New Here With A MK11

tradrick · Post by **tradrick** » Sun Dec 21, 2008 10:08 am

Just thought I would say hello.Just discovered this sight a couple of days ago.Been reading everything I can in my spare time.What a awesome sight and a wealth of information.I have MK11 with some custom grips and 30mm Ultra Dot I put on there last year.I really love shooting this gun.Up til now I've just been plinking with it.However I would now like get more serious with the gun and my shooting.Therefore I'm looking into doing some of the mods discussed on this site.Such as a trigger job and possiblely other internal custom parts.I'm still learning so I will need plenty of help.The one thing I would like to do the most is change out the barrel.Mine has the factory tapered barrel.I would like a full bull barrel.I've seen the replacable barrels on the Tactical Solutions,VQ and Clark Customs websites.Is anyone better than the other?Looks like the prices are all within $30 to $40 of each other.Anyhow any help would be greatly appreciated.Thanks tradrick

JeepinCalifornia · Post by **JeepinCalifornia** » Sun Dec 21, 2008 12:30 pm

Welcome!

Someone will chime in on the after market uppers, as I've no experience with them...but I do love the stock bull barrel on my Mark III.
Those grips you have there are gorgeous.

recumbent · Post by **recumbent** » Sun Dec 21, 2008 3:21 pm

The tac sol barrels are aluminum with a steel liner. They are very very light weight. A 6 inch tac sol is a lot lighter in weight than the barrel you have now. IMHO they are not any more accurate, at least mine wasn't.

I find used barrel receivers quite often, people put the tac sol or VQ uppers on and then sell their ruger barrels. As a matter of fact I bought 2 last week.

Post by **Bullseye** » Sun Dec 21, 2008 5:36 pm

Welcome to Guntalk-Online!

There are plenty of upgrades for your pistol. Getting the trigger up to match quality will require a VQ sear and trigger. If your interested in a new barreled upper then the VQ LLV without sights should be something to take a look at. These are fine shooting match barrel assemblies and with your Ultra dot should make a fine combination.

Changing out the sear and trigger is a fairly easy task just follow the detailed stripping instructions here - http://www.guntalk-online.com/detailstrip.htm The Mark III and Mark II pistol are close relatives and this will get you through the process.

R,
Bullseye

tradrick · Post by **tradrick** » Sun Dec 21, 2008 6:55 pm

Thanks for the replys guys.I think I could handle the trigger job ok.Just take my time and not have any interuptions.JeepinCalifornia,thanks for the compliment.I like 'em too.I ordered those from handgungrips.com.Good quality fast shipping.
Bullseye,thanks for the recommendation.I was eyeing the the VQ LLV.Its a sharp looking upper.Would deffinatly change the looks of my stock gun.And for 268.00 and being match grade parts,I feel thats a reasonably good deal.
Recumbent,you mentioned you find Ruger barrels all the time when folks upgrade to a custom.Do you find 5 1/2'' to 6 1/2''blued factory Ruger bull barrel.If I could find a used but in excellant condition factory bull barreled upper I might be better off going that route and saving a few dollars along the way.Where do you purchase yours at?OR.Where is a good place to look?Thanks for the help guys.Just what I needed another obsession.LOL.Tradrick

tradrick · Post by **tradrick** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 5:14 am

Bullseye,a couple of questions.Will the uppers have to be ordered through a local dealer with a FFL?And,when doing a trigger job on my gun.Is the trigger and sear all I need to order?What about the accurizing kit they sell?Is it more than what you actually need?Therefore not being a good choice.Thanks tradrick

Post by **Bullseye** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 6:23 am

The receiver is considered a firearm because it is the serialized part and must be transferred through a FFL dealer.

The most economical choice is to just change out the sear and trigger. Typically these parts are all that is needed for a great feeling Ruger trigger. The sear is the main part of the trigger pull lightening process. The VQ trigger is one that is externally adjustable and will provide you with less trigger travel when adjusted properly. A non-adjustable factory trigger has a tremendously long pull to it. The trigger upgrade kit has a lot of redundant parts to it.

R,
Bullseye

greener · Post by **greener** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 6:39 am

The accurizing kit comes with the sear, sear spring and hammer. The one I ordered also came with an extended bolt release. You get about a 2.25 lb trigger by replacing the sear and around 2 lbs with the target hammer. Since the target hammer is lighter than the standard hammer, you could potentially get some light strikes on rounds. I didn't like the extended bolt release and removed it shortly after installation. I did the full accurizing kit on my MKIII Hunter and haven't seen any difference in failures to fire. I've done just the sear and trigger on a MKIII 22/45, MKIIGC and MKII 22/45 and can't tell any real difference between those and the Hunter with the full kit. The hammer costs about as much as the trigger and sear. IMO I didn't get enough of a change to make it worth the price difference.

OpsMgr · Post by **OpsMgr** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 3:32 pm

Welcome to Guntalk-Online! Great site with lots of great info and helpful folks as you see. Nice pistol you have there - The VQ sear and trigger are fantastic upgrades and are not difficult to do. I've done all 3 of my Ruger pistols and love the results. Enjoy your new pistol!

tradrick · Post by **tradrick** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 7:08 pm

Thanks for the help guys.A trigger and sear it is then.After looking more into the custom uppers.I think I like the Tacitcal Solutions best.After seeing a couple of Rugers with the VQ upper I did'nt really like the way the pistol looked.Strictly a cosmetic decsion on my part.But the TS I think look really cool and alot of folks have them so they must be pretty good.In fact I noticed the 8 1/2''TS upper on sale for $190.00.That in my eyes is a very good deal.But I think a 6'' would be more functional.Does anyone out there have the 81/2''TS upper on there Ruger?If so,could you post a pic?Thanks Tradrick