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Ruger® MKIV™ 22/45™ #WAS: SMITH AND WESSON SW22 VICTORY - which model to start with?

paul73

paul73

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I want myself a reasonably good .22lr target pistol, kind of for a long time now, but, cannot make up my mind on neither the budget nor model.

lately i look more and more at the s&w victory - but cannot decide what would be a best way to proceed.

they come in 4 major versions - either a basic 5.5" model for around of $446, or 6" model of performance center - with steel fluted barrel for $700, and a carbon one for $720. then a more tricked out one with the red dot, at $925.
so the question is - does it make more sense getting a basic model and then shelling out for the volquartsen barrel $278/$378 add-on, or going with a $720 version and not modding it?

only thing that bothers me - a lot of folks seem to complain about ejection issues with them. any advices?
 
The performance center model comes with TandemKross grips and an upgraded trigger as well. That’s the model that I have and have been very happy with it.
 
I had issue with the safety right out of the box... S&W made it right though
www.northeastshooters.com

SW22 Victory issue

so finally got to get out to the range to try out the new gun. Gun seemed real nice.. no problems with the Rem Bucket ammo I had on hand. one thing that was annoying me was that the manual safety kicked on after every shot. A quick Google search says this is a problem with the safety lever...
www.northeastshooters.com www.northeastshooters.com
 
headednorth said:
Never liked the look of those, I think the Ruger MK series look a whole lot better. If I were to get a S&W in 22 it'd be a 41.
Click to expand...
yeah, a model 41. from $1300 to $3800 on gunbroker right now. sure thing. but not here and not now.
 
hijinx said:
The performance center model comes with TandemKross grips and an upgraded trigger as well. That’s the model that I have and have been very happy with it.
Click to expand...
that that keeps me thinking of what else is in there.
tandemkross trigger by itself is a $50 part. a grip - $37.

so the only real diff from a stock one to a $700 one is the barrel. i see on a gunbroker the cheapest auction results were in low $300 range, with some determination it is possible to get it like that. i wonder if it would make more sense to get a basic and upgrade it up, instead of going with the performance center one. what else in it the performance center features?
 
Ruger MK IV, unless you want to tear your hair out trying to reassemble the MK I,II, or III for the first few tries or more! Or Ruger 22/45, same thing as MK IV, except grip angle is different and maybe some other features that I'm not aware of. Bull barrel option available also.
 
LTCRN said:
Ruger MK IV, unless you want to tear your hair out trying to reassemble the MK I,II, or III for the first few tries or more! Or Ruger 22/45, same thing as MK IV, except grip angle is different and maybe some other features that I'm not aware of. Bull barrel option available also.
Click to expand...
thinking of mk iv you kinda start thinking of that next - and it is a bit too much $:
1654045362292.png
 
>>a lot of folks seem to complain about ejection issues with them<<

This all relates to the pesky, flimsy ejector, which must be tweaked just so to function properly. I had an early Victory but ditched it fairly soon on, as I considered it to be cheaply made etc. And the thought of paying that kind of money for one is more than I can digest. 🤔
 
paul73 said:
that that keeps me thinking of what else is in there.
tandemkross trigger by itself is a $50 part. a grip - $37.

so the only real diff from a stock one to a $700 one is the barrel. i see on a gunbroker the cheapest auction results were in low $300 range, with some determination it is possible to get it like that. i wonder if it would make more sense to get a basic and upgrade it up, instead of going with the performance center one. what else in it the performance center features?
Click to expand...
The trigger itself is better than the non-PC version. There's the barrel with comp. Believe the sights are upgraded. The main reason i prefer the Victory over the Ruger is that the back of the Ruger sits right over the bone of my thumb and is really uncomfortable. Haven't held the 22/45 version to see if it is contoured the same.
 
a range plinking gun or a competition gun?

