rifle and cleaning the trigger and oiling it. I have a 10/22 that set up with no attention for years and this is what i had to do to it to get it back in good firing order. Mine did not rust ether and now shoot very tight groups at 100 years. Enjoy your old friend and run many rounds through it.

 

[Bark'n]

It's important to inspect the bore and the rifling for damage or stubborn fouling that wasn't cleaned out with brushes and swabs. Especially on guns that have sat unused for extended periods of time.

So obviously, the rule of never pointing the muzzle at anything you do not wish to destroy has some caveats which go with it. Before you ever look into a barrel, you should:

1) You must KNOW the gun is unloaded and safe.

2) You must KNOW the gun is unloaded and safe.

3) Account for all ammo and make sure it is away from the gun!

4) Open the action! Make sure you can see a clear chamber and action; then physically inspect the chamber area by poking your finger in and out of the area!

5) Make sure the action remains open when looking down the barrel. Like C9H13NO3, I prefer to look from the breech end, but if the design of the gun prohibits that, I make sure I KNOW the gun is unloaded and the action is open before I'll look inside from the muzzle end.

6) As far as I'm concerned there is absolutely no reason to look into a barrel if the action is closed! Make sure the action is open and you can see daylight in there.

Of course, if the gun has been broken down to where the barrel is totally removed and you are looking at an individual component (the barrel,) totally detached from the rest of the gun, it shouldn't be a problem.

Before buying a used gun, I always inspect the rifling. You'd be surprised how some people poorly care for their guns. I've seen huge nicks a gouges in the rifling on some guns which could significantly impair accuracy. Likewise for any damage to the muzzle. Which is why many quality guns have a recessed crown on the muzzle. To protect that critical edge where the bullet leaves the bore on it's flight down range.

So to sum things up. It is perfectly acceptable to look down the barrel of a gun provided the proper precautions have been strictly adhered to and you made sure it is unloaded by using more than one means of verification.

 

[dnowell]

If you're really, really nervous you could use a mirror to look down the bore. Just a thought.

 

[SIXTO]

And dont sell it, You'll be sorry.

 

[ramrunnr]

SIXTO said,

And dont sell it, You'll be sorry.

But if you do want to sell it let me know.

 

[Ram Rod]

My suggestions for cleaning the barrel on a 10/22 is to get a bore snake or patchworm and clean from the breech properly. Definitely don't want to clean from the muzzle end with a rod and hit the bolt. Removing a 10/22 barrel off the receiver for cleaning several times can also cause it's own problems, and if you do, be sure to index the extractor properly if you do. The barrel to receiver fit will become loose for removing the barrel too many times. I have angled head bore lights that I'll stick in the chamber and look down the muzzle with. Dry-firing your rimfire often is highly not recommended on an empty chamber! You should definitely hang onto your older 10/22 because Ruger just don't make 'em like they used to. Brand new ones are made with plastic trigger housings now. If you get to where you have a list of questions about your 10/22, then I think rimfirecentral would be a good place hang out on occasion. I've been doing more of that myself here lately. If you head over to rimfirecentral and you do want to sell your 10/22, I'm sure that would help as well. You'll need to be a member for 35 days before posting in their B/S/T forums though. Good luck.

 

[jwhite75]

Definitely do not sell it. youwill not go wrong having a 10/22, you will however go wrong seling one of your childhood memories.

 

[paramedic70002]

Eh, the gun is past it's shelf life; it's expired. Send it to me for recycling.

 

[CJ810]

Eh, the gun is past it's shelf life; it's expired. Send it to me for recycling.

LMAO.

About hitting the bolt, I definitely hit a flat metal piece that was about half an inch square (more rectangle I guess) with curved edges. It sat at the top rear of the chamber/magazine area. It was a pretty solid whack, but not as hard as it would be moving when the gun is being fired. The bolt was locked back at the time. Should I be concerned?

The action seemed to work ok after I did that. The bolt slide worked ok and 2 of the 4 dry fires were after that. One after I oiled the slide, and then one just before I put it away because I discovered I hadn't wiped away the oil good, did so, and in doing so recocked it.

I have a box of 22 LR. I may take it to the range soon.

Cliff

 

[russ1986]

when ever i clean any of my guns weather it be my paintball gun or my hand guns i look down the barrel now i normally take it out or look at it so it is not pointing at me that is the only way to really tell. but as one of the other guys have said that if this is not possible just make sure there is no rounds in it.

