Start with the receiver, then the bolt, then the stock and bipod, and finally the barrel. It is refreshing to see those groups after all the dimes you shoot at a hundred yards. That made feel better about the groups I get 🎉with my stock 10/22! The biggest improvement with mine came with installing a Volquartsen trigger. Thanks for doing this. I’ve been looking forward to this ever since you said you were going to do it.
Thank you for your time and hard work you put into your video's!! I personally like to see you change the bolt out 1st. Even in the factory stock. I think it would help others look at how it improves an every day 10/22. Thank you Bill
My first gun was a Ruger 10/22 walnut and stainless. I did the exact same stuff to mine I KIDD it all out except for the receiver and I did the 2 stage trigger instead of the 1 stage. I love it! It is a tack driving machine!
I really look forward to this project as I own 2 ruger 10/22’s! I love the rifle but despise the trigger. The ruger was also my first squirrel rifle as a young man and have fond memories of it hunting. I have a friend that builds 10/22’s that often beats my CZ457 at shooting competitions on my RU-vid channel. Again I really look forward to your build as I will do the same to one of mine if all goes well! Cheers! 😊
I bought a 10/22 carbine at a big box store in early 2019. By mid-2020, I had replaced all the parts but the receiver itself. I bought a stripped 10/22 receiver and rebuilt the original carbine. Now, I have 2 rifles.
My 10/22 has the pencil barrel also. Bought it used from a person that put over 4,000 rounds through it with no cleaning. I cleaned it completely, shot a variety of ammo. Mine prefers RWS rifle target. But does the same as yours, a couple nice groups then throws a few rounds. Did free float the barrel, group size got better, flyers not as bad. I do have a Volquartsen trigger kit in mine. A green mountain barrel is on the way.
I love you videos and content. Man I would just get a new one just like it to build on and pass that one down to your kids. Just me though, I will definitely watch this series! Thanks Josh
I have a semi custom 10/22 that I shot for a couple years in NRL22. I was able to be fairly competitive with it. I've since switched to a RimX . It was also one of my first rifles, my dad got it for me. One year for Christmas he bought me a heavy match barrel and stock from Midway. The barrel says "Midway match" on the side, I believe it's probably a green mountain barrel. It was shot like this for many years, mostly plinking with bulk ammo. When I started shooting NRL22 I wanted to squeeze a little more accuracy out of it. Put a BX trigger in it which was a huge improvement over factory. Lastly we milled the receiver and stock for Kidd rear lug and bedded the action. I believe once you hang a heavy barrel off the receiver the single action screw is not sufficient enough to properly hold it in the stock. I had to play alot with action torque, can't remember the exact specs but I believe it was around 30 in-lbs that gave the best accuracy. I think you will see the most improvement from the new barrel. Fun series, I think the 10/22 is probably one of the greatest rifles of all time. Not always the most accurate, but fun for all ages.
My 10/22 was my first rifle as well parents bought it for me 30 years ago still all stock it definitely has the most sentimental value and has run like a champ since day one. I will never sell or trade this one
You already have done the biggest upgrade, Josh, you are one hell of a good marksman. If time were not a factor, I would do one upgrade at a time. Besides a new barrel which should help improve accuracy tremendously, I would focus on the stock / chassis. Pillars / bedding. I would start here first. Trigger spring 2nd or trigger replacement. Scope mount, Rings, scope. Arca /Swiss rail underneath - area 419 or sawtooth. Good bipod and rear support bag. Test, then, possibly new barrel. Ammo, ammo, ammo (find what shoots best). Use a ballistic calculator for shooting distances and being able to adjust to hit the target. Use wind flags even at 50 yards or more, remove as many variables that might cause a missed shot from the equation. and, own your misses, don't make excuses
I did the same thing to the stock bolt. I dropped the headspace to .042". It makes a difference. I may set the barrel back next. depending on how busy I am at work
I’ve played with several 10/22s over the years and one of their weaknesses was a single attachment point for their receivers. I bought their custom competition in stainless when they came out and it was as good as any Kidd on the firing line. I recently sold my Bergara and ordered a RimX from DP Gunworks so I had to pull the Ruger out as a backup while waiting for my new toy. It’s not going to shoot with the big boys but it is much better than a stock 10/22. I think beginning your build without starting with a two point attached receiver is leaving a lot of accuracy possibilities off the table. I’m looking forward to what you come up with on this build. That’s a nice stock, it could be fitted for the new barrel, just saying. Thanks Josh.
