I bought my son a 10/22 for Christmas. I have one as well and thought it might be cool for us to trick our rifles out together over the next couple of years. So how would y’all go about a father/son project like that?

I’d go barrel first then trigger. Can’t go wrong using KIDD for either

1. Magpul x22 stock.
2. Barrel for better precision. I agree about kidd
3. Bolt release mod. A must have IMHO.
4. Under trigger guard mag release.
5. Extended charging handle
6. Precision bolt from JWH customs.
7. Volquartsen target hammer and trigger.

If you're going to stretch the project out over a couple years, Start with upgraded triggers. Who knows? Maybe they will shoot good with factory barrels if they aren't jerked off target by a 15lb factory trigger.

Not a father/son project, but if you want to turn a factory specs 10/22 into a shooter, send your barreled action to CPC and pay Randy around $225 for a full tune up. It is easy to pour that amount of money into a 10/22 for after-market parts and end up with a less accurate rifle than a CPC turn up would have produced.

I'n not opposed to changed out parts on 10/22s, I've done it several times myself, but I've come to believe that you get the most bang for your bucks with a CPC tune up, as Randy's work is holistic, all of the parts are hand fitted to work together, an aspect that you don't get when you swap parts from different vedors.

Connecticut Precision Chambering in Middletown, CT.

I would start with a Volquartsen target hammer kit. Drop in part that makes a decent trigger pull for not a lot of money. Not hand fit quality but much more enjoyable over stock. Then shoot the gun and see how it does. Mine always were great plinking guns which is more fun than sitting at a bench.
I have a couple of custom 10/22’s with .920 barrels and while very accurate I still enjoy the simple carbine as it was the first rifle I bought for myself. I customized it with a plastic hand guard. Lol.

The first thing I would do is try some different ammos in them to establish an accuracy baseline, I have seen some out of the box 10/22's that shoot 1-1/2" groups at 50 yds and others shoot 3/4" groups at 50 yds. Unless you establish what the rifle is capable of prior to starting mods how will you know what you have accomplished.

#1 - after establishing a baseline my first mod would be a trigger upgrade, either do your-self using something like a Power Custom kit or pay someone for an upgrade whether it be a mod to the factory trigger or a complete new one.

#2 - at that point I would evaluate whether a new barrel may be in order.

#3 - sometimes we forget what 10/22's are for - for me they are a fun 22 that is meant to put lead in the air with a reasonable expectation of accuracy. If I have one that puts 5 shots into 3/4" at 50 yds I am not going to spend a lot of time or money modding it, because that next 1/4" increase in accuracy is going to come at a very high price. I am going to spend the saved money on ammo and keep cans and rocks bouncing and keep on smiing.

drover

Kidd trigger

...what Drover said.

If someone were to do all the above mentioned upgrades. What kind of money are we talking about?

Id go Volq hammer first and see how it shoots.

Dont care for the curved buttplate standard stocks, so that would be next.

Might be a good hunting/ plinking rig with nothing more changed.

Next ( if need be ) would be barrel.

This assumes that its being scoped from the get go.

How about shoot it then after show him how each change can help with accuracy, good learning tool.

Lots of great points to ponder. Thanks everyone.

And make sure the package includes the CPC extractor. You will not regret that.

This, too.

I remember an article in one of the gun rags from a few years ago. The writer took a 10/22, which at that time was a $125 - $150 and price the top upgrades for it from a Brownells catalog and showed how it was possible to end up with a $1500 10/22. At that time you could have purchased an Anschutz sporter for around $1500 and had a guaranteed shooter. It is easy to get lost in upgrading 10/22's.

drover

Barrel work and trigger upgrade at CPC then bed action. Might not be benchrest but will be a dang fine shooter for a lot less than most throw at them.

Just bought my second BX trigger, I like the lighter pull, will be intreting to see if it makes a difference.

