Ruger 22/45 jams every magazine

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Scarface

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A good friend bought a new Ruger 22/45, partially on my recommendation. Now, it jams frequently. It's jammed enough that he has narrowed the pattern down to the next to last round in each magazine. It's not 100%, but close.

He has worked on his grip until he's sure that he has not limp wristed it. He's cleaned the pistol and the magazines and buffed the feed.

Has anyone else run into this pattern or jams with this pistol?

Thanks,

Scarface
 
I apologize that I cannot remember where I got this pic from .. the right hand side shows the slight mod that will improve feeding reliability -- a LOT.

Hopefully someone will recognize the photo and credit the source. I regret that I cannot remember.

rugerMK2magazineTWEAK.gif
 
What type of jam is it? Fail to eject (stovepipe or empty casing jammed in action), fail to extract (casing left in chamber), fail to feed (casings not leaving magazine, or jamming into feed ramp), fail to fire (dud, or light strike)....?

I have a 5.5" MKIII 22/45 SS Target that runs reliably when it's clean, but after 300 rds I need to clean it or it starts to have fail-to-ejects where it will leave an empty casing jammed into the action next to the fresh one that's feeding. Also, if I fire shorts or CB's out of it, they leave a stubborn lead ring in the chamber that causes the same thing. It really takes scrubbing with a bronze brush to get the ring out.

I don't believe I've heard of anyone ever limp wristing a ruger MK series .22. I'll have to try it next time I go out, but I don't think it's possible that his technique is causing the problem.

Probably just needs cleaning or different ammo.

I use federal champion in 500rd bricks of 50rd boxes (NOT the 525rd loose bulk pack, I haven't had the same luck with that stuff), CCI stingers, and Remington Subsonic (half inch 25yd groups) in mine with no problems. I used to reccomend federal american eagle, but after trying the federal champion in the 500rd bricks I don't buy anything else in bulk. It's very consistent for the price. I've heard good things about the CCI mini mags, but they are pricey, and the federal shoots well for me.
 
If it's a major problem, send it back to Ruger. They've got great customers service, in my experience.

I'm gonna parrot destrux here.

Otherwise, mine had a quirk when I first got it that the bottom of the feed ramp was a little high, and with the shape of .22LR, a round could point down far enough that the bottom of the ramp would shave a piece off the tip. With the blunter rounds, it could even jam into the lead enough to halt it completely, and prevent it from feeding properly if it did pass it.

Probably a total fluke, but worth a thought.
 
Has he tried more than one brand of ammo? Sounds like it might be a bigger problem than ammo choice but rimfires can be picky.
 
Are all his mags Ruger brand or???
I'll parrot the above questions and ask you to detail what kind of jam, and what ammo.
 
Before I did anything else, I would clean it thoroughly. I had the same problem right after I purchased my 22/45 and was really frustrated that a new pistol was having so many problems. I decided to take it apart and oil all of the internal parts to see if that would help. Once it was apart, I noticed that there was a thin, gummy substance covering the surface of every part inside the pistol. It was so sticky that I could press my finger against any of the smaller parts and lift them up. I think it was dried-up lubricant of some type. Once I cleaned it all up and put a little rem-oil on everything it's been 100%. They are a great little pistol and very accurate to boot.

Good luck getting your friends' up and running.
 
It sounds like a mag problem, but if it persists, have him send it back to Ruger. They will make it right.
 
I'd try some different ammo too.

I'd got some winchester target ammo that my MKII hate's.
 
I was having lots of stovepipes with my MkIII Competition Target. Purcased brand new in the box. After trying several types of ammo and varying amounts of lube, I sent it back to Ruger. Customer service, while friendly, was abysmal:

-Sent it back on my dime
-Waited 2 1/2 or 3 months
-received pistol back with no word on what the problem was (this was before the spate of recalls)
-no freebies or even an apology

Pistol works great now, so I'm happy. Makes me not want another Ruger, though.
 
For all of you that are having jamming challenges with the Ruger 22/45, MarkII and Mark III (they are the same receiver on all models). The fix is easy and will give years of jam free shooting, even if you like to go through several bricks of cheap rounds before cleaning. First a quick explanation on junk ammo…If you think that the cheap stuff has changed over the years, it has. First the cost of copper has sky rocketed to a point where the formula for the brass shells had to be changed in order to keep cost down. Making the shells a bit thinner also keeps the cost down. On the other hand, the powder has made great advancements. I can remember shooting through rounds of 22’s with each one having a distinct tone difference, indicating an inconsistency in the powder and finding lots of unburnt particles clogging the gun up. The new powder is cleaner, consistent and each round fires like a hyper velocity of old. This all adds up to some needed changes to the gun in order to eject the shells.

The fix:
1. Polish the ramp that guides the bullet head into the chamber. I had to use a very fine file to take some burs off the edges.
2. Purchas and install a “Volquartsen” ejector. You can find them on the internet or a good local gun shop for between $11 and $15. Use the factory spring that came with your gun and not the one with the ejector kit…that one is for the 10/22 rifle.
3. On the bullet magazine squeeze the top of the magazine to align for the correct bullet ejection. The rear rails should be close enough that the rim of the cartridge doesn’t release until it passes the rail. The front rails are the important ones. They should be as close as possible without creating any drag on the shell casing as it ejects up from the magazine. If there is too much gap when the case goes through, it will cause the new round to pop up too fast and block the ejecting spent case.
 
Years ago, Bullseye, helped me solve a stovepiping problem on my MKIII on the Firing Line Forum. (I think it was Bullseye? He helped me on a whole bunch of stuff over the years? Could have been another expert on TFLF, too?) The problem was the forward lips of the magazines just needed to be "slightly" rounded with a Dremel. Please find the Post before trying. It had photos showing EXACTLY how much to take off. It was just a "little bit" that needed to be rounded over.

My MKIII was very disappointing before......I can't remember it stovepiping or jamming since? It's been 5-years.

And.....it usually happened with the last or next to last round in the Magazine, too.
 
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