[CATMguy445]

buying direct from Ruger is obviously not the way to go if you're on a budget, that's for sure...but there are alternatives. You can always look for places to get them as take offs, such as the Trading Post, GunBroker, E-Bay, etc.

my point was that they are readily available threaded and with sights

Funny you should mention that. This weekend, Brownell's has a deal going that if you buy anything that costs over $99, you get $10 off plus free shipping. I ordered one of the 18.5" threaded barrels this morning. Brownell's regular price for this barrel is $192.99, and with the discount and free shipping, my out the door (so to speak) price was $162.62. Just an FYI for anyone else who might want a factory threaded 10/22 barrel.

 

[CATMguy445]

Update:

The Ruger 10/22 threaded 18.5" barrel I ordered from Brownell's showed up today, courtesy of FedEx and the U.S. Postal Service. I just finished unpacking and inspecting it, and it looks good. As is the case with seemingly all Ruger barrels now, the bore is coated in some kind of gunk which I'll need to clean out before I install it on a rifle.

The barrel was wrapped in plastic bubble wrap, then that was put into a plastic bag, and both were in a heavy cardboard box with Ruger factory logos and patent numbers on it, and two foam spacers inside the box to keep the barrel from moving back and forth inside the box. The barrel was also lubed with a fairly heavy coat of preservative. The exterior of the box was in perfect condition, as was the barrel.

So now I have a bit of a quandary. Which 10/22 am I going to put this in?