Ruger Mark ll possibilities?:

The prospect exists for me to take possession of a like new MKll w/5"Bull barrel. My question is, what kind of options do I have as far as aftermarket upgrades to make it a good BE pistol? Without going overboard and being able to do most or all of the upgrades myself.

It will probably be fine without anything. The Mark II is great.

Trigger set from Volquartsen is about all you should need and that's optional but makes a significant difference. That and frequent cleaning out of all the crud that drops into the moving parts.

Volquartsen trigger will add pre and post travel adjustment, plus remove most of the lateral slop. A Marvel trigger is better, if you can find one as they are no longer made.
Volquartsen sear and hammer will give a better trigger break.
Clark bushing will remove more of the slop in the trigger.
That's about it, except a red dot and grips.

I shot one as it came from the box into the mid to upper Expert class.

Dave C.

The Volquartsen sear and maybe other parts are a good add. Better yet is a trigger job by someone like Roddy Toyota.

Other than that it is only choosing the grip and it's many options to suit your hand. And there are many options.



Right now my grip choice is a tossup between the Hogue finger groove/thumbrest, or using a plain plastic panel on the right and a wood thumbrest panel on the left. Toyota stipples or grip tape on the back too. Yes cover the take down lever thingy. You can always stick on new tape. And on the front if not covered.

I just saw in the American Rifleman that Herrett is making adjustable target grips for the MKll-lll for $99. I'm getting a little pumped up with the idea of getting this Ruger now! The original owner did somewhat of botched paint job on the front and rear sights (why, I have no idea, it's barely been shot) what needs to be done to add a red dot? I have an Ultra Dot on my 22a-1 that I can use.

Wingshot wrote:I just saw in the American Rifleman that Herrett is making adjustable target grips for the MKll-lll for $99. I'm getting a little pumped up with the idea of getting this Ruger now! The original owner did somewhat of botched paint job on the front and rear sights (why, I have no idea, it's barely been shot) what needs to be done to add a red dot? I have an Ultra Dot on my 22a-1 that I can use.

You can buy Herrett grips for $62.99 from here
http://www.bullseyegear.com/bullseyepistol/product.php?productid=31&cat=0&page=1

I did and they are really nice.

Chip

To mount a red dot, you will need to have the barrel drilled for a scope mount. About any smith can handle the task. Most can order you the scope mount as well.

Rob Kovach wrote:To mount a red dot, you will need to have the barrel drilled for a scope mount.

Or you can get a dovetail insert that will take the scope mount bar on top of it. I just removed one from my MK11 to put iron sights back on it. Less permanent than drilling (but only just - the gunsmith used locktite ).

I knew the MK series was Mod friendly but I'm beginning to realize there's a seemingly endless array! I'm interested in hearing more or better yet, seeing some pics of what some of you are shooting. I'm most likely going to start with the VQ trigger mod., grips and mounting the Ultra Dot.

Skateboard tape on the front of the grip and on the heel of the rear. As was mentioned, a trigger job to include proper sear and hammer alignment and engagement-adjustment or installation of the pretravel and aftertravel screws. Drill & tap the receiver for the scope base. Then install your dot and shoot the bejabbers out of it, one well executed shot at a time.

I still prefer my MKII's over anything I've owned or tried. I've been through 4-Hi Standard Citations in varied configurations and a Marvel conversion. From my perspective, I feel it is one of the most forgiving beginner/midway/or even advanced BE pistols. I have Ransom rested quite a few and have yet to find one that won't do at least 1 1/2" @ 50 yards with at least one type of SV ammo, and most will do a lot better. They digest anything from very mild SV to high velocity with reliability that still astounds me.

Give it an honest try with the stock grips. I've been down that road with a half dozen different styles and am now back to the originals.

I bought my first one well used and have put tens of thousands of rounds through it. You may have to tweek a magazine corner or two if you have a lot of failure to eject from a magazine (takes 30 seconds and two swipes of a flat file).

Here's a couple of really good MKII sites.

http://www.guntalk-online.com/forum/index.php

http://www.1bad69.com/ruger/index.htm

The Ruger link is pretty cool, a lot of good stuff on there. It looks like BE Gear will be getting some of my business as soon as I get the MKll transferred over! Ahh, the anticipation!

