From this to this! The 10/22 is our most reasonably priced custom platform and Boyds' makes it easy

Guns Magazine, August, 2006 by Holt Bodinson

Do you have an old Ruger 10/22 gathering dust in the safe? Even if you don t, this bolt on, makeover kit from Boyds' might entice you to buy one. I guarantee it will put some real zoom and pizzazz into Miss Plain Jane Ruger.

Boyds' Gunstock Industries is the world's leading supplier of hardwood gunstocks. Offering proprietary custom designs and drop-in factory replacements for every model from a single shot .22 to a Perazzi, I like to think of the company as a consolidated version of those grand, old stock-making houses of Bishop, Fajen and Herter's. If you don't have Boyds' catalog, send for it.

Eye Popping. 17s

At this year's SHOT Show, Randy Boyd took me aside and showed me the most clever and eye-catching .17 Mach 2 conversion package currently offered. It takes a stodgy 10/22 and transforms it into a racy, glamorous, 21st century, 17-caliber rimfire. Better yet, the whole conversion can be carried out on your kitchen table with nothing more than a screwdriver and a 5/32" Allen wrench.

Three patents set the Ruger 10/22 apart from its competition and make conversions easy. The first is for its energy-dissipating bolt, the second for its dual-screw dovetail method of fitting and retaining a barrel and the third for its utterly reliable rotary magazine. Combined, these three patents e changing barrels, stocks, and even calibers of 10/22s a snap.

As a result, a large cottage industry has grown up around the 10/22. In Midway's latest master catalog, for example, there are 11 pages devoted to aftermarket barrels, stocks, triggers, tuning kits and even custom receivers.

Transformer

Boyds' transformation kits consist of four components to give you the option of 480 different combination. There are four completely finished stock designs in 15 colors of Rutland plywood laminates coupled with four E.R. Shaw barrels in stainless or blue, standard or helical-fluted, in .22 Long Rifle or. 17 Mach 2.

The fourth component is the critical link in changing the caliber of the 10/22 from .22 Long Rifle to. 17 Mach 2 possible. Rebarreling most bolt actions and single-shot rifles and pistols to. 17 Mach 2 is routinely straightforward. Not so with semiautos. The semiauto bolt speed is faster with the .17 Mach 2 round, so CCI cartridge box labels, for example, warn the Mach 2 should only be fired in firearms with a SAAMI spec chamber and a semiauto bolt system specifically designed for the cartridge.

There have been two aftermarket solutions to the bolt-speed challenge. Volquartsen markets a completely new, drop-in bolt assembly for about $199. Magnum Research has come up with a simple bolt kit consisting of a heavier bolt handle and tuned recoil spring selling for about $49.99. Boyds' supplies the less expensive Magnum Research solution, and that's what I used in my conversion.

The conversion process consists of separating the 10/22-barreled receiver from its stock, removing the existing .22 LR barrel and replacing it with an E.R. Shaw 17-caliber unit. Then removing the trigger assembly, disassembling the 10/22 bolt and reassembling it with the Magnum Research operating handle and spring. Reinstall the trigger assembly and then bolt the barreled receiver into its flashy, new stock.

Paint?

The only option is whether or not you want to paint the receiver to match the stock. Boyds' offers eight different color enamels and a set of simple instructions for that step. That's my next project.

Boyds' total 10/22 makeover in 17-caliber is a simple, straightforward process accomplished in 15 to 20 minutes. Magnum Research packages a sheet of clear instructions on the disassembly and reassembly of the receiver and bolt along with their bolt kit. Better yet, get for your reference the profusely illustrated Gun Digest Book of Firearms Assembly/Disassembly for Rimfire Rifles. And if you don't feel up to it, your local gunsmith would gladly, and I mean "gladly," take on the simple job. And remember, you could keep the rifle in .22 LR, requiring only replacing the barrel and stock.

The kit I assembled and picture here consists of Boyd's "Blaster" stock in their red "Applejack" laminate, a contrast-fluted, stainless, E.R. Shaw .17 Mach 2 barrel 18" long and .920" in diameter and a Magnum Research operating handle and spring. The total cost of the kit from Boyds' is $298.95.

It Shoots, Too

And the beauty really does shoot. Firing either CCI or Hornady. 17 Mach 2 amino, it will place five shots into 3/8" to 1/2" at 50 yards and into 3/4" to 1" at 100. Average muzzle velocity is 2,090 fps. Feeding is totally reliable since the Mach 2 case is compatible with the existing Ruger .22 LR magazine.

Having hunted with the Mach 2 for two years now, I believe the wee little .17 is proving itself to be the neatest 100-yard small-game load we have. Chambered in a rifle made from components you have selected and assembled yourself just makes the shooting experience that much more rewarding. My Boyds' "Applejack Blaster" is the coolest looking rifle I own, one of the most accurate, and is it ever a head-turner at the range!