This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

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Scott Tschirhart
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This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

Been working on this for more than an hour! Seems like the last one I did (on a blued gun) was much easier.
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JimT
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough stee!

Post by JimT »

I cut the top off 2 chambers on one once ... took me a few hours and 3 or 4 really good fine-tooth blades.
cutaway1.jpg
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Alan Wood
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough stee!

Post by Alan Wood »

So what are you doing to the cylinder?
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Scott Tschirhart
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough stee!

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

Alan Wood wrote: Fri May 13, 2022 6:37 pm So what are you doing to the cylinder?
The throats were tight. Worked fine with jacketed bullets, but I shoot mostly cast. So I reamed them out a bit.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by CowboyTutt »

Scott, is that a laser engraved 45 Colt Bisley cylinder? If so, I have the same and had Bob Munden bore it out many years ago and polish it. Yes, hard steel for sure, why the Ruger New Model Blackhawk is so strong an action. But all sorts of tolerance problems with them in 45 Colt. Undercut chambers in the cylinder, followed by I think if I remember right, a larger forcing cone. followed by sending the bullet into a constricted barrel chamber as it was screwed into the receiver. So the bullet is jumping all over the place in size, back and forth. I may be wrong about this, and welcome someone to correct me if so. My bad, my foul. That being said, these older Ruger's can be very accurate once uniformed and sized right if I have my information correctly. Mine has an over-sized Belt Mountain base pin, uniformed chambers in the cylinder, but still needs some barrel constrictions removed I think. Have the lapping bullets as said in the other thread. Open to "Taylor Throating" it. Just need a good gunsmith. Jeff Ault at Sixgun Magic could probably do it I am thinking. Thanks for posting the photos! -Tutt
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by samsi »

Dull reamer? I did mine with a rental reamer from 4D a few years ago, it had some tight spots but the reamer drove itself pretty well with minimal pressure. I did absolutely drown it in cutting oil though.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

CowboyTutt wrote: Fri May 13, 2022 8:38 pm Scott, is that a laser engraved 45 Colt Bisley cylinder? If so, I have the same and had Bob Munden bore it out many years ago and polish it. Yes, hard steel for sure, why the Ruger New Model Blackhawk is so strong an action. But all sorts of tolerance problems with them in 45 Colt. Undercut chambers in the cylinder, followed by I think if I remember right, a larger forcing cone. followed by sending the bullet into a constricted barrel chamber as it was screwed into the receiver. So the bullet is jumping all over the place in size, back and forth. -Tutt
This is what I’m seeing in this Bisley. Tight chamber throats with a pretty big forcing cone. The bullet is getting swaged down then jumps to the lands. I’m trying for a smoother transition.

Before, a .452 diameter XTP would not enter the throats. Now it pushes through with my fingers. So there’s a meaningful difference. Let’s see if it does better at the Ranch this morning.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by AmBraCol »

CowboyTutt wrote: Fri May 13, 2022 8:38 pm Scott, is that a laser engraved 45 Colt Bisley cylinder? If so, I have the same and had Bob Munden bore it out many years ago and polish it. Yes, hard steel for sure, why the Ruger New Model Blackhawk is so strong an action. But all sorts of tolerance problems with them in 45 Colt. Undercut chambers in the cylinder, followed by I think if I remember right, a larger forcing cone. followed by sending the bullet into a constricted barrel chamber as it was screwed into the receiver. So the bullet is jumping all over the place in size, back and forth. I may be wrong about this, and welcome someone to correct me if so. My bad, my foul. That being said, these older Ruger's can be very accurate once uniformed and sized right if I have my information correctly. Mine has an over-sized Belt Mountain base pin, uniformed chambers in the cylinder, but still needs some barrel constrictions removed I think. Have the lapping bullets as said in the other thread. Open to "Taylor Throating" it. Just need a good gunsmith. Jeff Ault at Sixgun Magic could probably do it I am thinking. Thanks for posting the photos! -Tutt
Brownells used to sell a Taylor Throat Reamer, I have one for 38/357 barrels. Easy to use, just go slow and use plenty of oil. It improved my Llama Cassidy a LOT by removing the constriction and allowing the misaligned cylinder chambers to align enough with the left side of the barrel for the RNL bullets they sell us here to slide into the barrel with much less leading than before. It used to build up something fierce where the bullet would scrape against the side of the forcing cone. If you can locate a 45 caliber Taylor Throat reamer it is a fairly simple job to do.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by AmBraCol »

Andy, I've got an inquiry in to Clymer as to whether they still make the Taylor Throat reamers or not. Will pass on any info they send me.
Paul - in Pereira


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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by GunnyMack »

