Belt Mountain pins ?

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brushunter

Single-Sixer
Joined
Aug 26, 2012
Messages
302
Location
Western Pa.
I recently read one of John Taffins books. In it he tells about replacing the cylinder pin of his Blackhawk Hunter with a Belt Mountain pin. Says it tightened things up a bit. He didn't elaberate on any differences it made in the accuracy of his Hunter. I have a Bisley Hunter , the lockup is tight , or at least it seems tight to me ... however the cylinder does have a bit of movement ... how much movement is too much ? Would a Belt Mountain pin be a worth while investment ? Is it a true drop-in upgrade ? Thanks

regards , brushunter

BTW , my Hunter is accurate ... 1 1/2 to 2 inch at 50 yds ( scoped )Would a BM pin shrink these groups ?
 

ADP3

Single-Sixer
Joined
Dec 23, 2001
Messages
485
Location
SC
The Belt Mountain pins have improved every Ruger that I have used them in, 10+ Single Actions and counting. The lateral play in the cylinder is reduced with them. They come oversized and drop-in. With the groups that you are getting you may not see any improvement, but they are well made, offer an anchor screw so that the cylinder pin won't walk under heavy recoil and they are inexpensive.

Best Regards,
ADP3
 

dlhredfoxx

Single-Sixer
Joined
Jan 24, 2012
Messages
462
Location
Republic of Texas
I don't think I own a single Ruger SA that does NOT have a Belt Mtn pin in it (15 and counting)... Every single one of them got tighter after installation and only a couple needed some very minor fitting, so yes basically a drop in mod. They run anywhere from $22-$28 plus $2 ea. for shipping and look great to boot. My favorite is the Keith #5 style with alan set screw... just had my latest show up in the mail yesterday... 8)
 

brushunter

Single-Sixer
Joined
Aug 26, 2012
Messages
302
Location
Western Pa.
Thanks guys . After posting I came across several reviews from another forum. There were a couple posters that stated the BMBP elevated the cylinder by several thousands of an inch causing a misalignment between the cylinder and the forcing cone , causing undue erosion on the top side of the forcing cone. I'm beginning to think , the way my Hunter shoots ... why fix it , if it isn't broke ?

Anyone experience any adverse effects from the Belt Mountain pins ?

regards , brushunter
 
Joined
Dec 11, 2002
Messages
8,966
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Ohio , U.S.A.
two trains of thought, if it ain't broke, do screw with it,,,,,, does it work?? for the vast ,majority yes, main thing you can use the set screw and keep things all "in place"...as for raising the cylinder??? hhhmmm, think about it, its ROUND, so will spread out in a circle,( larger diameter) this will take up any slack or looseness, IF its in there before hand, but NOT in one direction,,,,,,now, if the hole in the frame may be elongated or "out of round, in the "upward direction,, and you set the screw, placing tension, it just MAY tilt the pin in an up or down direction, BUT the tension of a 'screw going in would be in the opposite or down direction, so that kind of screws up that theory...I'd say the offending party had a problem or issue with his gun BEFORE hand...............or with his loads...................those who like them (the Belt Mountain pins) love them, I have only used them a few times on "magnum" SA guns,,,,,,, a good ,solid, simple "fix" :wink:
 

ra

Single-Sixer
Joined
Jan 16, 2010
Messages
264
Location
Tennessee
I have Belt Mountain pins in all my single action Rugers, I can't prove if they improve accuracy but I like them regardless. As for raising the cylinder and causing damage I don't buy that argument.

Roger
 

GasGuzzler

Hunter
Joined
Oct 22, 2012
Messages
2,794
Location
DFW Area, Texas
Just sold mine. I had no problems with it, needed the money. Not sure it helped much and it was hard to get in and out because it fits so snugly. I have nothing positive or negative to say about accuracy or possible forcing cone damage or leading but it was well made and caused no problems.
 

schloss

Single-Sixer
Joined
Feb 27, 2010
Messages
360
Location
Soldotna AK
brushunter said:
Thanks guys . After posting I came across several reviews from another forum. There were a couple posters that stated the BMBP elevated the cylinder by several thousands of an inch causing a misalignment between the cylinder and the forcing cone , causing undue erosion on the top side of the forcing cone. I'm beginning to think , the way my Hunter shoots ... why fix it , if it isn't broke ?

Anyone experience any adverse effects from the Belt Mountain pins ?

regards , brushunter

You're putting a round pin in a round hole. If that round pin is raising the cylinder, there were alignment issues before that. If it can be raised so that they are misaligned, then that cylinder pin was ridiculously loose. If it's that loose, the cylinder would be flopping all over the place. I don't buy that either. If that is happening, that's a problem with manufacture.
 

brushunter

Single-Sixer
Joined
Aug 26, 2012
Messages
302
Location
Western Pa.
By reading the above posts , I either have mislead or some of you misunderstood me. Its not the " set " screw thats creating ( supposedly ) the problem. Its the face that the BMBP is " larger " OD than the Ruger pin. Lets put it in measurements we can grasp ... you put a 1" rod in a 2" hole. The rod lays on the bottom of the hole ... now you put a 2" rod in that same hole , the rod will stay in the center of the hole ... ??? makes sense to me. I agree schloss , seems like someone had a real sloppy cylinder fit. Guess I'm over thinking this ... my Hunter is a fine handgun , shoots well , accurate , and the Ruger pin has never popped out under recoil ....so ...

regards , and thanks for all the excellant opinions AND facts.

brushunter
 

schloss

Single-Sixer
Joined
Feb 27, 2010
Messages
360
Location
Soldotna AK
Yeah, I think we're on the same page. I just don't buy the misalignment theory. It's going to center things on the axis of the pin when you put in any pin. The belt mountain will just align things better. If the pin really were sloppy, you'd think that things would be worse with a factory pin, considering that the loose pin would allow the cylinder to recoil independently of the frame. But there's no way the belt mountain pin would cause more misalignment, unless, like dlhredfox was saying, that set screw somehow got overtorqued enough to flex the pin. I believe that's where he was coming from. I could see that, but find it hard to believe, but I'm no engineer.

In terms of your Hunter, there's no reason to mess with it unless you want to. I like the looks of the belt mountain pins, I'm sure there are plenty that don't. It's not something that would hurt exploring, however. If you don't like it, you should be able to sell it off here pretty quickly. You might be a couple dollars into a loss, or you may think it's worth it.
 

dlhredfoxx

Single-Sixer
Joined
Jan 24, 2012
Messages
462
Location
Republic of Texas
If you're just worried about pin jump then you can buy an extra power base pin locking spring for alot less money, I put them in all my guns in combination with the Belt Mtn locking base pins so if I forget to set snug up the set screw my pin is less likely to jump free and lock up the gun. It helps if you drill a small shallow hole on the bottom of the barrel to accept the screw when it's engaged. This way you can set the screw and lock the base pin w/virtually no torque on the base pin at all and it still wont back out.

I know this, if I really torque down the set screw on the base pin, and then cycle the action, it get;s bound up... in all of my SA's to the one it does this... so don't do that. :)
 

Chuck 100 yd

Hunter
Joined
Mar 20, 2010
Messages
3,251
Location
Ridgefield WA
I have Belt Mt. base pins in a couple of my Rugers. I had #5`s in them but they don`t look right (to me)in Vaqueros so I replaced them with Belt Mt.Colt style pins.
I have Wolf extra power base pin latch springs in every Ruger SA I own.
 
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