Bought a Ruger MK IV!!

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Got what seemed like a fair deal at Cabela's today. $389.99 before tax, was out the door for just over $410.

BUT THAT MATTERS NOT.

What matters is the brand new Blued MK IV Target sitting here just waiting to be shot! Range opens on Wednesday and you can bet I'll be there. Report to follow, I promise! And pictures, of course. Not that any of you are incapable of looking up pictures on the web, but I want to brag and flaunt..so I shall.

I'm already looking at some of the TK upgrades, particularly their $45 adjustable trigger and a VolQ sear...but I'm gonna get a thousand or two downrange before I do that I think.
 
The best bang for the buck part is there VQ sear....I would just drill and tap the factory trigger and put in a couple of adjustment screws. It is a simple job.

I wouldn't waste a thousand or two shells if I could have a better trigger now.
 
I strongly recommend purchasing the Volquartsen accurizing and installing it. Original triggers in those guns have a crappy feel about them. Ask me because own a Ruger MK IV. I will tell you that since I have upgraded the trigger I have won a couple of the local indoor shooting events.
 
The_Next_Generation

Congrats on the new Ruger! Looking forward to your range report and photos when you get a chance!
 
Congratulations on your purchase. I have the Mark IV target in stainless steel. It was recalled for a new safety upgrade. I thought the hunter type sights would be better, so I ordered a set and installed them. My shooting was actually worse. Went back to the original target sights and painted an orange square on the front sight with fingernail polish. Other than painting the front sight orange, I have made no upgrades. Very satisfied as it is.
I know you will enjoy shooting the Mark IV!
 
Congratulations on your new Ruger. I bought the same gun last year. I considered the trigger awful including the feel of the stock trigger. I put the Volquartson kit in it as I don't care for straight triggers like the Tandemkross. It's quite a bit cheaper to buy the kit from Rimfire Sports than directly from Volquartson. It's an entirely different gun with a decent trigger. I put a red dot sight on it but have now changed to a 2x scope. I was in the gunshop where I purchased it just a couple of weeks ago and he had another. for just $359.95. I could have saved some serious money by waiting but I'm not complaining as I've enjoyed playing with my MK pistol that doesn't take an engineering degree to tear down and re-assemble. Just kidding about that last statement as I have a MK III and I have no trouble with it although you do have some more steps to go thru.
 
Congrats! Brag all you like! I'll be joining you later this week. Just today I ordered the same gun, except with hardwood grips from Buds.....After I ordered the gun I went to straight to Brownells website and order the VQ Accurizing kit......https://www.brownells.com/handgun-p...rs/ruger-mk-iv-accurizing-kit-prod101222.aspx ......add to that a couple of boxes of 22 lr ammo (or more if you want) to get the total over $100 then enter the coupon code M3P for $10 off and free shipping.......So for me I got the accurizing kit and 2 boxes of CCI blazer ammo shipped for $90.97!....If you spend $200 and enter the code LDN you can get $20 off plus free shipping!

Once you shoot the gun with the upgraded parts you will be ruined forever..... I've got the VQ kit in my MK III 22/45 and it is by far the nicest trigger I have ever felt on any non-custom handgun. It is well worth the price IMO.

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Thanks everyone!

The range opens tomorrow, I will definitely be there. I have some Eley high velocity to try in it, unfortunately I'm out of the standard speed stuff - it was too much fun shooting sub-moa groups at 100yd with it through a CZ 452.

Definitely a good point about having a good trigger now instead of wasting time with the oem parts. Is it true that I need both the Volquartsen seat AND disconnector? Some folks seem to have issues when just the sear is used. I may decide I like the trigger a little sloppy - makes it more like my Glocks. The whole point of this rig is for cheap practice and plinking...but then again a nice trigger would be...well..really nice.

I was expecting the pistol to come with a scope rail for a red dot, but that's ok. My other pistols all have irons (same goes for the "work" rigs) so it's probably better to keep the Ruger dot-free. But who knows how long THAT will last, either.

To be continued..
 
You can get the rail from Ruger for $14.95 + shipping or from some aftermarket companies for quite a bit more. I opted for a dovetail mount for a Burris Fastfire/Vortex, etc. and like that very well.
 
I strongly recommend purchasing the Volquartsen accurizing and installing it.
Most of the benefit of the Volquartsen kit is in their sear. You can buy that by itself and save a lot of money.

I recommend a Clark steel trigger.

But to get a seriously better trigger pull, you need to get rid of the magazine-disconnect mechanism. IMO, the best way to do this is to install a Ruger Mark II hammer. But if you want to keep the Mark IV hammer, you can do so using the Tandemkoss "Blast Shield" spacer.
You can get the rail from Ruger for $14.95
The Ruger rail overhangs the front of the receiver unless you remove the rear sight. The Tandemkross rail fits neatly without removing the rear sight.
 
