moxdmguy

Well as you can tell from above I deleted some old pics of my ST-22. I made a few more mods and pretty much have it the way I want it now with the only exception being is I want a rail mounted swivel for a 2PT sling. Just thought I would share some new pics. If I could figure out how to delete the old ones above I would, maybe a mod could help me out? [img width=800 height=395]http://i604.photobucket.com/albums/tt126/MOXDMGUY/IMG_1489.jpg [img width=800 height=379]http://i604.photobucket.com/albums/tt126/MOXDMGUY/IMG_1488.jpg

asmurff, I think you will like the Federal Auto Match ammo. I ran it exclusively in my M4 OPS and now run it exclusively in my 10/22 that I previously ran Wolf Match ammo in. You can beat the price, especially compared to the Wolf. My 10/22 has a match chambered green mountain barrel so it is pickier than most when it comes to chambering a round. I will be curious to hear a report back on what you think of it.

For what it is worth, I had tried running the Federal 550 pack in my Colt and had multiple FTF. I switched to the Federal Match bulk pack and maybe had 3 or 4 FTE per 325 round box. They are tougher to find but I can usually find them at Wally World. I recently traded off the Colt for a dedicated Spikes upper and the Federal Match gave me fits with FTE. I switched back to the 550 Bulk pack in the Spikes and now it runs flawlessly. Through my research, I found that Spikes tunes all the uppers specifically to run on the standard Federal Bulk packs. Moral of the story to me is each barrell/bolt have their own ammo they like to eat and either trial and error or research to find the best match is the beset way to go. Just my $0.02

Based on the reading I did on various forums and feedback from Tom at Spikes, I tried the cheap federal bulk ammo in the blue box. I did not make any other changes, other than a good cleaning prior to shooting. I went through three 26 round mags and had zero issues! This is the first time I have had better luck with the cheap federal vs. the match ammo I ran in my Colt and my 10/22s. I must say that spikes customer service is very good. I emailed them last night and they promptly responded a few minutes later. After I determined the ammo was the issue I proceeded to do the "15 minute trigget job" on my stick AR trigger group. Things are much more crisp and the trigger pull is much lighter. I am very pleased with this setup now and the savings in ammo will make things even better. Thanks for everyone's input and suggestions. As I get things tightened up a bit I will post some more pictures and range reports...

Thanks man. I can't take much credit for it though, mostly just sharing information from another forum. I ordered up some lighter trigger springs. I will report back in a few days after I have made the tweaks and let everyone know how the ST-22 is operating.

Thank you for the tips Mr. Jones. I will try doing both. The feed lips on the mag do seem a little rough. I am not having any issues with Failure to Feed, only Failure to Extract, but a little polishing in those areas isnt a bad idea anyway. Thanks again.

