The rarest 10/22 rifles

 

Many people believe that every 10/22 is the same, while it is true that the 10/22 has remained mostly unchanged since being introduced in 1964, there have been some rare factory offerings over the years, here are some of them in no particular order.

The Green Beret 10/22, a total of six (6) of these special 10/22s were made on May 31st, 1973, probably as a tribute to Vietnam War Green Berets. Sequential serial numbers with a 110 prefix, all metal parts were coated with olive drab green teflon coating. The typical 10/22 in 1973 had the receiver, the trigger, trigger housing, barrel band and butt plate were black anodized, and the barrel and screws were blued steel. Later Ruger did coat the 10/22 receivers in black teflon (circa 1976), then later switched to powder coating.

These Green Beret models were never offered to the public and were held in the Ruger collection until 2012 when they auctioned off for a charity.

Below are two of the six, serial numbers 110-63734 & 110-63735

Only a hand full of 10/22s are known to have left the factory with factory engraving, one was a gift to then 7-year-old son of Skeeter Skelton (Bart) another was a gift to writer R.L. Wilson. A third one went to Heb Glass (serial #16) Both Herb's and Bart's had their name on the side (Herb Glasse's gun said "To Herb Glass from Bill Ruger"). The Skelton & Wilson rifles were 10/22 SP models with the checkered walnut sporter stocks, done in late 1971/early 1972, while Herb's was a 1st year production.

When we say factory engraving, we mean the factory sent them to be engraved, then they were returned to the factory before shipping out.

There were supposedly some done for Ruger employees including Bill Ruger himself, but I have yet to see proof.

In 1971 due to a screw up in the serial number application, 94 10/22s received a B121 prefix, making them not only rare, but a somewhat unknown rarity.

There is a very rare 10/22 that is actually a pre-production prototype, one of one, labeled the X1, below are pictures showing the differences with an actual production 10/22

There is supposedly a 10/22 out there with serial number 102222 made in 1967 that left the factory with no rifling, just a smooth bore.

5 millionth 10/22

in 2008 Ruger auctioned off the 5 millionth 10/22 produced (it was actually produced in 2005, but held for this special auction). It was stocked with the best figured walnut, the metal parts were ornately engraved.

There was also this one made for the USA Shooting Team fundraiser

The first 10/22 to leave the factory, serial #4, was purchased by long time Ruger employee Walter Berger, he purchased the serial #4 of every gun made while he worked there (from 1950 - 1975). The 10/22s with serial #1, 2 & 3 are still at Ruger HQ.

There are also the last 10/22 made at the Lacey Place plant in Southport, CT in 1970, serial # 110-25721 and the first 10/22 made in Newport, NH (the current home of the 10/22) serial # 110-25722

While the original SP (SPorter) models with the finger-groove stocks are rare, only 2000 of them got checkering (SPC).

only 4000 1967 Canadian Centinials were made, not quite in the "rare" territory, but you don't see them everyday

In 1965 (second year of production) a factory worker screwed up the roll marker that printed the serial numbers, he accidentally moved the first two digits to 8 instead of the blank position, as a result 576 rifles (serial #s 881045 to 881620) of the 22,453 produced that year were erroneously marked and are now collector's items.

not rifles, but receivers, these two pre-production receivers, with no serial numbers, these were built for SE Overton company, which made the stocks for the 10/22 for the first 8 years