Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless 22 LR 18.5 in. – Superb Magpul MOE Stock

Description

There is a version of almost every rifle that costs a little more and saves you a later purchase. The Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless is that version of America’s .22: same 18.50 inch stainless barrel and stainless receiver as the plain gun, same BX-Trigger, but with a 1/2×28 muzzle and a Magpul MOE X-22 stock instead of Ruger’s own polymer one.

Ruger model 32023. Ten rounds in the rotary magazine, 4.2 pounds, 36.50 inches overall, MSRP $399. We are holding 34, and the plain stainless version sits on the same shelf about twenty dollars cheaper.

Twenty dollars is the whole decision. A threaded muzzle cannot be added to an unthreaded barrel without buying a barrel, and a Magpul MOE X-22 costs more than twenty dollars on its own. If either appeals, the Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless is the one to buy first time.

Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless at a glance

• Semi-automatic .22 Long Rifle, 10+1 from Ruger’s detachable rotary magazine.
• 18.50 inch satin stainless barrel, threaded 1/2×28 at the muzzle, six grooves, 1:16 inch right hand twist.
• Satin stainless receiver, drilled and tapped.
• Magpul MOE X-22 stock in black, with M-LOK slots and integral sling swivel mounts.
• Ruger BX-Trigger from the factory, 2.5 to 3 pounds.
• Gold bead front sight and an adjustable rear, plus a combination scope base adapter for Weaver and .22 tip-off mounts.
• 36.50 inches long, 13.50 inch length of pull, 4.2 pounds. MSRP $399.

What the threads on the Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless are for

A 1/2×28 muzzle on a rimfire takes muzzle brakes, compensators, fake cans and thread protectors, all of which are ordinary accessories that ship like any other part. One ships fitted, so the rifle arrives with the threads protected.

The other thing a threaded .22 is commonly bought for is a suppressor, and that is worth being straight about. A suppressor is an NFA item: it requires ATF approval and a tax stamp, and it has to be transferred through a dealer who handles those. MAG5 does not sell or transfer NFA items, so if that is the plan, settle it with a dealer who does before you buy anything to hang on the front.

None of that changes what the Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless is without one. The threads cost nothing in weight or handling, and a thread protector makes the muzzle look like any other .22 until you decide otherwise.

Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless specifications

• Ruger model number: 32023
• Caliber: .22 Long Rifle
• Capacity: 10+1, detachable rotary magazine
• Action: semi-automatic
• Barrel: 18.50 inches, stainless steel, satin, threaded 1/2×28
• Rifling: six grooves, 1:16 inch right hand twist
• Receiver: stainless steel, satin, drilled and tapped
• Stock: Magpul MOE X-22, black, M-LOK slots, integral sling swivel mounts
• Trigger: Ruger BX-Trigger, 2.5 to 3 pounds
• Safety: push button crossbolt
• Sights: gold bead front, adjustable rear
• Overall length: 36.50 inches
• Length of pull: 13.50 inches
• Weight: 4.2 pounds
• MSRP: $399
• Included: combination scope base adapter for Weaver style and .22 tip-off mounts

The Magpul MOE X-22 stock on the Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless

The MOE X-22 is the stock a lot of 10/22 owners buy separately, and it is the second reason this configuration exists. It is stiffer than a standard polymer stock, it carries M-LOK slots for a bipod or a sling stud, and the comb sits a little higher, which helps if a scope goes on.

What it does not do is change the length of pull, which stays at Ruger’s standard 13.50 inches. This is a full size stock and it will be long for a small shooter, so if the rifle is for a child, that is worth knowing before it arrives.

The rest of the handling is unchanged. At 4.2 pounds the Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless is light enough to carry all day and heavy enough to hold steady, which is the balance the 10/22 has always struck.

Setting up the Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless

The receiver is drilled and tapped and the rifle ships with a combination scope base adapter that accepts both Weaver style rings and older .22 tip-off mounts. That covers almost anything you would put on a rimfire, from a compact scope to a red dot.

Iron sights are fitted regardless, so the Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless is usable the day it arrives whether glass ever goes on it or not. The gold bead front is easy to pick up against dark targets and the rear adjusts for elevation.

The M-LOK slots in the Magpul stock take a bipod or a hand stop directly, without an adapter rail in between. For a rifle that spends its life shooting from fence posts and truck hoods, a short bipod is the single most useful thing to hang there.

Cleaning is the one job a semi-automatic rimfire actually needs. The chamber and the bolt face collect fouling quickly, and almost every reliability complaint about a 10/22 comes back to one of those two surfaces rather than to anything wrong with the rifle.

Magazines and ammunition for the Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless

The rotary magazine sits flush and has been the same design for sixty years. For volume, the Ruger BX-25 25 round magazine in a two pack is the obvious addition, and a LULA loader and unloader set makes filling them a great deal less tedious.

For ammunition, Winchester Wildcat 40 grain copper plated in the 1,500 round jug is the practical choice for a semi-automatic, because plated bullets leave less lead in the action than bare ones do. For small game, Armscor 22 LR 36 grain high velocity hollow point does the job.

One note specific to a threaded rifle: if a brake or a fake can goes on, check it for tightness after the first few hundred rounds. Rimfire fouling and vibration loosen muzzle devices more often than people expect, and a loose one on a Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless will open groups long before it does anything worse.

How the Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless compares on our rack

• The plain stainless 10/22 with the M-LOK polymer stock is the same rifle without the threads and with Ruger’s own stock, for about twenty dollars less. We stock it 416 deep.
• The blued threaded 10/22 with the X-22 stock is the same idea in blued steel, for anyone who does not need stainless.
• The birch stocked 10/22 Carbine is the traditional wood and blued version, and the cheapest way into the platform.
• Against any other semi-automatic .22, the Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless wins on the aftermarket. Nothing else in rimfire has this many parts made for it.

Who the Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless suits

• Anyone who already knows they want a muzzle device, or expects to later, and would rather not buy a second barrel.
• Owners who were going to fit a Magpul stock anyway, which is a lot of 10/22 owners.
• Rifles that live outdoors: stainless barrel, stainless receiver, polymer stock, nothing to rust.
• Pest control and small game, where a light rifle with a 2.5 pound trigger is the right tool.
• Not the buyer who wants the cheapest 10/22. That is the birch carbine, and it shoots the same.

Specifications here come from the distributor record and from Ruger’s own spec sheet for model 32023, which is also where the 1/2×28 thread pattern is published. This is a serialized firearm and ships to a licensed dealer for transfer. We are holding 34 of the Ruger 10/22 Threaded Stainless, so there is no wait on it.