How a champion Precision Pistol shooter sets up a Ruger.

by Robert Kolesar

Getting a new pistol is always a pleasure… especially when one comes along that you’ve been craving. Years ago I had a Ruger Standard Model pistol that the late Don Nygord turned into a pretty neat Bullseye gun. Unfortunately, it went away in a long-ago trade; another one I should have kept. I’d been toying with the idea of having another built; Clark Custom Guns in Louisiana used to be the “go-to” people for .22 Rugers and I went to them first, but no luck. Clark doesn’t work on or customize .22 Ruger pistols anymore. I’ve been shooting lots of .22 ammo recently, concentrating on the CMP .22 matches and ISSF 25m Standard Pistol. I wanted something built specifically for the matches I was shooting, with the sights I liked. Another Smith & Wesson 41 or a High Standard wouldn’t work without extensive modifications. Pardinis and Hammerlis were very expensive. So I put the idea of another .22 pistol out of my mind.

Fast forward a couple of years. I was cruising the Internet, reading the Bullseye-L Forum classified section. A minty Ruger .22 in stainless, with some added features, was for sale and the price was right. Not only that, but the gentleman selling it is a pretty good gunsmith, specializing in target guns. I was definitely interested.

The pistol being sold was a minty Mark II bull barrel model. Roddy Toyota (ToyotaRoddy@juno.com) was the gunsmith selling it and had stippled the front and back straps, checkered the magazine release, and added a Clark steel trigger with an overtravel stop. A 2.2 pound trigger job completed the package (NRA rules mandate a 2.0 pound trigger, minimum). Roddy set up the trigger with a slight roll-off break, which most Bullseye shooters (including me) prefer. I had envisioned adding a custom heavy barrel, but this pistol, with a factory heavy barrel, could possibly work without installing a new one.

I was concerned about the…

Read more in the November 2020 issue.

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