I would change out the items based on their cost. Cheaper item first, etc… I have 2 Kidd 10/22’s and absolutely love them. They both shoot lights out. 👍🏻❤️🇺🇸
Great content topic! Looking forward to it. Trigger first because I think it will not change much but it will help you be more consistent for the other test. Then bolt then barrel.
I've had my stock 10/22 for 15 years or so. Pretty accurate. With the 3-9 scope set on 4 power I used to take out ground hogs at 75 yards. I've moved so I don't use it much anymore.
FIRST . ! THANK YOU JOSH ...!!! GREAT VIDEO ...!!!!! LOVE TO SEE YOU DOING A 10-22 ... !!!!! MY FAVORITE 22... !!!!!!! NOW YOUR IN MY RANGE OF PRICES TO BUILD ONE .... !!!!!!! BARREL FIRST ...!!!!!!!! CANT WAIT TO SEE THE FINISH GUN AND HOW IT SHOOTS ..... !!!!!!!!! MUCH APPRECIATION ON THE 10-22 .. .. MY BOYS SHOT 2 BRICKS EVER WEEKEND FOR 10 - 11 YEARS ON MY 10-22 ... STILL A GREAT OLD GUN ... !!!!! BOX OF SHELLS WERE $.025, DOUBLE G. HERE ..!!!
I would be interested in seeing just the bolt upgrade first, I’ve got the same trigger and barrel on mine with the Victor Company Titan Stock (which is very nice).
This will be a good series...Depending on the results it might inspire me to finally get a Kidd barrel for my 10/22T...From factory it shot really good..Last year or so I sent the barrel to VQ to have it threaded for a can and while it was there I decided to have it shortened to 17"...Great work on their part but the barrel is no where near the accuracy it was before with any ammo..Now my buddy sent his 10/22T barrel at the same time but only had it threaded and not cut down..His came back shooting as great as it was before..and even better with a can installed..So me cutting mine down was a bad choice on my end..
bolt first, be interesting to see what a bolt would do to that barrel, ron powers makes a bolt that allows last shot hold open, kidd also makes an aluminum chassis for this gun. great idea for some interesting videos
Hey Josh, another great idea, really glad you are doing this. I would vote for the barrel last because I just got a rifle off Gunbroker that has pretty much all the stuff you are talking about but still has the Ruger pencil barrel. So I am wondering about a Lilja barrel or now maybe a Kidd barrel. Waiting to see how you do. Keep it up and good shooting.
Trigger first, then bolt, then barrel would be the order I would go through. I got one of the first KRG Bravo stocks and that one worked fairly good. That would be my vote. Looking forward to see where this goes.
In order of swapping parts. The reason I chose this, stock makes very little to no difference, so who cares. The rail can tweak the optic but little to no difference. Trigger can improve things since it will be light and crisp. Bolt.. I really don't see how a bolt can change things but I'm looking forward to finding out. Barrel of course will be massive and the most important thing to change. So it goes last. That being said I would be interested to see after the project is over to see what just a barrel swap does for the person thats only going to swap that one part out and leave all the other factory parts in, but do that last after the other testing has been done. Stock Rail Trigger Bolt Barrel
Josh, years ago, I thought of doing a similar comparison. It would be tedious, but I suggest that you shoot the original barreled action and trigger in a new stock. Then, put the gun back in the original stock and test a better trigger. Put the original trigger back in and test a bolt group.. And so on... of course when you get to the barrel, you'll have to commit to a new stock. Can't wait to see your findings.
I had a stock 10/22 that shot on par with most 10/22s - about 1" at 50yd. I installed an inexpensive Shaw .920 bull barrel and a hogue overmolded stock (since replaced with a Volquartsen laminate stock to improve balance) The new barrel fit so loose in the receiver, I thought I was going to have to shim it..... Imagine my surprise when I assembled the gun and it shot several .2" groups at 50 yd (Lapua Midas+). Needless to say, I didn't install any shims. I have no doubt the barrel made the most difference. Not sure if my sample of one is representative of Shaw Barrels, but color me impressed. Another 10/22 that I have wears a green mountain sporter weight barrel that shoots .3"-.4" at 50(also lapua midas+). Both guns are outfitted with better triggers, one is a Timney, the other a Kidd. (the Kidd is better, The Timney is an upgrade over the BX, just not enough to warrant the price difference IMO). I own several good quality 22s, but these 2 are 2nd and 3rd in accuracy, only beaten by an Anschutz but it was a gun that cost three times as much as the 10/22 with the upgrades. Prior to this I had no idea you could get that kind of accuracy out of a 10/22 with just a barrel swap.- the vblock system and the fact that there is only one screw securing the action to the stock would make me think the platform would not lend itself to precision, but I stand corrected.
