by Ruger has announced a safety recall of some of their American Rimfire rifles in .17 HMR and .22 WMRF (Magnum) manufactured between November 17, 2013 and January 8, 2014. The recall is due to the lack of a hole that vents gas in case of an obstruction or case rupture.
WHY ARE YOU RECALLING THESE RIFLES
We have determined that Ruger American Rimfire™ rifles chambered in .22 WMRF (Magnum) and .17 HMR manufactured between November 17, 2013 and January 8, 2014 were manufactured without a vent hole. This hole appears just below and behind the serial number on the left-hand side of the receiver. The hole does not serve any function during normal operation of the rifle, but is a safety feature and may help vent gas in the event of a problem such as a ruptured case head or bore obstruction, for example. We want to recall the rifles and add the vent hole.How to determine if your rifle needs the retrofit
First, only Ruger American Rimfire™ rifles chambered in .22 WMRF (Magnum) and .17 HMR within the serial number range 830-34831 to 830-43880 are subject to the recall. If your rifle is chambered in .22 LR or falls outside of this serial number range, it is not subject to the recall. If you do have an Ruger American Rimfire™ rifle chambered in .22 WMRF (Magnum) or .17 HMR, you need only examine the left side of the receiver, just below and behind the serial number. If there is a hole there (Figure 1), then you do not need to return the rifle. If there is no hole (Figure 2), then the rifle should be returned.
For instructions on how to return a rifle without the vent hole, go to this Ruger webpage.
Ruger has been fantastic about recalls for product safety lately. Remember the SR pistol recall? Massad Ayoob said on the ProArms Podcast that the rumor he heard was that, in continued testing, they got an SR to fire without a trigger pull, on ONE occasion. Just for that, they recalled and upgraded them. Freakin' awesome. Much laud to Ruger.