Advice for my Father on .22lr pistol please

[Oninotaki]

Yesterday my Father (72 years old, slight tremor in hands, aging eyesight, but no glasses/contacts yet) asked me if I had a preference over the S&W Victory or the Ruger mk IV. I told him the only experience I had with either was a rental mkIV that failed to feed or stove piped on nearly every shot. Otherwise I no relevant experience with either.

He followed up that question by expressing his desire to put a nice high quality reflex sight on a nice high quality target pistol that had a grip style as similar as possible to the old lugers.

So my question to you guys is if you were going to get a new .22lr target pistol with that Luger style grip, and add a great reflex sight on it that would really work for an older man's eyes, what combination would you go with? I personally would like it all to work as nicely as possible right out the box so he doesn't have to fiddle with it to much.

Also any recommendations for smooth feeding, and accurate .22lr ammo to pick up with that target pistol would be appreciated as well.

 

[jmorris]

My old Ruger mark II 5.5” barrel will put 10 into 3.5” at 100 yards with a 2x scope. Best red dot I have for pistol use would be the trijicon RMR.

 

[alfsauve]

Either pistol is a good buy. Reliable functioning of most .22lr pistols is more dependent on ammo than anything else. I found CCI standard velocity, either lead or plated, functions and groups well in MY MK IV 22/45, but other variations of CCI and other ammo brands don’t. However the opposite goes for my 10/22. YMMV. You have to experiment.

For cocking I added a rear cocking ring (TK?) to my Rugers. I think they can be had for most makes. Really adds to enjoyment.

You might want to give a look at Beretta Neos, also.

 

[red rick]

I don’t have any experience with either of those , but I looked at the specs of the target models of each with a 5.5” barrel . The S&W specs say 64 ounces , the Ruger specs say 42 ounces . Both of those were SS pistols . I would question the weight on the S&W . It is probably not correct . I don’t think that I would like the weight of the Victory . You can also go lighter with Ruger in an aluminum model .

 

[Russ57]

Get the Ruger mark 4 target. If it must be a reflex Holosun 507. He will likely do much better with a tube style like ultra dot.

 

[1KPerDay]

If your new MKIV is anything like the MKIVs I’ve tried you’ll need to budget for a Volquartsen sear and trigger. I’ve tried a couple and they both had 6-7lb triggers.

 

[Jonny2guns]

I have the Mk IV target with slab sides, very nice trigger out of the box and very accurate with all 22 ammo I have run through it (except for some Winchester target ammo that's for bolt action anyway). I haven't gone red dot on it yet, but an RMR would be my first choice.

 

[Hillbilly Hydrographics]

There is also several companies makin some nice 1911 style pistols in 22lr. And several good companies that can mill the slide for whatever optic you want to run.

 

[Rock185]

My experience with .22 pistols has been with various Rugers, S&W 41, Beretta 87 and Walther PP. Were I in the market for an accurate .22 with a Lugerish grip, I'd just make it simple and go for one of the Rugers. My Rugers didn't have the fine trigger of the S&W 41, but they were very reliable with any ammo I used, and certainly accurate. And there is a seemingly unlimited selection of aftermarket parts for the Rugers...

 

[doubleh]

I have an early MK IV Target. The only time it stops with either HV or SV ammo is with a dud round. The grip plus being somewhat unattractive in my eyes and also seeing more negative forum comments has kept me from trying a Victory.

 

[MikeInOr]

Both fine guns. Is it possible to take him somewhere where he can rent both? It really comes down to which works best for him.

I wonder if a heavier pistol or a lighter pistol would be best for a slight hand tremor?

 

[chicharrones]

Sounds like time for a fun father-son visit to the local preferred gun shop and hold a few Ruger MKIVs. The weight differences between the different versions are quite vast, and the balance of those different models would be something to consider as well.

Personally, I'd want something in the 30 ounce range before putting a reflex RDS on it. No long heavy target barrels, perhaps just the base model tapered 6" barrel with the original grip angle* with a red dot mounting rail on it.

*as stated preference by the OP for a "Luger"

 

[chicharrones]

You might want to give a look at Beretta Neos, also.

Discontinued and now overpriced. Local shops are pricing those econo-guns for stupid money these days.

