Ruger 10/22 Jam Fix: Extractor Fit + Tighter Headspace | Over the Gunsmith's Shoulder Ep. 33
American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI)
154,315 views
The tag on this Ruger 10/22 just said "it jams." Ken Brooks shows you how a working gunsmith hunts down the real cause instead of guessing.
In this episode of Over the Gunsmith's Shoulder, Master Gunsmith Ken Brooks takes a jamming Ruger 10/22 from a dirty, neglected mess to a gun that feeds, extracts, and ejects. He never tears it down ahead of time — you watch him diagnose it live. After stripping the trigger group, bolt, and barrel, Ken finds gunk packed in the extractor slot and walks through exactly what a correctly fitted extractor has to do: hold the cartridge tight against the breech face with both the right angle and the right tension.
He checks that fit two different ways, drop-tests the chamber, and measures nearly .010" of headspace with a depth mic. From there it's real bench work — polishing the chamber, sharpening and fitting the extractor hook, grinding the bolt face on a belt sander to tighten headspace, and heating the extractor foot to move the hook closer to the breech.
Ken closes with a full heat-treat tutorial (oil vs. water hardening, annealing vs. tempering, drawing to a blue spring temper) and a serious safety lesson on why you never test-fire a loose 10/22 bolt with live rounds.
✅ Diagnosing a jam without tearing the gun down blind
✅ Ruger 10/22 disassembly: trigger group, bolt, and barrel
✅ What correct extractor fit actually means (angle + tension)
✅ Checking extractor hold two different ways
✅ Drop-testing the chamber for free feed and ejection
✅ Measuring headspace with a depth micrometer
✅ Polishing a chamber with 400–500 grit on a mandrel
✅ Sharpening and undercutting the extractor hook with a three-sided file
✅ Tightening headspace by grinding the bolt face on a 1" belt
✅ Spotting bolt-to-barrel contact with lipstick (the precise way)
This is the kind of practical, real-world gunsmithing you only learn by watching a pro do it. No fluff — just hands-on skill.
🔧 Want to learn real gunsmithing from certified professionals?
👉 https://americangunsmithinginstitute....
Whether you're a hobbyist, a gun owner, or ready to train as a certified professional gunsmith, AGI has the courses to get you there.
🔔 Like and Subscribe so you never miss an episode of Over the Gunsmith's Shoulder.
Q: Why does a Ruger 10/22 keep jamming?
A: On this gun, two things were working against reliable feeding: a dirty extractor that wasn't holding the cartridge tight against the breech face, and nearly .010" of headspace. Ken cleaned and refit the extractor, polished the chamber, and tightened the headspace to get it feeding, extracting, and ejecting again.
Q: What does a correctly fitted extractor actually do?
A: It has to hold the cartridge up against the breech face using both the angle of the hook and spring tension. If either is off, gravity pulls the case loose and the gun won't extract reliably. Ken checks it two ways — tension hold, and pulling the case straight off the bolt face to confirm the hook still captures the rim.
Q: How do you measure headspace on a 10/22?
A: Ken uses a depth micrometer to measure how far the cartridge rim sits out from the back of the barrel (about .034–.035") and how deep the rim cut is in the bolt face (about .042–.043"). The difference — nearly .010" — is the headspace.
Q: How do you tighten headspace on a Ruger 10/22?
A: Ken grinds material off the bolt face on a 1" belt sander to reduce the depth of the rim cut, taking small passes and checking constantly so he doesn't go past minimum rim thickness, which could crush a rim and detonate a cartridge.
Q: What grit should you use to polish a rimfire chamber?
A: Ken uses roughly 400–500 grit sandpaper wrapped around a mandrel in a Foredom tool — just enough to shine the chamber and check for rings, bulges, tears, or rust, so the case releases cleanly when it expands on firing.
Q: Should you heat treat a 10/22 extractor after fitting it?
A: Ruger 10/22 extractors are soft stamped steel, so it's not critical here. Ken still uses it as a teaching moment: when you don't know the steel, quench in oil first, then draw it back to a blue spring temper (about 600–700°F) so the part flexes instead of snapping.
4. Chapters
00:00 — Cold Open: The Jam and the Extractor's Job
00:44 — Gene Kelly Welcome & AGI Introduction
01:20 — The Problem: A Ruger 10/22 That Jams
02:38 — Disassembly: Trigger, Bolt and Barrel
03:31 — Extractor Fit and the Live-Round Philosophy
07:36 — Checking Extractor Tension Two Ways
08:41 — Cleaning the Slot and Drop-Testing the Chamber
11:42 — Measuring Headspace (Nearly .010")
16:32 — Polishing the Chamber and Fitting the Hook
19:02 — Removing Headspace on the Belt Sander
22:23 — Back at the Bench: Verifying the Fit
26:56 — Bending the Extractor Foot With Heat
34:55 — Heat-Treating and Annealing the Extractor
41:38 — Safety, Function Check and Wrap-Up
Ruger 10/22 Jam Fix: Extractor Fit + Tighter Headspace | Over the Gunsmith's Shoulder Ep. 33
American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI)
154,315 views
The tag on this Ruger 10/22 just said "it jams." Ken Brooks shows you how a working gunsmith hunts down the real cause instead of guessing.
