Bearcat fired out of battery

[tylosaurus]

I have a pretty new SS New Bearcat with adjustable sights. The other day I was out shooting it, and the first round on one cylinder fired out of battery. A little lead spit out the side and I had to remove the cylinder to clear a small lead fragment. The firing pin obviously hit it slightly off of where it should have. There does not seem to be any damage to the gun, or anything wrong with it at all, but I CAN get the issue to repeat itself (with snapcaps).

When I'm finished loading all of the chambers, sometimes I spin the cylinder around to make sure I have them all loaded. If I spin it just enough, that it's almost to a new chamber, but DOES NOT CLICK, and then I immediately close the loading gate, go the full cock, and then fire, it will be out of battery. If I were to slowly lower the hammer, and then go back to full cock, it aligns properly.

What I'm wondering, is my Bearcat defective and need to go back to the factory? OR, is this just a small flaw in the design? Could this be the reason Ruger stopped chambering them in 22 Magnum?

If anyone can duplicate this with their new Bearcat, please let me know.

thanks

 

[Chuck 100 yd]

Out of battery kind of threw me for a minute , out of index would be more proper.
You should not be able to bring the hammer to full cock without the cylinder advancing to and locking into proper index. So yes , I believe there is an issue with the Pawl. I would call Ruger and explain the issue and request a shipping label if you return it.

 

[contender]

I agree with Chuck. Call Ruger, and politely explain things. AND request they provide you with a pre-paid shipping label.

 

[tylosaurus]

I just found this warning in the user manual that seams to suggest this is how it's supposed to function.


"CAUTION: The hammer must be carefully eased fully forward before the hammer is drawn back to the full-cock position for the first shot. The hammer should be drawn with a firm positive motion to the full-cock position for each shot, thus actuating the working parts for complete indexing. Unless this procedure is followed in any single-action revolver, the cylinder is apt to be out of index when fired."

 

[Chuck 100 yd]

There ya go ! I don't own a Bearcat so have never ran into that issue. All of my Ruger SA's will,if drawn to full cock,be indexed and locked properly.
Proper operation by the shooter will become normal s.o.p. The once that is learned
And no longer be an issue.

 

[Bob Wright]

Tired as it may sound, I always load my Rugers at the range with five rounds, my carry Ruger with six. I load, close the loading gate, cock the hammer, then ease it down. With five, the hammer is over an empty chamber, with six rounds its over a live round. Fully loaded with six because its a New Model Blackhawk.

But load, close the loading gate, cock the hammer, place my thumb between hammer and frame, and press the trigger. Remove finger from trigger, remove thumb from hammer/frame area, ease hammer down. Gun is safe but ready to fire.

Bob Wright

 

[Hondo44]

When I'm finished loading all of the chambers, sometimes I spin the cylinder around to make sure I have them all loaded. If I spin it just enough, that it's almost to a new chamber, but DOES NOT CLICK, and then I immediately close the loading gate, go the full cock, and then fire, it will be out of battery. If I were to slowly lower the hammer, and then go back to full cock, it aligns properly.

What I'm wondering, is my Bearcat defective and need to go back to the factory? OR, is this just a small flaw in the design? Could this be the reason Ruger stopped chambering them in 22 Magnum?

If anyone can duplicate this with their new Bearcat, please let me know.

thanks

Your Bearcat is not defective and NO, this is not why the Magnum guns were discontinued.

It can happen in any single action even when the gun's action timing is perfect. There's a point of about 3 degrees of cyl rotation when the cyl pawl (hand) is just a hair passed the point of rotating the cyl thru its next 36 degree cycle because from 1/2 cock to full cock is not enough hammer movement to reset the pawl on the next cyl ratchet tooth.

Slightly shortening of the pawl's lower tooth to reset it in the next cyl ratchet tooth quicker might mitigate the problem, but it will be right on the hairy edge of causing short cyl rotation "carry up", i.e., moving the cyl it's full 36 degrees of rotation to lock the cyl notch on the cyl stop bolt when cocking the hammer slowly.

It seems easier to occur in the Bearcats because the cylinder is so lightweight relative to the spring tension of the cyl hand on the cyl ratchet teeth, even when loaded. Keep your cylinder pin well lubricated with light gun oil to help the cyl rotate.

To completely eliminate the problem, follow the Ruger instructions, it's safer besides:
close the loading gate, cock the hammer all the way back, then down on the loading bench. Now raise the gun to the aiming and firing position and full cock the hammer to shoot. It’s always safer to have the hammer in the completely down position when moving the gun to the firing position after loading or moving it at all.

 

[pisgah]

My fantasy is that one day all purchasers of new guns will treat the owner's manual as something more than just packing material...

 

[gramps]

I don’t understand the part about cocking the hammer after loading if you aren’t going to fire. I always manually turn the cylinder til it is in alignment.
gramps

 

[DGW1949]

I don’t understand the part about cocking the hammer after loading if you aren’t going to fire. I always manually turn the cylinder til it is in alignment.
gramps

In the days of the 3-screw action, doing it your way would scar-up the cylinder.
These days it probably doesn't matter because the 2-pin (NM) action is so out of time that the cylinder gets scared anyway. But regardless...there's still a right way and a wrong way to do it.

DGW

 

[Fox Mike]

I just found this warning in the user manual that seams to suggest this is how it's supposed to function.


"CAUTION: The hammer must be carefully eased fully forward before the hammer is drawn back to the full-cock position for the first shot. The hammer should be drawn with a firm positive motion to the full-cock position for each shot, thus actuating the working parts for complete indexing. Unless this procedure is followed in any single-action revolver, the cylinder is apt to be out of index when fired."

That warning is in the directions on how to "de-cock" the revolver.

 

[Hondo44]

I don’t understand the part about cocking the hammer after loading if you aren’t going to fire. I always manually turn the cylinder til it is in alignment.
gramps

On the Bearcat, old or new model, you have to do something with the hammer, can't just leave it on 1/2 cock. So cocking it all the way back and then down is the best thing to do.

 

[jimbo1096]

Read and follow the manual, Quoted below- when they say decock the hammer, it means pull back and release by pulling the trigger while controlling the hammer with your thumb, and then allow to move forward slowly until the hammer is resting on the frame. Of course you release the trigger as soon as the hammer begins to move forward, allowing the transfer bar to fall from under the hammer.

"1. Do not load the revolver until you are ready to use it.
2. Note: The base pin must be fully inserted and locked in position by the base
pin latch. If the base pin is not fully inserted and locked, the transfer bar may
catch under the firing pin as the hammer is being cocked.
3. With your finger off the trigger, pull the hammer back one “click” so that the
trigger snaps forward into the loading notch. This permits the cylinder to
rotate.
4. Open the gate.
5. Turn cylinder clockwise, by hand, and insert cartridges into chambers.
6. Align a chamber with the barrel and close the gate. Decock the revolver.
NOTE: The revolver has a cylinder latch that locks the rotation of the cylinder
before a shot is fired. This cylinder latch rides on the outside circumference of
the cylinder where the stop notches are cut in the cylinder. The cylinder latch
is designed to leave a line around the outside of the cylinder between the
notches. This is normal and is an indication that your revolver is funtioning
properly."