Sorry it is hard to beat a Ruger MkIV, even the earlier MK's, as hard as they are to field strip and clean are great guns for short money

But if a S&W Model 17 showed up in the classifieds I'd grab that in a heartbeat, still my all time favorite gun, even more so than 1980's era K frame Model 13
 
paul73 said:
I want myself a reasonably good .22lr target pistol, kind of for a long time now, but, cannot make up my mind on neither the budget nor model.

lately i look more and more at the s&w victory - but cannot decide what would be a best way to proceed.

they come in 4 major versions - either a basic 5.5" model for around of $446, or 6" model of performance center - with steel fluted barrel for $700, and a carbon one for $720. then a more tricked out one with the red dot, at $925.
so the question is - does it make more sense getting a basic model and then shelling out for the volquartsen barrel $278/$378 add-on, or going with a $720 version and not modding it?

only thing that bothers me - a lot of folks seem to complain about ejection issues with them. any advices?
Click to expand...

Theres really nothing performance about performance center anything. Its a chance to fleece people who can't swap stuff out themselves.
Because you mention target and not race gun, start with a basic model and replace stuff as you go.
Both volkswagonquartzen and tandemkross seem to offer extractors, so maybe start with that, but it might depend on what brand ammo is run through it.
Used to see a few of em run at steel challenge shoots
 
I picked up a Tactical Solutions barrel for just over $100 shipped when it was discontinued

The light weight barrel balances the gun much better and it's a fun gun with a red dot mounted that runs pretty much everything (it does occasionally hiccup on some real crap bulk stuff)

Volquartsen carbon fiber barrel is available for $240 which is even lighter
You can build the performance center version for about the same price but still have the OEM barrel
 
Mtn_Guy said:
I finally got my dream Ruger Mark IV 22/45 in all it’s sexy goodness (just don’t ask what it cost)… 😎

View attachment 622736
Click to expand...
ok, too many people told me that, i guess a 22/45 is a better way to go than a victory. will give it some time to ripe, till the next bonus. :)

what i see above is exactly what i want - irons and the rail as well, if i want to set it with a red dot and then take it off.
 
I bought a Victory a few years back , got a steal on it, right out of the box it ran flawlessly. I ended up installing the Tandemkross flat faced trigger , their Thunder hammer, and their Hive grips. The gun is very accurate, and I'm completely satisfied.
 
steven grammont said:
I bought a Victory a few years back , got a steal on it, right out of the box it ran flawlessly. I ended up installing the Tandemkross flat faced trigger , their Thunder hammer, and their Hive grips. The gun is very accurate, and I'm completely satisfied.
Click to expand...
I have also had great fun with a Victory. Started with the basic model and bent the ejector to make it run properly. After that, no problems. Liked it enough to have "upgraded" it into a Frankenstein over the last couple of years. Volquartsen grips & barrel, Tandemcross trigger, extractor, firing pin, and red dot mount, and then a red dot. Can't decide if I like it as much, equally, or more than my Volquartsen Scorpion. Both are very accurate, fast, and reliable. Clearly a "space gun" so not for fans of classic styling (grin)!

volquartsen SW22.jpeg
 
So, just to update the thread - I bartered with @Mtn_Guy for his other Ruger MkIV 22/45, and will tandemkross it to reduce trigger pull, it is about 4.5# now - not too bad, but an under 3# would be better.

I think it is all I needed for a .22lr target gun and all worked out in the best way possible.
 
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it is coming together. i will keep it budget, nothing other than future trigger upgrade. i also ordered new front sight - but will keep it bare for now.
kinda wonder if it would be better to move red dot to the front of the rail, will see about that.

7907E8AA-B6F7-4B0D-8466-5CEE9B23CDF8.jpeg
 
Last edited:
paul73 said:
yeah, a model 41. from $1300 to $3800 on gunbroker right now. sure thing. but not here and not now.
Click to expand...
I saw 2 41's over at Shooters Outpost. I think they were just under the $1300 you mentioned (figure $1300 by the time you buy gas to get there and lunch). It IS a lot of money, but it'll ALWAYS be worth at least that much. Ten years from now it'll be worth a lot more. A S&W Victory will never be worth more than you paid for it.
I see a lot of competitors using the Rugers (MKII all the way through MKIV) and they have no complaints.
 
paul73 said:
TK is coming together. i will keep it budget, nothing other than future trigger upgrade. i also ordered new front sight - but will keep it bare for now.
kinda wonder if it would be better to move red dot to the front of the rail, will see about that.