I have built multiple 10/22s over the years. Here is what I have found. My 20" Green Mountain barrel and 18" Feddersen out shoot my Kidd barrel. All of my stock bolts have a .043" headspace. All that is needed is to replace the extractor and bevel the rear where it contacts the hammer. I use the Kidd single stage trigger kit in the stock housing. All of mine sit in the Victor Titan stock. Buy some 1/4" nylon bolts to make your own bolt buffer. I bought the GM barrel a couple of months ago just to see what $135 would get me. It will put 10 shots under a dime at 100 yds with Eley SABR. My scope of choice has become the Riton Conquer 6-24x50. Amazing glass for $200. Last build was from a $219 10/22 bought at Field and Stream with my military discount. Threw everything away except for the receiver, bolt and trigger. Next one may use a Brownell's receiver. Good luck with your build.
I noted quite a few requests for bolt first, but I believe the barrell will tighten up the groups the most. So test the new bolt first, then swap back to the original bolt with the new barrel. Trigger can go last, since a BX is pretty good already. I don't think it will change the groups as much as the barrel. Have fun! My 1022 has similar upgrades in a Victor Titan stock. Sooo much better with a Kidd bull barrel.
If you do all that, follow this during the barrel installation - Ruger 10/22 - Gain Accuracy! Little Crow Gunworks GRX RU-vid for bedding. Great accuracy improvement. I've been down this road like so many others. This little installation makes a big difference.
Interesting series, sorry to say but happy to see that even you can shoot groups like this as it's more my normal. switching to TenX might be the biggest improvement of any other changes, maybe once you have all the improvements dialed in, end with shooting some random ammos to show how important proper selection is?
Optic, bolt, triger, barrel. In that order. For benchmark purposes I suggest using not only the same optic throughout, but also the same ammunition. There after switching the ammo to see what works best. I'll bet that the trigger will grant you the biggest memorable improvement on accuracy. Great content, keep it up. Sadly no KID products available ware I'm from. I would love a kid trigger kit for my 10/22.
For me, replacing the barrel provided the most improvement. I had to heat the old frame and barrel in the oven at 200 degrees for 20 minutes to get the barrel out. Heated the frame only to fit the Kidd barrel. Went in so easy. For the stock I used a hogue stock with bull barrel channel - $80. Don’t think a $600 woox will make much difference. I’m shooting one hole groups at 50 yards and .65 at 100 yards with SK rifle match.
I've built 2 10/22s. Barrel is essential. 1st build: MagPul stock to accept Green Mountain bull barrel, then BX trigger. Stock reciever & bolt. Reciever accepted GM barrel without any specail procedures. 2nd build, MagPul stock, Kidd reciever & bolt, Kidd barrel and two stage trigger. The Kidd barrel to reciever is .002 interference fit, requiring me to chill the barrel 45 mins in freezer , and heat the receiver (10-15mins) in 200 degree oven, to fit them together. Getting them apart will be an interesting exercise. Both rifles shoot sub MoA at 100 yards with a good Vortex scope. Point, stock necessary for barrel upgrade, the barrel is the essential component. All else IMHO is icing on the cake.
I replaced my barrel, followed by the trigger, then replaced the bolt. Those in that order have the most impact on accuracy. When I replaced the bolt I also replaced the bolt spring, retaining rod and charging handle. I didn’t opt for the extended mag release handle since mine is bench rest only.
For the stock I would get a Victor Titan22 which I think would be a fantastic stock for that KIDD bull barrel......For the build to me for accuracy in order it would be the barrel free floated in the Titan stock that is going to be the most change followed by the trigger. Just built me a custom 10/22 which doesn't have one Ruger part in it and it sits in that Titan22 stock with VQ & KIDD parts mostly topped off with a Weaver V-16 FCD reticle and it shoots .2/.3 MOA at 50 meters with Wolf MT/SK Standard plus and CCI SV.
