No drill mount for Ruger Mark 1

[woodperson]

I want to put a Dot sight on my 1967 Ruger Mark 1 Target than has a non drilled receiver. Search showed just a little information from 2013. Any body familiar with the current offerings for this item and what might be a good way to go? Recommendations for mount and sight both wanted. And is it possible to get a green dot at a low price?

 

[RoninPA]

Here's one that I got and am happy with it (SunopticsUSA)

Amazon.com

As for green dot sights, you just have to look around, there's a lot out there from inexpensive to expensive.

 

[fwb124]

Here's one that I got and am happy with it (SunopticsUSA)

Ditto on the base. I have three of the original B-Square versions, two for Williams rings and the third one for Picatinny or Williams.

They're a little bulky, but they do slip on and off easily, and you can still use your iron sights easily beneath the rail, unlike most rail options today. [Edit: Depending on barrel length, you may need to temporarily remove either all the clamping screws or the front sight to be able to slip it on from the front (the bolt ears prevent it from slipping on from the rear).

Remove the rear clamping screw, then slide the mount on from the front until the rear screw opening is just past the back sight, then replace screw, and slide forward until resting against the back sight. Use the rear hole for adjustable sights, second from rear for fixed sight. I put 2–3 layers of tiny pieces of black electrical tape on the back of the rear sight to keep the screw threads from slowly etching into the rear sight. (Ask me how I know to do that…. ). You can also slip small pieces of aluminum or brass tubing, or even plastic straws over the rear screw as it passes through the inside of the mount.]

The mount will leave faint slide marks on a blue gun, but that's easily touched up with some Oxpho or Van's blue as needed. They leave faint rub marks on stainless guns, but those disappear with a touch of an abrasive Scotch-Brite pad in the direction of the receiver brush. (I've debated spreading the bottom edges apart enough to be able to add a layer of electrical tape along the sliding points to eliminate the receiver slide marking, but never gotten around to trying it.)

Some say the newer SunOptics versions are a softer aluminum than the original B-Squares, but I think as long as you don't over tighten the screws, you'll be OK with either one. Just gently snug them down; the rear screw against the rear sight prevents movement forward under recoil. I've used my first one for 30 years with no issues. I picked up the last two B-Squares on eBay.

 

[BMW Rider]

Weigand makes one. https://jackweigand.com/products/ruger-22-45-scope-mount-mki-mkii-mkiii-mkiv-weaver-weig-a-tinny/

No experience with it, I've had a SoLow mount and a red dot on mine for like 30 something years. I think they've been out of business for decades now.

 

[fwb124]

Full disclosure: I've never used one of the Weigand mounts.

That said, I've always thought the sloping design made it a rather attractive, if rather tall, no-drill scope base for Mark I & II pistols. The only fly in the ointment is that it requires removing the rear sight, and I _do_ have personal experience with what a pain that can be on many earlier Marks, given how tight the fit of the sight typically is in the dovetail and how difficult the round receiver is to clamp securely without damage.

Nevertheless, I'm tempted to try out a black one on a Mark II Government Target Model I recently picked up on Gunbroker. I got it for a pretty decent price because (1) its _really_ weirdly configured, and (2) the seller listed it only as a Target model and not a GTM. It's missing the elevator for the rear sight because the previous owner fitted it with a honkin' _huge_ Bushnell Holosight (a cheapened EOTech model I'm assuming is non-functional) on a fairly ugly, discontinued Weaver 306 clamp-and-screw-down mount that anchors to the elevator screw hole. Not to mention the white pearl LS Grips, the kind General Patton famously suggested would only be "carried by a pimp in a New Orleans whorehouse":

I gotta say, though, General Patton not withstanding, the pearl grips on the blued pistol are growing on me….

If the Holosight actually works, I'll probably slap it on an AR upper or a Tippmann M4–22, and consider myself lucky.

(My apology for slightly thread jacking.)

 

[fwb124]

No experience with it, I've had a SoLow mount and a red dot on mine for like 30 something years. I think they've been out of business for decades now.

I'm not familiar with that mount. Any chance you could post a pic or two?

 

[1gunsnotenough]

I want to put a Dot sight on my 1967 Ruger Mark 1 Target than has a non drilled receiver. Search showed just a little information from 2013. Any body familiar with the current offerings for this item and what might be a good way to go? Recommendations for mount and sight both wanted. And is it possible to get a green dot at a low price?

I think I have one. But I'm out of until Monday. Just pay shipping and you can have it.

 

[BMW Rider]

I'm not familiar with that mount. Any chance you could post a pic or two?

I don't have pics, but here is an old thread on one with a pic. Mine sports an ultradot. https://www.rugerforum.com/threads/question-on-ruger-mkii-solow-scope-mount.80504/

 

[contender]

For the OP,, you can see there are several good options above. Heck,, onegunsnotenough has offered you a very nice chance to try one.

One thing I've noticed about dot sights or scopes on a handgun,, IF,, IF,, you try & have the ability to keep your open sights AND have the dot. In fact it also happens on rifles too. You have to seriously shift your grip or head to allow the use of either one. If you have a proper grip,, the open sights align easily for most. But you will not be capable of seeing a dot or crosshairs. If you have to shift your grip or raise your head etc to see the dot or crosshairs,, you will not be holding the gun correctly.
I saw this long ago when "See-through" rifle scope rings were the rage. I found them uncomfortable. My (then) local gunsmith had a big box full of see-through "take-offs" he would just give away. He too allowed how they didn't work for many people.

My point is,, mount the dot as low as you can & you'll be capable of keeping a proper gripping of your handgun. Forget the ability to use the open sights.

Now,, several modern semi-auto centerfires have a cut in the slide to allow a very low mounting of a dot. And many of these guns allow the use of both the open sights & the dot because of how they were designed to do so without changing your grip. The Ruger MK handgun is not one of those designs.

 

[fwb124]

The [B-Square/SunOptic slip-on] mount will leave faint slide marks on a blue gun, but that's easily touched up with some Oxpho or Van's blue as needed.

After going back and checking a couple of things, I'm going to correct myself here.

Anodizing can be a very hard surface, and depending on the particular mount and the blued gun, these mounts can remove significant blueing if not carefully installed. So, if you really love the blued gun, and you don't want to mess with a quality touchup blue like Oxpho, this may not be the best solution for you.

On stainless guns, I have a long history and I've never had any marks that can't be removed very quickly with a Scotch-Brite maroon pad correctly applied in line with the brushed finish of the gun.

 

[1gunsnotenough]

This is what I have but in SS.

B-Square 1-Piece Weaver-Style Scope Base Ruger Mark I, Mark II Gloss

B-Square handgun bases lock to the firearm using the ventilated rib or existing pre-drilled holes in the firearm and require no gunsmithing. Rib mounts...

www.midwayusa.com

 

[Mobuck]

I suppose you don't want to remove the rear sight to use the dovetail style mount???
I've had one on my beater/trapline 22/45 for several years and it's a solid solution. Mounts the optic as low as possible. I also removed the front sight as no real need for it when using the dot.

 

[RoninPA]

For any of the no gunsmithing mounts you could get some thin rubber strips and put them where the mount touches the receiver. If they are very thin that should eliminate any scratching and should not affect the grip (maybe even enhance it a bit) of the mount.