Ruger MKIV's - Excellent Designed Handgun

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triplebike

triplebike

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My son is going to purchase a Ruger MKIV 22/45 Lite, as soon as he can find one locally. He and his fiancé have shot mine and really enjoyed it. It will be his first 22 handgun. Today I went on VOLTQUARSEN's website and purchased a 5.5 inch MKIV 22/45 barrel new and complete with bolt and sights. They have them in the clearance section for $40 with free shipping. Once my Son gets his LITE he will now have basically two MKIV,s. With a push of the release button on the lower he will be able to go from the Lite to the Standard Target 5.5 inch in a matter of seconds. Ruger really has a winner with the MKIV,s design and in the meantime I'll loan him one of my lowers (I have three MKIV 22/45's) and he'll have a 22 to plink with until a LITE becomes available. Two of my lowers also have a Voltquartsen hammer, sear and disconnector so he'll be able to feel the difference between the modified lower and the stock one. Ruger really designed a great gun with the MKIV's.
 
I was a small lad of 7-9 when the Standard pistol first hit the market (I’m 80 YO). I read about them in a magazine and talked to a man at the counter of a sporting goods store, who BTW didn’t have one in stock. He did have however IIRC Colt Woodsman and maybe High Standard. He said of the new Ruger (paraphrase) “It’s made of sheet metal and bent sheet metal tends to straighten out over time, they won’t last long”. Well Well Well lookie what happened. My MarkIV porch gun ucm3hwc92eaz.jpg
 
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ColtPythonElite said:
Ruger has had a winner with all MK guns
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Big caveat: Ruger has had a winner with the basic design. It has not had a winner in all the lawyer-mandated add-ons. For example, the magazine disconnect was a big step backwards.

I have the entire series -- Marks I, II, III, and IV. With each new edition, the guns have required more and more work to bring them up to an acceptable target standard.
 
I did something similar. I have a 22/45 Lite and I bought a Target upper (without sights) from Volquartsen. From time to time, different uppers will show up there. There's one that I'd like to snag that looks like the Target upper, but cut down and threaded. I might have to grab one of those and sell off the Target upper that I bought.
 
ColtPythonElite said:
Ruger has had a winner with all MK guns
Click to expand...
Well, the MK III I'm not so sure on....seemed like they announced that lawyered up, rollmarked billboard of an abomination, and shortly thereafter announced the MK IV. I've got a couple MK IIs, and now 2 MK IV's, including a 10" stainless, and for those, I'm with you all the way.
 
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I have two 22/45 Lites and I like them both. One has the Volquartsen pistol competition kit and the other is stock. They are accurate and simple. I plan on purchasing the LLV-4 Competition Upper soon.
Range 1 4-7-2020.jpg
 
I have a MK III and MK IV. Both are great guns except for the factory trigger. Come on, Ruger, you may not be able to provide a Volquartson quality trigger at a competitive price point but you can beat what they come with.
 
doubleh said:
Come on, Ruger, you may not be able to provide a Volquartson quality trigger at a competitive price point but you can beat what they come with.
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For Ruger to supply a competition trigger would mean that they would have to undo some of their lawyer-mandated "safety features" (primarily the magazine disconnect). Not going to happen. That's OK, though, because they're providing full employment for the aftermarket industry.

Consider an out-of-the-box Ruger Mark .22 as just a starting point. If you're not satisfied with it, it's up to you, as the owner, to make improvements.
 
I didn’t say anything about them providing a competition trigger, just a better one than they do. They can do it on their single actions, DA/SA, and 1911s that they are currently selling, yet the MK III and IV, and the 10/22 are stuck with crappy factory triggers. I have a S&W 22-a and the factory trigger is close to the equal of the Volquartson. If S&W can do it so can Ruger.
 
I second that for a crappy trigger for the MK IV. The remedy is a Volquartsen trigger but it shouldn't have to be. That being said I find myself winning some of the weekly shoots with mine. Good pistol nonetheless.
 