Just put mine in the MDT Orxy.. Very nice chassis for the money. My stock barrel is actually pretty good. Funny though I am still running stock bolt Polished up good but still stock. So interested to see how the KIDD bolt does for you. Im running the KIDD 20" heavy Match on mine.
I would love to see this as a Sporter build. I coach 4H, and part of what we do is CMP Sporter Rimfire. With that, I’d do the barrel first. I think that will be the biggest “bang for the buck” (no pun).
Don’t for forget the recoil Spring, Kidd 3 set of spring set allows you fire HV, Standard and low velocity fodder depending on the spring you use. Kidd bolt, Green mountain heavy barrel. People underestimate my FrankenRuger it can shoot F class with the best of them.
The most interesting but time consuming way would be to add and remove the individual parts so that we can see that only that part is affecting the build. If you end up installing the part that has the greatest affect first then it could end up masking the affect of the other parts. The accuracy given from each individual part isn't going to just stack with the other parts. For example let's say that on their own the barrel gives a 1.5 MOA improvement and the trigger gives a .5 MOA improvement. Does that mean if you add them together the gun will now shoot 0 MOA (assuming it was shooting 2 MOA to start with)? Of course not lol. I say test both the trigger and the bolt individually with the stock barrel since those are super easy to install/reinstall. Then install the Kidd barrel and test the same way starting with the stock parts.
Replacing Barrel with, a Green Mtn 20" Sporter Barrel, a New "recoil Lug" by, Lil' Crow Gunworks ( Glass Bedded ) and Volquartsen Trigger Parts, at 2.25 Pounds, equaled SUB, 1/2 inch groups at 50 yards, with "most" Medium priced SV, Target Ammo for, Me !
If you have the time, replace the bolt and shoot for groups. Then put the original bolt back in and change the barrel. Then shoot for groups. Then put the new bolt in with the new barrel and shoot for groups. This way we get to see if the individual contributions are less than the the combination of new bolt/barrel together.
Hi Josh, I have that factory stock but mine is for the 920 barrel from a Ruger target model. Is that stock for the tapered barrel or the 920? If it is for the 920 I know why the groups were so bad. Another question, if the stock is for the tapered barrel, did you sand out the forward pressure point to free float the barrel? If you free floated the barrel I again know why your groups are so bad. The 10-22 needs the forward pressure point to keep the action tight in the stock since it only has one receiver bolt. I love KIDD products, they are the best. My order of installation would be bolt, trigger then barrel. I know Kidd uses the magpul but I like the Bell and Carlson M40, it has a forward pressure point and an aluminum skeleton from bow to stern. It also has a wide forearm that tapers from front to back. Worth every penny.
If you hadn’t already at least done the “BX” upgrade I might have started with the trigger as I’ve never shot a stock 10/22 trigger that WASN’T a detriment to potential accuracy. I would start with the bolt for a couple reasons….. first off, it’s the cheapest of the three primary options you are planning, it’s easy to do and finally I would be curious to see if it makes any demonstrable difference. I’ve built and shoot competitively two Kidd barreled and one Feddersen barreled 10/22 as well as a few rifles for other people and I’ve always gone the same route-Kidd one or two stage triggers (mostly 2 stage), Kidd bolts and either a Kidd or Feddersen barrel all installed at the same time. The benefit of the new bolt is not just tighter headspace. The Kidd extractor is much better than the factory version, the firing pin is pinned to eliminate the vertical slop the factory pin has which insures that the firing pin hits the case rim (primer) in exactly the same contact point on all the cases. It’s also obviously finished better.
Trigger, barrel, bolt. I'd try shimming the barrel in the reciever after the bolt. I saw some good improvements on mine after that. Upgraded the stock to a Victor and that improved the consistency.
My upgrade on the 10/22 I bought in 76 was a scope. That's it. The rifle does exactly what I intended for it to do. It's killed an uncounted number of squirrels, numerous unwanted critters around the homestead, and continues to be accurate, dependable, and effective for my use so why spend more $ to improve on what already works for me. Spend that extra $ on ammo.
Well your making your own point. For you its perfectly fine. For some it may just be a for fun target plinker they want to make as accurate as possible.
