SP101: resucitate or not?

[gato naranja]

I have a Ruger SP101 that was one of the factory bobbed hammer .38/.357 models that came with Ruger-marked CTC lasergrips.* This gun was a bit "loose" from the day I got it - special ordered, with all the "pig-in-a-poke" crapola that entailed - but it was within Ruger's specs and "didn't need to be returned to the factory." It has worked fine all these years, but has gotten even less... shall we say, "tight."

It rattles. Both fore-and aft, and radially. It doesn't shave lead or spit, no bullet ever keyholes at the distances I shoot it, fired cases/primers look fine, and it never EVER jams. The forcing cone, however, always looked like it was cut with a corncob, and with any lead bullet used over the years the thing leads up like nobody's business. A box of lead wadcutters will give me a cleaning session of more hours than I like to put in.

Now I am wondering if it is worth sending off to a pro to have the barrel set back a turn to get the B/C gap tightened a bit, and have the forcing cone re-done by someone who cares. Or do I just put it away and reduce it to "use only in emergency" status and find something else? I tend to favor it for impromptu short trips and when I just don't feel like lugging around something bigger.

Has anyone else gone to the trouble of setting a barrel back on one of these that has some miles on it?



*These grips happen to be more comfortable for me than any other SP101 grips. I have rarely used the laser feature.

[41magfan]

Personally, I'd have the forcing cone recut (to 11 deg) and call it good. That won't cost much and it should yield some decent dividends for the money you spent having it done.

[Totem Polar]

Shipping a gun is expensive enough that I’d have a good action job done on it, while it’s there. A good action job will also address timing and endshake, and by the time that, the B/C gap, the 11 degree cut, and the trigger job all get dine, it’ll be a killer revolver. JMO.

[Polecat]

I was frustrated at a new SP I purchased. Sharp edges everywhere, heavy trigger, barrel was visibly canted, shot way to left, took Two trips back to Ruger, trigger was improved to point of unbelievable really, nice. Took down some sharp edges, trued the hammer pin, forgot to do anything with my canted barrel, got rid of it, poor QA.

[farscott]

Marc Morganti at Gemini Customs is the best for SP-101. The work you mentioned he has listed at https://www.geminicustoms.com/ruger-revolvers/

• Throat Barrel @ 5 degrees, $40.95
• Finish ream and hone cylinder chambers .357 mag, .38 spl. 9x19mm, $40.95

[gato naranja]

Shipping a gun is expensive enough that I’d have a good action job done on it, while it’s there. A good action job will also address timing and endshake, and by the time that, the B/C gap, the 11 degree cut, and the trigger job all get dine, it’ll be a killer revolver. JMO.

The actual trigger on the thing is really quite good now, and the timing is okay. It sort of peened one side of the cylinder stops but there is no way I can cycle a DAO revolver fast enough to cause that... Jerry M. might be able to do it, but not me. I did borrow a range rod to see if it was clocking okay and it passed that test. My worry is that this might be one of those projects like my old Mazda B2000 when the brakes started squealing: by the time I was done, I had replaced the whole braking system, two wheel bearings and various suspension components; I also had an office full of co-workers cracking wise about the mounting expense every time my phone would ring.

At this point, I think it might be worth getting the chambers throated and the forcing cone smoothed and having an expert 'smith look at it and give me a prognosis. Maybe I should see if I can drive it over to Cylinder & Slide rather than ship it, since they are just across the Missouri River from Iowa.

[Whirlwind06]

Ruger would probably fix the shake for $30 shipping. At least they fixed used GP.

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[jtcarm]

You didn't say anything about how the gun shoots, accuracy-wise.

Have you measured the B/C gap? I doubt that's an issue. I have a Smith M-24 with a .011 gap that still shoots sub-2" groups at 25 yards.

What Diameter are your cast bullets (down to .001")?
Leading is often a result of oversized chamber throats (or undersized bullets). Either measure your throats, or simply take five bullets and see how they fit each throat. They should require a little effort to push through.

If they drop through, theyre too small. If you're a reloader, switch to a larger size cast bullet.

Also run a pure lead slug through the bore and measure diameter. Make sure the bore slug will fit easily through the chamber throats. If it sticks, the throats might undersized and are swaging the bullets down too much, another cause of leading. Opening up chamber throats is easy and only requires sending off the cylinder.

Recutting the forcing cone to 11-degrees is another option. If you don't want to ship the gun off, you can rent a kit from 4D rentals and DIY it. It's pretty easy.

I have several .38/.357s S&Ws, all with tight, uniform throats, recut cones, the whole bit. And yet less than 50 rounds of factory LRN ammo will leave plenty of lead.

End shake: IDK about Rugers, but S&W cylinders can be shimmed to reduce or eliminate it.

I also suggest visiting the Ruger forums. There's some very knowledgeable folks, one in particular, who can help you out.

[gato naranja]

You didn't say anything about how the gun shoots, accuracy-wise.

Accuracy is adequate, but to be fair I don't push this pistol past roughly 75 feet. The current front blade is an XS tritium standard size (not the "big dot"), which is an improvement on the factory blade but the sights overll leave a lot to be desired.

I have measured the b/c gap, and it is still within spec though on the high side. I did invest in some end shake shims, but found none of the thicknesses to work well as-is. When the revolver is clean, factory jacketed ammo will slide back and fourth enough to audibly "click," and factory fodder is all I use, since it is a SD/HD only gun. In short, it is loose as a goose in all directions and sort of embarrassing, though it still works fine- but it leads up within 10 yards of just seeing me open a box of factory wadcutters.

(As I said earlier, the forcing cone is really rough by general consensus, and there aren't any gunsmiths around here that do revolver work without acting like it is an imposition.)

I am not against spending some coin on the old girl, but if the ultimate cost of getting her completely right exceeds that of a new 640, I'd as soon cache it for TEOTWAWKI.

[jetfire]

Marc Morganti at Gemini Customs is the best for SP-101. The work you mentioned he has listed at https://www.geminicustoms.com/ruger-revolvers/

• Throat Barrel @ 5 degrees, $40.95
• Finish ream and hone cylinder chambers .357 mag, .38 spl. 9x19mm, $40.95

I pretty much came here to post this. Gemini will do the work needed to recut the forcing cone clean up the cylinder for like a hundred bucks. Plus the cost of shipping and you're looking at $150 tops. That is unless he finds a bunch of shit wrong with your gun, ala the mentioned Mazda.

Personally I think it's worth it to rehab the gun if 1) you like the gun, and 2) you shoot it well.