My stock Mk IV Standard is stupid accurate. It has a 4” barrel and “no sights” (i.e. fixed sights) yet can keep all rounds inside a quarter at 15 yards offhand, and I’m no great shot by any means. It is more accurate than any .22 revolver I’ve ever fired. Sights hit dead on too. The trigger isn’t the best but is very far from being the worst. I don’t shoot it much as I find loading those mags tedious. I prefer a revolver where you just drop in the shells and shoot.
 
Perhaps I’m not sensitive enough or possibly I just don’t care but I like the trigger on my Mark IV. I’ve sighted it in and can hit beer cans at 35 yards. It goes bang just when I expect it to, light with a crisp break. BTW the factory trigger on my 10-22 breaks at 3 1/2 lbs.
 
792mauser said:
A pox on the Mk3.

I have 2 MkII pistols now. I couldn't get the Mk3 reassembled for the life of me.

No problems disassembling with the MkIIs I have, or a friend's MkIV and MkI.
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No owner's manual for the MK III? When you try everything you know and it still doesn't work read the manual. :D I never take my MK III down for cleaning without the manual right there on the desk with me because I know I'm going to do something wrong when re-assembling the thing. No manual? There is always youtube but I prefer the manual.
 
I lament the fact that my MKIV Hunter was a bit pricey, and I had to spend another $100+ for a decent trigger.
doubleh said:
Both are great guns except for the factory trigger. Come on, Ruger, you may not be able to provide a Volquartson quality trigger at a competitive price point but you can beat what they come with.
Click to expand...
 
792mauser said:
A pox on the Mk3.

I have 2 MkII pistols now. I couldn't get the Mk3 reassembled for the life of me.
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The Mark III, out of the whole series, is the most difficult to reassemble, because of the strange ritual you have to go through, repeatedly inserting and removing the magazine. (The exact procedure is spelled out in the manual.)

This problem goes away when you ditch the magazine disconnect. Then reassembly is the same as for a Mark II. Removing the magazine disconnect is also a necessary step in improving the trigger pull.
 
I really like my 10” Mk IV, taking it down For cleaning is easy-peasy. Too bad it took 50 years for Ruger to fix the biggest complaint these pistols generate.

The trigger isn’t as smooth and grit-free as my Standard or Mk II, so I may buy parts to smooth it out... or I may just go ahead and try to shoot it into shape :).

Stay safe.
 
I have have the Competition and purchased a slab sided hunter upper for it as well. The slab sided upper is very nice looking.

When I find an aluminum grip frame version in stock for a good price down the road I’ll be jumping on one of them. I sold my previous MK versions, there was no need for them in my opinion with the new takedown and aftermarket support to fine tune them.

It puts a smile on my face every time I push the easy button on the back for clean down or for changing an upper.
 
triplebike said:
Today I went on VOLTQUARSEN's website and purchased a 5.5 inch MKIV 22/45 barrel new and complete with bolt and sights. They have them in the clearance section for $40 with free shipping.
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Can you tell us where you found this barrel? I scoured the entire Volquartsen site, and I can't find ANY barrels for less than $400, much less $40.
 
Dudemeister said:
Can you tell us where you found this barrel? I scoured the entire Volquartsen site, and I can't find ANY barrels for less than $400, much less $40.
Click to expand...

Out of stock, there is an add on gun.deals stating the price what he paid but it’s old and OOS. Believe me, i was checking like you.
 
ColtPythonElite said:
Ruger has had a winner with all MK guns
Click to expand...
True, I have at least fired all the variations, from the Mk I being the fired firearm I fired at age 5, to the Mk IV I just installed a trigger group in for a friend. The Mk IV is by far the most gunsmith-friendly version. When I worked in a shop I did enough MKII's that they no longer mystify me, but not the best design. More than one MK II came into the shop in a paper bag or box......
 
I don't see what the issue with the MKIII, I've taken mine apart and reassembled it many times, it's not really that hard if you understand what you are doing and why.... My friends seem to struggle reassembling their MKIII's , I can't figure out why .... I always volunteer to do it for them, it takes only me a few minutes.
 
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