How to remove the cylinder on a Ruger?

[StephenT]

Hey folks,

Something I've been wondering about. On a S&W revolver, unscrewing that screw above the trigger allows me to remove the cylinder for cleaning. How would do it for a Ruger? There's no screw as with S&W, Taurus, Colt, etc.

 

[Sisco]

What flavor of Ruger?
GP100, SP101 remove the grips and hammer spring. press in on the latch at the back of the trigger guard that goes through the frame and swing the trigger assy. down & out. Remove the hammer pin and pull the hammer out from the top.
Cylinder and crane assy. should come out now.
Typed all this from memory, I'll recheck when I get off work this evening and post any corrections if necessary.

 

[StephenT]

Thanks for your reply, Sisco. I've got several Rugers, an SP-101, GP-100, Speed-Six and Police Service Six. Removing all those springs and the trigger assembly sounds like more trouble than it's worth. I think I'll just spray the internals with some gun lubricant instead.

 

[P95Carry]

Sisco has pretty much got it there (re 100 and 101 .. and also IIRC this will suit Redhawk the same) but .. to add.

Once grips off .. pull hammer back enough to let the mainspring guide progress downwards until the small hole appears .. put the pin supplied in the grips thru that ... or a suitable finish nail etc. This will keep the spring under tension and restrained.

Remove the hammer pivot (cross) pin .... by pulling it out from the right side, where the flat piece shows. You can then remove hammer and spring assembly.

As mentioned, the trigger group will come out by withdrawing downwards and forwards. This is perhaps the trickiest stage. Crane assembly should then be removeable.

Main point I would mention here is ... be aware of the cylinder bolt and hand, and transfer bar etc ... they can come out and two have small compression springs operating on them. Best is to avoid these parts coming out of the trigger group .... but anyways do watch for the small springs.

Reassembly is the reverse process but ... again be aware of all the parts ... and offer the trigger group back up carefully. Jiggle - do not force.

I think I am about right, but to be honest .. only ever really see this clearly - when I actually do it .. one of those things that comes easy to do but not so easy to remember for description.

If in doubt, try and find someone who IS familiar and get them to run thru it for you .... after one run you'll be set to go solo!

 

[JohnKSa]

Call this number:

(603) 863-3300

Ask the nice lady to send you a manual (or manuals) for any Ruger pistol.

She will ask for your address and say "There's no charge."

The manual has disassembly instructions.

 

[Standing Wolf]

Does Ruger employ a fiend from hell whose function is to make disassembling and reassembling its products as moronically difficult as possible?

 

[bigmtnman]

Go to the Ruger website. Find your pistol. You will be able to download the manual. Works for me.

 

[JohnKSa]

Does Ruger employ a fiend from hell whose function is to make disassembling and reassembling its products as moronically difficult as possible?

The GP100 is actually pretty easy to take down and reassemble.

What's more, you don't have to use a mallet to get at the internals and you won't have to go buy a new screwdriver set just to have a chance of opening it up without damaging a screw.

 

[WheelMan]

I have a S&W 646 and a redhawk (also sp101) so I have a little room to talk.

Pretty much all the smith has going for it is the ease of removing just the crane assembly, beyond that's it's a toss up. I like the rugers because once you have the grip screw off (which can be accomplished with a dime) no other tools are required for disasembly. That's something auto's generally have over revolvers.

But really if you have a can of brake cleaner why would you want to take apart your ruger? it's not like anythings going to break

Now smiths on the other hand...

 

[Dienekes]

Why Bother?

Why does everyone want to remove the cylinder from DA revolvers? It's certainly not necessary for normal cleaning, ever.

Sort of like pulling spark plugs every 1000 miles to see if they're still working.

Just cradle the gun and keep the cylinder from flopping around while cleaning, or make an "L" shaped rack to hold it in position with cyl. open while cleaning.

If Sarah Brady was smart she could reduce the number of guns in circulation drastically in just a few years by giving every gun owner a free set of screwdrivers.

 

[DrBoomBoom]

"If Sarah Brady was smart she could reduce the number of guns in circulation drastically in just a few years by giving every gun owner a free set of screwdrivers."

Dienekes,

This is one of the funniest things I've read in a long time.

 

[rj112275]

I will defer to others for specifics. it's easy and something that can easily be figured out for future reference. my sp101 and gp100 are easy to disassemble and reassemblle.