Once on the line for a Bullseye league match I heard as I un-boxed my Mark II "What are you going to do with that thing?" I said "I don't know, we'll see." Later that year as I walked up to the front or our league banquet to receive the high average trophy, I overheard "...and he did it with a Ruger."

The gun came to me box stock and I added the parts mentioned above, plus a Volquartson "Exact edge" extractor (greatly improved the reliability of an already very reliable gun), and a ranch products extended magazine release (helps keep you calm during a match, especially if after market grips partially block access to the standard release. That used gun, about @100.00 of aftermarket parts, CCI standard velocity ammo, and homemade grips made from leftover mahogany scraps, made to to the top spot on other occasions also. Best $120.00 I ever spent (bought it 25 years ago, been shooting Bullseye the last 8 years .

I am fairly new to Bullseye and have been shooting a bone stock Ruger Mk III Target Comp 5.5" this winter. I just shot in my first match (regionals) and shot an 809/900. I'm super happy with it. I just installed a new hammer bushing to remove the mag disconnect safety. I think it smoothed out the trigger. We'll see if that helps my scores. Next on the mod list is a VQ trigger that has the pre and post travel adjustment screws.

dstates wrote:I am fairly new to Bullseye and have been shooting a bone stock Ruger Mk III Target Comp 5.5" this winter. I just shot in my first match (regionals) and shot an 809/900. I'm super happy with it. I just installed a new hammer bushing to remove the mag disconnect safety. I think it smoothed out the trigger. We'll see if that helps my scores. Next on the mod list is a VQ trigger that has the pre and post travel adjustment screws.

Doesn't removing the mag disconnect safety make the pistol illegal for NRA competition?

I don't see why. A Mk2 Ruger is the same gun without a mag disconnect safety.

Rob Kovach wrote:I don't see why. A Mk2 Ruger is the same gun without a mag disconnect safety.

Rule 3.4 ...."All standard safety features of the gun must operate properly."

mag disconnects are stupid.
Seriously? Mag disconnects aren't really a safety feature....are they? I want an appeal on this ruling.
If it was a "safety" it would be called a Mag Safety not a mag disconnect.

Wingshot wrote:The prospect exists for me to take possession of a like new MKll w/5"Bull barrel. My question is, what kind of options do I have as far as aftermarket upgrades to make it a good BE pistol? Without going overboard and being able to do most or all of the upgrades myself.

Wigshot:
Thought I'd mention a few things regarding the Mk I / MKII series Ruger Pistols.. ten or 12 years ago, I was doing quite a few of these pistols for bullseye shooters. The tend has down turned..almost never get a request now.. Several of these shooters won their class more than once at Perry. The accuracy potential is quite good with some changes. Most shooters complain about the ergonomics and later change to a different gun...The .22 cartridge is a very accurate projectile.. so that in and of itself, makes most guns look better than are. The Ruger barrels leave a lot to be desired as far as precision, but they lend themselves easily to a precision liner or simply a rebarrel with a match barrel. I have done a number with Lilja and Shilen .22s which are both very good barrels, and the head space is easily adjusted. The trigger system takes some real work to get it to a level that a HM would accept. But it can be done by machining pins and bushings..The MK I is easily machined to convert to lock back, and is essentially then the same as the MKII. You have a good base pistol.. The Mark IIIs are more difficult to work on..
Jerry

Thanks Jerry, I'm picking it up Friday and it belongs to my old boss from work who's retired and moving to AZ. He has barely 200 rounds through this MKll so it's near new in condition. I'm looking forward to giving it a workout to see how it does. I've shot several Mark series but never the MKll.

Finally, after several delays, I got the MKll! Going out to give it a shakedown this evening. Can anyone tell me if this pistol can or cannot be safely dry fired?

Go for it!

I've dry fired mine 10s of thousands of times. Just periodically check the cross pin in the bolt (holds the firing pin in place) to make sure it is in good condition. If it breaks your firing pin will go too far forward and peen the end of the chamber (not good). I've yet to require a change in mine, but I do check it every time I break it down for cleaning the action & bolt.

Al

Wingshot,
For dryfiring on a .22 use one of those plastic wall anchors in the chamber. It cushions the firing pin, they are cheap, and they are better for your gun than just dry firing. Just like Al said, you can dry fire, but you could damage your firing pin or your breech face. I say use the wall anchors, and feel free to dry fire with nothing for dryfiring during the prep time.

Thanks, I happen to have some of those anchors!