Bought a Ruger GP 100 today

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Whether or not it makes a difference to you, the Ruger is made with investment casting which requires less machining than the traditional forging methods. However, it does mean that interiors can be a bit rougher which can create the issues that are mentioned above in an unpredictable fashion. A well worn GP 100 can be butter smooth simply from wearing in of all working surfaces. Mine is one that I bought used and is one of the really early models and the trigger is so smooth that you can stage the trigger aka trigger cocking but that is from about 30 years of use.

As dry firing does not hurt these, you might be well advised to spend some time dry firing it before altering springs, polishing, etc. When you are ready to do so, Wolff makes a set of action springs that can lighten trigger pulls so that you can tailor it to your specific needs. With regards to polishing or shimming, try the extensive dry firing method before resorting to more drastic measures and it should improve your firing at the range as well.
 
boom boom said:
Whether or not it makes a difference to you, the Ruger is made with investment casting which requires less machining than the traditional forging methods. However, it does mean that interiors can be a bit rougher which can create the issues that are mentioned above in an unpredictable fashion. A well worn GP 100 can be butter smooth simply from wearing in of all working surfaces. Mine is one that I bought used and is one of the really early models and the trigger is so smooth that you can stage the trigger aka trigger cocking but that is from about 30 years of use.

As dry firing does not hurt these, you might be well advised to spend some time dry firing it before altering springs, polishing, etc. When you are ready to do so, Wolff makes a set of action springs that can lighten trigger pulls so that you can tailor it to your specific needs. With regards to polishing or shimming, try the extensive dry firing method before resorting to more drastic measures and it should improve your firing at the range as well.
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Agree completely. Dry firing the crap out of any modern day center fire revolver seems to only make them better, and should always be the first step in smoothing out any roughness.
 
460Shooter said:
Agree completely. Dry firing the crap out of any modern day center fire revolver seems to only make them better, and should always be the first step in smoothing out any roughness.
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I totally agree and one of the reasons that if the revolver is in good shape, I do not mind buying used.

The only downside to my GP100 is that it HATES lead bullets and I have to use a Lewis lead removal tool if I fire a box of 50 or so. I admit that I never slugged the bore because I bought it to fire .357 self defense rounds primarily. Not being able to fire cast doesn't really bother me as it is very accurate with jacketed bullets so I am not going to have alterations done just to fire cast bullets. The old Powrball 100 gr. resulted in some of the most accurate shooting from the Ruger that I have seen in .357 ammo from it. I have Colts and Smiths to fire lead anyway.
 
By the way waterboy, I know you just got into reloading a little while ago. Loading 357 and 38 Special is fun and easy if you aren’t already doing it. Straight walled revolver cartridges seem fun in general to me on the press. There’s tons of 357 and 38 loads out there to play with.
 
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boom boom said:
I totally agree and one of the reasons that if the revolver is in good shape, I do not mind buying used.

The only downside to my GP100 is that it HATES lead bullets and I have to use a Lewis lead removal tool if I fire a box of 50 or so. I admit that I never slugged the bore because I bought it to fire .357 self defense rounds primarily. Not being able to fire cast doesn't really bother me as it is very accurate with jacketed bullets so I am not going to have alterations done just to fire cast bullets. The old Powrball 100 gr. resulted in some of the most accurate shooting from the Ruger that I have seen in .357 ammo from it. I have Colts and Smiths to fire lead anyway.
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Curious if you’ve tried monolithics as a way to avoid leading. Cutting Edge Bullets makes some interesting offerings.
 
Waterboy3313 said:
One of the biggest reasons I decided to start reloading. No background check yet on powder, primers, bullets or brass. I love the area where I live just too bad CA has to be like that.
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If thats the case I would have a life time supply of components on hand at all times. Matter of fact I do have a very large supply on hand including over a thousand pounds of lead and several bullet molds.
 
boom boom said:
The only downside to my GP100 is that it HATES lead bullets and I have to use a Lewis lead removal tool if I fire a box of 50 or so.
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The bullets may be too hard or undersized. My 6" GP would lead when I first bought it but after the first 500 rounds of lead and jacketed bullets it pretty much stopped leading. But about the only lead bullets I shoot are Lee tumble lube SWC and WC bullets. I did buy a RN bullet mold but have not used it yet. I do shoot some of the Laser Cast SWC bullets and have had no leading problems with those. I have somewhere around 5,000 rounds through that gun and now the barrel is really smooth.
 
Ratshooter said:
If thats the case I would have a life time supply of components on hand at all times. Matter of fact I do have a very large supply on hand including over a thousand pounds of lead and several bullet molds.
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California would probably condemn your property as a toxic waste dump with that amount of lead. (Just kidding for now mebbe).
 
I definitely want to go shoot it and break it in before making any changes. I just got home from shooting about 150 rounds through 3 pistols. My Taurus 605 is actually a pretty decent little pistol. The trigger is long and the barrel is short. Still being new only about 150-200 rounds through it which are mostly my reloads. I can pull the trigger and stage the hammer 98% of the time. It's actually more accurate than my S&W shield at 25-30 feet.

