Davidson’s Exclusive Ruger 10/22 Take-Down Semi-Automatic 22 Long Rifle Carbine with Threaded Muzzle and Flash Suppressor

by Jeff Quinn

photography by Jeff Quinn & Boge Quinn

October 14th, 2013

 

Click pictures for a larger version.

 

 

 

 

Take-Down mechanism is reliable, adjustable, and easy to operate.

 

 

Mini-14 style flash suppressor.

 

 

 

 

Excellent Ruger BX-25 magazine is included with the Davidson's exclusive K10/22-TDT Take-Down rifle.

 

 

Crossbolt safety.

 

 

Excellent Williams fiber-optic sights.

 

 

Muzzle is threaded 1/2x28 TPI to accept most sound supressors, such as this Tactical Solutions Cascade unit.

 

 

[ED. NOTE: I would like to welcome back my brother, my friend, and my business partner, Jeff Quinn, after almost a month's absence due to a serious illness. Jeff is continuing his recovery and improving steadily, and I am happy to see him back in the saddle doing what he loves. I trust that you, his readers and his friends, will join me in offering your prayers and well-wishes for Jeff as he continues down the road to recovery.  

- Boge Quinn]

 

In just a few months, Ruger will be celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of the Ruger 10/22 carbine. The 10/22 was originally introduced as an excellent understudy to Ruger’s 44 Magnum carbine back in 1964, but has become one of the most popular sporting rifles ever designed. Ruger does not disclose exact production numbers for their firearms, but having watched the 10/22 manufacturing cell at the New Hampshire factory, I have noted that a finished 10/22 rifle hits the rack with amazing frequency, ready to ship through the distribution channels to a new owner.

Almost two years ago, Ruger sent to market one of the most significant additions to the 10/22 line in the form of the 10/22 TD. The “TD” is the designation for the “Take-Down” version of the popular little carbine, and the TD has proven to be well-received by shooters, for good reason. The little carbine takes down into two components, which fit easily into a nicely-padded storage bag for easy transport.

The latest version of the popular 10/22 Take-Down rifle is shown here. This rifle is a limited-production carbine produced exclusively by Ruger for distribution through Davidson’s, Inc.; a nationwide distributor of Ruger firearms, as well as other brands of weapons. The Davidson’s version of the 10/22 TD features stainless steel, polymer, and aluminum construction, with a black synthetic stock. The most-notable feature of this version of the 10/22 TD is that it wears a Mini-14 style flash suppressor at the muzzle. The flash suppressor is attached to a sixteen and five-eighths inch barrel, instead of the normal eighteen and one-half inch barrel that is installed on the standard 10/22 TD carbine. This results in an overall length on the version with the flash suppressor that is one-quarter inch shorter than the standard version.

What I really like about the Davidson’s exclusive 10/22 TD is that the flash suppressor is threaded on, and can be removed for the installation of a sound suppressor.  A sound suppressor, or silencer as some prefer, is very handy to have when it is beneficial to the shooter to fire the weapon without making a lot of noise. While a 22 Long Rifle cartridge fired from a carbine is not excessively loud, it can be heard from a great distance away, and there are times and places where it is best to not be heard when shooting, such as when having to dispatch a pest or predator without disturbing the neighbors, or even when hunting small game. In many places, hunting with a sound suppressor is legal, and allows the hunter to shoot small game without running off every other squirrel in the woods. Same thing with hunting vermin and predators. The low report from a suppressed 22 rimfire does not disturb other potential targets.

The K10/22-TDT weighs in at 4.7 pounds on my scale, without a magazine. The overall length measures just 36.75 inches, including the attached flash suppressor. The little carbine handles very well, and is easy to shoot. It wears an excellent set of Williams fiber-optic sights, with the rear being adjustable for windage and elevation correction. This version of the 10/22 comes supplied with one BX-25 magazine, but will also use the standard ten-round rotary Ruger magazine, or any other quality magazine that is compatible with the 10/22. Firing the 10/22 take-down, accuracy proved to be excellent, as expected. The key to getting consistent accuracy with these take-down carbines is to set the adjustment ring, which controls the tension between the two halves, as tight as will work reliably. What I do is to adjust the ring tighter until the two halves will not lock together, then loosen the adjustment one click. This gives a consistent lockup, and good accuracy. Reliability was also very good with most ammunition tested. For some reason, this carbine did not like Winchester DynaPoint, nor RWS target ammo, but most everything else worked very well. Attaching a Tactical Solutions Cascade sound suppressor drastically lowered the sound signature of the rifle, as expected. However, adding a can to the muzzle of any blowback weapon increases backpressure, and for that reason, I do not recommend the use of Aguila Subsonic ammo with this rifle. The backpressure is increased with the can, and the action is opening up too quickly, allowing some fire and a lot of powder residue to exit out the ejection port. As noted above, accuracy was excellent, on par with the accuracy reported in my earlier review of the 10/22 Take-Down, so I did not duplicate that information here. I could detect no accuracy difference with or without the can attached, but the sound suppressor does change the point-of-impact.

One brand of ammunition that has performed exceptionally well from many different weapons is the new Remington 36 grain hollowpoint Golden Bullet. For several years, I did not recommend this brand of ammo, as it had too many failures, but Remington has revamped their rimfire manufacturing line, and this bulk-pack Golden Bullet ammunition is some of the best on the market. I have fired several thousand of them, with absolutely no failures of any kind. It is clean, powerful, and functions perfectly.

This new version of the 10/22, the K10/22-TDT, is an excellent carbine for hunting, plinking, informal target work, a camp rifle, or as a survival tool. It is lightweight, handy, reliable, and with a good sound suppressor, very quiet. It holds twenty-five rounds of 22 Long Rifle ammunition in its magazine, and the excellent padded case will accommodate the rifle, scope, sound suppressor, and a few extra magazines, all in a very compact and portable package. Like all Ruger 10/22 carbines, this rifle comes with a scope base, instruction manual, and a padlock for security.

Check with your local Ruger dealer for the K10/22-TDT,or you can order it online by clicking on the Gun Genie at www.galleryofguns.com  It is item number 11125. Doing so will allow gun dealers in your area to bid for your business. You will receive, within a few seconds, prices from dealers in your area, and you can pay for the rifle online, and pick it up at a local gun shop in just a couple of days.

This version of the Ruger 10/22 is one of the best and handiest available. The 10/22 is built in a wide variety of configurations, and has a nearly fifty-year track record of being an excellent rifle at a great price. Ruger has the best customer service in the industry, and buying from Gallery of Guns also gives the purchaser Davidson’s additional product warranty which states that if a gun is defective, they will replace it.

Check out this and other Ruger products online at www.ruger.com.

To order quality 22 Long Rifle ammunition, go to www.midsouthshooters.com and www.luckygunner.com.

Good 22 rimfire ammo is hard to find online now. It seems that those sellers with good prices stay sold out, and only those with excessive prices have any in stock, but shop around, and good ammo can still be found without getting robbed.

Jeff Quinn

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Click pictures for a larger version.

 

 

 

 

Ruger 10/22 Take-Down ships with padded Cordura zippered case.

 

 

Scope base and padlock are included with the rifle.

 

 

 

 

Some of the best 22 Long Rifle ammunition on the market is Remington's 36-grain hollowpoint Golden Bullet, shown here in the economical Bulk Pack.