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Christensen Arms Ranger 22
- Thread starter FuhQ
- Start date
Some recent Velocity testing to find out why my CCI SV goes supersonic in my 18” barrel… Got some answers… It’s average MV is just barely breaking 1100. This was from a 7-shot string.
Incase anyone is wondering, the ultrasonic cleaner stripped the finish on my Mask HD mount and end cap. Looks kinda cool, but I’d rather It be black again. I’ll get it cerakoted again. Probably just send the whole thing into Dead Air and get the whole can refinished. Might end up doing it in FDE with black mounts and end cap. That would look pretty cool.
Incase anyone is wondering, the ultrasonic cleaner stripped the finish on my Mask HD mount and end cap. Looks kinda cool, but I’d rather It be black again. I’ll get it cerakoted again. Probably just send the whole thing into Dead Air and get the whole can refinished. Might end up doing it in FDE with black mounts and end cap. That would look pretty cool.
Is Christensen running the sweet rebates on the Rangers this month because they are getting ready to release the gen 2? What's the new gun going to be like?
Well for anyone else who immediately went searching…
For a $250 rebate, looks like I’ll be checking what kind of price my LGS can get me on a Ranger22.
I’d been planning on buying a bolt action .22 soon anyways, and the Ranger was on the shortlist. Pretty sure this has to be a sign.
No, it's not a Gen2 version or anything. It's the same rifle. They're just releasing a couple new stock colors in camo patterns, and also releasing a Ranger in .17 HMR and .22 WMR. I plan on getting a .17 HMR version to go with my .22LR Ranger.
Don't want to come across like I'm crapping on your (or anyone's) decision to buy this rifle, but is the general consensus that they've fixed the issues and improved the feel of the bolt? If so, $500-550 wouldn't be bad at all for this and I may get one too.
I wanted to like this when I first saw it but after handling 2 different ones, I feel like it checks the boxes on paper but not in actuality. The 2 I've handled in the store had OK but not good or great stocks for me, and both had really janky feeling bolts that didn't fit well at all. One bolt had a good amount of play when pulling back and forth and was hard to actuate due to it feeling kind of sticky, like it was binding up when I used it. Not hard to actuate like when you use a short throw bolt with strong springs inside. The other bolt had so much play L/R that I actually got the bolt to bind against the inside of the rail / receiver it rides on almost each time I actuated it, most likely because it was so loose too much force was being applied sideways into the rail / receiver. Compare this to a 452/455/457 or T1x where they're admittedly not as smooth as a higher end action, but they're good enough for the price and the vast majority of them seem to work fine.
A brief google search of "Christensen Arms Ranger 22 Problems" or something similar also seemed to show consistent issues and quite a few different types of issues... Again unlike say a 452/455/457 or T1x where issues pop up... but general consensus even when you're specifically looking for issues is "this is usually a good product".
I wanted to like this when I first saw it but after handling 2 different ones, I feel like it checks the boxes on paper but not in actuality. The 2 I've handled in the store had OK but not good or great stocks for me, and both had really janky feeling bolts that didn't fit well at all. One bolt had a good amount of play when pulling back and forth and was hard to actuate due to it feeling kind of sticky, like it was binding up when I used it. Not hard to actuate like when you use a short throw bolt with strong springs inside. The other bolt had so much play L/R that I actually got the bolt to bind against the inside of the rail / receiver it rides on almost each time I actuated it, most likely because it was so loose too much force was being applied sideways into the rail / receiver. Compare this to a 452/455/457 or T1x where they're admittedly not as smooth as a higher end action, but they're good enough for the price and the vast majority of them seem to work fine.
A brief google search of "Christensen Arms Ranger 22 Problems" or something similar also seemed to show consistent issues and quite a few different types of issues... Again unlike say a 452/455/457 or T1x where issues pop up... but general consensus even when you're specifically looking for issues is "this is usually a good product".
Nothing is a guarantee, but I have read that only the very first run was plagued with issues. I can’t speak for all the others, but mine has been excellent. The bolt was pretty stiff on mine when it was new, but now it’s smoothed out a good bit. No excessive side-to-side play and zero front to back play while cocked and in battery. The stocks are not the greatest, and the stock fitment is not the greatest…But it’s very lightweight, and accurate, and it works fine for me. It’s a .22LR, so as long as it fits securely and the action is properly torqued into the stock with no wiggle, and nothing is touching the barrel, then it’s typically going to be fine.