I used to have a 4.5" barreled version. It was a great day when I sold it to buy a Browning Buckmark Camper.

 

[1-cavediver]

Ruger Mk IV all the way! The factory trigger is just fine and doesn’t need upgraded. I run it in Steel Challenge RPI and am quite successful.

 

[James K2020]

I love my new Buckmark with green FO front sight. Also, a High Standard Sportsman that is super accurate even with fixed sights. Have to keep the mags in spec for proper feed, though.

 

[Atavar]

If your new MKIV is anything like the MKIVs I’ve tried you’ll need to budget for a Volquartsen sear and trigger. I’ve tried a couple and they both had 6-7lb triggers.

For an older gentleman with shaky hands a 6-7 lb trigger might be a plus. I greatly enjoy my MKIV

 

[toivo]

He followed up that question by expressing his desire to put a nice high quality reflex sight on a nice high quality target pistol that had a grip style as similar as possible to the old lugers.

Sounds like a Ruger MK series to me.

 

[.38 Special]

The request for the "Luger style grip" makes it pretty easy: the Mk IV. No, the trigger isn't perfect, but that's fixable - and I'm sure the vast majority of owners are fine with it anyway. The newer guns can easily be fit with optics as well, and the market for accessories and modifications is huge.

As for reliability, they are as good as any .22 autopistol - which is to say, when kept clean and fed decent ammo they will function 99+ percent of the time, but if you run junk and/or incompatible ammo you will have endless trouble, and if you let it get dirty enough it won't work with anything.

 

[Russ57]

If you don't mind buying used and learning how to take the gun apart (which drives some nuts but it isn't hard, just different), I recommend a Mark 2 with bull barrel in stainless.

A gunsmith can make the stock trigger work or you can buy the Volquartsen parts.

Sounds to me like your Dad knows guns, trends, and what he wants. He wants a trouble free, (otherwise he'd ask for a High Standard 107/Military) reasonably priced, .22 LR "target" pistol. I'd ask him how he feels about a S&W model 41 (he is bound to be impressed that his son did his homework).

 

[AlexanderA]

If your new MKIV is anything like the MKIVs I’ve tried you’ll need to budget for a Volquartsen sear and trigger. I’ve tried a couple and they both had 6-7lb triggers.

Sounds like time for a fun father-son visit to the local preferred gun shop and hold a few Ruger MKIVs.

Since the biggest problem with the Mk. IV is the trigger pull, the buying decision might rest on trying the trigger. I would imagine that most gun shops would object to dry firing this gun in the store.

Or, just buy it with the understanding that you're going to spend a couple of hundred dollars improving it.

The main thing you need to do is get rid of that damned magazine disconnect.

 

[1KPerDay]

For an older gentleman with shaky hands a 6-7 lb trigger might be a plus.

Strongly disagree. A trigger that’s heavier than the gun is good for no one, most particularly people with tremors or hand strength issues. Just taught an older gentleman the other day with grip strength issues and a tremor and he strongly preferred my MKIII with VQ sear and trigger and Clark bushing to other options tried. Trigger is a crisp and predictable 2 lbs. He was able to hit 14 of 15 plates at 18 yards and was amazed.

 

[sparkyv]

I have both, and they shoot equally well, but I usually find that I pack the Victory into the range bag more often than the MKIV. The Victory provides a much better shooting experience OOB, but the MKIV has a more Luger-like grip. The Victory is less finicky with cheap, bulk ammo. The Victory comes with a polymer optics rail, the MKIV with an aluminum one.

 

[Lo-Profile]

Rental guns suck and was probably never cleaned.

Have had no issues with my MK IV

 

[Atavar]

Strongly disagree. A trigger that’s heavier than the gun is good for no one, most particularly people with tremors or hand strength issues. Just taught an older gentleman the other day with grip strength issues and a tremor and he strongly preferred my MKIII with VQ sear and trigger and Clark bushing to other options tried. Trigger is a crisp and predictable 2 lbs. He was able to hit 14 of 15 plates at 18 yards and was amazed.

I don’t know, when the hands and fingers are shaking a light trigger is an AD waiting to happen.

 

[1KPerDay]

I don’t know, when the hands and fingers are shaking a light trigger is an AD waiting to happen.

Something to consider for sure. It depends on how bad the tremor is I guess.