Volquartsen's Black Mamba...Taking the Mark IV To The Limit

[AzShooter]

I bought one of the first Mark IV 22/45 Lites a few years ago and really liked it right from the start but I'm a tinkerer and just had to go for all the upgrades I could so I built a Black Mamba out of it with the help of the friendly people at Volquartsen.

My Mamba has the 6 inch barrel with the compensator. You may think a comp doesn't do any good on a .22 but there are a few reasons for it. With the compensator on my 12 MOA C-More Railway's dot stays on target no matter how fast I shoot. It also makes the gun louder which helps in Steel Challenge Matches so that the timers pick up all my shots.

My gun easily shoots less than 1 inch at 25 yards, and closer to 1/2 inch using a variety of ammo. It shoots best with CCI Blazer but Mini Mags and SV give the Blazer's a run for their money. I always enjoy competing against my shooting buddy while he shoots his Mark III Hunter or Browning Buck Mark. The Black Mamba is hand over fist better on the accuracy and reliability scale.

Shooting competitions, I also shoot a lot of practice and was averaging 1000 rounds a week for the first 2 years. My friend stopped going to the range with me so I remained shooting at my local indoor range. I broke down to only 500 rounds a week plus 2 Steel Challenge Matches a month.

Starting to get a few failure to fire and not being able to figure it out on my own Scott Volquartsen asked me to send it back in and have them take a look at it. Although I clean my gun as well as I can after every shooting session, on the last session a small piece of the upper fell out on my bench, it needed to be replaced and while doing that Scott installed a new barrel on the new frame.

The new upper shoots as good as the original. For a change I started shooting with iron sights instead of a red dot and I'm having a lot of fun. Surprisingly, my times have also improved. The VQ green fiber optic stands out like a beacon at the indoor range and is beyond bright when shooting in the sun. Keeping focused on the front sight is easy now.

I have in excess of 15 magazines for this gun, and another 12 relegated to the 22/45 Lite so that I don't mix the up. I bring both guns to the range during matches just in case.

Some other modifications are a Striplin Cornerstone Safety, Thumb Rest, Stoner CNC Grips and the VQ bolt. Another great tool is the Lead Pulverizer for cleaning the compensator. For years I used a mixture of 50 % Vinegar to 50 % Hydrogen Peroxide to get the lead out. Let it sit for a few hours and just use a dental pick to peel away the deposits. With the Pulverizer you take off the comp, take out the four screws holding it together and then just twist the tool around. All lead comes out in the matter of minutes. I wish I could use it on my other compensators.

Here it is with StonerCNC Blue Grips and Herret Grips with Thumb Rest.

[awp_101]

I need to look into the Striplin safety and thumb rest. I’m currently running an Apex kit in my Lite but I’m getting the urge to try out some new parts for the sake of comparison. Might as well do the safety and add the thumb rest while I’m at it.

[Hieronymous]

@AzShooter, thanks for the review! Can you talk about your flat faced trigger? I note the factory built guns don't appear to come with them. Also, any thoughts on pros and cons of 4.5" vs. 6" versions from the competition vs. plinking perspective?

[AzShooter]

@AzShooter, thanks for the review! Can you talk about your flat faced trigger? I note the factory built guns don't appear to come with them. Also, any thoughts on pros and cons of 4.5" vs. 6" versions from the competition vs. plinking perspective?

I talked to the guys at Apex about their trigger when I was looking but they told me the best you could get was 3 - 3.5 pounds. My competition guns all have 1.5 - 1.7 pound triggers so I opted for the Volquartsen Accurizing Kit.

I did try the Tandemkross trigger for a while but eventually went back to the Volquartsen. The serrations are nice on the TK trigger but I find my finger finds its place better on the VQ. Both are adjustable for pre and post travel so It's a matter of taiste.

I like the longer sight radius of the 6 inch for precision work. If you are going to put a red dot sight on then the 4.5 is just as good. Some say it even tracks a little better when shooting steel targets. I have noticed that the top sponsored Volquartsen shooters are using 6 inch guns.

I think you will enjoy the gas peddle from Striplin ( Thumb Rest ), it really lets me keep my grip the same and lets me put more pressure on my thumb which eliminates that nasty recoil for the powerful .22s LOL.