i got a mark 4 and had the volquartson trigger job done. Now I am getting many (way to many) failures to fire. Prior to the trigger job, I put 100-150 rounds through it with no problem. Anyone else have this problem? I did change ammo with no improvement. The light strikes seem to fire in my Mark III.
Hunter Mark IV soft hits
- Thread starter tobyshane
- Start date
contender
Ruger Guru
Welcome to the Forum!
During the trigger work,,, did any springs get replaced or modified?
During the trigger work,,, did any springs get replaced or modified?
Thank you for the welcome. The trigger job was done by a local gun shop of which I have a lot of confidence. The trigger now has between 2.2 and 2.5 pull on my scale. The kit included a new sear spring, a new trigger spring and plunger, trigger, hammer, sear, trigger bar. The magazine disconnect has been removed so the pistol may be fired without a mag inserted. I do like the Mark IV, but these many failures to fire are getting me down.
contender
Ruger Guru
I'd suggest you discuss things with the local gun shop & have them put the original springs back in. (They did return them to you,, right?)
Try that first.
A real action job involves the smoothing up & polishing the action surfaces that make the gun work. Not just dropping in new parts.
New, quality parts can make a difference,,, but when you go to messing with springs & all,,, you can get misfires, or such stuff.
Try that first.
A real action job involves the smoothing up & polishing the action surfaces that make the gun work. Not just dropping in new parts.
New, quality parts can make a difference,,, but when you go to messing with springs & all,,, you can get misfires, or such stuff.
It worked before you modified it.
Change it back.
Put 1,000 rounds through it to break it in.
Change it back.
Put 1,000 rounds through it to break it in.
Talked to and returned the Mark IV to the shop. They have contacted Volquartsen and there may be a slight issue with the barrel and firing pin with the trigger kit installed. The shop and Volquartsen are working to solve the problem. Update later. Thanks.
No offense intended but I am always wondering why people insist upon making aftermarket changes to firearms before they shoot them enough to know them. I have two Mark IV handguns, The Hunter and Standard. They both shoot with extreme accuracy at any reasonable range for a .22 LR. The triggers are outstanding and I see no reason to stuff them with a lot of "other people's" parts. I would much rather be saving up my money for the next things to come along that I simply must have. 
If one has served and shot in the military service, one has learned to adjust to the trigger of any firearm.
If one has served and shot in the military service, one has learned to adjust to the trigger of any firearm.teuthis, no offense taken. Everyone has the right to his/her opinion, for which I served and defended, albeit a long time ago. That being said, a little history. I purchased a Mark III some time ago, as a target pistol. The trigger pull was exceptable but, after some research and firing a friends Mark III, I realized there was something better out there. Again, when the Mark IV came out, I "felt"was an advancement over the Mark III. I put 150-300 rounds through it and "felt" the trigger pull needed some work. My past experience with the Mark III led me to believe the trigger rework would be worth the effort. Much to my surprise, the job did not produce the desired result, YET. Now my shop has the Mark IV and is in the process of "fixing" the issue. Again teuthis, no offense taken and I hope you understand my reasoning now that I have explained it more thoroughly.
teuthis said:
It's pretty obvious you've never shot a Mark series pistol with a Volquartsen trigger, hammer, and sear installed. From what I've seen, the triggers have gotten worse over the years, but even my Mark I, my RST 6, and my Mark II Target have all seen a remarkable improvement in the triggers. Lighter pull, minimal take-up (just enough to reset the trigger), crisp release, and no overtravel.
I have no Mark III or Mark IV, and never will - I regard them as a giant leap backwards from the Mark II. I have, however, shot a few examples of each, and I would liken the triggers to dragging a piano down a gravel road when compared to the Volquartsen setup.