Stainless steel is a bear to machine. Investment castings are tough too, my engraving instructor would take on any job but he would NOT touch a Ruger.
BROWN LABS MATTER !!
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

This gun responded well to opening up the cylinder throats. All loads shot well today. 250 gr XTP groups were really impressive. The 270SAA shot better too. But the deep seated version did noticeably better.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by CowboyTutt »

Scott and Paul, thanks for the heads-up on the reamer. Let me know what you learn. Scott, we have the same gun!!! Mine is older I think as it has the ugly safety warning stamped into the side of the barrel and not underneath as yours does. Mine has some upgrades but same gun! Too funny! :D

-Tutt
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by samsi »

That's a good looking bore. Ruger may not know how to cut 45 throats, but they surely have barrel making figured out.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

That’s pretty clean for a bore. This photo was taken after six rounds of that 270SAA bullet over 8.5 gr of Unique.

Before I reamed the throats it left quite a bit of debris toward the cylinder. So this is a major improvement.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

CowboyTutt wrote: Sat May 14, 2022 3:06 pm Scott, we have the same gun!!! Mine is older I think as it has the ugly safety warning stamped into the side of the barrel and not underneath as yours does. Mine has some upgrades but same gun! Too funny! :D

-Tutt
I’ve owned three of these. I put one in the drawing at the Holiday and won another just like it. Lol. So I traded that one for some gu work from Dustin Linebaugh.

This one popped up on a trade a couple of weeks ago and has one of the best triggers on a Ruger that I have seen. I’m planning on keeping this one.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by CowboyTutt »

Mine was worked on by Bob Munden and the trigger is probably between 2-2.5 lbs and very crisp with almost no travel. Free pawl conversion, trigger/action job, uniformed and polished cylinder chambers. I added better front and rear sights and Belt Mountain oversize base pin. Its a handful with a 360 grain Keith style bullet at 1150 fps!
I think its actually the most difficult handgun I own to shoot because of its recoil and light weight. It has over time developed a trigger reset problem where the trigger does not totally reset until you pull the hammer back slightly or for the next shot. Need to send it back to Jeff Ault who took over the gunsmithing at Sixgun Magic after Bob's demise.

First firearm I ever bought and really nice sixgun now. I won't ever sell it. Will will it to someone some day. -Tutt
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by AmBraCol »

CowboyTutt wrote: Sat May 14, 2022 3:06 pm Scott and Paul, thanks for the heads-up on the reamer. Let me know what you learn. Scott, we have the same gun!!! Mine is older I think as it has the ugly safety warning stamped into the side of the barrel and not underneath as yours does. Mine has some upgrades but same gun! Too funny! :D

-Tutt
Got an email this morning on the subject of the Taylor Throating Reamer
Sir,

Unfortunately Clymer made a large production run of those back around 20+ yrs ago...when they sold out that was the end. We no longer produce those.

Sincerely,

Staff
CLYMER Precision, Inc.
1605 West Hamlin Road
Rochester Hills, MI 48309
248-853-5555
www.clymertool.com
Paul - in Pereira


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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by CowboyTutt »

Thanks Paul, maybe find a used one. Sorry to hear.....-Tutt
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by JimT »

Contact Dave Manson
Dave Manson Precision Reamers
https://mansonreamers.com/
david@mansonreamers.com

If he doesn't have the Taylor Throat reamers I bet he has Reeder's Maxi-Throat which is the same thing except it's longer than the Taylor Throat and works very well with longer heavier bullets.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

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I think Marshall used a cylinder hone to true and size the cylinders, and relied on the abrasive to hone the throat and polish the barrel. when i find the booklet i'll pass along the quote. my picture is that the impact of the abrasive is focused on the throat, and the muzzle end is getting polished without major modification of the diameter of the lands. that's my impression of my recall. :lol:

it seems to me that the critical stage is loading the slug with abrasive. the net result for Marshall was a tapered bore that delivered his 44 mag redhawk rounds into a group that sounds like an exaggeration. when i have some 'spare-time' . . ,

I really regret that his site is off the air, and hope the Best for him and his family.

Perhaps it's listed on the wayback machine?


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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

His site contained a wealth of great information.

Looking at what I have right now, I am not convinced that I have a problem that needs to be solved. Now that the cylinder throats are opened up a bit, I think it will be fine as is.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

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Jim T, thanks, I just sent an email to David. -A-
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

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Scott Tschirhart wrote: Tue May 17, 2022 1:55 pm His site contained a wealth of great information.