View attachment 623564
Click to expand...
TK has fiber optic sights for those , $20 I believe for the front.
 
PatMcD said:
I saw 2 41's over at Shooters Outpost. I think they were just under the $1300 you mentioned (figure $1300 by the time you buy gas to get there and lunch). It IS a lot of money, but it'll ALWAYS be worth at least that much. Ten years from now it'll be worth a lot more. A S&W Victory will never be worth more than you paid for it.
I see a lot of competitors using the Rugers (MKII all the way through MKIV) and they have no complaints.
Click to expand...
a $1000+ .22lr handgun would be fun, but i just cannot justify anything like that at this moment. if the one i just posted about will shoot like it should and accuracy will be OK - i think i will settle with it for a rather long time.
to upgrade up from that, dunno, i would rather go back to olympic style competition ones. but, it is a big 'if'. highly unlikely.
 
i zeroed the gun today, it shoots well - the picture is the 25yds shots from the bag. could have been better, perhaps, but, it is ok.

so, i have a problem now - i cannot see shit with this red dot at 25yds. i then rezeroed it to 12yds, as there i can still so-so see the dot and target both.

at 25yds without glasses i see 2 dots :) , and can with some mental force to associate a correct one of them with the target.
with glasses on i see some odd ellipsoid figure that with 3MOA dot size was larger than that 1inch red rhombus below, so, it did not work out at all.

that brings a question - what to use for a sight now. i would love to keep some optic on it. and do not want to go with anything expensive. i have some pintys left, will try it next - but it is really heavy, not sure if it will be any good on a pistol. are there any super light prisms to be set on a such gun? any ideas?

the fiber optic iron sight is still in the mail - may be it will be the end of it - i mean trying to use a red dot - after it arrives. will see.

IMG-1350.jpg
 
Have you looked thru any of the prism sights? I have a Vortex Spitfire 1x that is really clear and sharp. Bought a couple months ago at Kittery and haven't yet put it on the AR I bought it for though...:rolleyes:
It has an etched reticle and is red or green (can switch)
ETA: I have used an Aimpoint Pro for years on another rifle...as I have gotten older and my astigmatism has worsened, the dot is looking more like a smear. The sight itself is fine, my eyes not so much.
 
wegman said:
Have you looked thru any of the prism sights? I have a Vortex Spitfire 1x that is really clear and sharp. Bought a couple months ago at Kittery and haven't yet put it on the AR I bought it for though...:rolleyes:
It has an etched reticle and is red or green (can switch)
ETA: I have used an Aimpoint Pro for years on another rifle...as I have gotten older and my astigmatism has worsened, the dot is looking more like a smear. The sight itself is fine, my eyes not so much.
Click to expand...
i just set pinty red dot on it - it seems to do less distortion than that truglo green dot i had before.
a 1x prism i think would be great too, i am just afraid a prism may feel too heavy on a pistol. plus i would need to buy it. and i dunno how reasonable it would be to set a target .22lr pistol with a prism.
 
As far as I know, all prism optics have eye relief within a limited range. This is very much unlike 1x red dot sights, which generally have truly unlimited eye relief.

I am not aware of any prism sights which have appropriate eye relief for a pistol, but if there are any, I would be interested to hear about them.

Regarding the poor appearance of the red dot, this is a common problem for people with astigmatism, but in my experience is also affected by the sight. If at all possible, I recommend trying different red dot sights when you can. Some people find that no red dots work with their vision. but other people find certain red dots reach the level of acceptable, even if they are still not great.
 

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