How do you identify pre-ban ruger 10-22 high cap mags?

I dont think the ram line ones are marked so telling could be tough. Not sure about the other brands.

I would just go to a gun show in MA and buy whats available. I know we have been over this a million times before but I say if they are not marked and for sale in MA I would not go too crazy about it. Try to ensure that they are in fact pre bans by speaking with the seller and posing that question but definately make sure they are not marked (LE/Govt use only) or dated in any way. That "Should" keep you safe. I am not aware of many LE guys (myself included) that have nothing better to do than go through the trouble of confiscating your "non" marked mags and research them to the degree that it would take to see if they are in fact NOT pre ban. However if they are marked or dated I would not want to get caught with them.

Rob
 
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On gunbroker there was someone selling a pre-ban 25 rd mag that was in the original packaging that had a copyright date of 1990 or something. In my mind that would be pretty decent proof.

I personally don't think very highly of the aftermarket mags. The plastic wears very easily on the feed lip and the 25 round ones are too tall for prone shooting. A decent solution for more capacity are those clips that you allow you to connect 2 factory mags back to back. With the extended mag release lever swapping them over is very easy.

With MA being so anal about these things I don't see the risk/value ratio being very favorable. Crappy mags that will wear out quickly, may or may not feed well, interfere with prone shooting and may get me in trouble with the law....versus 20 rounds of very reliable well feeding mags that will last forever and 100% legit.

my .02
 
Crappy mags that will wear out quickly, may or may not feed well, interfere with prone shooting and may get me in trouble with the law....versus 20 rounds of very reliable well feeding mags that will last forever and 100% legit.

20-round mags? What are you referring to? Standard Ruger 10/22 mags are 10 rounds.
 
With MA being so anal about these things I don't see the risk/value ratio being very favorable. Crappy mags that will wear out quickly, may or may not feed well, interfere with prone shooting and may get me in trouble with the law....versus 20 rounds of very reliable well feeding mags that will last forever and 100% legit.

IMO the Butler Creek banana mags generally work very well, no reason to avoid not buying them if you can find some prebans. A friend of mine has a preban hot lips mag for his, and we've put thousands of rounds through that mag with no trouble at all.

-Mike
 
A while back I got two 25 round Butler Creek mags off a guy that I know hasn't bought anything since the early 90s because he lost interest in shooting, plus I found a 30 round Eagle mag while digging through my father's old shooting gear in the basement. He hasn't had a 10/22 since the late 80s.

Odd thing is that I've seen new mags and compared them against mine and I can't tell the difference in features except that mine are old and well used looking.
 
Here is a Ram-Line pre-ban 10/22 30 rd magazine.

Notice the type is upside-down and "RD. 30" is on the side.

New magazines are written with the type facing up and "30 RD" info on the front replacing where you see "1130 MAT ITEM" written.

I do not know the date these were changed, so this information cannot say whether a ban-era mag still has the old writing, only that the brand new mags are different from the pre-ban made mags.

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Maybe this is a question appropriate for the gun laws section but...when I received my FID card way back when I remember that I could buy any .22lr Rifle because the whole 10rd max law didn't apply to anything 22lr or smaller. I asked if I could put a "banana clip" magazine on my 597 and my instructor told me hell you could put a pineapple magazine on there for all I care because it doesn't matter. Now why are these .22 magazines considered high cap considering they're 22 mags? I can try to look up the legislation on it. What say you?
 
Maybe this is a question appropriate for the gun laws section but...when I received my FID card way back when I remember that I could buy any .22lr Rifle because the whole 10rd max law didn't apply to anything 22lr or smaller. I asked if I could put a "banana clip" magazine on my 597 and my instructor told me hell you could put a pineapple magazine on there for all I care because it doesn't matter. Now why are these .22 magazines considered high cap considering they're 22 mags? I can try to look up the legislation on it. What say you?

The legal wallhack on .22s only applies to .22 rifles that have a tubular feeding device, eg, a feed tube, like some lever and semi .22 rifles have.
These tubes are exempt from being considered an LCAFD by the law itself. You would still need an LTC-B or better to use a large cap detachable mag with a .22 rifle. Law is stupid, but that's what it is.

-Mike
 
Maybe this is a question appropriate for the gun laws section but...when I received my FID card way back when I remember that I could buy any .22lr Rifle because the whole 10rd max law didn't apply to anything 22lr or smaller. I asked if I could put a "banana clip" magazine on my 597 and my instructor told me hell you could put a pineapple magazine on there for all I care because it doesn't matter. Now why are these .22 magazines considered high cap considering they're 22 mags? I can try to look up the legislation on it. What say you?

