Ruger Bisley.44 mag.

[tgs989]

Can any one tell me what I can do to my new Ruger Bisley.44 to improve the action of it? Thanks-tim

[runfiverun]

wolf springs...
or fill it with toothpaste and run the action back and forth for a few hours.

[Lloyd Smale]

dont like lightening the springs much. Lighten the hammer spring and you can cause reliability problems and lighter primer hits can effect accuracy. The pour mans trigger job will reduce it but ive had some that doing it would allow the hammer to push off with thumb pressure and i dont consider it safe. Best thing to do is buck up and pay a gunsmith the hundered dollars or so it cost to do a proper trigger job. Just make sure your using a reputable smith so that there not just doing these old and foolish tricks themselves.

[2 dogs]

I agree fully with Lloyd. The poor mans trigger is very creepy as well. I use Alan Harton in Houston Texas aharton@hotmail.com who does a fantastic action job on a NM Ruger.

[44man]

Too bad some of you don't live close. I get them creep free down to 2# (Any less needs a new transfer bar made.) I do this even with an over power mainspring.
I did all of my friends guns free but they do get me a bottle. (Retired ya know.)
I have several of mine down to 1-1/2# but had to make transfer bars longer. They are hard as the devil to make by hand and heat treat them.
Ruger's are easy. I don't know why they charge so much.

[45 2.1]

Too bad some of you don't live close. I get them creep free down to 2# (Any less needs a new transfer bar made.) I do this even with an over power mainspring.
I did all of my friends guns free but they do get me a bottle. (Retired ya know.)
I have several of mine down to 1-1/2# but had to make transfer bars longer. They are hard as the devil to make by hand and heat treat them.
Ruger's are easy. I don't know why they charge so much.

+1 except for the new transfer bar. My personnal guns are too light for most people to feel and the hammer stands just fine without pushing off. The main problem with Rugers are the rough hammer/sear surfaces and the trigger return spring is much too heavy. Cure those things and they are fine.

[targetshootr]

Can any one tell me what I can do to my new Ruger Bisley.44 to improve the action of it? Thanks-tim

The hammer strut usually needs to be polished too and any other surfaces that contact each other. Which is why a gunsmith is the best bet.

[44man]

I polished everything for a long time. I even did what I could to keep the sides of the hammer from rubbing the frame. Larger pins and shims, etc. I spent hours polishing the inside of the frames.
I can NOT tell any difference in trigger pulls or accuracy. Action lube on the spring strut and sear plus lube on all other parts is enough.
If I can take a BFR out of the box, do a decent trigger job on it and shoot sub 1" groups at 100 yd's, why in the world would I spend 2 days polishing?
I firmly believe you need a surface that holds lube. I even leave mill marks on the top of my boolit molds and never gall a mold. The sprue plate just glides.
Don't be concerned with a high polish. Jeweling is another thing because it is not smooth and holds lube. If you have ever worked a jeweled bolt with a light film of oil on it, you will know what I am talking about. It REDUCES metal to metal contact. I would not polish to increase metal to metal contact.

[targetshootr]

I believe the pros polish everything to make it feel glassy when you pull back the hammer. It makes me grin when a gun does that and I only bother to do the strut and a couple of other surfaces. A Dremel tool makes it a snap.

[tgs989]

Thanks Every one for there input! I always learn somthing from this forum.Thanks again-Tim

[yondering]

44man, what specifically do you do for the Blackhawk triggers? How short do you cut the sear engagement lip on the hammer? (probably using the wrong term there, but I hope you know what I mean).
I've cleaned up the trigger on mine, so it's not too bad, at about 3.5 lbs, but I wouldn't mind it a little lighter, and it has some extra creep to it. I didn't want to take too much off the engagement lip of the hammer without some guidelines.

[44man]

I have a slow speed grinder I use for sharpening tool bits that has super wheels on it. I set the tool rest for a flat cut on the hammer and grind off half of the sear surface. Takes a few seconds. Then I polish with a ceramic, triangular stone. Never change angles! Then very lightly break the sharp edge.
I would sneak up on it until you get used to doing this grinding. You can stone for a day by hand.
Now this is with a new hammer. If it has been stoned already, take off LESS or just slowly stone by hand some more until the creep is gone or leave a small amount which is safer.
You have to keep putting the parts together to try. Remember to break the sharp edge each time.
I made a try block once but got so used to doing it by eye, I just put the gun back together and it is done.
I change the bend in the trigger spring a little. But I NEVER change the mainspring except to put a heavier one in. I love the Wolfe over power variable hammer springs. My SBH has a 24# spring, the .475 is 25# and the 45-70 is 26#.
I figure that once the hammer is cocked, I am ready to shoot something. I suppose if I pushed hard enough on the hammer it MIGHT fall but I use the trigger to shoot! I did take my 45-70 BFR out of the safe with it's 19 oz trigger and pushed hard on the hammer. Nothing happened and it would take excess force to drop the hammer.
The danger comes when you change angles either on the trigger or hammer.
I also cocked the gun and banged all over it and on the butt until my hand is sore, it will not go off.
Even when I do a rifle trigger, I slam the bolt shut a bunch of times, HARD. It better not go off or I fix it.
Now to the old three screw Rugers or the Colt SAA or any clone. NEVER remove metal! What you want to do here is soft solder shim stock under the sear surface of the hammer to push the trigger out some. You must use a copper iron, never flame. The shim stock files easy to get the pull and creep where it feels good. Then just polish the surfaces a little and apply a good lube.
DO NOT REMOVE METAL FROM ANY GUN WITH A HALF COCK NOTCH!
Gee, why do I give away secrets? I could make $100 each! [smilie=1:

[yondering]

Thanks 44Man. The extra power mainspring is on my list for this gun, as lock time seems pretty slow (compared to say, my 1911 [smilie=1:). Have you found any significant benefit (or disadvantages) to lightening the hammer?

