Elite Iron Ruger MKIII Integral Suppressed pistol

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Swift516
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Elite Iron Ruger MKIII Integral Suppressed pistol

Post by Swift516 »

Wanted to put a shout out to Elite Iron out of Potomac, MT.

In summer of 2016 I decided to that I wanted a suppressed Ruger MK pistol. I researched the options, focusing on ones that allowed user serviceability, as most have to be sent to the manufacturer for full cleaning. I landed on the Elite Iron conversion. I contacted them and found that they had a Ruger MKIII available. I purchased the pistol, post 41F (Thanks Obama) and began the wait. It was approved to be sent to my dealer in mid December of 2016. I filed the form 4 as it arrived and it went pending in the first week of January.

I never messed with it or even laid my eyes on it while it was pending, but picked it up the other day when the form 4 was approved. 11/14/17 approval, to be exact.

First impressions were very good. The pistol is very finely crafted and the design is awesome. It is not barrel heavy and handles very well. The trigger is decent. My only complaint is that I didn't know that Ruger was coming out with the MKIV, so I would have had it built on a MKIV if possible, but what the heck.. Sure not Elite Iron's fault. The MKIV is so much easier to clean and take apart. All things I was looking for when I purchased it.

I took it apart and found out what makes it tick. The original barrel is cut to roughly 3" and threaded. It is then turned down and the stainless tube is welded onto the barrel. The seam is polished out and it is very hard to see exactly where it hooks together. The internals are a thing of machining mastery. There is an stainless expansion chamber that is threaded onto the barrel and then a set of 5 very well machined stainless steel baffles lock together and slip inside the tube up against the expansion chamber. A well machined cap then screws down on top of the baffles, sealing it all together. Elite Iron provided the necessary tools to take the silencer part of the pistol apart.

I believe that as long as you clean it regularly, say sub 400-500 rounds, it shouldn't be too tough to take apart. I can imagine if you let it lead and carbon up, it could be a bear to pull the baffles and expansion chamber out. I've decided to let it go to 4-500 rounds before the first good cleaning to try and establish a baseline.

When I took it out to shoot the first time I adjusted the sights a bit. After that this thing just flat ran. Not one hiccup or jam. And its super accurate. Ridiculously quiet. Completely hearing safe shooting CCI Mini Mag ammo.

When I took it apart the first time I did a very through cleaning and treated the expansion chamber and baffles with a silicone oil. I've had very good luck with this process in other serviceable silencers. It allows the crud to be removed much much easier.

If you're looking for an integrally suppressed Ruger MK pistol, I suggest Elite Iron. They produce a very good product.

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Racer
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Re: Elite Iron Ruger MKIII Integral Suppressed pistol

Post by Racer »

Very nice. It looks like they may not make them anymore -- at least I did not see them on their website. I agree with how nice the finish is -- I have one that is a couple of years older than yours, but essentially the same design with the slight exception of the front cap take-down wrench.

I would be interested in your perspective after you have fired it, re: overall suppression and FRP levels. I use CCI Minimags almost exclusively in mine. They stay subsonic, are reliable and seem to run cleaner than other ammo I have tried.
Dave
Swift516
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Re: Elite Iron Ruger MKIII Integral Suppressed pistol

Post by Swift516 »

Yeah. I know they aren't going to be making alot of them, but Kathy said that they will still offer the conversion I think. I went ahead and put in a magazine disconnect bushing and LCI filler. I may do something trigger wise in the future.

I've been shooting CCI Mini-mags through mine exclusively up to this point. Seems to be some of the best 22 ammo I've ever dealt with on a consistent basis. I've been super pleased with the accuracy and suppression of it. I don't have a meter, but don't really notice much difference with FRP and it is completely hearing safe for sure.

Have you had any problems with disassembly after gunking it all up?
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Racer
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Re: Elite Iron Ruger MKIII Integral Suppressed pistol

Post by Racer »

Have you had any problems with disassembly after gunking it all up?
Yes. I try and clean it after every outing because if I do not I have a challenge with removing the baffles. A little oil soak and then a little warming (blow dryer) of the tube helps, but if it has seen too many rounds it is difficult. The seasonal CCI "Christmas Ammo" with the polymer coating that covers the whole bullet including the base should reduce the lead deposits to a minimum. Next range trip I will test this theory with 300 rounds and see if it is easier to disassemble.
Dave
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fishman
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Re: Elite Iron Ruger MKIII Integral Suppressed pistol

Post by fishman »

Racer wrote:
Have you had any problems with disassembly after gunking it all up?
Yes. I try and clean it after every outing because if I do not I have a challenge with removing the baffles. A little oil soak and then a little warming (blow dryer) of the tube helps, but if it has seen too many rounds it is difficult. The seasonal CCI "Christmas Ammo" with the polymer coating that covers the whole bullet including the base should reduce the lead deposits to a minimum. Next range trip I will test this theory with 300 rounds and see if it is easier to disassemble.
Let us khow what happens
300 blackout form 1: http://www.silencertalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=137293

5.56 form 1:
http://www.silencertalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=141800&p=955647#p955647
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Racer
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Posts: 389
Joined: Mon Apr 25, 2005 9:08 pm
Location: Oregon

Re: Elite Iron Ruger MKIII Integral Suppressed pistol

Post by Racer »

The seasonal CCI "Christmas Ammo" with the polymer coating that covers the whole bullet including the base should reduce the lead deposits to a minimum. Next range trip I will test this theory with 300 rounds and see if it is easier to disassemble.
I finally got to the range and put 300 rounds of the Christmas Ammo with the polymer coating through the Elite Arms integrally suppressed Ruger. The results were very pleasant. The baffles came out of the tube with very little effort (just pulling the entire stack with a hook made from a piece of a clothes hanger). I did not find any leading anywhere in the suppressor tube, the expansion chamber, or the baffles. The baffles had a brown carbon material that came out of the tube and they did have a small amount of black hard carbon on the baffles themselves, but no lead. Everything cleaned up very easily. I am sold on the .22lr rounds with polymer coating for use in suppressors that are difficult to disassemble (mainly integrals where a pusher tool cannot be used). This is especially true of the Elite Arms integral since it is very challenging to clean the expansion chamber since the tube is permanently welded to the receiver. I ordered a couple of thousand rounds of this "Christmas Ammo" for use in the Elite Arms integral suppressor.
Dave
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