In this episode of Over the Gunsmith's Shoulder, Master Gunsmith Ken Brooks takes a jamming Ruger 10/22 from a dirty, neglected mess to a gun that feeds, extracts, and ejects. He never tears it down ahead of time — you watch him diagnose it live. After stripping the trigger group, bolt, and barrel, Ken finds gunk packed in the extractor slot and walks through exactly what a correctly fitted extractor has to do: hold the cartridge tight against the breech face with both the right angle and the right tension.
He checks that fit two different ways, drop-tests the chamber, and measures nearly .010" of headspace with a depth mic. From there it's real bench work — polishing the chamber, sharpening and fitting the extractor hook, grinding the bolt face on a belt sander to tighten headspace, and heating the extractor foot to move the hook closer to the breech.
Ken closes with a full heat-treat tutorial (oil vs. water hardening, annealing vs. tempering, drawing to a blue spring temper) and a serious safety lesson on why you never test-fire a loose 10/22 bolt with live rounds.
✅ Diagnosing a jam without tearing the gun down blind
✅ Ruger 10/22 disassembly: trigger group, bolt, and barrel
✅ What correct extractor fit actually means (angle + tension)
✅ Checking extractor hold two different ways
✅ Drop-testing the chamber for free feed and ejection
✅ Measuring headspace with a depth micrometer
✅ Polishing a chamber with 400–500 grit on a mandrel
✅ Sharpening and undercutting the extractor hook with a three-sided file
✅ Tightening headspace by grinding the bolt face on a 1" belt
✅ Spotting bolt-to-barrel contact with lipstick (the precise way)
This is the kind of practical, real-world gunsmithing you only learn by watching a pro do it. No fluff — just hands-on skill.
🔧 Want to learn real gunsmithing from certified professionals?
👉 https://americangunsmithinginstitute....
Whether you're a hobbyist, a gun owner, or ready to train as a certified professional gunsmith, AGI has the courses to get you there.
🔔 Like and Subscribe so you never miss an episode of Over the Gunsmith's Shoulder.
Q: Why does a Ruger 10/22 keep jamming?
A: On this gun, two things were working against reliable feeding: a dirty extractor that wasn't holding the cartridge tight against the breech face, and nearly .010" of headspace. Ken cleaned and refit the extractor, polished the chamber, and tightened the headspace to get it feeding, extracting, and ejecting again.
Q: What does a correctly fitted extractor actually do?
A: It has to hold the cartridge up against the breech face using both the angle of the hook and spring tension. If either is off, gravity pulls the case loose and the gun won't extract reliably. Ken checks it two ways — tension hold, and pulling the case straight off the bolt face to confirm the hook still captures the rim.
Q: How do you measure headspace on a 10/22?
A: Ken uses a depth micrometer to measure how far the cartridge rim sits out from the back of the barrel (about .034–.035") and how deep the rim cut is in the bolt face (about .042–.043"). The difference — nearly .010" — is the headspace.
Q: How do you tighten headspace on a Ruger 10/22?
A: Ken grinds material off the bolt face on a 1" belt sander to reduce the depth of the rim cut, taking small passes and checking constantly so he doesn't go past minimum rim thickness, which could crush a rim and detonate a cartridge.
Q: What grit should you use to polish a rimfire chamber?
A: Ken uses roughly 400–500 grit sandpaper wrapped around a mandrel in a Foredom tool — just enough to shine the chamber and check for rings, bulges, tears, or rust, so the case releases cleanly when it expands on firing.
Q: Should you heat treat a 10/22 extractor after fitting it?
A: Ruger 10/22 extractors are soft stamped steel, so it's not critical here. Ken still uses it as a teaching moment: when you don't know the steel, quench in oil first, then draw it back to a blue spring temper (about 600–700°F) so the part flexes instead of snapping.
4. Chapters
00:00 — Cold Open: The Jam and the Extractor's Job
00:44 — Gene Kelly Welcome & AGI Introduction
01:20 — The Problem: A Ruger 10/22 That Jams
02:38 — Disassembly: Trigger, Bolt and Barrel
03:31 — Extractor Fit and the Live-Round Philosophy
07:36 — Checking Extractor Tension Two Ways
08:41 — Cleaning the Slot and Drop-Testing the Chamber
11:42 — Measuring Headspace (Nearly .010")
16:32 — Polishing the Chamber and Fitting the Hook
19:02 — Removing Headspace on the Belt Sander
22:23 — Back at the Bench: Verifying the Fit
26:56 — Bending the Extractor Foot With Heat
34:55 — Heat-Treating and Annealing the Extractor
41:38 — Safety, Function Check and Wrap-Up