Ruger Standard Auto Re-Assembly

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dakota.potts

New member
Took in a family gun to work on in class. Did a complete detail strip where I disassembled everything that wasn't riveted in place. Every pin, spring everything else out of the gun. Every part fully disassembled from the bolt, trigger group and everything else. Did a complete cleaning as the gun desperately needed, having not been cleaned in a couple decades.

Turns out disassembling the thing is a lot easy than getting it back together.

I got most of the bolt group together OK and finally got the magazine catch back in after over an hour of fighting with it.

Now I have to re-install the fire control group and it is a nightmare lining everything up correctly and holding it in place. The design using coil springs for everything instead of flat springs doesn't help at all, as they are a really expletive (of your choosing) to hold in the correct orientation and compress while pushing pins in place. I can get most of the parts together individually but when it comes time to put them all in place (for instance, the safety piece with the hammer assembly with the transfer bar) things get really tight and are difficult to manipulate while trying to line them all up for the pins.

The use of slave pins has helped but not much. Anybody have any hints for how to do this? I looked to see if there were any jigs or anything available but the only thing I can find is the tool for re-assembling the mainspring.

I'm sure I'm missing something here but the gun is giving me fits to get back together and the disassembly books are god-awful at providing guidance for re-assembly. Tips would be much appreciated.

The gun is a Ruger auto 1976 bi-centennial edition with a 4 3/4" barrel. I don't know if it is a MK. I or not but it lacks the separate bolt hold open feature.
 
You're in a gunsmithing school and they won't help you? Ask an instructor and expect good help. I went to Colorado School of Trades for gunsmithing and soon learned you have to ask for help. That's what you pay for.
 
If you don't get better solutions, try visiting the Volquartsen website. I put the Volq parts in my Mark II and the info they included with the parts led me right through it -- these same instructions may be available from them.
 
Not to sound pedantic, but you need to learn how to reassemble a Ruger semi-auto 22 pistol before you get out of gunsmithing school. You would be surprised how many times you will use that skill in the trade. And you don't need slave pins, just use the pins that are part of the gun.

Put the sear in first. Put the trigger in, put in the return spring, than bring the trigger bar down to hold that in. Put the safety in the gun, move the sear forward, insert the hammer pin just enough to hold the safety lever in place, then set the safety to hold the sear in place. Put the hammer bushing through the hammer, put the trigger bar around the end of the bushing, and line up the holes using the hammer to line up the holes. Push the hammer pin into place. Make sure the hammer pivots freely and the trigger bar moves and resets. Put the grips on. Put the upper on. Put the takedown pin in place, making sure the hammer strut is on the mainspring before closing the latch.
 
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Not pedantic at all, Scorch. I agree with you that I need to know how to do it, I figured that there was a somewhat simple method I was missing. I will try your instructions and hopefully be back to let you know I got it
 
I hate to break the news, but the Ruger (even the latest type with all the goodies) is not that hard to dis/re-assemble. If you consider the Ruger a tough one, please don't take apart a Campo-Giro.

Jim
 
There's no doubt that it's probably a question of inexperience. I am far more used to machining things than I am assembling small parts. Going over it in my head, I believe I may have captured the sear spring in the wrong orientation with regards to the sear so I'll take a look at it tomorrow and see if it's easier with a fresh look.
 
I got to look at the gun again today and it stumped me for a while until I began thinking critically about the orientation of the sear in relation to everything else. Compressing the sear spring and holding it in the right orientation while aligning the other parts seems to be thE key I was missing. The gun is back together and working now. Thanks for the help
 
dakota.potts,

When you get a chance, you should try to buy a complete set of the NRA and Gun Digest assembly and disassembly books, unless the course supplies them for you. They have some of the best written instructions on firearms that all of us have used over the years. Another source for the tricks of the trade are the Brownell's Gunsmith Kinks books. There are also the AGI assembly/disassembly videos, and Brownell's Encyclopedia of Modern Firearms , which has several of the factory and military gunsmithing manuals in it. The encyclopedia has the complete Winchester and Remington factory manuals up to the 1980s.
 
DG, I was actually reading through the Gun Digest book and while it was great for disassembly, it gave little in the way of getting the gun back together. I never thought to look at gunsmith kinks for that but I will the next time I get stuck and I will definitely look into the other books recommended
 
I got a really good deal on a Ruger Mk. III, shot it twice, and sold it.
Even after watching four instructional youtube videos I needed a rubber mallet to get the thing back together.
I'd remembered my dad borrowing one from a buddy, forty years ago, and having the same hassle with putting back together.
Being good at reassembling them could be a niche business!
 
S'why everybody says don't take 'em apart. Aside from not needing to be disassembled that far for any kind of cleaning, they're a nightmare to get back together. I found the trick is the right amount of jiggling and wiggling the bolt stop pin. Did it long ago. Still don't know how.
"...complete set of the NRA and Gun Digest assembly and disassembly books..." Absolutely. Worth every cent. Most smithies spend a great deal more time reading than using a hammer.
 
i once bought a early standard .22 auto in a cigar box in bits and pieces for 25.00 and after working off and on for a week i got it together that was in the late 60,s. i own and shoot three of the ruger .22 auto,s and feel no need to take them down to bits and pieces to keep them clean and running. eastbank.
 
No way I will ever take one down to that level again unless a specific issue requires it. School policy requires a complete take down of every piece possible to learn the skills necessary. After seeing how it breaks down, I think every part of it can be effectively cleaned without removing to that level

The bolt stop pin actually doesn't give me trouble anymore. Takes me about 30 seconds to align the pin and hammer strut and re insert the takedown housing. For me the difficulty was in keeping all of the fire control group components aligned and bundled during installation
 
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