In my opinion, there isn’t enough recoil from a .22 to really be greatly affected by stock quality, like a centerfire rifle. I figured this one out by directly comparing how well my 10/22 shot with a cheap Hogue Overmold stock vs. an expensive Tactical Solutions thumbhole laminate stock. They shot the same. I don’t like the TS stock, so it still wears the Hogue overmold.
Took my Ranger 22 to the range today (like always)… It’s fun and cheap to shoot, so it always goes with me to plink with while the cans and centerfires cool down between groups.
Put down a nice .334” 3-shot group @ 100 yards with CCI SV…
Put down a nice .334” 3-shot group @ 100 yards with CCI SV…
I don’t shoot at 50 yards. But I can do a 5-shot group at 100 next time.
Bulk-pack ammo is not very consistent, and has a severe propensity for flyers due to Velocity swings from not being as precise as say, Eley match ammo or SK. Which is why I tend to only shoot 3-shot groups with bulk-pack .22 ammo.
But, I’ll do a 5-shot group next time I’m at the range.
There are some pretty good shooting ammo for decent price. My go to is SK standard and Eley yellow box. They are very consistence and relatively affordable if you look around.
I don’t shoot that expensive stuff. It’s still hard for me to pay $0.10 a round for .22LR ammo. Maybe I’m just too old school, but as inconsistent as bulk .22 LR ammo is, I think anything more than $20 / 500 is stupid. But in these ridiculous times, we don’t have much choice…
But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious what this rifle could do with some top-shelf .22LR match ammo.
Everyone have their own view on it, but personally I wouldn't mind paying slightly higher price for a small box of decent grade ammo to know the real potential of a rifle i drop $800 on.
I'm sure I will someday, just haven't gotten around to it, as I've had other things on my plate, so it's just kind sitting on the back burner for now.
They're good rifles. Folks on here don't like them because of the herd mentally, but all the bugs and issues seem to be worked out now. I can't speak for everyone else, but mine has been great.
FuhQ,
A fellow shoots one like yours in our monthly MARS matches (20yds to 400yds, barricade rests), and has finished second place twice, hard pressing the victors, and beating a top drawer field of guns. I don’t need one yet, but I am intrigued
A fellow shoots one like yours in our monthly MARS matches (20yds to 400yds, barricade rests), and has finished second place twice, hard pressing the victors, and beating a top drawer field of guns. I don’t need one yet, but I am intrigued
Honestly, I never thought I’d shoot a 1/3 MOA @ 100 yards 22LR rifle. Not for $800. It doesn’t shoot that good 365 days a year, but it’s pretty damn consistent if the weather allows it, despite the bulk pack ammo concentricity issues.FuhQ,
A fellow shoots one like yours in our monthly MARS matches (20yds to 400yds, barricade rests), and has finished second place twice, hard pressing the victors, and beating a top drawer field of guns. I don’t need one yet, but I am intrigued
Someday I will buy a few boxes of top-shelf match ammo and she what she’ll really do at 100 and 200.
2nd trip to range
Mine is having some failures to eject. I tried just closing the bolt to clear the empty. It worked 3 out of 5 FTEs last range trip. 2 jammed up the gun and had to remove mag to clear.
Mine is having some failures to eject. I tried just closing the bolt to clear the empty. It worked 3 out of 5 FTEs last range trip. 2 jammed up the gun and had to remove mag to clear.
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The action and bolt have smoothed a good bit. I have sat and opened and closed the bolt after lubing to work the action in. I don't think I will be using this for any 22 PRS matches over my B14R steel but the CA ranger is very light and handy and enjoyable to shoot. Hopefully with time accuracy may improve a bit and action will work better. The failures to eject may be from me working the bolt too easy to too hard. It seems either end of the spectrum can cause a FTE
I have noticed with mine, that depending on how hard you sling the bolt back into the bolt stop, depends on how far the brass ejects. Normally I open the bolt and just give it a light “pop” all the way back with 2 fingers, and it elects them within a foot. But I f I sling the bolt back fast and it hits the bolt stop hard, it sends them 2-3 feet. Might be worth experimenting with. I’ve also noticed that my last case (10th shot) doesn’t always eject, but it does extract and will sit on top of the magazine feed lips. It’s not a big deal, as that was the last shot anyway, but something I’m curious if anyone else experiences?
