My Gemtech MIST 10/22 Takedown Experience

[Doc_Glock]

This is just a thread to document my experience with a Gemtech MIST 22 (https://www.silencershop.com/gemtech-integral-mist-22-takedown.html)integrally suppressed barrel for the 10/22 takedown.

I received the barrel after about a 9 month wait. On reading instructions I realized I needed a Bull Barrel stock since my 10/22 TD donor was a tapered barrel. A short amount of research led me to the Magpul X22 Backpacker (https://magpul.com/firearm-accessories/stocks/ruger/hunterx-22backpackerstock-ruger10-22takedown.html?mp_global_color=118) stock which was pretty dang cool as well as cheap. So I waited another week for that and got it installed along with the Magpul Optic mount and it makes a very nice, handy package.

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On initial function checking, I had a few failures to fire but generally it ran decently. The problem came when I had a failure to fire or I needed to unload a live round, the extractor would not extract the round leading to me needing to take down the rifle and flick out the round out with a knife. Closer inspection showed a clear, to me, manufacturing defect in that the extractor channel was not cut deeply enough. See photos comparing the Gemtech to the Ruger stock rifle.

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So contacted Gemtech. I called and talked to them by phone and followed up with an email explaining the problem with photos. 48 business hours with no response, so I called them again. They looked at my email with me on the phone and agreed the barrel needs to go back to them. Just the barrel, not the serialized part.

Disappointingly I found out that Smith and Wesson now owns Gemtech and they will not pay return freight or issue a return label for any Gemtech product, nor will they reimburse it. I put my request for a shipping label up the chain of command and am awaiting a reply.

So now I am faced with a dilemma: Part of me just wants to hit this thing with a file and ghetto fix it myself. Part of me wants to pay a local machine shop to cut the groove deeper. Part of me wants to suck up the shipping, ship the barrel, and wait the probable eight weeks to get it back hopefully corrected, hopefully not lost in the mail.

Luckily the serialized "can" part is fine and does not need to be shipped back and forth.

Needless to say this experience has soured me on Gemtech and I don't think I will be buying any more product from them. Usually with broken or defective firearms, my experiences with Smith & Wesson, Ruger, and Beretta have been exceptionally good. They send a label, fix the problem and it is back in a few weeks, always without a run around.

I am open to opinions from forum members on how to go about fixing this or if they recommend a better barrel smith to deal with it. I would rather spend my money with someone who gives a care than on shipping to Gemtech.

[HeavyDuty]

*Takes Gemtech off the list*

[Duces Tecum]

So now I am faced with a dilemma: Part of me just wants to hit this thing with a file and ghetto fix it myself. Part of me wants to pay a local machine shop to cut the groove deeper. Part of me wanst to suck up the shipping, ship the barrel, and wait the probable eight weeks to get it back hopefully corrected, hopefully not lost in the mail.

If you return the barrel, Doc, they'll probably do a quick barrel exchange and you'll be back in business faster than you now expect.

[alamo5000]

This the kind of thing most new buyers need to be discussing rather than a pure fixation on DB levels.

I don't know how the suppressor part attaches to the barrel but either way, knowing what I know now, I would find a good gunsmith with all the right tools and have them fix it.

You are definitely not alone in having problems with Gemtech. If you send it back to them you are going to be waiting for a long time in basically a defunct company that may or may not fix the problem. You might not see it again, ever. It's just a roll of the dice

If it was anyone else, particularly a company not in the situation they are in, I would say send it back. In this case, no. All it would take is one memo from the top people that lays everyone off or shuts the door indefinitely.

[farscott]

This situation reminds me of when S&W purchased Thompson/Center. When T/C was standalone, the customer service was amazing and the company did custom barrel runs for the T/C Collectors Association as well as running the Fox Ridge Custom shop. All of that went away when S&W bought the company. Then the product went away.

I would likely have my local smith deal with the barrel or work with Volquartsen on a custom barrel replacement.

[jandbj]

Curious to see the resolution of this... in the eyes of the ATF the “can” is your serialized tube.

If it goes back to Gemtech, they’ll either replace all the internals with new ones with your tube on it and send it back in record time, or they’ll deepen the extractor slot on your bits. Coin toss on how they resolve it.

I’ve been sitting on my original Gemtech sealed (2004 vintage) OB2, waffling on having the GM22 upgrade service done or having someone else do the jailbreak and recore. This my interest in seeing how something sent to them progresses.