Josh, i would have picked up another 1022 instead of tearing up the rifle your mom bought you. But that`s just me. Not my gun, you can do whatever you want with it. On another note though Josh. I have a 1022 OEM with the pencil barrel, and with Aguila 40gr solid lead, it will do clover leafs all day long at 50yds if i do my part, and no wind. It wouldn`t hit the broad side of a barn at 50yds when i bought it, until i put a rubber strip i cut from an old motorcycle inner tube, laid it under the barrel, now shoots lights out. Barrel harmonics really mess with alot of rifles. Putting the rubber strip under my barrel, really did the trick, for me. I`ve since done a couple more 1022`s, same thing, shoot`s light`s out.
If you are familiar with the Grey Birch receiver/ barrel setup ( Brownells), it would give you a carbon fiber barrel threaded into a custom receiver…. Add your standard bolt and trigger, to approach this from the opposite direction….
Back in the day i bet that when the squirrels seen you coming they said here come the crippler I’m pretty sure didn’t have ammo like what we have today, i remember what we had out there could buy a brick of ammo for nothing. I’d try the barrel first bolt next but like you said your going to have to change the chassis first
I did this with my 10/22 and it never worked out due to the stock receiver having a misaligned barrel hole among many other design flaws(v-block, rough cast receiver) After spending more $ upgrading a stock 10/22 and getting inconsistent results I got a supergrade to replace it and am beyond satisfied. That said I’m very interested in this serious to see what you make of it with yours. Is that a stainless receiver? I genuinely wanted my underdog “budget” sleeper 10/22 to work but it was a hard lesson learned. I did trigger(Kidd), bolt(Kidd) then barrel(Fedderson). For me the barrel upgrade was the most significant improvement. Best of luck
I believe that the barrel/chamber will have the greatest improvement on overall accuracy. After that, I'm not entirely certain which component will have the biggest contribution, so I'm very interested in your testing results. My suspicion is that bolt headspace and then crisp trigger let-off followed by stock improvements for shooter fit and receiver bedding have diminishing contributions. Many DIY improvements such as receiver polishing, lightweight bolt handles, radiused bolts with pinned firing pins are a waste of time and money. I say, don't skimp on glass, but save some money by just using stock or modest upgraded bolt & trigger. Go ahead and spend the money you saved on a good set of shooting bags and ammo. Then, practice, practice, practice. When you are done, practice some more. PS The best money I ever spent on my 10/22 was for a $10 Kidd bolt buffer pin!
Barrel then bolt. I knew the barrel would make the most difference, so i upgraded that first and run the stock bolt. I would like to know how much difference a precision bolt might make after the barrel.
I just finished my custom 10/22 build. I started with the Shilen barrel. Very big difference. Then Kid bolt. Did not see any difference. Then BX Ruger triggers. The groups tighten up. I glass-bedded the stock. Had a Ruger Sporter Stock that I had to shave the barrel channel to fit and float the barrel. I might change out the stock, but undecided. I am curious about what you chose . Thank you for sharing
Interesting results. While the trigger wont bring you much accuracy, it would bring a newer shooter accuracy. It just makes repeating good trigger press easier. In no way does it make the gun more accurate. Id like to see barrel last as i think it alone would add the most accuracy. Great video and cool series but all hail to the 457! 😉
Im definitely new into precision shooting and dont have the equipment or experience that many do but 2 MOA from a nearly stock 10/22 is hard to complain too much about
Incase you havent already ordered it KIDD makes receivers too. So you can have a “full” KIDD 10/22 minus the stock since they don’t make those. However the “Victor Titan22” is apparently amazing for a 10/22. Especially with a KIDD build. From what I have found its a crazy precise 10/22 setup.
Like to see which 17" barrel is best. FJ Fedderson, Green Mountain & Volquartsen. Both FJF & GM are tapered and are blued barrel and the VQ is stainless wrapped in carbon fiber .
If the stock is already glass bedded . A new chassis stock won’t do much . So might as well change it so you will shoot more comfortably. Barrel has the most improvement imho . Bolt and trigger next . Bolt would show lots of improvement if OEM bolt is not good . Trigger just make it easier to shoot good. And on an expert shooter like Josh . Trigger might not show much improvement in the group . Can’t wait for the for series