I am using the Federal Match bulk pack. I am going to pick up some of the standard bulk pack ammo tomorrow. After doing some reading it is my understanding that ammo is used by spikes when tuning the ammo. I have also learned that a rounded hammer and lighter trigger springs in the lower will make a difference in the cycling of the upper too. In addition, I found this on another forum: (I am going to try trimming the spring as recommended and hopefully my issue will be solved) This is a Dedicated thread for tuning the ST-22 Dedicated upper and ST-22 Drop-in Conversion. Both bolts are the same except for the chamber adapter. Tuning is accomplished the same way for either of them. This thread is for Semi-Auto ONLY. Post your Cycling Issues or Tuning Questions here. Ill answer them and walk you through the process step by step. If you have any Issues read and try the things below before posting here. Don't fix it if its NOT broken!! If it runs good leave it alone! Its a 22LR so don't expect it to be as reliable as your SHTF carbine! Ill start off by saying keep your ST-22 clean! I know its fun but your ST-22 gets dirty fast and it doesn't take long to run through 550rds! I would recommend cleaning it Every 500-1000rds. The ST-22 requires Very little if any lube at all. 1 drop of oil on each rail is plenty it goes a long way. Soaking it down with lube will only make things worse. Just remember Oil+22LR=Gunk/Mud. Make sure the bolt is Not contacting your bolt catch or feed lips on your magazine. Make sure your hammer isn't dragging on the bolt. The DPMS (De-milled M16) or anything without a notched hammer face function the best with the ST-22. Make sure your running good plated ammo. There is a lot of bad 22 ammo out there and it varies from Lot/Batch to Lot/Batch. If your gun is not running try a different Lot/Batch of ammo and see if the problem goes away. If it just stop shooting and cycling properly for no reason try different ammo. Make sure your charging handle isn't stopping your bolt from closing all the way. Sometimes charging handles have a stiff latch. If your ST-22 has feeding issues- -Insert a round by hand and make sure your ammo is cambering freely. -Make sure your not running over sized or out of spec ammo like the Remington stuff. -Waxy ammo will also cause feeding issues. -Make sure there isn't a burr on the chamber edge. The edge of your chamber should have a slight bevel on it to assist in feeding. -Make sure the face of your bolt and chamber is clean. -Make sure your recoil spring isn't to short. -Make sure your magazine is in good working order. -Make sure your magazine is not sitting to low in the magwell. -Make sure the charging handle isn't to hard to latch. -Make sure your firing pin isn't stuck forward. -In most cases polishing the chamber will make feeding more reliable! If your ST-22 has cycling issues- -The most common issue is where the spent casing is getting stuck upward between the bolt and charging handle or sideways between the bolt and chamber. Sometimes it will fire the first round, chamber the second round and when you pull the trigger nothing happens. What's happening is the bolt isn't going back far enough or fast enough to eject properly or re-cock the hammer back. -The shorter the barrel the harder its going to be to tune it. Shorter barrels (Anything 12" or shorter) lacks back pressure which blow back systems like the ST-22 need to function. Suppressors are your friend on short barrel setups. Sub-Sonic or weak ammo is going to be a challenge! -Make sure your ammo is Not underpowered before tuning anything! -Its always a good idea to have a spare recoil spring before you start cutting anything! Remember Measure twice, cut once. -Your recoil spring is probably a little too stiff for your application, Start by trimming 1/4" (or 3 coils) off of your recoil spring. -Shoot it again and see if the problem goes away. If not trim another 1/4" (or 3 coils). and so on.. -You do Not want to trim the recoil spring any shorter than 7.25" OAL we usually ship them around 8 3/8"-9" long. If your down to 7.25" and it still has issues then something else is wrong please contact me for further assistance. -Also check to make sure your hammer spring isn't to stiff. Sense your bolt has to cock the hammer back with each round that's fired your hammer spring acts as if its a recoil spring or recoil system. -In some cases its a good idea to run a lighter hammer spring to keep the recoil spring stiffer. The longer you can run your recoil spring the better. I recommend the springs from JP Enterprise. -Make sure your Hammer pin isn't broken! If your ST-22 has light primer strikes- -Check your ammo. -Make sure your hammer spring is not to light. Some reduce power hammer springs are to light. I would not go any lighter than a 3.5lb-4lb spring like the one sold from JP Enterprise -Make sure your firing pin is moving freely and not stuck. If it feels like its hard to move you may want to consider removing it to clean the firing pin and the firing pin cavity in the bolt. -Make sure your firing pin isn't broken. The ST-22 is tough but it can happen. -The ST-22 Doesn't require a buffer and spring but it may cure lite primer strike issues. If your ST-22 shoots more than 1 round at a time- -Do NOT continue to shoot it! If it fires more than 1 round at a time its considered an Illegal machine gun! What's happening is your bolt is not going back far enough to cock the hammer, the hammer is following the bolt back home and slam firing. -Your recoil spring may be to stiff. -Your ammo may be to weak. -Your hammer spring may be to stiff, Not all Mil-Spec hammer springs are the same. -Make sure your Hammer pin isn't broken! If your ST-22 fires out of battery- -Make sure your bolt is closing all the way especially on the first round when it has the resistance of the charging handle latch. -Make sure your chamber is clean. -Insert a round by hand and make sure your ammo is cambering all the way. Some over sized rounds don't chamber all the way. -Make sure your recoil spring is not to weak or wore out. Ill Finish off by saying The recoil spring, ammo, and keeping it clean are 3 HUGE deciding factors if your ST-22 is going to run properly or not. That's all for now. If I can think of anything else Ill add to it. Hopefully you guys find this information useful.