All the failures to eject have been mid mag. I have only used the mag that came with the gun to date
Strange... I wonder if it's the magazine, or if the chamber just needs a polishing? What is the first 2 letters of your serial number? I'm curious to know if it was built before or after mine... Mine is a B5. I don't know how their serial numbering system works, but I'd be willing to bet a B4, B3, A2 or A1 or something like that would have been built before mine.
Also, have you scrubbed out the chamber and bore really well with a brass brush and a jag & patch? I always do that to all my new rifles and scrub them till the patches come out white. Then I run a wet patch of RemOil down the bore, and go to the range and shoot the crap out of them to break them in. No special procedures, no stupid hokey pokey system, nothing crazy, just scrub, wet patch, shoot 100-250 rounds (rimfire) or 50-100 rounds (centerfire) at the range. Go home, clean, repeat. And after about 50 rounds it really settled in, and started shooting some insane groups. And no sticky chamber either.
It was rainy here today so I figured I'd sneak out to the range as no one else would be dumb enough to go out there. I took a 25 round mag and boy did I have problems! First fte was about 3 rounds in. I dropped mag to clear, when I tried putting the mag back in the gun the mag release/catch was stuck. Well I wasn't taking home a loaded mag so I held the mag in the gun by hand and fired off the rest of rounds. Getting close to finishing the mag off I heard the catch pop back into place so I reloaded the mag and took this video after having more issues. I think my problem was the mag. The ejector in the trigger frame is about useless. The empty has to eject off the mag and this 25 rounder was a no go once I was not holding it up into the gun while the mag catch got stuck. I took apart the CA mag catch; its a thinner squared off frame compared to a ruger trigger group. I rounded the mag catch and inside of trigger housing and can no longer get the catch/latch to stick. Before when pushing the release very hard (probably pissed about a jam) it would get stuck every time. My gun is A4 serial #. Just bought it last month but have no idea how long the shop has had it in stock. I know they said they had a few more after I bought this one
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Looking at the similar threads below I found this article. https://www.gunsamerica.com/digest/christensen-arms-ranger-22-reviewed/ It looks like I have the newer design bolt design/travel. I really think my problem is mag related and hope to find a couple mags that eject more reliably.
Looking at that image, mine appears to have the old style bolt. What is different about yours?
If I am reading the description correctly - The older style bolt design had more rearward travel and exposed more of the ejector. I'd guess with my bolt fully open there is about 0.125" of the ejector exposed.
I'll have to look tomorrow and see. I do know that you need to make sure you clean around those 2 extractors really well, as they get pretty dirty over time. I wonder if some assembly grease or something was getting in there, and preventing them from grabbing the case rim fully, or something, on the first run?
I went to the range again today and took a selection of 10 round ruger mags. They are definitely not all made equally. I tried several with varying results, even one that I could barely get to lock in place it was so tight. I have a set I use in a 1022 for steel challenge matches that I have worked on and are very reliable. The one I tested today in the Ranger ejected 100% of the rounds I fired from it. I captured a few slow mo videos of the ranger ejecting off the mag just like the 1022. With a good mag I could open the bolt very slowly or fast and get good ejection, with no mag the empty stayed stuck to the bolt and putting the empty mag back in it ejected. I imagine I could fiddle around with a 15 or 25 rounder to get it to fit into the gun correctly and eject reliably.
Nice slow-no footage. Your tests make me wonder if a lot of folks were just simply having magazine related issues with the election problems, and not necessarily rifle issues… 
I’ve used the brand new production Ruger 10/22 mag that came with it, and my 20 year old original Ruger 10/22 mags that have been ticking along for over 2 decades now, even a few older Butler Creek HotLips 30-rounders, and an old discontinued Ramline double-stack 30 rounder that I love. I wish I could find some NOS ones sitting in an old mom & pop shop somewhere.
