Ruger Mark IV 22/45: Overview and Upgrades

Milk and cookies, peanut butter and jelly, Jack Daniels and Coke — some issues simply appear to be made for one another. We’ve got an addition to that record: rimfire pistols and suppressors. The previous is a superb software for schwacking varmints, inexpensive plinking on the vary, and instructing new shooters use a pistol; the latter enhances every of these features.

With a suppressed .22LR pistol, you’ll be able to management the pest inhabitants discreetly with out alerting everybody who lives close to your property, plink safely with out ear safety, and introduce these new shooters to a weapon that’s quiet and fewer intimidating to make use of. When you personal a rimfire pistol, it’s simply the number-one accent we’d advocate.

That mentioned, there are nonetheless just a few drawbacks to putting in a suppressor in your pistol. At first is the method of shopping for one, which entails filling out an NFA Kind 4, paying for a $200 tax stamp, and ready a number of months for the paperwork to clear. Till America is ready to abolish the NFA and its unconstitutional restrictions on listening to safety units, there’s nothing we are able to do to keep away from this course of. The opposite draw back is the truth that the suppressor will add size to your pistol, making it much less compact, transportable, and discreet — this one is one thing we are able to alleviate.

Dimension Issues

By chopping a pistol’s barrel to a shorter size, its measurement and steadiness may be principally (if not totally) maintained as soon as a suppressor is added. This has been a comparatively frequent modification for homeowners of Ruger’s widespread Mark IV .22LR pistols, however it requires paying a gunsmith roughly $200 to chop and thread the barrel. The entrance sight may even should be relocated for those who count on to make use of the iron sights once more. This everlasting modification voids the pistol’s guarantee, and relying on the size and the standard of the gunsmith you select, would possibly result in unexpected reliability issues.

Another choice is to buy an entire substitute higher and easily swap it onto your Ruger Mark IV decrease. A number of aftermarket firms provide threaded Mark IV uppers starting from 3.5 inches to 2 inches, and a few embody Picatinny rails or micro red-dot mounts as effectively. Nonetheless, these uppers can price $150 to $400, and the shorter variants could not be capable to cycle correctly with sure varieties of ammo. They’re additionally serialized components, in order that they have to be shipped to a licensed vendor, and also you’ll seemingly should pay switch charges upon arrival. It’s nonetheless not an excellent resolution.

All this demand for a brief, suppressor-ready Mark IV didn’t go unnoticed by the product growth group at Ruger. In late 2022, Ruger representatives confirmed up at RECOIL’s CANCON occasion in Georgia with a pre-production prototype of a Mark IV 22/45 mannequin with a 3-inch threaded barrel, no iron sights, and a Picatinny rail optic mount. We didn’t realize it on the time, however this may go on to turn out to be the brand new Silencer Store unique Ruger Mark IV SSH.

Above: This Sightmark purple dot presents broad area of view for daytime taking pictures, and its night-vision-ready brightness settings work effectively alongside the infrared weapon mild.

A Higher Host

Ruger and Silencer Store teamed as much as launch the SSH, which stands for Silencer Store Host — it’s a totally warrantied, factory-built platform for mounting your favourite rimfire suppressor. It’s based mostly on Ruger’s current Mark IV 22/45 Tactical, which options adjustable iron sights, Picatinny rail optic and light-weight mounts, a 4.4-inch threaded barrel, and the basic 1911-style 22/45 pistol grip. For the SSH package deal, Ruger eliminated the underbarrel mild mount and iron sights, and chopped the barrel right down to solely 3 inches.

The SSH is obtainable in three end decisions: normal blued end, flat darkish earth Cerakote, or olive drab Cerakote. MSRP is $749, however on the time of writing this text, it’s accessible straight by Silencer Store for $559.

The SSH seen in these images was primarily an impulse purchase. I went in to an area vendor, The Capturing Vary in Queen Creek, Arizona, for a routine transaction and ended up strolling out with an SSH order on the books. Ever since taking pictures the prototype at CANCON, I had my eye on it, and though they didn’t have the FDE-finished mannequin in inventory, they put in an order for one. A number of days later, I picked up my new pistol.

Above: The Volquartsen Competitors Bolt consists of three recoil springs: diminished energy with a darkish end (put in on this picture), normal energy with a silver end, and additional energy with a gold end.

I already owned a JK Armament .22-caliber modular suppressor, so I instantly threaded it onto the Ruger’s brief barrel. Because the gun has no iron sights, I additionally put in a Sightmark Mini Shot A-Spec M2 reflex sight and headed to the vary for some preliminary impressions. With normal velocity Federal 36-grain .22LR ammo, it ran flawlessly as anticipated.

My JK Armament suppressor may be configured with as much as 9 baffles, so I experimented and located that 5 felt like the best compromise between sound discount and size. This provides roughly 4 inches to the SSH’s 3-inch barrel, leaving it at a really manageable measurement, and whereas it’s not whisper quiet, it’s snug to shoot with out ear safety.