Looking at what I have right now, I am not convinced that I have a problem that needs to be solved. Now that the cylinder throats are opened up a bit, I think it will be fine as is.
Thanks. that will be my first task when I get to the redhawk. It's encouraging to see your results.
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Scott Tschirhart
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

The reamer was one I rented from 4D and it worked well, just that this cylinder seems harder than one I did several years ago.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by Rockrat »

Fellow over on Castboolits.gunloads.com does cylinder work to even out/open throats using, IIRC, a Sunnen hone. Goes by DougGuy.

Heard those Stainless cylinders are harder than Woodpecker lips!!!
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by Rusty »

If you go to the Graybeard's outdoor forums there is a section there sponsored by LBT molds and Veral Smith. Veral says that the Ruger SS revolvers take about twice as many slugs to fireform the bore as anything else due to the hardness of the steel.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

Well, it is done and I sent the reamer back to 4D today. I think I will polish the chambers and throats a bit. Any tips on how to do that? I was thinking about using my dremel tool with a felt tip and some polishing compound.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by CowboyTutt »

Jim T. et all, got the following response from Mason Reamers:
ray.gross@mansonreamers.com
6:16 AM (11 hours ago)
to me

Good morning Andy,

We offer a 45 cal Pistol Throater that you can use to open the rearward end of your revolver barrel. It does require that you remove the barrel.

The cost $50 plus shipping. A tap wrench can be used. We also offer a T-handle for $20 if needed.

Let me know if you have any questions or would like to make any adjustments.

To order, please contact the office directly with your payment and shipping info. The office is open Noon to 4:45pm Eastern, M-F, 1-810-953-0732 or 1-810-953-0734.

Best regards,

Ray Gross

Design Engineering / Tech Support / Competitive Shooter
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by CowboyTutt »

Scott, have no idea on the polishing thing, not a machinist like so many of you Shootists are! However I have found that having polished chambers allows me to run higher pressure with no extraction issues in my 45 Colt +P Bisley, 454 Casull Raging Bull, or 460 S&W Snubbie loads in my various handguns. McPherson and I slightly disagree on why this is so, and of course, he's probably going to prove me wrong otherwise, and the reasoning behind it, but that being said, a polished chamber is always better for extraction with high pressure loads regardless of the theoretical hypothesis.

Regards my friend,

-Tutt
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

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Scott Tschirhart wrote: Thu May 19, 2022 6:11 pm Well, it is done and I sent the reamer back to 4D today. I think I will polish the chambers and throats a bit. Any tips on how to do that? I was thinking about using my dremel tool with a felt tip and some polishing compound.
I’ve used cleaning patches on a loop jag and a drill.
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Scott Tschirhart
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

CowboyTutt wrote: Thu May 19, 2022 8:17 pm Jim T. et all, got the following response from Mason Reamers:
ray.gross@mansonreamers.com
6:16 AM (11 hours ago)
to me

Good morning Andy,

We offer a 45 cal Pistol Throater that you can use to open the rearward end of your revolver barrel. It does require that you remove the barrel.

The cost $50 plus shipping. A tap wrench can be used. We also offer a T-handle for $20 if needed.

Let me know if you have any questions or would like to make any adjustments.

To order, please contact the office directly with your payment and shipping info. The office is open Noon to 4:45pm Eastern, M-F, 1-810-953-0732 or 1-810-953-0734.

Best regards,

Ray Gross

Design Engineering / Tech Support / Competitive Shooter
Thinking about what to do next. -Tutt
Removing the barrel is a deal killer for me. Otherwise, I would probably go in with you on this so we could share it with the group.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by CowboyTutt »

No problem Scott. I might just send my Ruger out to Jeff Ault at Sixgun Magic and have him do it while he fixes the trigger re-set, or to Gary Reeder who could also probably do both functions for me as well. My other option might be to buy the reamer and see if Jim W. or Mic can help in the future. I hate to burden Mic with more work, but I suspect that Jim W. could do it, or maybe some gunsmith in Orange County where I will be moving to shortly. No big deal my friend! Had nice end of year school BBQ tonight. I was honored as one of 3 retirees at the dinner. Got to take home a beautiful prime cut of tri-tip. Best retirement gift of all so far, but will of course will still have to work part-time, but will have more time for family and friends. -Tutt
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by piller »

Now you got me to thinking about a couple of guns.
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Re: This dang Ruger cylinder is made of tough steel!

Post by Scott Tschirhart »

I believe that my problems with this gun are solved. 8.5 gr of Unique under the 255 gr Hornady swaged cowboy bullet won’t even lead.

I fired about 60 rounds of various ammo through this bore yesterday and 5 of the last 6 fired went through the two inch hole in my flapper target at 25 yards.

It doesn’t appear that I need any throating work. And, reaming those chambers throats seems to have been well worth the trouble.
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