Your instructor is mistaken. MGL defines a large capacity feeding device as follows:

“Large capacity feeding device”, (i) a fixed or detachable magazine, box, drum, feed strip or similar device capable of accepting, or that can be readily converted to accept, more than ten rounds of ammunition or more than five shotgun shells; or (ii) a large capacity ammunition feeding device as defined in the federal Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act, 18 U.S.C. section 921(a)(31) as appearing in such section on September 13, 1994. The term “large capacity feeding device” shall not include an attached tubular device designed to accept, and capable of operating only with,.22 caliber ammunition.

Full text is here: http://www.mass.gov/legis/laws/mgl/140-121.htm

These rifles have tubular magazines and are thus not considered large capacity feeding devices:
h004_goldenboy_lg.jpg


These are NOT tubular magazines and thus are considered to be large capacity feeding devices:
s7_229553_imageset_01
 
Makes sense. Thanks. Pictures weren't necessary really but hell thanks for the effort. Looking at this situation now I'd say same rules apply with the 10/22 mags as do AR mags. Keep quiet about it and try to pretend like you thought they were preban and dont play show and tell with everyone and their mother. MHO
 
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On gunbroker there was someone selling a pre-ban 25 rd mag that was in the original packaging that had a copyright date of 1990 or something. In my mind that would be pretty decent proof.

I personally don't think very highly of the aftermarket mags. The plastic wears very easily on the feed lip and the 25 round ones are too tall for prone shooting. A decent solution for more capacity are those clips that you allow you to connect 2 factory mags back to back. With the extended mag release lever swapping them over is very easy.

With MA being so anal about these things I don't see the risk/value ratio being very favorable. Crappy mags that will wear out quickly, may or may not feed well, interfere with prone shooting and may get me in trouble with the law....versus 20 rounds of very reliable well feeding mags that will last forever and 100% legit.

my .02

Could you please explain how to do this. Do you have a link to any site that sells this extension?
 
Try to ensure that they are in fact pre bans by speaking with the seller and posing that question but definately make sure they are not marked (LE/Govt use only) or dated in any way.
[rofl][laugh2][laugh][rofl2]
I wasn't aware that many SWAT teams deployed with the 10/22!! [rofl]

Makes sense. Thanks. Pictures weren't necessary really but hell thanks for the effort. Looking at this situation now I'd say same rules apply with the 10/22 mags as do AR mags. Keep quiet about it and try to pretend like you thought they were preban and dont play show and tell with everyone and their mother. MHO
And don't post your plans to break the law on the internet. [thinking]
 
The plastic mags he is talking about have a attachment point for the mirror mag to mount in.

IE one has a hole and the other a pin.

The only drawback to this setup is the one pointing down can get dirt in it if your not careful.

In the pic below you see a mag with a hole towards the base of the mag and a pin towards the top.

This is how the magazines are mated with these attachment points

butler_1022mag25_clear.jpg




Could you please explain how to do this. Do you have a link to any site that sells this extension?
 
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I had Ramline "crappy" 30-round magazines back in the 80's that saw tens of thousands of rounds through them. What I really miss is my Mitchell Drum mag - stunning. I got this 10/22 at 16 and poured ammunition through it like water down a storm drain and those Ramline mags never, ever failed...
 
I wasn't aware that many SWAT teams deployed with the 10/22!!

[laugh2]

they dont however I dont own many hi cap 10/22 mags and as your aware back before 2004 when the AWB was country wide many hi cap mags had to be stamped in order to identify them. LE / Gov use only was the usual stamp on mags like ARs or Mini 14 mags. Your right I dont believe the 10/22 mags were but I was just saying to make sure to check for any markings or manufacturer dates just to stay on the safe side.
 
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The only marking change that I know of is one on the package that says "Not for sale in CA/NY/MA etc".I didn't see anything on one of the clear Butler Creeks that looked any different than ones I had bought in the early 90's but a) my memory ain't THAT good and b) I didn't see one out of the package with a known old one to compare it to. This was immediately after the federal AWB went away and I was amused at looking at new things we aren't allowed,wanting to see if they had marked them now in any way.



As for LE/Mil use of the 10/22,the Israelis were using suppressed ones to shoot Palestinians rock throwers in the legs.Apparently,they managed to hit femoral artery enough times for it to no longer be allowed as less than lethal force.
 
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As far as I know only one country uses 10/22 rifles in their military and its for riot control. From what I remember reading, their snipers use 10/22s to shoot rioters in the crotch to disperse crowds.[shocked]

It'd sure as hell make me run away if I saw the guy next to me drop like a stone holding his bleeding crotch.
 
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