A few months ago I was lucky enough to find an old Mark I in great shape for an excellent price. It's a target model with a bull barrel and wood grips with a right hand thumb rest. It is fun to shoot and will eat any ammo I feed it and is very accurate. I actually won a top shot Thursday contest with it at RTSP and I'm a new shooter. My wife loves it too. That's the love.

 

I hate cleaning the thing. The take down is not to bad but the reassembly drives me nuts!!!! Every time it takes me several times putting it back together to get it to function. I have bookmarked a video on Youtube which helps but it's still no picnic. Tonight after the 7th or 8th reassembly I got it together but the bolt was really stiff. My wife couldn't even pull it back. After the hammer was cocked the bolt would move easily.

 

Disassembled it again and about a half hour later got it back together but the bolt is still a little stiff. Definitely stiffer than before I cleaned it.

 

Does anyone think that it will loosen up after I put a few rounds through it? Nothing looked damaged so I have really no idea if anything is wrong.

 

Thanks for reading.

No!

 

Do not shoot that pistol until the bolt moves freely at all points in the process... Something is misaligned .. In the action

 

Disassemble and reassemble..

 

The bolt should NOT BE Stiff at all!

 

 

WHAT Nick SAID!!!!!!!!!

I have a 22/45, reassembly is similar and a pain.  You tube videos can be helpful but I think he owners manual does a better job with the steps.  If you don't have an owners manual you can find it here:  

https://ruger-docs.s3.amazonaws.com/_manuals/markI.pdf

I copied the pages dealing with reassembly, shrunk them, lamiinated them and keep one set with the gun and one set at my workbench. 

Once you get it apart, you may want to install this to preclude future struggles...

 

http://majesticarms.com/id10.html

 

That is the manufacturer's website. The kits are available from multiple sources such as Midway or EABCO. Good luck - just take heart that this will be the last time you have to put up with the hassle, if you install one of these.

 

Adios,

 

Pizza Bob

SIt down with your pistol and take the time to review each step in assembly and disassembly.  Now do it, over and over again until it is second nature to you.  Is it a pain? In a word, yes.  Will it help you to understand how it works? Yes.  Granted these pistols are a little tricky to clean and assemble, but it is one of the best 22LRs out there.  Search Youtube for more videos, watch them all. Now put together in you mind the best tricks from each.  You will master this and this issue will disappear. 

 

When I first got my MKII Government, I dreaded cleaning it.  Sat down with the instructions step by step and kept at it.  No Youtube back then.  Still having problems, then seek out a buddy to help you with it. "Oldtimers" at my club where a great help with this.  Biggest thing they kept saying is "Practice, Practice, Practice".  Took a while, but it worked.  It's like riding a bike.  Once you master it, your GTG.  Good Luck.

 

PS.  Spend the money get a bottle or two of 'FIRECLEAN" off Amazon.  Clean the entire pistol spotless as possible with anything you want, including bore. Treat with "FIRECLEAN". It does make a difference.

SIt down with your pistol and take the time to review each step in assembly and disassembly.  Now do it, over and over again until it is second nature to you.  Is it a pain? In a word, yes.  Will it help you to understand how it works? Yes.  Granted these pistols are a little tricky to clean and assemble, but it is one of the best 22LRs out there.  Search Youtube for more videos, watch them all. Now put together in you mind the best tricks from each.  You will master this and this issue will disappear. 

 

When I first got my MKII Government, I dreaded cleaning it.  Sat down with the instructions step by step and kept at it.  No Youtube back then.  Still having problems, then seek out a buddy to help you with it. "Oldtimers" at my club where a great help with this.  Biggest thing they kept saying is "Practice, Practice, Practice".  Took a while, but it worked.  It's like riding a bike.  Once you master it, your GTG.  Good Luck.

 

PS.  Spend the money get a bottle or two of 'FIRECLEAN" off Amazon.  Clean the entire pistol spotless as possible with anything you want, including bore. Treat with "FIRECLEAN". It does make a difference.

 

 

Excellent advise!  I have two Rugers and yeah it's tricky at times but they don't require very frequent cleanings either.

I don't know. Having a pistol that is more difficult to master how to clean it, than shoot it, kind of takes the fun out of it. I have a MK I target, but it gets shot very little and cleaned even less. Before it requires another cleaning (6 or 7 years from now), I'll install the Majestic kit - just makes sense.