Your possibilities are endless, but I'd start with replacing the receiver with the Brownells receiver with the integrated picatinny rail. (About $90).

You might also consider a Shilen match barrel, Magpul stock and a Ruger BX trigger.

autobolt release

took a friends son out to shoot his new xmas 1022. H fought with that release, I went ahead and ordered him one and will install it this week.

that takes the fun out of doing it with your son when you send it off

Yeah, the boy learns absolutely nothing, except that you can send your schidt off to someone else and let them handle it. That is kind of the sign of the times though. I remember when my grandpa showed me how to adjust the Timney on my sporter m1917 when I was 12. That is a better experience to share with a son or grandson, as far as I'm concerned...

That was on my list of things that definitely need to be changed. Inexpensive and makes a ton of difference in manipulating the system. Especially for a kid, even though I've seen many grown ups monkey fart around with that stupid function of a factory 10-22..

I have a 10-22 I really need to do something with it. Don’t shoot very well I do know that. Take BSA list start ordering parts for it..

If you do that, it's a total transformatioin and you aren't going to be spending $1,500.00 like someone mentioned. Most things can be bought on ebay very easily and reasonably priced. The magpul X22 stock gets rave reviews and is very adjustable. The reason I suggested it. Great for a kid or an adult. That way father and son can have matching rifles, but LOP and other adjustments will be cake. I paid $120.00 (new) for that stock on ebay about 5 months ago. A good stainless Kidd barrel is a thing of beauty. Absolute tack driver and Kidd stands behind their products. Tony Kidd makes sure they are good before they go out the door. Bypass the other barrel manufactures because some of them are a gamble. Green mountain is one of them. You pay almost as much for a Green mountain, but you are not guaranteed its going to be a shooter. Here's how the Kidd does with different ammo. The thing is not finicky. I can go downtown to walmart and buy Federal automatch for this one and it shoots great:






Barrel cost me $274.00 on ebay. Not bad for the precision you get out of it. Also a side not that the op may appreciate. You can sell your factory parts like barrel and stock and recoup some of the costs. That's what I did and you wouldn't believe what some guys are paying for those parts.. Just a fyi..

Trigger and the best scope you can afford. Then shoot it as much as possible

I bought my 10/22 back in the late 70s. Over the years I've slowly upgraded it until all that is still Ruger is the receiver. Last week I had the opportunity to sight-in and shoot a friend's current production10/22. The first thing I noticed was the very gritty and heavy trigger pull. So, that would be the first thing I would replace. If you can afford the Kidd trigger (I went with the one stage at 2.5 lb) I would upgrade the trigger group to the Kidd first. If the Kidd trigger is too expensive right now, I'd at least upgrade to the Ruger BX trigger. While replacing the trigger also replace the metal bolt buffer with a nylon one that will be easier on your bolt and receiver and dampen vibrations some.

Next I would then upgrade the barrel if the factory barrel's accuracy is not up to your liking. I went with a FJ Feddersen 18" heavy barrel and it was a huge upgrade. With barrels, you pays your money and takes your chances. Feddersen, Kidd, Green Mountain are all capable of making a good barrel with a quality semi-match chamber. Obviously, if you upgrade to a heavy contour barrel you'll need to get a stock that will accommodate it. I prefer wood stocks. I had Claude Gatewood make me one years ago. You and your son will figure out what type you prefer or that will suit the type of shooting you'll do with it. Feddersen does make a replacement barrel with the original contour if you want to keep it a light carbine.

Next I would upgrade the bolt and bolt handle. I went with a JWH Custom, The Competitor, and a Kidd handle. The Kidd bolt will work just as well.

After all that, you too will have a 10/22 whereby the only thing that is still Ruger is the receiver.

Well I did seem to gloss right over this supposed to be a father and son project. My bad.
My current 10/22 has a green mountain sporter barrel, JWH bolt, jard trigger and free floated the factory walnut stock. I need to bed it and have the back of the receiver drilled out for cleaning. Have another one with green mountain barrel, BX trigger and factory worked bolt, headspaced, pinned firing pin and radiused . Need to bed that one too.

