Question for Ruger 22/45 owners

[phylodog]

I dug my Ruger 22/45 out this morning and went to put some rounds through it. It would fire one round then fail to fire the next, consistently (extraction and ejection worked fine). I picked up the ejected live rounds and did not see firing pin indentations to the rim. I loaded these rounds into a magazine and continued to experience the same issue.

I lubed and looked the gun over before taking it out to shoot and it did not appear to be very dirty. After going through 20 rounds of this hit/miss scenario I brought it back inside and cleaned it. It still really didn't seem to be very dirty to me, especially considering I rarely shoot it without a suppressor. Once cleaned I took it back out and ran two mags through it without issue.

My first question is...considering how little filth I was getting out of the pistol, is there a specific area of the gun that causes this type of malfunction if it gets fouled?

Second question, it isn't showing very well in the pic but I have what appears to be some sort of fouling on the face of the barrel where the bolt face contacts it. It almost looks like the adhesive left behind when you pull a sticker off of something. I haven't been able to get anything to remove it but I haven't gotten too aggressive with it yet either. Anyone have something similar and know how to remove it?

 

[Kirk Freeman]

Big fan of the 22/45. I own several. All MkIIs.

Guide spring under the firing pin is likely culprit I'll wager. Pull the firing pin and give the guide (I do not know the technical term, sorry) a look-see.

 

[patience0830]

There are 22/45's and then there is the worthless MK III version. Cleanliness is next to godliness, as they say. Some are more finicky than others.

My next one will be all Volquartsen with a 10" ultra light upper. Prolly MK4 style.

 

[phylodog]

Mine is a 22/45 Lite model, I honestly don't know if that makes it a MkII, MkIII or something else entirely.

 

[Tactically Fat]

Mine is a 22/45 Lite model, I honestly don't know if that makes it a MkII, MkIII or something else entirely.

If there's a loaded chamber indicator - it's probably a Mk III. I don't think there were "Lite" models in the MkII (hence popularity of the PacLite aftermarket uppers).

 

[WanderingSol07]

My wife shot her 22/45 Lite (Mark IV) for the first time today. She let me shoot it a dozen times too. Wow! Is this a fun pistol! Out of the box one magazine works fine, the other not at all. I'll clean and lube them tonight and see how it goes.

 

[bstewrat3]

I would attribute it to a build up in the firing pin area. It doesn't take much to slow the pin down.

 

[natdscott]

The lead and wax buildup on the bolt face and the barrel face can effectively increase the headspace of the action, thereby resulting in light strikes.

The same buildup in the firing pin channel, and on the pin and springs themselves, slows the forward motion of the pin such that it may light strike.

A poorly shaped firing pin tip (ie: one that is too broad) spreads the impact over too large an area, and effectively duplicates a conventional light strike. Easy fix though, in careful and knowledgeable hands.

If a pistol or rifle continually has issues with FTF, even when cleaned out, the firing pin tip and the mainspring are my first choices for maintenance unless I know I have questionable head space (the kind in the firearm, not my own!).

But pins do break..


-Nate

 

[phylodog]

Thanks for the help fellas

 

[tbhausen]

The lead and wax buildup on the bolt face and the barrel face can effectively increase the headspace of the action, thereby resulting in light strikes.

The same buildup in the firing pin channel, and on the pin and springs themselves, slows the forward motion of the pin such that it may light strike.

A poorly shaped firing pin tip (ie: one that is too broad) spreads the impact over too large an area, and effectively duplicates a conventional light strike. Easy fix though, in careful and knowledgeable hands.

If a pistol or rifle continually has issues with FTF, even when cleaned out, the firing pin tip and the mainspring are my first choices for maintenance unless I know I have questionable head space (the kind in the firearm, not my own!).

But pins do break..


-Nate

Excellent, helpful post for this 22/45 Mk IV Owner. Repped.

 

[WanderingSol07]

Wife shot 50 rounds yesterday through her Mark IV 22/45 lite. Was surprised how dirty it got when I cleaned it last night. Took the malfunctioning magazine apart last night. Zowie! That spring is long and wants to go places! Didn't kink it though, got it back together, (not doing that again). Lubed both magazines and now the followers moves very smoothly and don't feel like they are full of grit (brand new). Tried checking the feed issues with snap caps, that was a waste, they fed correctly about 40% of the time with both magazines. Will shoot this weekend and see how they work.

 

[shootersix]

i hear the loaded chamber indicator can build up crap and make it harder to clean, and trap dirt and grime, therefor causing problems with the bullet seating and could cause light strikes, so i removed them on both of my 22/45's

if you want to do that, you have 3 options
1 remove the lci, and you can remove the parts that make it stick out, and reinstall it, that way you fill the slot
2 replace it with a after market filler
3 remove it and leave an empty slot (thats what i did with both of my 22/45's)

but i can tell you that on both of my 22/45's (steel not lite's) they built up a lot of crap, if you decide to remove the lci i hear its harder on the lites, all i had to do was tap the top of the slide with a mallet, remove the pivot point, and the popped right out