My 1st lemon

Take it apart and clean it real well and put it back together. Sometimes it is just gunk and grime left from the manufacturing process in the action and a good cleaning might fix it. Worth a try and you might also spot the problem in the process if there is a real issue.

Ruger will send you a shipping label to send it back to them. They will make it right.

Technically, it's only a "lemon" if it can't be fixed.

You didn't inspect it at the dealer?

Send it back. My experience with Ruger CS has been excellent. Troubling that a gun that dysfunctional left the factory.

NO WAY I'm disassembling a new , unfired gun and trying to correct a problem on my own bench.

Indeed, that’s too bad. I love Ruger guns, and have a lot of them...including a PC 9mm Carbine that I am currently contemplating...

That being said, one would hope a company and a QC employee and their manager would have enough pride in their personal and professional reputation to keep so-so and below firearms from leaving the factory.

IMHO a happy customer is not only return customer, but he/she tells others of their good experience and brings in another one or two along the way. Having good after-sale customer service (like Ruger has) is wonderful, but a NIB GP should not need that. Heading this gun off at the gate would have prevented a thread like this, and the subsequent wondering the readers will gave if their next Ruger will be a grit and grind fest when the trigger is pulled for the first time.

Sadly, it’s all about $$$. IMHO, sacrificing of a brand’s reputation on the altar of short term profit is a recipe for rapid corporate decline and ultimately its failure. Just ask Cerebrus Capital Management how well their slash-for-cash business model worked with Remington and Marlin....

Stay safe!

Riomouse911

Much like any number of manufacturers it's pretty much hurry up and get the product out the door and down the road to the dealer, then we'll deal with the customer and their problems after the sale.

Waveski said:

NO WAY I'm disassembling a new , unfired gun and trying to correct a problem on my own bench.

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If it's something I could fix and do so easily, I would certainly rather spend a few minutes filing off a few burrs than packing it up and sending it back to Ruger. Been there, done that.

Waveski said:

Send it back. My experience with Ruger CS has been excellent. Troubling that a gun that dysfunctional left the factory.

NO WAY I'm disassembling a new , unfired gun and trying to correct a problem on my own bench.

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Problem or not one of the first things I do with a new gun (new or used) is disassembled it. It is not going to hurt it and might save you sending it back. I am all for sending a bad gun back to get it fixed but I am going to have a look first. If for no other reason than to have more info on the cause of the problem and to be able to tell what they fix when I get it back. YMMV

I send them back. As a longtime Ruger owner and stockholder I want the company to improve and they have to see the numbers to improve. By fixing an end product yourself they count it as a good product out the door but if you send it back they see it as an issue to be addressed. Execs only see reports and that is all boiled down to numbers, if the numbers show a high ratio of returns then they look for ways to lower that number. Don't let them think you got a perfect product.

ChiefTJS said:

I send them back. As a longtime Ruger owner and stockholder I want the company to improve and they have to see the numbers to improve. By fixing an end product yourself they count it as a good product out the door but if you send it back they see it as an issue to be addressed. Execs only see reports and that is all boiled down to numbers, if the numbers show a high ratio of returns then they look for ways to lower that number. Don't let them think you got a perfect product.

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I'd rather be shooting it than waiting for it.

Two of my range customers each came in with a GP Match Champion. One with a supurb trigger and the other just as the OP described. Back to Ruger and in a short time it was returned in perfect condition.

I've had very positive experience with Ruger customer service. I wouldn't be worrying too much, and it sounds like the OP has the right attitude. When you buy a Ruger, you're also buying a good CS reputation, so why not make use of it? I had a Single Six that I bought new several decades ago. It never shot straight at all, and I wish now I'd sent it in to Ruger CS.

Good luck on the GP...I'm sure you'll like it once it's working right.

Jim NE said:

I've had very positive experience with Ruger customer service. I wouldn't be worrying too much, and it sounds like the OP has the right attitude. When you buy a Ruger, you're also buying a good CS reputation, so why not make use of it? I had a Single Six that I bought new several decades ago. It never shot straight at all, and I wish now I'd sent it in to Ruger CS.

Good luck on the GP...I'm sure you'll like it once it's working right.

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I've also had great service from Ruger Customer Service, a friend of my son bought a P85 that didn't work, seller said it discharged on Safe, was well used and looked like it had been dragged down the road, well it had been recalled so the new owner called Ruger got a shipper and in a few months got a like new gun with most parts replaced and reblued, not bad for a $50 used gun! Oh, and he did tell them he bought it used!