I picked up a used birch stocked stainless sporter with a weaver v7 on it for 225otd at a local pawn shop. I have a little more than 225 in it now

GM stainless fluted barrel, action and pillar bedded, brimstone tier 2 job, kidd charging kit, volq extractor/firing pin. Rustoleum metallic blue paint job. Since pic I've put a proper rimfire scope on it. This thing is silly accurate. They are just fun to tinker with.

Nice rifle. Probably a great shooter. I like those deluxe stocks. Especially the walnut Deluxe model. Guys at my club love GM barrels, however some have gotten burnt. Getting one every once in a while that doesn't shoot very well or is finicky. I initially bought a GM for my most recent 10-22 and it was a dud. Groups hovered around an inch at 50 yards. Not spectacular to say the least. Some guys would be happy with it, but I didn't want to deal with it and bought the Kidd. Night and day difference... Sold the GM on Ebay for almost what I paid for it. Guy that bought it was happy with it.. Shot much better than his factory barrel, so it was a win win..

Trigger first. You may not need a new barrel.

HP Action Kit $138 Recoil Buffer $12.50 These are the improvements I put into my 10/22. I did this approximately 20 years ago for about half the price they are now. This is the scope I am using on it now Vortex Crossfire II 6-18x44 $259.00. A Butler Creek Synthetic Stock I think I gave 50 bucks for 20years ago. I don"t think they sell anymore. Then there is the original rifle I bought 40 years ago brand new for 50 bucks. I also have the 10/22 Magnum set up nearly identical to the .22LR.I think I gave $400 for it 20 years ago. The .22 LR will shoot a nickel size group at 50 yards. The .22 Mag will Shoot a group the size of a 50 cent piece at a 100 yards. My wife has a 96/22 Magnum customized by Chief AJ. I'm not real sure how well it will shoot because she wont let me shoot it. We got it about 5 years ago for $400. It looks pretty much original except for the Chief AJ logo engraving. I would post pictures But my file sizes are to big. gonna see if I can downsize the files.

I had a kidd heavy barrel on another, and it was lights out. Let it go and picked up a UL threaded barrel from them since I had a can coming. UL barrel isnt shooting as good as I hoped. I left the pressure point pad from my heavy barrel so I am thinking about removing it since I doubt there will be any barrel droop with the UL barrel.. This GM barrel10/22 is outshooting my UL kidd barrel 10/22 as of now.

I wouldnt have painted this stock if it was walnut, this was the cheaper birch or beechwood version of the deluxe.

Exactly. I have painted a birch stock a time or 2 as well. That is great the GM is shooting well for you. The kidd barrel should have an accuracy guarantee. I'm surprised it is not shooting lights out. I'm sure Kidd would make it right if you sent it back to them..

A lot of good thoughts already posted here. It could go in a lot of directions. Sending the whole thing to Randy (CPC) is one direction but as others said that's not the same as buying upgrades and installing them yourself. So which ideas have resonated with you so far?

One topic that seems to be overlooked so far is optics. Do you want to add a scope?

Not the op, but scopes are all over the board for these rifles. That may be opening a can of worms. Probably why no one has suggested or said anything about scopes. The op also did not ask. Don't ask, don't tell...

No offense to the OP. But I don’t understand why people buy 10/22 rifles, then replace the trigger, the barrel, stock, and maybe more.
Doing that leaves you with an expensive 10/22, that may or may not be much better than the factory original.
And the factory 10/22 is a decent rifle as is.
Btw, I have done that once. The end result was a marginally accurate 10/22 that was worth far less than I poured in to it.

Some people accomodate themselves to fit their gear and some people modify their gear to fit themselves and their specific expectations.

