Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (RUGER) is recalling Mark IV pistols (including 22/45 models) manufactured prior to June 1, 2017. The reason for the recall is the potential of unintentional discharges if the safety is not used properly. Mark IV owners should visit Ruger.com/MarkIVRecall to determine if their pistol is subject to the recall, which affects a “small percentage of Mark IV pistols”. Ruger strongly recommends that consumers not use affected Mark IV pistols until a safety retrofit has been installed.

Ruger Mark IV Recall Information Video:

Here is Ruger’s official Recall Announcement (emphasis added):

Ruger recently discovered that the pistols have the potential to discharge unintentionally if the safety is not utilized correctly. In particular, if the trigger is pulled while the safety lever is midway between the “safe” and “fire” positions (that is, the safety is not fully engaged or fully disengaged), the pistol may not fire when the trigger is pulled. However, if the trigger is released and the safety lever is then moved from the mid position to the “fire” position, the pistol may fire at that time.

Although only a small percentage of Mark IV pistols appear to be affected and the Company is not aware of any injuries, Ruger is firmly committed to safety and would like to retrofit all potentially affected pistols with an updated safety mechanism.”

As a responsible manufacturer, Ruger wants to make its customers aware of this FREE safety upgrade. All Mark IV pistols with serial numbers beginning with “401” (2017 models) or “WBR” (2016 models) are subject to the recall.

Mark IV owners should visit the Ruger Mark IV Recall website… to look up the serial number of their Mark IV and verify if it is subject to the recall, sign up for the recall, and obtain additional information.

The new parts are being built and Ruger will retrofit Mark IV pistols on a first-come, first-served basis. When Ruger is ready to retrofit a consumer’s pistol, a prepaid USPS box with a shipping label and detailed packaging and shipping instructions will be sent to the consumer. The consumer should return only the grip frame assembly to Ruger. Ruger will install the updated safety mechanism, and return the grip frame assembly, free of charge. All retrofitted grip frame assemblies will be returned with a free magazine as a “thank you” for consumers’ patience and cooperation. The Company will make every effort to return each pistol within one week of the day it arrives at Ruger.

Bigger Objective, Better HD Glass, More Useful Magnification Range
We’ve always liked the Leupold compact spotter because it is light weight and it’s Newtonian (folded light path) design makes it much more compact than most spotters of comparable magnification. The U.S. Military currently uses the Mark 4 “tactical” version of the Leupold 12-40x60mm spotter. However, we felt that the glass in the 12-40 spotter was not on a par with the latest generation HD spotters from Kowa, Zeiss, and Leica, or even Nikon and Pentax for that matter. Leupold has taken a huge step forward by gracing its new spotter with a big, HD (low dispersion) front objective. This should give the scope better perceived sharpness with much less color fringing (chromatic aberration) when viewing targets at long range. Upsizing the objective to 80mm makes the scope brighter, improving low-light performance. That’s important, particularly for tactical guys and hunters. The bigger objective also allows Leupold to increase magnification all the way from 40X to 60X. Do you always want a 60-power view? No, but it is great have 50% more magnification on tap when you need it.

60X is a Good Thing for Target Shooters
Most 40-power spotting scopes struggle to resolve 6mm and 6.5mm bullet holes at 600 yards. With HD glass and 60X magnification, you’ll have a much better chance to see small bullet holes at long range (though you’ll also need good viewing conditions). That’s a huge advantage for the long-range target shooter. Overall, we were very pleased that Leupold engineered this much-enhanced 80mm spotter. We predict it will be a big hit with anyone who needs serious magnification in an easy-to-carry optic.

Click here to view the embedded video.