I'm stoning the hammer/sear surfaces by hand, my grinders are the cheaper fixed speed units for now. On my 1911, the hammer "feet" were cut down to .020" tall, which works very well with no perceptible creep. The Ruger hammer "foot" (it's not split like the 1911) is much taller, I wasn't sure if I could go that short on the Ruger or not. Don't really want to buy a new Bisley hammer, but I'll go slow until the creep is mostly gone.

[44man]

Thanks 44Man. The extra power mainspring is on my list for this gun, as lock time seems pretty slow (compared to say, my 1911 [smilie=1:). Have you found any significant benefit (or disadvantages) to lightening the hammer?

I'm stoning the hammer/sear surfaces by hand, my grinders are the cheaper fixed speed units for now. On my 1911, the hammer "feet" were cut down to .020" tall, which works very well with no perceptible creep. The Ruger hammer "foot" (it's not split like the 1911) is much taller, I wasn't sure if I could go that short on the Ruger or not. Don't really want to buy a new Bisley hammer, but I'll go slow until the creep is mostly gone.
A weak mainspring can make your gun very inaccurate. Not even thinking about lock time, the primer needs a certain force to be consistent. You will hear all kinds of stuff about light hammer falls shooting good but will never see groups posted to prove it. I am a firm believer that weak impact on a primer is no good.
I fell into that trap with my first S&W. I read how to get a super trigger by grinding the mainspring and loosening the strain screw. The gun shot for crap until I replaced the spring and tightened it up.
Flat mainsprings are great, I think they are faster then coil springs. But the factory made it right to start with, leave it alone.

[45 2.1]

Please don't take your gun apart and reduce any notch depths. The "Poor mans trigger job", done correctly, will give you everything you'll want. That correctly part doesn't involve fiddling or guessing about what to do either. If you tried it and it didn't work, you didn't do it right. Have a complete understanding of what part does what and you'll do fine.

[yondering]

44man, you may have misread my post. I plan on going to a stronger mainspring, not a weaker one. It's got the factory spring in now. It's not weak or worn out, I was just pointing out that these guns seem to have a relatively long lock time, with that big heavy hammer.

45 2.1, thanks for the advice, as I do understand recommending newbies not to take apart their guns, but that's not me. The gun's already been apart several times, as have all of the other guns I own.

I've given this Ruger a "decent" trigger job already, trigger pull weight is about right, but it still has a little creep I'd still like to get out. I was just wondering if 44man or someone else here knew a standard hammer foot height for a good trigger in these guns. Brownell's has a write-up on this for 1911's, but I haven't seen one for Ruger single actions.

I've also modified the pawl for the cylinder to freewheel in both directions with the loading gate opened, adjusted the cylinder alignment, which was a bit off, and opened up the cylinder throats to .453". Had to re-solder the front sight on too, which the previous owner didn't do after shortening the barrel (they used epoxy, which didn't hold under heavy loads).

[44man]

44man, you may have misread my post. I plan on going to a stronger mainspring, not a weaker one. It's got the factory spring in now. It's not weak or worn out, I was just pointing out that these guns seem to have a relatively long lock time, with that big heavy hammer.

45 2.1, thanks for the advice, as I do understand recommending newbies not to take apart their guns, but that's not me. The gun's already been apart several times, as have all of the other guns I own.

I've given this Ruger a "decent" trigger job already, trigger pull weight is about right, but it still has a little creep I'd still like to get out. I was just wondering if 44man or someone else here knew a standard hammer foot height for a good trigger in these guns. Brownell's has a write-up on this for 1911's, but I haven't seen one for Ruger single actions.

I've also modified the pawl for the cylinder to freewheel in both directions with the loading gate opened, adjusted the cylinder alignment, which was a bit off, and opened up the cylinder throats to .453". Had to re-solder the front sight on too, which the previous owner didn't do after shortening the barrel (they used epoxy, which didn't hold under heavy loads).
You sure know what you are doing so you should have no problem just working it a little with a stone. I don't have a measurement for it. It's a trial and error process anyway.
Get the Wolfe spring kit, it comes with 3 different springs, that's why all of my revolvers are different, I used the stronger ones for the cases that have LR pockets. I use LP primers and they are deeper. Anyway, you can play with each weight to see what you like. I am more then happy with the variable spring rate, sure beats replacing the factory spring every year. Ruger springs take a set. I used to buy them by the pack when I shot silhouette. I was never bothered with lock time but accuracy would decrease when the spring got a set.
BFR uses Ruger springs too.

[yondering]

Thanks, that Wolf spring kit is what I had in mind.

[Thumbcocker]

I would add to the above that you dry fire the dog snott out of the gun. I would also caution you not to modify it until you put a few hundred rounds thrugh it. I have gotten good results by doing a poor boy trigger job, shooting a few hundred full power loads and dry firing. When I am working with a particular revolver I dry fire it almost every evening at a 1" target spot on the living room wall. Five or six clicks during commercials. Works for me.

[Lloyd Smale]

im fortunate enough to have a freind that does the best trigger work ive yet seen. He does mine for nothing. hed be doing 2 dogs guns to if he lived closer. I try to pay him back with a coffee can or two of bullets but hed do it anyway.