Sturm, Ruger & Co. announced an expansion of its current generation of rimfire handguns with the introduction of the Mk IV Tactical. The pistol has a variety of features that have become synonymous with the term “tactical” in the gun marketing world.

Fundamentally, this is a Mk IV pistol chambered for the .22 LR cartridge. It has a 4.4″ barrel and comes with two 10-round magazines. The Mk IV Tactical has the same one button take down of the other handguns in this line of pistols.

Features that lend themselves to the tactical moniker include:

• threaded barrel: The barrel is threaded for the addition of a sound suppressor or other muzzle device. While sound attenuation is seen by more and more people as being a normal part of recreational shooting, it seems that some marketers want to attach the “tactical” term to anything threaded. Ruger includes a thread protector.
• Picatinny rails: Both the top and underside of the gun have lengths of Picatinny rail. According to Ruger, these are “…for attaching tactical accessories.” Presumably the top rail allows for the addition of an optic, while the space under the barrel would allow for a light, laser or both.
• finish: The gun is finished in “black oxide.” Black guns are tactical. This is known.

Ruger set a suggested retail price of $569 on this pistol.