Ruger 10/22s are okay as they come, but being a modular design there are so many after-market parts to choose from they can easily be turned into whatever the owner wants them to be.

After installing a lot of different parts on a lot of different 10/22s, I've come to believe that a full tune up from CPC provides the most increase in accuracy for each dollar spent. You seldom get all of the money that you put into a parts gun out of it when you sell it, but you probably got some enjoyment/entertainment out of it and that is worth something.

Besides, you can't take anything with you when you pass, so you might as well enjoy it while you're alive.

True, 260 Remguy,
Or one could buy a Volquartsen for similar money than a 10/22 with many upgrades. And you’ll probably have a gun that will outshoot a tricked out 10/22. And the VQ Will resale better, I believe.
I just bought a VQ. Haven’t shot it enough to know for sure, but seems very accurate.
At any rate shoot what you like and enjoy it.

Fiddling with a 10-22 is about fun for me. I have one of mine shooting pretty well that has not seen quality ammo yet, maybe have $400 into it including purchase price many years ago. My Savage Anschutz 141, Rem 541, Sako P72 and Bergara B14R shoot extremely well for $1000 or much less. That said, playing in the accuracy arena with 22 rimfires is pretty new to me. It certainly is teaching me to be a better shooter after 45 years of shooting...

Why?? Because it's fun. Who doesn't like to tinker? You can have all kinds of such fun with a 10/22. And - - - if you choose your upgraded components well and get a good barrel, you can get them to be significantly better shooting than the std factory offering. It won't be able to compete with a custom, purpose built, benchrest rifle, but some can get close. I've finally got mine shooting as well I want it to shoot. Years ago I had a trigger job done on the factory trigger but this year put on a Kidd trigger and that was better. Also, I replaced the heavy barrel I had on it with an 18" FJ Feddersen barrel and that was a big upgrade. I don't care what my wife or son are able to get for it once i kick off. They will not have to depend on my gun collection for their security.

True, but most people won't commit to spend the cost of a Volquartsen up front for a .22 rifle and prefer to spend money incrimentally in an attempt to equal the accuracy that a Volquartsen is capable of out of the box. I agree that a Volquart will always have more resale value than a tricked out 10/22, but some people don't care much about resale value.

I'm a tinkerer, that's why I learned to run a mill and a lathe, so that I could do most of my own metal work. Buying rifles like Volquartsens and Coopers don't interest me much 'cause there isn't anything that needs to be reworked and improved. Back in 2007/08 I spent around $28K on Remington 700 donors, McM stocks, and barrels from Douglas, Hart, and Shilen. I could have spent that money on several nice rifles from name builders, but they wouldn't have been exactly what I wanted. But, like you say, shoot what you like and enjoy it.

I bought a birch international 1022 like new, used
Sold the bbl and stock off it.
Got a Volq hammer GM heavy taper 19" and Titan stock.

Shot under a half inch at 50 yards for under 500 bucks ( not counting scope ).

That was the goal, mission accomplished, parted it out..... actually came out on the plus side.

Not much and IMHO not worth the hassle. But I got to play the game and not lose money ( for once lol ).

Personally i dont think putting together 1022 or ARs to be fun. Its just assembly, not building.

To each his own.

Just a word of caution, dont fall for the hype 😉

OMG. YOU may not get your money back, but people like myself do. You have a lot of stupid azzed suggestions like sending your chidt off to someone else. The reason a lot of guys switch parts on a 10-22 is to make them suit their needs better and fit them better. Like you said. That's about the only thing I agree with in your post. The factory stocks are about 3" too short for me. Except for the deluxe stocks on some rifles posted here. They (factory carbine) are made for a dwarf, so first the stock needs to be taken off and replaced. There's a way to properly outfit and regain some money too. You don't just take the stock off and throw it in the corner or in the closet. You sell your take off parts on sites like ebay or gunbroker. By the time you sell your factory stock and barrel, you have some money to put into a new barrel or other parts. Let me break it down for you. It's pretty easy really. This is what I did with my most recent 10-22:

