[amcalpine]

Howdy all, I have a Ruger Mark III problem.

The gun will not cock at regular intervals, meaning the safty will not engage,gun will not fire. One out of five times it will actually cock. It is clean, I'm leaning towards a failed spring somewhere. I'm not mechanically disinclined, however this gun seems overly complicated and I am at a loss, any help would be greatly appreciated!



Thanks,

[gb6491]

When you clean it, do you remove the upper from the frame? Have you disassembled the pistol lately? If so, did the problem appear after reassembly? If not, did the problem start happening immediately or start intermittently and gradually increase over time?
Regards,
Greg

[amcalpine]

I cant tell you, heres why.. It seems that the harder I dry rack it, the better the chance of the hammer (or stricker) engaging. Lets assume it's something I did during reassembly. I know there are a thousand ways to assemble this gun and only one way is right, but it (to my knowledge) is assembled correctly and would fire rounds albeit not reliably.

[Chawbaccer]

Does the trigger feel normal? Is the works dirty down under the barrel? Have you removed the mainspring housing and reinserted it? Your disconnector could be malfunctioning. Numrich has a schematic of the gun, pull the barrel and have a look and see if anything seems amiss.

[amcalpine]

Thanks I have downloaded the image of the tare down, the trigger feels fine (same as when working) , cocked and decocked.

[gb6491]

Take the upper off your pistol, then put the mainspring back into the frame (just like reassembly sans the barrel/receiver). Cock the hammer by hand, then press and hold it down with your thumb; while doing this, press and release the trigger. You want to watch that the sear and dis-connector move freely and that the sear positively engages the hammer when the trigger is released. Here is a photo that shows the sear highlighted in yellow and the dis-connector in red. The sear is engaged in this photo. It moves toward the front of the pistol when the trigger is pulled. Also, this pistol is a 22/45 (MKII) and does not have a magazine safety like yours. The magazine safety will be between the dis-connector and hammer on yours (see link with illustration below); make sure it disengages enough to allow full movement of the sear when the magazine is inserted.
http://i34.tinypic.com/1412t21.jpg
If everything is good to this point, hold the hammer and pull the trigger; hold it (trigger) back and do not release until instructed. Now, let the hammer go (slowly) forward. With the hammer forward, push down on the dis-connector (it clicks on mine when fully down) and try to cock the hammer. The sear should engage of it's own and hold the hammer back. If it does, release the trigger, as all seems well. If it doesn't cock, release the trigger and try some spray cleaner in that area (further dis-assembly may be needed to check for obstruction/or faulty parts).
Here is a good illustration of how it all works and excellent instructions for dis-assembly/assembly of the MKIII: http://www.guntalk-online.com/detailstrip.htm#operate
Regards,
Greg

BTW - Chawbaccer is absolutely correct about dirt under the barrel in the trigger group (dis-connector plunger and spring are there). There is an aftermarket shield that helps prevent this.

Hope you get her up and running.

[amcalpine]

Thank you so much! The sear spring and sear were SUPER DIRTY, it was sticking to the walls. Works great now!


Thanks!