Wild Deuce
Master
- Dec 2, 2009
- 4,947
- 12
or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Jam ~
ok ... that's pretty lame but my problem is pretty serious. It seems that revolvers will jam after all. Here's my issue: (I posted this on the Ruger Forum in hopes of getting some answers from other Ruger users nationwide)
If anyone has any ideas, I'm all ears.
PS: A quick INGO search for Ruger/GP100/Revolver jams didn't turn up anything pertinent.
Also, revolvers do not suck. I was kidding. I'm just frustrated at this point. It was a pretty good match with decent stages. NPCCC usually puts on a good match and this one was up to par. Too bad I didn't have a working gun. More importantly, this has been a primary home defense gun in the past.
ok ... that's pretty lame but my problem is pretty serious. It seems that revolvers will jam after all. Here's my issue: (I posted this on the Ruger Forum in hopes of getting some answers from other Ruger users nationwide)
I hate to pile on but I suspect there might be more to this than a dirty extractor. Then again, the simplest answer might be the right answer.
....
Today, while at a match, I experienced a series of jams with my GP100 that eventually caused me to withdraw from the match. Here's the Cliff Notes version:
Background ... Ruger GP100 4" barrel, stainless. Purchased brand new several years ago and had an action job performed by a well-known and competent gunsmith. The work performed was intended for carry and not for competition. Everything was checked ... endshake, timing, etc. I have fired close to a thousand rounds since then without a flaw ... until today. Gun was cleaned in June and had twelve rounds fired a week ago to check zero. Oh yeah ... no moon clips, speedloaders only. Factory ammo today (as always, no reloads) ... Winchester White Box (from Walmart) .38 Special, 130 grain, FMJ.
First stage of the match ... fired 18 rounds (including two reloads) ... break ... fired 15 rounds (including two reloads), no problem.
Second stage, fire 6 rounds and perform reload. I fired the first round and the gun jammed. The trigger went back about 1/4 of the way and the cylinder refused to move any further. I fumbled with the gun. Opened it and the cylinder spun freely. Dumped the ammo and checked under the extractor. It was all clear. Shrugged it off and reset the stage. Buzzer goes off and the exact same thing happens again (jammed after the first shot following the reload). After one more attempt and another occurrence following the reload, I quit the stage to go check the gun.
Checked the gun at the safety table and found nothing obvious. I even used my spent casings to check spacing. I could see nothing. Gun was still relatively clean.
Third stage ... identical occurance ... three times. Quit the match.
I had at least two very competent individuals look over the gun and they were left scratching their heads. Some of these gentlemen only own revolvers and do their own gunsmithing. They didn't have a clue. We (they) went by the numbers and checked every possible cause short of disassembling the gun. We inspected the ammo for primer seating and OAL. During the very last occurrence, the RO inspected the gun while it was jammed and we both noted that the extractor was seated flush with the rear of the cylinder. We couldn’t identify a cause.
Question ... could the tolerances be tight enough and the cylinder heat up enough from seven rounds for the gun to jam? Is it even possible? It doesn't matter if the gun is cool or hot, when you load it, it's possible to jiggle the ammo just enough to make the rounds make noise (obviously not today, while it was jammed). Any ideas of what to look for?
If anyone has any ideas, I'm all ears.
PS: A quick INGO search for Ruger/GP100/Revolver jams didn't turn up anything pertinent.
Also, revolvers do not suck. I was kidding. I'm just frustrated at this point. It was a pretty good match with decent stages. NPCCC usually puts on a good match and this one was up to par. Too bad I didn't have a working gun. More importantly, this has been a primary home defense gun in the past.