Cost of rifle (last year) $249.95
Sell factory take off barrel: $120.00
Cost of new Kidd barrel: $274.00
New extended charging handle: $24.95
Extended magazine release: $19.18
Cost of Magpul X-22 stock. New stock from ebay: $109.99
Sell factory stock: $75.00
Volquartsen match grade trigger: $26.99
Volquartsen target hammer kit: $25.00
Bolt buffer: $3-5
Bolt release mod: Do it yourself. Its very easy and worth it $0
You can also fine tune your bolt face for optimum headspace. I worked mine down to .043" measured with a depth mic.
You can also change out your extractor and springs, but it is not necessary if yours is working good.
You can also keep and use the one piece mount supplied by ruger, so I won't list a cost for the picatinny like I use on my rifle. So, total cost of the rifle as outlined above:

Total: $490.16

To date, I've been offered $700.00 for my rifle a few months ago at one of my clubs rimfire shoots. I declined that offer.. It is also $200+ more than what I have into the rifle, as you can see from the breakdown above.


Keep in mind, when you send your rifle off for someone else to work on, that is going to cost you a lot more money, than if you do it yourself. I think most here get that. Some fail to comprehend. Some also fail to see how easy the 10-22 is to work on. In fact, the op has the right idea of working on this platform with his son because it is such a modular design. That is a great way to get a kid interested in working on their own guns. A stepping stone if you will. With all this being said, the recommendations to shoot the rifle first before changing out the barrel is wise advice. Some factory barrels shoot very well. Some do not and those are the ones you may want to replace. It all depends on your requirements and what you can live with. I do a lot of competitive shoots, so accuracy/precision needs to be second to none. I highly doubt your CPC rifle will shoot as well as the one I built. Unless he uses a similar barrel. Keeping in mind, he'll charge you more for the same barrel I bought or any other part he installs. When you go that route, you would lose money. And I don't know about you, but my money is hard earned. I like keeping it in my pocket when I can..

Not a lot of guys are going to pay what Volquartsen wants for their rifles. At my club (of 250 members), we have one individual that buys Volquartsen rifles. They are all chambered in 22WMR. He has money. The rifles are extremely accurate, but they are not without their problems. I smoke his azz with my Savage A17 and that chaps his hide, but that's life. His rifles all start to malfunction after around 70-100 rounds. Generally during one of our shoots, he has to swap a rifle out for another. I personally would not buy a Volquartsen rifle, as you will most likely never recoup the initial purchase price. Finding a buyer may also be difficult, unless you sell on gunbroker.

Sounds like a blast.

I wouldn't overthink it too much, or throw the baby out with the bath water.

Unless you want to build Ultimates (check out the Ultimate subforum at rimfirecentral.com for ideas), I'd just have fun shooting those rifles together. And don't throw the barrel away without getting a bunch of rounds down it first. I don't know if the barrel actually breaks-in or just needs sufficient fouling but they can perk up after several hundred rounds. Just need to be patient as it can take awhile.

For me, the top modifications would be an extended rail with 8x32 screws and a decent trigger/job. Extended rail gives flexibility in scope ring position, and the 8x32 seem less likely to strip.

I like KIDD triggers but have a BX that is pretty good so you don't need to spend a lot. And heavy barreled rifles can shoot well, but I still like a handy tapered contour.

This 10/22 has the factory barrel, and Pike rail. And KIDD trigger, recoil spring, and charging handle. I used it last year to kill a bunch of sage rats. I don't bother shooting paper with it anymore as it shoots cheap bulk hollow points plenty good to kill critters.

I used these two rifles last year for sage rats. I love the heavy barrel for a lot of uses, but the other one was my preference for shooting sage rats. I mostly shoot offhand standing, or seated on my butt with elbows on legs.