All the guns I’ve loved before, Ruger 10/22 Edition
A good .22 LR rifle is a very useful tool to have around. For varmint control, developing future riflemen, or recreational plinking, they have a place. Ruger has virtually everyone covered in the 22LR department, with a rifle that’s not only reliable, but also suited to your style: the 10/22.
The 10/22 repeater first appeared in 1964. Since then, Ruger released several renditions of the rifle. This proved a successful strategy. At a gun writers’ conference this year, Ruger representatives said customers should expect to see more and more new interpretations of existing platforms for years to come. This is their way of responding to changing consumer preferences while continuing to embrace a proven design.

The 10-round rotary mag inserted. Photo by Team HB
Furniture is available in virtually any color and style. A basic wood stock is one option, as is striking tiger-stripe grain wood. There’s a rubberized model, a plethora of camo patterns, and a lightweight polymer model with a barrel shroud that makes it look kind of like an Ithaca trench gun. There are models that look like AR-style tactical rifles and a version modeled after precision sniper rifles. Aftermarket kits like the ones from Archangel add even more options for making this little-bore rifle look big.

Archangel brand tactical stock and original wood stock on a 10/22.
Prefer shooting suppressed? No problem; the 10/22 is being offered in several existing renditions of the Takedown model … and surely others will follow.

Target, Takedown, and compact models of the 10/22.
In an age when many gun companies’ owner manuals have become so non-specific as to be worthless and send the owner running to YouTube for questionable advice, Ruger has leapfrogged ahead and made its own disassembly, cleaning, and reassembly instructional videos for the 10/22. And they should—it’s a perfect rifle for people just learning, as well as being slightly complicated to disassemble.

Customr touches on the Takedown brass bead sight, flash hider threaded barrel. Photo by Team HB

Takedown Lite with carry bag. By Ruger
Do you own a 10/22? Let us know in the comments below.
I’ve had three over the years, my current version stainless nylon is by far the nicest.