Ruger American Rimfire as Single Shot?

[VTSEAL]

Question for anyone that has a Ruger American Rimfire:
Have you tried to use the rifle as a single shot?

The manual states that you can hand feed with no magazine in place. I wanted to get some feedback to make sure that is easier to do than on the 10/22. It seems much easier due to the larger bolt/ejection port.

Reason for the question: We have some kids participating in a youth league which requires that the firearm must be capable of loading only a single round at a time. Multiple round magazines are prohibited. I am familiar with the BX-1-1 single round magazine that Ruger makes for the 10/22; but would prefer to save the kids the hassle of loading a single round in to the mag, loading the mag, firing, ejecting, dropping mag, repeat. Hand loading a single cartridge would be much simpler as long as it loads cleanly.

I am interested in picking up one of these rifles for several uses, and the youth shooting league is only one - no interest in buying an actual single shot .22. I really like the compatibility with 10/22 mags when not being used for the youth league; and the tang safety and double sided palm swell makes it ambidextrous for left-handed kids.

 

[hlee]

Because the rifle is a bolt action, there is a lot more room to hand feed a round into the chamber than there is in the 10/22. I remember hand feeding my 10/22 as a kid, but I don't remember why I did it... That being said, I have a feeling that guiding rounds into the chamber will be an exercise in frustration for new and young shooters. Personally, I would want some sort of mag block to form a floor mag well. I wonder if a 1 round mag would work in this capacity... Probably not. Too bad you are not interested in a true single shot. They are made for what you intend, and some very fine shooters are made explicitly with the dimensions of young shooters in mind. If it were me, I would get in touch with my inner wood worker and create a few mag blocks so that the kids only need to drop a cartridge in the open breech (and directly into the chamber). Then again, I already have a fine single shot 22 rifle.