Shooting the Taurus today all I could think about was soon I will be shooting the Ruger soon and hopefully I will be able to reach out and shoot at a more fun distance.

I have to agree loading 38/357 is probably my favorite and easiest to load. I've been loading locally bought HSM lead semi wad cutters. About $20 for 250. With 3.5 gr of TG they shoot good and the powder will last forever.
 
Waterboy3313 said:
I have to agree loading 38/357 is probably my favorite and easiest to load. I've been loading locally bought HSM lead semi wad cutters. About $20 for 250. With 3.5 gr of TG they shoot good and the powder will last forever.
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Good for you for reloading. I never felt the slightest "Bump" from the last several shortages or ammo scares because of the amount of ammo and reloading stuff I have on hand. I think the prices are down somewhat so stock up with all you can afford. Buy a couple of bullet molds, casting is really fun and then start scrounging lead. I went to tire stores, bought lead from a WM manager for cash on the side and got a lot of lead from roofers and plumbers. The plumbers replumbed old move in houses that had old lead sewer pipes. Sort gross but it burns right away and its dead soft if if you shoot any BP guns. Plus it can be mixed with wheel weights for low velocity target loads.
 
My biggest problem I load a batch during the week a little here and there after work and then shoot most if not all of them on Sunday morning. I'm recapping 38 special right now.

I shot 50 9mm, 50 38 special, and 50 45 acp today. I load on a single stage press so that's a good haul to get caught up on this week. I'm all stocked up on supplies and my range boxes are fully loaded minus what I used up today which doesn't really make a dent in what I normally keep on hand of loaded ammo. It's a good fun hobby to keep me out of the wife's hair.
 
boom boom said:
I totally agree and one of the reasons that if the revolver is in good shape, I do not mind buying used.

The only downside to my GP100 is that it HATES lead bullets and I have to use a Lewis lead removal tool if I fire a box of 50 or so. I admit that I never slugged the bore because I bought it to fire .357 self defense rounds primarily.
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Rugers have a 5 degree forcing cone. If recut to 11 degrees it may like lead bullets better.
 
I've had one almost exactly like that but blued for a very long time and have shot many thousands of heavy rounds thru it. Never had a lead problem or any other problem.

Mine does have a heavy trigger pull with a definite catch just before the hammer falls on DA and I absolutely love that. Means that I can take up the slack off the DA pull and take the most accurate aim for the last 32nd of an inch pull, it's like single action while it's in double action
 
460Shooter said:
Curious if you’ve tried monolithics as a way to avoid leading. Cutting Edge Bullets makes some interesting offerings.
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No, pretty much just load jacketed for it. It is primarily a self defense weapon so I usually load up loads that more or less replicate 125 gr. Self Defense loads. It is very accurate with those and I simply left it as is.

Ratshooter said:
The bullets may be too hard or undersized. My 6" GP would lead when I first bought it but after the first 500 rounds of lead and jacketed bullets it pretty much stopped leading. But about the only lead bullets I shoot are Lee tumble lube SWC and WC bullets. I did buy a RN bullet mold but have not used it yet. I do shoot some of the Laser Cast SWC bullets and have had no leading problems with those. I have somewhere around 5,000 rounds through that gun and now the barrel is really smooth.
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I suspect that you are correct. It may be that the bore may be a tad oversized or undersized but it leaded with hard cast SWC, soft HBWC wadcutters, Cowboy Round Nose, and pretty much most things in between. Got tired of using lead removal tool on it and every obnoxious lead solvent on the market. It shot fine with plated DEWC but I have enough different bullets as is and prefer to buy larger quantities of a single type for handguns rather than a bit of everything. My rifles are bad enough with small quantity purchases for particular rifles as I collect milsurp bolt actions.

The GP100 shot so well with jacketed that I resolved to leave it alone and keep it as a self defense weapon that my wife can shoot quite well and it has the Crimson Trace laser grips on it as well.
RugRev said:
Rugers have a 5 degree forcing cone. If recut to 11 degrees it may like lead bullets better.
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Yes, I bet that you are correct and thought about having it recut to 11 degrees but decided to leave well enough alone because this GP 100 shoots what it likes. From a serial number search, it appears to have been made in the first year of production so they might have had a few kinks in their production process that affected it.

Fortunately, I have Colts and S&W's that like .38 caliber lead bullets of all types just fine as well as a few off brands that like lead as well. If I only had one revolver that was not for self defense, I might do that but a lot of my gunsmithing budget goes to restoring rifles-I have an Enfield No. 2 .22LR training rifle at my local gunsmith right now being sleeved for restoration as the existing bore was very worn.
 
I've never handloaded anything other that the 158 gr lead swc in 38 or 357. I'm hoping that the several hundred rounds I have already loaded for my other 357 will be happy in the new gp100. I do plan on buying a couple of boxes of factory ammo when I pick it up from the local gun store. I will have to look and see what is available for bullets locally so I can do a work up and get dialed in. I would rather load my own than let CA win.
 