 

JMHO

 

Adios,

 

Pizza Bob

I don't know. Having a pistol that is more difficult to master how to clean it, than shoot it, kind of takes the fun out of it. I have a MK I target, but it gets shot very little and cleaned even less. Before it requires another cleaning (6 or 7 years from now), I'll install the Majestic kit - just makes sense.

 

JMHO

 

Adios,

 

Pizza Bob

 

Quiter!

 

Sell it to me.  I'll give you what you paid for it in 1972

Thanks everyone for all of your advice. 

 

I have disassembled and reassembled several times now. I'm getting quite good at it. The bolt is still stiff on the first pull. 

 

I think it is something with the hammer/trigger assembly that is not lining up correctly because the bolt moves freely after the hammer is cocked.

 

I'm taking it into the gunsmith tomorrow and have him look at it.

The bolt is still stiff on the first pull. 

 

I think it is something with the hammer/trigger assembly that is not lining up correctly because the bolt moves freely after the hammer is cocked.

 

That's normal.  When the hammer is down it will take a lot more force to rack the bolt because you're cocking the hammer.  Once you rack it the first time you then only have the resistance of the recoil spring if you rack it again.  .22s normally have heavy hammer/mainsprings and light recoil springs so there's a big difference between racking the bolt with the hammer up vs. down.

 

I don't get what the big deal is about disassembling/reassembling the Ruger.  Once you do it once or twice it's not hard.  The trick on reassembly is to hold it at the right angle so the hammer strut goes into the little pocket in the mainspring housing.

 

You also don't need to disassembly them very often.  Just lock the bolt back, run a boresnake through it and clean around the chamber with some Q-tips. 

That's normal.  When the hammer is down it will take a lot more force to rack the bolt because you're cocking the hammer.  Once you rack it the first time you then only have the resistance of the recoil spring if you rack it again.  .22s normally have heavy hammer/mainsprings and light recoil springs so there's a big difference between racking the bolt with the hammer up vs. down.

 

I don't get what the big deal is about disassembling/reassembling the Ruger.  Once you do it once or twice it's not hard.  The trick on reassembly is to hold it at the right angle so the hammer strut goes into the little pocket in the mainspring housing.

 

You also don't need to disassembly them very often.  Just lock the bolt back, run a boresnake through it and clean around the chamber with some Q-tips. 

 

I generally only disassemble it after around 1,000 rounds. I do what you suggest in between.

 

Both myself and the wife like to shoot it so it makes it to the range every week and we each put about 100 rounds through it so it gets dirty quick.

 

I hope your correct but just to be safe I will have the smith check it out.

Obviously I don't have the gun in front of me so can't say for certain. That's just what it sounded like from the description. If the bolt moves smoothly once the hammer is cocked and the gun function tests fine I would guess that there's no problem, but we'll see what the gunsmith says.

 

Another thing to check to be sure it's reassembled correctly is that when you're putting the mainspring housing in you should feel some spring tension when pushing it in the last ~1/4". That will show that the hammer strut is properly in place in the mainspring housing.

Take your time, practice for an hour or two, and you'll be a pro.

 

I just bought a Mark II -- same deal. 

 

I had a similar problem with a Sig p238. You have to align the slide stop with a notch just right. First time took me 15 minutes just for that one operation. Now I can do it with my eyes closed.

 

 

+1 for the kit from Majestic. Buy their firing pin also. My MKII was working fine until I put the kit in then lots of FTF. Installed their firing pin (30 seconds) and the problem went away.

Update:

 

I had the gunsmith check out the Mark I and he said not to worry. He function checked it and then we took it on the range and fired it and it works as good as it always did. the bolt even loosened up after the first magazine. I guess I'm a little over cautious but that's not really a bad thing around firearms.

 

I also found out that it has an aftermarket trigger installed. I guess I got a better deal than I thought.

 

Thanks again everyone for your input and advice.

Love my Mkii and like others said once you do it a few times not hard to do. I break mine down once every brick or so or if I am going to shoot steel with it want it to function well then

Here, here, Nick.  My MKII has gotten better with age.  Smoother, easier with each cleaning.  Once you figure out where things should be, parts fits together real slick.  I have not seen the need for the Majestic kit yet.  Smoothed out that bolt retaining pin with a good polishing and has worked perfect.  The Volquartzen internal parts are a bigger need for me.  Used the MKII Gov't for years during Bullseye, thinking about going back to 'tuneup' again.

One thing here I did not see mentioned by anyone is lube.  If I dont lube the back and bottom of the bolt good I is a little tough to rack.  A little lube and it is one heck of a lot easier.  The Mk is a great pistol but i think some of the surfaces are a little rough.

Ken