Got some range time finally. Shot 360 rounds through her. Mostly Federal Automatch :) I can't believe I waited this long to get a 22 pistol.
IMG_2964.JPG IMG_2965.JPG
Federal Automatch - 10rds offhand @ 25yd IMG_2967.JPG
5rds Eley High Velocity at 25yd shot with butt of pistol and my arms resting on my range bag..the sandbags were all falling apart so I couldn't use them this time.
IMG_2975.JPG
Automatch offhand @ 25yd IMG_2976.JPG
Automatch from that rested position. 10rds @ 25yd.
IMG_2977.JPG
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Well folks, the round count today was 770 Remington Golden Bullets. Only had one stoppage at ~600, a failure to extract when a dud round didn't go bang. Pulled back on the bolt and she stayed stuck...closed the bolt and pulled the trigger again and the round went off and ejected perfectly. No pictures of groups, but I did manage to nail some 308win and a 30-06 casing at 25yd standing unsupported!

Total round count on this pistol is now just over 2,350...

Edit to add: That's right, 10 days of ownership and already 2,350 through it! Still rocking the stock trigger. I like that it's similar to my Glocks (aka not perfect but not miserable. Has some take up, a bit of reset, etc) so it might stay on for a bit longer.
 

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Glad to hear you're enjoying the pistol. One thing you might consider is a new extractor. I had to change the factory one out in my Mk III after a few thousand rounds.....it didn't last long. Having had that experience I examined the one on my new Mk IV and noticed a decent amount of wear already. In a preemptive strike I ordered one of these...... http://www.rimfiresports.com/mercha...roduct_Code=VC10EE/VC2EE&Category_Code=MKIVEE......In hind sight I should have ordered a couple more considering the fact that I'm going to shoot the ever-living snot out of this pistol.....but they have free shipping so I'll order a couple more soon.

You're shooting your pistol a bunch too.....it might be wise to order a few for yourself. It might just save you some down time.

Skol
 
Glad to hear you're enjoying the pistol. One thing you might consider is a new extractor. I had to change the factory one out in my Mk III after a few thousand rounds.....it didn't last long. Having had that experience I examined the one on my new Mk IV and noticed a decent amount of wear already. In a preemptive strike I ordered one of these...... http://www.rimfiresports.com/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=RSC&Product_Code=VC10EE/VC2EE&Category_Code=MKIVEE......In hind sight I should have ordered a couple more considering the fact that I'm going to shoot the ever-living snot out of this pistol.....but they have free shipping so I'll order a couple more soon.

You're shooting your pistol a bunch too.....it might be wise to order a few for yourself. It might just save you some down time.

Skol


Good advice. I've been reading about other folks using these extractors.
 
Good advice. I've been reading about other folks using these extractors.
WATCH your extractor!!

I once cleared an MKII without looking too closely, and when I took it out of the box for cleaning, there was a live round in the chamber! The extractor would not extract it! I had to lock the bolt back and punch out the live round with a cleaning rod, I put that gun aside until I could get a new extractor.
 
The_Next_Generation

I can't believe I waited this long to get a 22 pistol.

Yes indeed, they are a lot of fun!

Nice to see you got some range time in with your new Ruger MK.IV! I'm another big fan of the 5 1/2" bull barrel target model; gives me a good sight radius and the balance and handling are just right.

The accuracy potential is definitely there; try shooting as many different brands of ammo through it to find the one that gives you the best results. My Mk.II really does extremely well with CCI MiniMags and Wolf Match Target. And except for the Ruger target grips the gun is totally stock; haven't replaced or changed anything on it since I bought it. Trigger was great right out of the box and everything still works to perfection!

8oubloU.jpg
 
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Bannock, you're pistol looks pretty unique! Is it a blued upper with a stainless lower?

Unfortunately it seems the new extractors aren't very strong, I just crossed over the 2,900rd mark on Friday and was having multiple stove pipes and failure to ejects (casings just stuck in the chamber). It's worth noting that these malfunctions only occurred en masse with Winchester bulk 333rd stuff that had been sitting for a while. I ordered a new extractor and titanium firing pin from Rimfire Sports - can't beat their free shipping on all orders. I heard some people having good luck with the lighter pin so I figured what the heck. Came out to $33 total.

I definitely want to try some nicer ammunition in it, unfortunately I'm out of Wolf MT and don't have any subsonic Eley left. The minimags do seem to do VERY well, I've heard good things about Blazer in these guns so I'm definitely going to try what I have next time I'm out on Wednesday.
 
The_Next_Generation

Bannock, you're pistol looks pretty unique! Is it a blued upper with a stainless lower?

Yes it is. My Ruger Model 512 was part of a limited production run Ruger made for some distributor maybe close to 30 years ago. Still shoots as sweet as it looks! I occasionally have feed problems in some of my other .22s with Winchester bulk pack as well as Federal Automatch ammo.
 
Very interesting. Thank you for sharing!

I just started taking my pistol apart for cleaning, and a broken spring fell out of the bolt! It's the one that keeps tension on the firing pin. Perhaps this was part of my problem with light strikes - I'm thinking the little broken bit was inhibiting the ability of the pin to move all the way forward. Below is a picture, you can see the chunk of the spring (only 1.5 or so coils) that fell off...there's also a lot of crud on and around the firing pin..oops.. IMG_3213.JPG
 
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Yep, a broken rebound spring is the first thing I look for when a MK starts misfiring.

What is the typical lifetime of this part? At this rate I'm going to be needing one at least every one or two months. Ruger should send a whole bag with the pistol from the factory..along with some extra extractors.
 
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