[Lost River]

That is really a shame. Phil Dater gave me my first can back in the 90s for something I did for him. I can recall when the FN P90 was brand new and he was working on suppressors for outfits who were using them. There were 2 in the US at the time. I remember shooting one at his shop. Phil was a serious encyclopedia of knowledge when it came to anything and everything involving suppressors. Things have certainly changed.

[OlongJohnson]

That's a really easy fix for someone with a mill and a slotting cutter. Get it done locally and right.

I know S&W just had the first billion-dollar year for a peacetime small arms company, but I don't understand how causing companies that don't compete with one's core product line to not exist by buying them and shutting them down is profitable. I mean, I would totally understand if they bought Taurus and then ran it into the ground. Even if they could pull it off with Ruger, I would get the motivation. But T/C and a silencer company?

[Doc_Glock]

This the kind of thing most new buyers need to be discussing rather than a pure fixation on DB levels.

I don't know how the suppressor part attaches to the barrel but either way, knowing what I know now, I would find a good gunsmith with all the right tools and have them fix it.

You are definitely not alone in having problems with Gemtech. If you send it back to them you are going to be waiting for a long time in basically a defunct company that may or may not fix the problem. You might not see it again, ever. It's just a roll of the dice

If it was anyone else, particularly a company not in the situation they are in, I would say send it back. In this case, no. All it would take is one memo from the top people that lays everyone off or shuts the door indefinitely.


Thank you very much for that. I was unaware of their situation.

[Doc_Glock]

I will also add that this can is extremely quiet. I can hear the action and the bullet flying downrange. I have not tried subsonic ammo yet. But it is airsoft level quiet.

[OlongJohnson]

What's the twist on the barrel? It would be awesome if it was fast enough to stabilize Aguila SSS. That's the fly in the ointment with that load. The 1:16" twist of most .22 rimfire barrels doesn't quite get it done for the 60 grainers.

[farscott]

I know S&W just had the first billion-dollar year for a peacetime small arms company, but I don't understand how causing companies that don't compete with one's core product line to not exist by buying them and shutting them down is profitable. I mean, I would totally understand if they bought Taurus and then ran it into the ground. Even if they could pull it off with Ruger, I would get the motivation. But T/C and a silencer company?

When S&W bought T/C, the prevailing belief was the purchase was solely to add T/C's barrel making capacity and barrel manufacturing knowledge. T/C had a well deserved reputation for accurate barrel making. S&W did and does offer bolt-action rifles, but the single-shot and blackpowder offerings that drove its success were greatly diminished in favor of some bolt-action rifles that failed in the market. As for Gemtech, the only guesses I have is suppressors are needed for the defense RFQs and Ruger is making suppressors, so S&W bought a company that can do both. My guess is S&W will relocate the operations, losing the people with knowledge and skills who will not relocate in the hottest job market of the last fifty years.

[Lost River]

I have to give Gemtech credit. They know how to build .22 cans.

I have read online quite often about how you should not have a .22 can that you are unable to take apart, and that they will be useless in short order. The one that Doc Dater gave me was an early model that was not able to be disassembled. Whenever it gets gunked up, I take tongs and run the hottest tap water I can through it along with some dish soap, rinse repeat until I get a bunch of crud out. Then squirt a little oil through it and pop a couple of test rounds.


In 20+ years it has been used to fire a substantial amount of bricks of Remington subsonic, (back when you could actually buy Rem subsonic in bricks and not in the little 100 round packs). Lot of other brands too. Some years back I figured that one day there might be a run on .22 shells and put in a supply of standard velocity .22 just to be safe. I bought standard velocity stuff by the case, and was quite glad I did it when I did. It proved to be one of the smarter gun/ammo purchases of the time.

https://i.imgur.com/7v4U9LH.jpg


https://i.imgur.com/qhNS3Nw.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/eB7lJOM.jpg



Best tax stamp ever. :cool:

[farscott]

Agreed that the old Gemtech .22 rimfire products were well worth the cost. My second purchase, and first Gemtech, was a Seahunter. That used a titanium tube and aluminum alloy baffle structure. It is not able to be user disassembled. I clean it by immersing it in Kroil overnight, removing it, letting as much Kroil/lead/powder slurry drain from the tube, and then force compressed air through it. The Kroil gets under the lead/cabron/powder gunk quite well.

I have cases of the old Remington Subsonic as well as the Gemtech subsonic, and I do not know how many cases have passed through it.