I picked up a Spikes dedicated upper with a YHM free float hand guard and a Spikes fake can. I put the upper on my spikes lower. I have only ran about 200 rounds through it so far. It is grouping very well with a red dot sight at about 30 yards. I am having issues with failure to extract, about 1 to 2 in every 26 round mag. I am going to try some different ammo and also contact spikes to try and troubleshoot the issue. Here are a few pictures. I would be interested to hear from anyone else that has this upper and get any tips or tricks you may have. [img width=800 height=364]http://i604.photobucket.com/albums/tt126/MOXDMGUY/IMG_1437.jpg [img width=800 height=352]http://i604.photobucket.com/albums/tt126/MOXDMGUY/IMG_1436.jpg [img width=800 height=600]http://i604.photobucket.com/albums/tt126/MOXDMGUY/IMG_1439.jpg

Looks good! Thanks for the detailed explanation, I will keep it in mind for my next build.

Thanks for the tip on where to get springs. My guess is the large spring is what caused you to go FA because I believe that is the main spring that causes the sear to re-engage the hammer. That was just my observation after spending only a few minutes with the assembly. Maybe just try and find that happy median between the one you put in prior and factory. Good luck, I will check in when I get back.

Umarex says they are in stock. $29.37 - seems pricey to me since I can get a 30 rounder at my local shop for a few dollars more. http://www.umarexusa.com/product/Colt-M4M16-10-Round-22lr-Magazine,146,60.htm

TM - Thanks for the reply. I too had to modify the CAA grip, I should have noted that. The MAGPUL stock I am looking at has a friction lock, so I am hoping that will take up the slop. If not I will put that on my AR and go with your tape solution. If you have any sucess with the trigger pull I am all ears. I am going overseas for a couple weeks this saturday, but when I get back I will start trtying to come up with a solution as well. Do you have a good source for aftermarket springs in general? I would like some lighter springs on several other of my guns but never have found a good source. Good luck with that trigger!!

Imschur, It all depends on what your end use is are you mainly looking at a target setup? The best advice I can give you isdon't go for a complete trigger assembly, just go for the parts. Barrels really come down to what you want to use the gun for and the action really comes down to the barrel in my opinion. Good luck getting started, these things are so much fun and very addicting!! Thanks for the welcome!

Hey Gramps, I was curious, did you pin the actual trigger group to the stock? How did you go about doing that and how did it looks? I have used the Kidd pin set on one of my setups that provides a slack free fit between the reciever and the trigger group, but have never seen anyone pin direct to a stock. Just curious how it worked out for you, I am always looking for new ideas!

I stumbled on this site because I purchased a new Colt Tacticall 22, but as I stated in that forum my first love is the 10/22..... My father-in-law introduced me to the Ruger 10/22. He has been a rabbit hunter all his life and got me into the sport. Most folks here in Missouri use a 410 or 20 guage but we enjoy hunting with the 10/22. There is no other hunt that tests your shooting skills with a rimfire rifle that shooting a rabbit running at full tilt. I started out with a stock green/black laminate stock 10/22 with open sights. Out of the box the 10/22 groups aren't anything to brag about, especially if you need all the accuracy you can get on a running shot. If you are strictly looking for a plinker then they are great. After my first season hunting, I dove into the world of 10/22 mods. I started out with an 18" bull barrel with an ATN Ultrasight and a new trigger group with a extended mag release, polished sear, power hammer and lighter springs. I ended up with about a 3.5 pound trigger pull, which greatly improves my running shots (the rabbit is running, not me). I had some issues with the ATN like being able to see the reticle well enough in bright light and snow situations so I went to a bull barrell with fixed front and adjustable rear truglo sights. The sights are extremely easy to pick up in moving shots. My groups standing with this setup are consistently quarter size. The bull barrel is heavy, but for hunting purposes I prefer a front heavy gun. The barrel I use is a match barrel and originally I had some feed issues with standard ammo. I went to a match ammo and the problem was solved. Now that the barrel is broken in I seem to be able to shoot most ammo through it reliably. I also upgraded to a high speed bolt assembly to help with the feed issues. In addition, I added an extended bolt handle to ease operating the bolt manually when wearing gloves. The 10/22 is by far the easiest rimfire I have been around to operate, maintain and modify. I use it in all types of small game hunting. The only issue I have ever had was a firing pin rounding off on the striking end which resulted in near complete FTF. I replaced the pin and haven't had a problem since. I would attribute this to dry firing (use snap caps!!). I am very familiar with complely breaking down and reassembling the 10/22 so if I can be of any help please feel free to ask.