In normal type with a suppressor and red-dot sight, the SSH was a enjoyable little pistol, not too completely different from its 22/45 Tactical siblings. It didn’t want anything … however the large aftermarket assist for the Mark IV was too tantalizing to disregard. So, I dove into the realm of upgrades.

Above: I paired the 3-inch barrel with a JK Armament modular .22 suppressor. 5 baffles is sufficient to cut back sound considerably, however I can set up the remaining 4 to maintain it even quieter.

Constructing a House Blaster

The primary order of enterprise was to revive one thing I feel Ruger by no means ought to have deleted: the sunshine mount. The addition of an infrared weapon mild and night time imaginative and prescient goggles turns this from a very good varmint management weapon right into a straight-up varmint assassination machine. Groundhogs and possums won’t ever see what hit them. Past that, taking pictures this pistol whereas sporting NVGs is an efficient solution to practice with out blowing cash on costlier calibers. Sadly, a 22/45 Tactical manufacturing unit mild mount can’t match on this stubby barrel, so I needed to get inventive.

An organization referred to as Efficiency Companies makes a Mark IV mild mount that attaches to the barrel with a 1-inch ring clamp, however it’s $60 plus transport, and I figured I might make one thing equally efficient utilizing an inexpensive Picatinny rail scope ring. After spending $13 on a Monstrum Tactical 1-inch Picatinny ring mount on Amazon, I unscrewed the rail section, filed down the alignment tab, and drilled a brand new gap to safe it in a cantilevered place on the ring (fairly than centered, because it initially was).

Then, it was so simple as tightening the ring onto the barrel and sliding on a SureFire X300V white/IR mild. I’d say this setup is even secure sufficient to maintain a laser zeroed as soon as all of the {hardware} has been threadlocked and torqued.

Subsequent, I made a decision to swap the rubberized Ruger-branded grip panels to one thing with extra texture and sturdiness. These Hogue Excessive Sequence grips are constructed from robust G10 materials — the identical stuff as my favourite pocketknife deal with scales — and so they’re machined with an aggressive Piranha sample that feels nice within the hand. Hogue presents just a few completely different colours, however I went with plain black to match the remainder of the gun’s coloration scheme.

For some mechanical upgrades, I turned to one of many largest gamers within the rimfire aftermarket world: Volquartsen. Their Mark IV Accurizing Package replaces most of Ruger’s unique set off parts with extra exact, CNC-machined, and wire-EDM-cut components. The equipment features a new disconnector, goal hammer, hammer bushing, goal set off, and set off plunger and spring.

The result’s a set off that snaps like a glass rod at 2.25 kilos, and it additionally has two tiny screws to regulate pre-travel and over-travel (see sidebar for particulars). Putting in this Accurizing Package was positively extra complicated than your common Glock or AR set off set up, however with a set of needle-nose pliers, a small metallic decide, and just a little endurance, it’s very doable for a mechanically inclined proprietor.

The unique bolt was changed with an entire Volquartsen Competitors Bolt, which incorporates a super-slick black DLC coating and an prolonged charging knob for racking the bolt extra simply. This CNC-machined bolt is constructed with a handful of Volquartsen upgrades, akin to their Actual Edge Extractor, SureStrike Firing Pin, and Recoil Rod and Spring Package with three spring choices. The usual silver recoil spring mimics the manufacturing unit spring fee, the gold spring is meant to be used with high-velocity ammo, and the dark-colored spring allows the usage of most subsonic ammo (it additionally reduces recoil barely with supersonic ammo, although .22LR has nearly zero recoil within the first place).

Lastly, I picked up Volquartsen’s Prolonged Journal Launch and Base Pad Package. It consists of two machined, black anodized aluminum baseplates for the manufacturing unit Ruger mags. These don’t enhance journal capability, however they do add weight and assist the skinny metallic mags drop free for quicker reloads. Subjectively, they appear cool too. The equipment additionally comes with a knurled magazine launch button; along with being simpler to press, it causes the magazine to sit down larger within the pistol’s body. The corporate says this improves feeding by stopping the bolt from sliding over rounds within the journal.

Above: These machined aluminum Volquartsen baseplates assist the magazines drop freely for quicker reloads and add a contoured edge to maintain the shooter’s fingers in place on the grip.

Set off Adjustment

Unless you do quite a lot of competitors or precision rifle taking pictures, you will not be conversant in modify a set off just like the Goal Set off included in Volquartsen’s Accurizing Package. This set off presents changes for each pretravel and overtravel.

Pretravel is any motion from the resting place as much as the purpose the place the shot breaks. This consists of take-up or slack (set off motion earlier than assembly the resistance of the sear) and creep (set off motion after assembly the sear as much as the break level the place the hammer drops). Adjusting pretravel makes it quicker and simpler to foretell precisely how a lot the set off have to be pressed till the gun will go “bang.”