[jandbj]

My OB2 started at 2.5oz, now weighs 7.5oz... about 30k rounds through it. I’ve tried all the sealed 22 can cleaning magic but it’s finally too far gone. Lived on lots of hosts, from Beretta bobcat to 10/22’s, to 22/45, and my 15/22 SBR for a long time. The SWR Warlock 2 has taken its place since then.

Not complaining at all, the $250 can and stamp was well worth all the joy it has given me. Even at only $200/case, it ate over $1200 worth of rimfire. Just slowly deciding on my recore options.

[OlongJohnson]

Have you tried "the dip?"

[jandbj]

Have you tried "the dip?"

The dip eats aluminum.

[Guerrero]

Doc_Glock I'm really interested in how this turns out. If I were to get a can, yours is the exact setup I would get.

[Doc_Glock]

@Doc_Glock (https://pistol-forum.com/member.php?u=12978) I'm really interested in how this turns out. If I were to get a can, yours is the exact setup I would get.


I got a line for a good machinist locally and will be having the thing cut, because at this point screw Gemtech. I don't want the can out of my local control.

Which is a shame because this is my third Gemtech can and I have another (S&W 15-22 upper) in process.

Also otherwise the MIST thing seems pretty cool. The outer serialized can unscrews readily for cleaning purposes. It seems relatively accurate with minimags, but I really need to get a supply of standard velocity to quiet it a bit.
OlongJohnson twist is 1:16 and there is a specific warning about 60 grain ammo in the instructions.

WARNING: Do not use 60 gr. Subsonic 22LR
ammunition in GEMTECH MIST-22® OR MIST-22®TD
Suppressed Barrels. Gemtech has found that the ammunition
may fail to stabili ze in most barrel twists
readily available, and as a result the ammunition can
yaw on exit from the rifling and may seriously dam -
age the internal components of the suppressor.

https://www.gemtech.com/amfile/file/download/file/66/product/375/

[Lost River]

Of all the cans out there, 9mm, .30 cal, .45, whatever. I honestly think the lowly .22 rimfire suppressor offers the best bang for the buck and return on investment for most shooters.

Most people I know who have them, shoot the snot out of them. Jandbj's post is the perfect example. 30K rounds is a pretty healthy amount of ammo. Not too many dudes are going to put that through their .30 cal rifle can or even a 9mm version.

I have quite often taken mine camping and sat in a chair and plinked at pine cones just for grins. When I am in the woods, I would rather enjoy the silence, and I am sure if anyone is in the area, they would too. Plus there is no reason to attract attention to myself, or my location. Sitting in a lawn chair with a drink and a few fifty round boxes of ammo is quite relaxing and does not bother anyone.

I maaay have messed with a chipmunk not too long ago at a location that kept going after pinecones. He would come down a tree, and be almost to his prize and the cone would go bouncing a few feet away. Little guy was perking up, looking around with a "WTF?" look. :D

After a couple times, I let him get his prize, then started to bounce cones towards the tree. :cool:

Good times!

[jandbj]

Doc, if you haven’t already replaced the buffer pin in your 10/22, that helps quiet the action down nicely too.
https://www.tandemkross.com/ShockBlock-Bolt-Buffer-for-Ruger®-1022®_p_170.html
Some guns like reduced recoil springs with subsonic too. KIDD sells a good 3 pack.

Rimfire cans are the best NFA tax stamp gateway. You’re first taste is free shooting someone else’s, but in the end... it’s gonna cost you.

[Doc_Glock]

My neighbor is an engineer and used to build $40,000 big game hunting rifles. I asked him for a recommendation to a machinist and brought the Gemtech and stock Ruger barrel to inspect. He said he could fix it with a file, so I let him and within 5 minutes he was done.

And that is that.


https://youtu.be/kIZKcI6bpw8

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It grabs the dummy round here quite well now and in addition grabs a Stinger which I found to be kind of tight in the chamber. Ejects nicely under finger power.

I also got a call back from the S&W/Gemtech repair supervisor who agreed to send me a return label. But…it was pretty clear to me that they have no idea what is going on over there. He was unfamiliar with the product. He also felt they were probably going to stop making it because. It is now an S&W product that would be going on a competitor’s (Ruger’s) platform. I honestly trust my neighbor with a file more than the chaos that is currently going on at Gemtech.

Here’s to thousands of future rounds through this. Thanks all!

[alamo5000]

I'm glad this got fixed and I'm even more glad you how you did it. Five minutes with a file or 90+ days in limbo and you might not have seen it again. Good stuff.