Only time I had an issue Ruger fixed me up for free and cleaned up my end shake while they were at it. Good on them for even noticing since the issue had nothing to do with the end shake.

I'm all in favor of sending it in at the first sign of trouble on a NIB gun, the darn things cost so much new you're entitled to a great experience at no personal effort.

I had a brand new sp101 that was dysfunctional out of the box. The hammer dog and plunger had surface rust that was tying it up so you could not cycle the action enough pull the trigger and rotate the cylinder. It was easy to diagnose and did not require factory service but I'm sure Ruger would have helped. In fact, Ruger was very helpful in setting things right when I purchased a used (practically new and unfired) LCR that had an oversized cylinder gap. The seller refused to accommodate, and likely had no idea he sold a revolver with an out of spec 0.015" b/c gap, but Ruger provided excellent service and had it fixed at no cost.

TreeDoc said:

No, I didn't. Was in a hurry and yes I've already kicked myself for that.

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I did that once too.
When you buy new, you naturally assume it's perfect. Not always.

I had to send a new GP-100 back after a couple thousand rounds. I sent them photos of the problem and they sent me a shipping label, rebarelled and reblued the whole gun and had it back to me in about ten days. Didn't cost me anything and the gun's blueing looked better than when I bought it. Quality control is not what it should be sometimes but they will make it right in short order. It's pretty common for Rugers to have some burs and rough edges right out of the box. I had a rough, very gritty extractor on a new GP that eventually spit out a large bur when I was cleaning it. It was smooth operating after that.

TreeDoc said:

The action is beyond rough, with each pull it literally sounds like metal on metal grinding and squawks like rusty screen door.

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Are you sure it isn't just a standard Ruger trigger? Sorry. I couldn't resist.

Ruger customer service is really good. I'm sure that the company will fix it promptly if you're not inclined to tinker with it yourself. With a new firearm, I'd be inclined to send it back, myself.

Have you tried dry firing the gun about 250 times? This was suggested to me by an old timer many years ago. He claimed manufacturing sometimes leaves a bit to be desired in final cleanup. By dry firing you give the pieces an opportunity to function and to wear down any material inadvertently left on or in places it doesn't belong. I've had 3 opportunities to put his advice to the test. Twice with guns of my own and once with a close friends. 2 out of the 3 were successful in smoothing out a coarse, gritty feeling trigger pull. If you do feel any improvement a thorough cleaning of the mechanism is highly recommended.

I take every firearm, new or old, apart before I put the first round through it, I gots to know what the innards look like.

On the one hand you could take advantage of being brought up right and switch your blamer's-bloomers for a pair of manly Filson sand-paper trousers and dive on into the problem with good old 'Murican self reliance or....

You might think it would do; you, Ruger and future Ruger owners a significant service to bring the deficiency to their attention with a documented return.

Hell - It's not like you bought a Taurus.... or a Glock!


Todd.

I posted my problems with my NIB 3" SP 101 .327 in a previous thread. https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/ruger-new-model-3-sp-101-in-327-federal-magnum.832344/
It took two trips back to Ruger but they got it right. The LGS manager took care of the shipping and returns so other than the almost two month wait it was a hassle free experience. On the final return Ruger was also generous enough to provide me with a new plastic case containing all the new pistol paperwork and four stickers.

Alte Schule said:

I posted my problems with my NIB 3" SP 101 .327 in a previous thread. https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/ruger-new-model-3-sp-101-in-327-federal-magnum.832344/
It took two trips back to Ruger but they got it right. The LGS manager took care of the shipping and returns so other than the almost two month wait it was a hassle free experience. On the final return Ruger was also generous enough to provide me with a new plastic case containing all the new pistol paperwork and four stickers.

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I have no dog in this fight. However it has been interesting reading about a number of issues with the quality of some of the recent Ruger Revolver lines.(on another forum) A lot of pics, of machining flaws and many issues with cylinder throats. Especially tight throats and why this occurring. The post are addressed by some that have considerable amount of knowledge in Revolvers. Some of these folks believe that it is wiser to seek out a older model than buy new. This is not my opinion, but something to consider and spend some time researching before purchase.
However, it seems Ruger still invest heavily in customer service.