Overtravel is motion of the set off after the shot breaks till it bodily can’t transfer any additional again. Lowering over-travel makes it quicker and simpler to return the set off to its reset level, permitting the gun to be fired once more.

Above: Prolonged Journal Launch and Base Pad Package. It consists of two machined, black anodized aluminum baseplates for the manufacturing unit Ruger mags. These don’t enhance journal capability, however they do add weight and assist the skinny metallic mags drop free for quicker reloads. Subjectively, they appear cool too. The equipment additionally comes with a knurled magazine launch

Right here’s a abstract of modify pretravel and overtravel with a Volquartsen Mark IV set off:

1. Make sure the gun is unloaded and secure. Take away all reside ammo from the realm.
   Tip: When you’re not snug dry-firing your pistol just a few instances on an empty chamber, insert a .22LR snap cap. Ruger says on web page 14 of the guide that “the Ruger Mark IV may be dry fired however a snap cap is strongly really helpful for something greater than occasional dry fireplace observe.”
2. Use the included 1/16-inch Allen wrench to show the pretravel screw (positioned on the high of the set off) clockwise in small increments till the set off is unable to reset, dry-firing and biking the bolt repeatedly with every adjustment.
3. As soon as the set off is “lifeless” and won’t reset, flip the pretravel screw counterclockwise slowly till the set off resets. You’ll hear a faint click on.
4. Use the identical Allen wrench to show the overtravel screw (positioned on the face of the set off) clockwise in small increments till the set off is unable to interrupt, dry-firing and biking the bolt repeatedly with every adjustment.
5. Flip the overtravel screw counterclockwise till the gun is ready to dry fireplace usually.
6. Cycle the bolt and dry fireplace once more. Maintain the set off down and cycle the bolt, then slowly launch the set off till you hear and really feel it reset. Repeat just a few instances to make sure it’s working usually.
   Tip: For improved reliability, don’t attempt to remove one hundred pc of pretravel and overtravel — you might have to again out every screw one other quarter
   or half flip previous the “ultimate” place.

If the Holster Doesn’t Match …

I’m not the kind of man who actually enjoys bench taking pictures pistols — in different phrases, selecting the gun up off a tabletop and firing gradual teams at a static goal. I’d a lot fairly be open air, working dynamic drills and taking pictures targets on the transfer. And for sensible functions akin to varmint searching, it’s a good suggestion to have a holster in case you want each fingers for a activity. Sadly, discovering a sturdy Kydex holster for a suppressed pistol is difficult sufficient, and including a Frankenstein DIY mild mount makes it much more troublesome.

After buying round, I discovered a holster that regarded shut sufficient to what I wanted — the Ragnarok SD from T-Rex Arms. It’s designed to be a common resolution for many suppressed pistols, and it indexes off the SureFire X300 mild. Meaning so long as the sunshine locks into place securely, I don’t have to fret in regards to the holster becoming the gun completely. However after receiving the holster, I seen that the higher edges of the holster’s Kydex interfered with the ring mount across the barrel.

I used a Sharpie marker to hint the areas that wanted to be trimmed to suit the gun, after which fired up my Dremel. Earlier than you narrow something, keep in mind that it’d be simple to smash your holster with this modification, so remember to go gradual and take off as little materials as attainable. I used a reducing wheel to fastidiously trim about ½ inch of Kydex out of the midsection, then switched to a sanding bit and floor all the perimeters clean, checking the match of the gun repeatedly as I labored.

Lastly, I used a warmth gun to melt the “wings” on the entrance of the holster per T-Rex’s directions and shaped them across the suppressor so as to add extra assist. The top result’s a holster that incorporates a Safariland QLS fork, and might clip into any of my belts, from a loop on my on a regular basis belt, to the mid-ride provider on my Snake Eater Tactical vary belt.

Above: The T-Rex Arms Ragnarok SD was one of many few holsters we figured would possibly work with our Frankenstein mild mount. It did require just a little trimming with a Dremel, however it suits like a glove now.

Closing Ideas

The Mark IV 22/45 already has an atypical silhouette, so pairing that with a modular suppressor and optic solely accentuated its seems to be. By the point I used to be carried out engaged on it, this pistol ended up trying a bit like a futuristic sci-fi film prop. I’m not complaining — the place we’re going, we don’t want ear professional.

On the vary, this Mark IV is giggle-inducing for anybody who shoots it. Commonplace velocity rounds sound just like the snap of an air rifle; with subsonic rounds, all that’s audible is the click-clack of the bolt reciprocating and the sound of the bullet impacting its goal. Though this pistol actually wouldn’t be my first alternative for hid carry or protection in opposition to bigger predators (particularly the two-legged variety), it might probably assist me practice fundamentals like sight image and set off press whereas solely spending about 4 cents per spherical.

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Written by Patrick McCarthy