Waterboy3313 said:
I've never handloaded anything other that the 158 gr lead swc in 38 or 357. I'm hoping that the several hundred rounds I have already loaded for my other 357 will be happy in the new gp100. I do plan on buying a couple of boxes of factory ammo when I pick it up from the local gun store. I will have to look and see what is available for bullets locally so I can do a work up and get dialed in. I would rather load my own than let CA win.
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Don't let them win! I'm a California survivor also. I like you started loading last year. Break your gun in and it will likely eat anything. I have a 4 and a six inch that eat a steady diet of all kinds of hand loads. A great target load is the xtreme 148 gr. DEWC, 4.0 of 231 ensures soft shooting accurate rounds. Please double check my data but we shoot hundreds weekly.
 
CharliesHammer said:
Don't let them win! I'm a California survivor also. I like you started loading last year. Break your gun in and it will likely eat anything. I have a 4 and a six inch that eat a steady diet of all kinds of hand loads. A great target load is the xtreme 148 gr. DEWC, 4.0 of 231 ensures soft shooting accurate rounds. Please double check my data but we shoot hundreds weekly.
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Cast or plated DEWC
 
Congratulations, I too have the 6" GP100. Mines going on 15 years old, easy to clean and maintain, and its never given me any problems. For a while I had changed out the front red blade sight for a fiber optic sight, but I eventually went back to the red blade. As other have stated, if it has a gritty trigger (not uncommon), it will quickly smooth out with use. The only other 6" 357 that I have to compare it to is the 6" King Cobra, and I enjoy shooting the GP100 a little more, they're keepers.
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I figure little things like gritty triggers and usual break in things will eventually settle in and get better with age. I totally expect this and I think I'm going to run it as is for now. I bought my first .357 because my son who is 10 wanted to step up from his AR 15 and do some pistol shooting. My 9mm shield is too much for him and I was scared he was going to end up with the slide punching him. So I bought the little Taurus 605 thinking he might be able to run that if I loaded up some soft .38 loads. The trigger was too much for him to pull DA and I really don't want him fumbling around trying to pull the hammer back. So if it comes down to an upgrade I can definitely see myself possibly doing the wolf spring kit to soften up the trigger pull.
Don't let him fool you he can shoot pretty good.
IMG_20191026_074726365.jpg
 
Waterboy3313 said:
I bought a Ruger GP 100 today from the local gun store. The store was ridiculously busy as usual. I was dead set on a .357 with a 4"-6" barrel. I've been wanting something like this since I bought my Taurus 605. I roamed the store for about 20 minutes not being helped looking for what I had in mind. Don't get me wrong I'm not complaining. I would rather look on my own with out any pressure I just didn't feel like I spent much time looking this one over.

In 10 days I get to go pick it up and hopefully go try it out. I usually spend a little more time doing research before I make an impulse buy. If anyone has this model I would definitely like to hear your opinion about it. Hopefully good opinions.View attachment 878066
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It was the first gun I ever owned and I still have it. Accurate, fun to shoot and it still locks up nice and tight like when it was new.
JJzcuMw.jpg
 
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It sounds like a lot of people seem to like this pistol. It is only my fourth new pistol and currently will be my fourth. I had a Ruger black hawk 44 mag that I bought from a guy at work years ago with the stipulation he could buy it back and I never thought he could going through a divorce. I had it for a short time because he wanted it back so I sold it back like I said. I really liked that revolver and I did run a lot of rounds through it in a short time. I want to eventually buy another 44 mag but that's about it on my pistol wish list. My favorite pistol that I own is my Kimber TLE II.

I enjoy pistol shooting more than rifle but I still have at least 2 more long guns on that wish list. I own several AR type rifles as well as some old mil surp stuff that used to shoot a lot. I'm really excited to have a decent revolver that isn't a snub nose.
 
IMG_1395 (3).JPG I bought a new 4.2" blued GP100 357 and a 5" a year later. I really enjoy both. The 5" SS GP's finish was a little sloppy and needed some 600-800 grit sandpaper to smooth out. The pin that holds the rear sight kept backing out and it was easily fixed by slightly bending the pin and reinserting. The Hogue grips fit my hand well but I liked the look of the wood inserts so I changed them to the Letts style. The pivot pin that holds the hammer kept backing out with the softer rubber Letts grip so I went back to the Hogues which hold the pin firmly in place. To eliminate the hammer rubbing the frame and smooth action I installed hammer shims and hammer dog shims. I sanded smooth and polished the mainspring strut. I did these mods to both GPs and my SP 101. I installed a 10# Wolff mainspring to the SP in addition to shimming. The triggers on all three are very smooth. The SP w/10# spring has been 100% reliable through 800 rounds. The GP's trigger pull after the cylinder locks up is longer making it easier to stage than my Smiths. The ability to change out the front sight in seconds is a great feature. I went with FO. The minor issues I had were easily and cheaply corrected. Rest assured if you have any issues you can't resolve yourself Ruger CS is the best in the business.
 
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