I’ve used the brand new production Ruger 10/22 mag that came with it, and my 20 year old original Ruger 10/22 mags that have been ticking along for over 2 decades now, even a few older Butler Creek HotLips 30-rounders, and an old discontinued Ramline double-stack 30 rounder that I love. I wish I could find some NOS ones sitting in an old mom & pop shop somewhere.
Just as in the 10/22, the primary ejector is a spot on the magazine.
The separate ejector is obviously a part of the rifle, and works slow or fast, by using the extractor tension to snap the cartridge free.
Any chance you have close-ups of your bolt face and extractors?
Make sure you clean all that good, and keep it clean... I noticed some grease gunk in mine when it was brand new, and I pulled it apart and cleaned the whole bolt and rifle before shooting it, and then put it all back together and torqued the action screws to 35 inch-pounds (per manual spec), and mine has been perfect in thousands of rounds. I shoot 100-250 rounds through it nearly every weekend, or every other weekend, at the very minimum. Not a single issue.
Not particularly strange, that spring-clip construction is extremely common in bolt-action rimfires. Savage, Marlin, CZ, Ruger, Anschutz (64-action) and many others are built similarly. The really interesting part is as you noted, no coil springs. I can only think of a couple old guns like that, not sure if any current-production rifles besides the Ranger are made this way.
Hmmm, I don’t see anything glaringly obvious.
Kind of strange or innovative extractor design. No pins or coil springs or plunger pins. Just a spring clip that holds everything together.
I’d lube the parts with EP Molybdenum Disulfide grease during assembly. Then, since the bolts out of the gun, slide a fired case rim up in the bolt face. The extractors should retain it very well, without any sideways rocking.
This pic is the bottom of my Bergara’s bolt, obviously there is a lot of gap between the hook and case rim. While this isn’t ideal, thus far it hasn’t “caused” issues, but I haven’t used a wide variety of ammo in this rifle either.
Does the other ejector (not the mags) ride firmly up (in it’s groove) in the bottom of the bolt?
Does it ever skip passed the case rim?
Think I might go the range today... Maybe tomorrow? Depends on the weather. It's a bit hot and muggy lately, and has been quite miserable to be outside. Walk down to the 100, then the 200, and set my targets up, and by the time I get back, I look like I've jumped in a pool with my clothes on...
This gun has extracted 100%. The mag is the only functioning ejector. In slow mo vid I did an ejection attempt without the mag you can see the empty wiggle hitting frame mounted ejector but both extractors keep holding. With a mag that is sitting in the correct position/relationship to the bolt, the mag does the ejection the gun runs perfectly. It's like the frame mounted ejector needs more bolt travel to make it let go of the bolt face. See pics of frame ejector only, with bolt sitting on top of ejector and how the exactors hold a rim.
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When its hotter than balz outside I try to get to the range early. Or take the dewalt battery operated fan. Nothing worse than a summer day when you get the rifle out of the bag and the scope and glass, action and everything starts sweating like a glass of ice tea from setting in AC all day
You guys made me think about the Bergara extractor ejector relationship. The Christensen ejector barley goes reward past the frame mounted ejector. Look at the Bergara. I stopped the bolt in about the same place as the Christensen then moved it all the way to the end of its travel. Probably an additional 1/2" of reward travel past the ejector
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Actually, there's an ejector built into the stock... If you haven't removed your action from the stock, you wouldn't even know it was there. It's a 10/22 style ejector, but this one is glued in the stock, whereas the 10/22 it's in the receiver.
Great pics, but I’m still stumped.
That ejector should really be kicking the case free, there’s something wrong with the geometry.
If extractors are readily available, I think I’d be experimenting with a different shape on the left one.
The contact is too wide allowing the case to twist rather than snap free.
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@chillywig Any updates on your ejection issues? I still think part of it could be certain magazines.
Was hoping to get to the range this weekend, but between football and still dealing with tons of my dad's estate stuff, I wasn't able to...Been a rough couple months trying to get all this stuff situated. Hopefully things will smooth-out and get situated soon.
Maybe I can get out there tomorrow afternoon, since it's Columbus day, and I'm off work.
Maybe I can get out there tomorrow afternoon, since it's Columbus day, and I'm off work.
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