Ruger American .22 LR on the way

[FergusonTO35]

Been thinking about gifting myself a new .22 rifle lately and narrowed it down to a Ruger American or 10/22. Was about to go buy a 10/22 off the rack when I found an American .22 LR with some finish wear but complete and (allegedly) with a good bore on Gunbroker starting at $135.00. I guess everybody else was asleep because I actually won the darn thing. The finish wear doesn't hurt my feelings at all since this rifle is going to be my farm companion. Don't know if I'm going to scope it or use sights just yet.

So, what do I have here? Any known trouble spots with them? If it shoots as well as my Henry H001T I'll be quite happy.

[Texas by God]

If it shoots as well as the Ruger American Centerfire bolt-action rifles you did real good! I would put a fixed 4 power scope on it and enjoy it.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

[FergusonTO35]

Thanks. I had a Midway birthday discount to use so I ordered a Williams FP-GR for it like my Henry. ETA for the rifle is supposed to be Thursday!

[BigAlofPa.]

Awesome sounds like a good deal. Im getting a new Ruger Thursday. A mark 4 with the wood finger grove grips.

[osteodoc08]

My son got one last year and it shoots above it’s price range.

[FergusonTO35]

Glad to hear it. It is supposed to be delivered today!

[Patrick L]

I bought one new last summer. I hope you like yours as well as I like mine. I got the plain black synthetic stocked 22 inch rifle. Paid $295 new. I tweaked the trigger with a replacement spring, and added about 3/4 lb of weight to the fore end. Scoped, I shoot groups with it all summer as I continue to try to learn more of the little tricks of rimfire accuracy. In the fall, I put a Williams grooved receiver peep sight on it. I replaced the factory front fiber optic sight with a Lyman 17, and I practice offhand shooting all fall, winter on the indoor range, and spring. It's a perfect understudy for my Highpower bolt gun, and it keeps me in shape for the offhand portion of the course.

I'm learning a lot about shooting groups with this little gun. So far, my best efforts are right around 1/2 inch. CCI Blazers and Mini Mags shoot very well, often better than pricier stuff. I'm having a whale of a time with mine, I wish you luck with yours.

[FergusonTO35]

Thanks bro. The fun store called and said the rifle was in, so I hustled on over and picked it up. My receiver sight hasn't come in yet, so I got the issue open sights sighted in. It likes the rear leaf all the way up, fortunately the windage was perfect. This is a typical group at 40 yards rested on shooting sticks. Nothing special, but as good as I can do with any other gun i have ever tried. Ammo is Winchester Power Point hyper velocity, which hits hard and shoots well for me out of non-autoloaders.

Very happy so far, looking forward to trying the receiver sight and more types of ammo in it!

246133

[FergusonTO35]

The shipment containing my receiver sight was delayed until next week, so I'm taking the time to sand and paint the scuffed up stock. Just put the first coat on, the color is Krylon Fusion matte Glacier Gray.

[Mica_Hiebert]

I love mine, its pretty much my go to gun when I want to shoot for a day.

[oconeedan]

You got a good deal! My Ruger American likes CCI Standard, and does a little better with premium ammo .
If you remove the trigger spring, you will get a really nice trigger that is safe, about 1 1/2 lb.
Takes 2 minutes. Remove action from stock, push out cross pin holding the trigger. Look inside, remove little spring with tiny screw driver. Reassemble.
Do at your own risk. Verify no ammo, try to make it fire with safety off. Mine will not, period. I bet you love it.
Dan

[oconeedan]

By the way, plane jane stock is boring. I plan to try hydro-dipping when i can. Kits online for about 20 bucks, plus a base coat and clear coat.

[FergusonTO35]

Thanks for the advice. The trigger pull on mine is about the same as my centerfires so I'll leave it as is. Put the last coat of paint on last night and hung it up to dry. One thing different I did on this stock is to go over it with 420 grit sandpaper between each coat. This seems to make successive coats go on smoother. Should be able to reassemble and test fire this weekend!

[sparkyv]

Congratulations, Ferguson. They have a very good reputation. It's on "THE list".

[FergusonTO35]

Thanks bro. I finished painting the stock and reassembled it. I opted not to paint the removable butt and comb part, since that is where it is going to collect a lot of dirt and sweat. Hopefully will have the chance to put the action back in and test fire this week.

246633

246632

[FergusonTO35]

Got the rifle back together and tried out some thunderduds last night. It's shooting great and the paint seems to be adhering well.

246785

[Texas by God]

I like it. No syn stock stays black at my house for long, either.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

[FergusonTO35]

Thanks bro!

[FergusonTO35]

Hit a few little snags with this rifle. I ordered a Williams FP-GR for the American, same as I have on the Henry. The receiver is grooved for tip off mounts, however the rear groove isn't cut forward enough from the factory to allow bolt handle clearance. I took a swiss file and carefully extended the grooves forward so the sight could mount forward a bit more. That done, the FP-GR mounts up perfectly. Took it out shooting and the front sight is a wee bit too short. With the elevation bottomed out, I am still hitting about 2" high at 50 yards. I really do like the fiber optic front, and Williams makes this type in their Firesights line. Turns out Williams has a front and rear set for this rifle consisting of a WGRS rear sight and front ramp/Firesight unit. The Williams front ramp does look taller than the original, and the WGRS rear looks to sit a bit higher than the FP-GR does. The set was only $32.00 so I went ahead and ordered it.

[FergusonTO35]

Ok, the new sights showed up and I installed the front. It looks to be about .035 taller than the original. Tried it out today with Thunderduds and this sight is just what I needed. At 50 yards it is shooting just as well as my Henry. I'll send a message to Williams and tell them that this sight works perfectly with the FP-GR on this rifle.