 

[pir8te]

Take it down clean it , shoot it, enjoy it and repeat

I have a handgun that my dad gave me when I was a kid for my birthday that was made in 1960 Colt Python the yr before I was born that I regularly shot with no concerns, for the last 30+ yrs and other than my family is my single most precious possession because of all of the memories that it brings now that my father has passed..I wish I would have kept the single shot 22 he gave me in 2nd grade

They are still selling WWI Mausers at my local gun show
Yours is just a newborn relatively speaking

 

[nutz4utwo]

I think you are fine. If swabs go through it, you are fine.

A quick tip, you can see the rifling if you stick a q-tip in the muzzle. It reflects light in there and should give you a little bit of an idea as to what the bore looks like. You can see rust or leadding...

The barrel of a 10/22 is fairly easy to take off. You clear the weapon, unscrew the screw in front of the magazine area. Put the safety halfway between safe-and-fire. The barrel and action will lift out of the stock. To get the barrel off, you unbolt two hex bolts where it attaches. You can also open up the bolt and trigger area to clean and inspect it. There are some good videos on youtube that can show you how. I do all this once a year or so on mine.

I also drilled a hole in the rear of my 10/22 receiver so that I can put a cleaning rod through it without removing the barrel. If you take the bolt out, you can actually see down the barrel and check for obstructions.

Get to know the firearm before you sell it. You might change your mind!

 

[Stevew]

I don't like to dry fire 10/22s.

 

[Rock and Glock]

now shoot very tight groups at 100 years.

Wish I could.............LOL.

Careful with the dry fires on a rimfire.....Bad ju ju..............

 

[DBRideout]

I still have and shoot a 10/22 that was the first firearm I ever bought back in the 60's. The only problem I ever had with it was the firing pin return spring. I had shot so many rounds through it that it wore flat spots on the coil spring and it started breaking down, causing occasional misfires. The firing pin was still fine. Easy .50 cent fix.
The 10/22 can be dry fired with out damage that so many other .22's receive because in Ruger's genius he designed the 10/22 so the firing pin did not hit the breach. I would not recommend dry firing it while sitting around watching TV all night but if you think about it, after almost every mag full you shoot, you dry fire it as the bolt does not lock open after the last shot, unless of course you count every shot so that does not happen (which I never have)... So don't worry about that.

Before I'd shoot your gun I would;

1. Separate the rifle from the stock; Remove the barrel band by putting your flat blade screw driver in the slot after removing the long screw, twist it sideways to open it up and slip it down the barrel, that way you wont scratch your barrel. Remove the large screw in front of the mag well and set your safety half and half so it won't mare the wood as you pull it from the stock.
Most of the rifle is put together with pins and are easy to remove and some times will fall out so be careful in turning it from side to side once you have the rifle separated from the stock.

2. Disassemble it to it's basic parts, laying the pins down in an orderly manor so you know where they came from, and clean thoroughly and to relearn how it operates. It's not difficult and is rather fun. The only thing I ever did wrong in putting it back together was to not have the ejector facing forward in it's slot when putting the trigger housing back onto the receiver. Funny enough it still worked pretty darn good, but bent the heck out of the ejector and I had to replace it. The bolt is a bit of a trick, but not impossible. You have to hold the cocking lever back while dropping the bolt in with it's slot on top of the lever.
I would hose the entire thing down real good with a good solvent, scrub with a brush, repeat until clear liquid runs off. Then air blast it. Oil with your favorite oil, and air blast again... Then wipe down well...

3. Run a wire brush down the barrel a few times with a good bore cleaner on it, then the patch. If your respectful of the crown on the barrel, a few swabs with and aluminum rod will not hurt (never hurt mine), just keep the rod clean so no grit increases the wear factor, you'll be OK. The 10/22 was not designed to be cleaned from the breech with a rod, or Ruger would have put a hole in the back of the receiver for such a thing. The bore snake would of course eliminate the need for the rod, but I never used one and my 10/22 is still a shooter!
You have a great gun that has increased in value big time and ultimately has not been improved on, by much anyway.. Still the same original design.
I paid, with tax under $50.00 for mine with a nice Walnut stock. It's worth around $300.00 now.

Enjoy!

 

[Eagleks]

I'ld definitely check the barrel. I do look down mine, with a light on the other end.... so if anything down there moves... it's not going past the light there without jamming. Obviously ... no light can be seen coming out the end of the barrel , nor can the light be in there, if there is a round or a magazine present.

If you don't see the glow in the barrel of the light... don't look down the barrel ... make sure the gun is clear and why you can't see it....

or use a mirror and do it the other way around.

 

[CJ810]

I'm going to need to sell the 10/22. Can anyone give me a ballpark of what I should be looking to sell it for?