Speedwagon Posted November 17, 2020 Share Posted November 17, 2020 Hello all. I'm fairly new to posting on this forum but have been lurking on it for some time. I shoot IDPA and USPA regularly and some Steel Challenge with a Sig P320 X5 Legion with optic. With winter coming we mostly shoot Steel Challenge here and I want to shoot rimfire pistol with an optic since I have plenty of 22 ammo and 9MM is getting difficult. Anyway, I have an old Ruger MKii that I bought back in 1982 but I think I'd be better off to upgrade and not sure which to go with. I've done some research and haven't found anything recent and with new guns I'd like to get some updated recommendations. At this point I'm considering the Browning Buckmark Contour URX 5.5", Ruger 22/45, and S&W Victory in that order leaning heavily toward the Buckmark. I've had bad customer service from S&W in the past and would rather stay away from them. Choice of optic will come later once I decide on the gun. I'm hoping I can get some insight from users and those that have participate in matches on which gun is less problematic, more reliable and requires less tinkering. I do like to tinker to a certain extent but would rather start out with good factory equipment with little tinkering required. Thanks in advance! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AzShooter Posted November 17, 2020 Share Posted November 17, 2020 I like the Ruger Mark IV 22/45 Lite. There are a lot of upgrades you can do but all you need is the stock gun and 5 magazines. Mine has the Volquartsen internals and Tandemkross Game Changer Pro compensator as well as a C-More Railway Dot with 12 MOA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve RA Posted November 17, 2020 Share Posted November 17, 2020 S&W 41 ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MuayThaiJJ Posted November 17, 2020 Share Posted November 17, 2020 I got a Sig 1911-22 with works Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GOF Posted November 17, 2020 Share Posted November 17, 2020 I love my Ruger MK IV. Very easy to strip & clean. I shoot a 5 inch bull barrel version, with a Volquartsen trigger at 2.5 pounds. A Picatinny rail from Ruger holds a red dot for RFPO (A Class) and a Hi-Vis FO front sight (screws right into the gun, with the same screw as the original) with the factory rear lets me shoot in RFPI (A Class) by just pulling the red dot. A lot of fun with one gun... and really easy to strip & clean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tampa-XD45 Posted November 17, 2020 Share Posted November 17, 2020 Shoot the Ruger MKii that you already own. There are a ton of upgrades for it if you think the gun is holding you back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedwagon Posted November 17, 2020 Author Share Posted November 17, 2020 4 hours ago, Tampa-XD45 said: Shoot the Ruger MKii that you already own. There are a ton of upgrades for it if you think the gun is holding you back. That was my first thought and I still might. I just didn't like the hassle in cleaning and not sure I wanted to spend more money on it. Still an option though. Any input on the Browning Buckmark anyone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zzt Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 Having shot both for steel matches, I think the Buckmark is the better gun. I eventually had mine all tricked out to full race and loved it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rooster mcbee Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 I've been shooting Buckmarks for about 8 years. I find them to be very reliable without much tweaking or accessory investment. I don't know if you are aware, but Browning is producing a Buckmark with a light weight barrel that is threaded and comes with a muzzle brake that is removable/changeable. That's the way I would go if I were starting fresh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedwagon Posted November 18, 2020 Author Share Posted November 18, 2020 (edited) 6 hours ago, rooster mcbee said: I've been shooting Buckmarks for about 8 years. I find them to be very reliable without much tweaking or accessory investment. I don't know if you are aware, but Browning is producing a Buckmark with a light weight barrel that is threaded and comes with a muzzle brake that is removable/changeable. That's the way I would go if I were starting fresh. I've seen them but can only wish I could have one. Compensators are illegal in New York State. Threaded barrels we can have pinned. Edited November 18, 2020 by Speedwagon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
38super Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 Use what you have, learn how to do a trigger job (fairly easy without $$$ parts). RimfireCentral has info. If you're hard over on a compensator, look into Scheuman style barrel porting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaques Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 Buy a Volquartsen and be done with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zincwarrior Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 15 hours ago, Speedwagon said: That was my first thought and I still might. I just didn't like the hassle in cleaning and not sure I wanted to spend more money on it. Still an option though. Any input on the Browning Buckmark anyone? This might be helpful. It basically puts a screw in allowing you to remove the bolt assembly with an Allen wrench, without all the weird hassle. I don't know how good it is. https://www.eabco.net/assets/images/products/006-ssk.jpg https://majesticarms.com/product/speed-strip-mark-i-mark-ii-and-mark-ii-22-45/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedwagon Posted November 18, 2020 Author Share Posted November 18, 2020 12 minutes ago, Zincwarrior said: This might be helpful. It basically puts a screw in allowing you to remove the bolt assembly with an Allen wrench, without all the weird hassle. I don't know how good it is. https://www.eabco.net/assets/images/products/006-ssk.jpg https://majesticarms.com/product/speed-strip-mark-i-mark-ii-and-mark-ii-22-45/ Interesting...but I checked and all out of stock and installation instructions have taken down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zincwarrior Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 Well thats a bummer. Of course most things firearm related are out of stock. Not a competition level .22 shooter, so full disclosure, but I have Buckmarks, Rugers, Beretta Neo and a Victory (we shoot them until they break...) Wife and I liked the Buckmark. It has a different grip angle than the Ruger Target. Takedown is MUCH easier but found the allenscrews would need retightening every 50 rounds or so and you can't super tighten the screws because the top plate cracks. Both Brownings and Rugers are good .22s. I think it really comes down to which feels better in your hand, now that there is the model IV type. (note my favorite was the NEO actually-space gun!) Remember to get one already compatible with COs as that is your intent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Watson Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 I've seen them all fly and I've seen them all crash. If I were buying new, it would be a Buckmark. Not because I think it is a better gun but because it suits my 1911 grip the best. But if I were really going to push RFPO hard, I would get the optic rail for my Nelson conversion. Too bad Sig doesn't make a .22 320. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zincwarrior Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 Yes I would buy one pretty quickly if reasonably priced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gerritm Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 On 11/17/2020 at 9:49 AM, AzShooter said: I like the Ruger Mark IV 22/45 Lite. There are a lot of upgrades you can do but all you need is the stock gun and 5 magazines. Mine has the Volquartsen internals and Tandemkross Game Changer Pro compensator as well as a C-More Railway Dot with 12 MOA. Depends on how serious you are going into the sport. You are looking for total reliability. That is the key. I have one set up almost exactly like this with genuine Ruger mags with green TK springs in the mags and it is 99.9% reliable. Shoots excellent with CCI minimags. If you are truly going to shoot hardcore SC get a Volquartsen. All of the stock .22 pistol will need to be upgraded to be competitive and reliable. Get a platform you like and be prepared to start the fun with tinkering & upgrades. gerritm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaleoMan Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 I've just gone through the same scenario are you are pondering... wanted to practice with .22 to save some money (though I reload and 22 ammo is more than 9mm reloads, but I'm running low on primers). I also am pondering doing SC and adding an optic for my aging eyes. It seems like there are lots of customizations that can be done, so I focused on checking how easy it was to access the controls with my hands. For me, the S&W Victory and Ruger 22/45 had the most comfortable grips with best access to all controls. Browning and the wooden grips on some of the Rugers just didn't fit my small hands and I couldn't reach mag release/bolt stop well. Keltec CP33 was ergonomically nice, but I read a lot about reliability of feeding with the 33 round mags. I was visiting the local store every week to see what was in stock, as they were flying off the shelves, regardless of brand/style (e.g. a 10" barrel Mark IV 22/45 was only there for a week). Besides the fact that the only S&W that was in stock was cameo colored, I really liked the easy takedown of the mark IV. And, they had a great price on two Mark IV 22/45 with 5.5" blued bull barrel, that they just got in. I read later that folks suggested to get the 22/45 Lite for faster target transitioning, and threaded barrel so that a compensator can be added (for better shot recording), but it's my first .22, so I'm fine with my choice. I bought more mags, and a fiber front sight (for now). Cleaned it, but haven't gone to the range yet to test it out (hoping it is warmer Friday). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaleoMan Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 4 hours ago, Jim Watson said: I've seen them all fly and I've seen them all crash. If I were buying new, it would be a Buckmark. Not because I think it is a better gun but because it suits my 1911 grip the best. But if I were really going to push RFPO hard, I would get the optic rail for my Nelson conversion. Too bad Sig doesn't make a .22 320. When I was searching for my .22, I found that the Mark IV 22/45 has a different grip angle (~1911) than the Mark IV Standard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
124gr9mm Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 On 11/17/2020 at 12:28 PM, GOF said: I love my Ruger MK IV. Very easy to strip & clean. I shoot a 5 inch bull barrel version, with a Volquartsen trigger at 2.5 pounds. A Picatinny rail from Ruger holds a red dot for RFPO (A Class) and a Hi-Vis FO front sight (screws right into the gun, with the same screw as the original) with the factory rear lets me shoot in RFPI (A Class) by just pulling the red dot. A lot of fun with one gun... and really easy to strip & clean. We also have the Mark IV 22/45 with 5 inch bull barrel (stock trigger) and it's been great for steel challenge. VERY easy to strip/clean and it hasn't been picky about ammo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedwagon Posted November 19, 2020 Author Share Posted November 19, 2020 I appreciate all the input, it's really helpful but I'm still not decided. I was at a local shop the other day that had two Mark IV 22/45s but didn't handle one because at that time I wasn't thinking about this. I went to another shop today and they had two Buckmark Campers I got to put hands on. I liked the feel all except that the mag release was hard for me to get my thumb onto. I could remedy that with an extended mag release though. I'm hoping I can find a shop that has the two of them in stock that I can feel side by side. As for the gun being light, I'd rather have the heavier because I would like to keep some of the feel of my 320 that I use mostly. Again, this would mostly be more for target acquisition practice during the winter months and to conserve my 9MM ammo, or mostly the primers since I reload. One problem I see with the 22/45 is that they all seem to have threaded barrels, is that correct? If that's true I'd have to have the sleeve pinned to the barrel before it leaves the shop because threaded barrels aren't legal in New York. Not a show stopper though. Yea, I'd love to spring for a Volquartsen but that's really more than I'm looking for. Decisions decisions. My boys tell me I overthink things, maybe they're right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George16 Posted November 19, 2020 Share Posted November 19, 2020 (edited) Not all 22/45 have threaded barrels. Only models like the Tactical, Tactical Lite and Lite have the threaded barrels. This model (40147) doesn’t have a threaded barrel. Since it’s a 22/45, the grip is similar to .45 ACP. Edited November 19, 2020 by George16 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AzShooter Posted November 19, 2020 Share Posted November 19, 2020 The 22/45 Lite also has a threaded barrel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George16 Posted November 19, 2020 Share Posted November 19, 2020 19 minutes ago, AzShooter said: The 22/45 Lite also has a threaded barrel. Yup, forgot about that one. Edited my post to add this info. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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