New guy here. I had/have the same issue with light strikes on my ruger mark iv 22/45 lite that I purchased a few weeks ago and could not find anyone else that had the same issue. I called volquartsen to see if they have heard of this issue but it went to voicemail and they never called back. I probably shot 2-300 rounds with almost no issues in stock form. I think I had 1 light strike and 1 fail to eject. After I installed the volquartsen accurizing kit, I started to have many light strikes. I had 70% light strikes with CCI HV, 100% light strikes with winchester HV, 10% light strikes with federal auto match, and 25% light strikes with federal bulk packs. When I looked at the firing pin impacts it was a thin vertical mark. I have a ruger mark III with the volquartsen sear, trigger, and stock hammer and the firing impact has a more squarish indent. I swapped firing pins between the two and did not have one light strike on either gun for over 150 rounds. The ruger mark III has the stock hammer while the mark iv has the volquartsen hammer as well as all the other pieced in the kit. I ordered the volquartsen firing pin and extractor but still need to install them and test it. Just thought I would share my experience since I was racking my brain for a few days thinking I installed the kit wrong or misplaced a part.
Brad
Brad
br6ad, welcome. Your comments seem to mirror my issues. Hopefully the new firing pin will solve the problem. I won't know until I get my Mark IV back from the shop. If you would post your results of your tests it would be appreciated. Thanks.
Rick Courtright
Hawkeye
teuthis said:No offense intended but I am always wondering why people insist upon making aftermarket changes to firearms before they shoot them enough to know them. I have two Mark IV handguns, The Hunter and Standard. They both shoot with extreme accuracy at any reasonable range for a .22 LR. The triggers are outstanding and I see no reason to stuff them with a lot of "other people's" parts. I would much rather be saving up my money for the next things to come along that I simply must have.
Hi,
You'd have enjoyed my old gunsmith boss! Folks would come in with a brand new pistol, frequently a Ruger still in the box, and want a trigger job. He'd send them out the door with instructions to put 2000 rounds thru the gun, then bring it back IF they still felt they "needed" a trigger job. Few came back... they'd "adjusted" as you mentioned.
He also got a lot of complaints that the "new" S&Ws were nowhere as slick as the old (pre-war?) ones. He'd tell folks all they had to do with their "new" Smith was to put the same 25,000 rounds or so the old one had probably fired thru it, then compare.
For myself, I'm not as smart as the engineers who designed the guns, be they Rugers or Smiths, so until I am, I've taken my old boss' advice and generally been satisfied.
No offense to VQ--they make nice parts. But that same boss used to joke VQ parts were just factory Ruger parts, finished the way Ruger should have done! Ok, that was a bit tongue in cheek, true, but there was a touch of truth in there, too.
Rick C
Do people join the VQ forum for advice or to complain when their parts made X-brand gun not function?
Rick nailed it.
Rick nailed it.
SGW Gunsmith
Blackhawk
Interesting! One of my first "suggestions" to those who purchase a new Ruger Mark pistol, and this goes back to when the Ruger Mark II arrived on the scene back in 1982, is to exercise the new springs until they develop their "working set", or length. Then they ask, "well, how many rounds does that take?". Unfortunately, there's no specific number of rounds involved, but normally, all things will function much better after 400 to 600 rounds like CCI Mini-Mags have gotten the hammer spring, recoil assembly spring and firing pin rebound spring "set" properly.
I have encountered a few instances where the left end of the hammer bushing was slightly rubbing against the inside face of the safety plate. There can be some warping of that safety plate when the thumb button is welded in place. That's easily remedied by a few swipes of a smooth cut file on the left end of the replacement hammer bushing.
I have encountered a few instances where the left end of the hammer bushing was slightly rubbing against the inside face of the safety plate. There can be some warping of that safety plate when the thumb button is welded in place. That's easily remedied by a few swipes of a smooth cut file on the left end of the replacement hammer bushing.
While I agree with most of the suggested fixes, it seems that Volquartsen is aware of the firing pin issue (light strikes) and have notified my shop of the fix, (one of their Sure fire Firing pins) Putting many rounds through the Ruger is in fact a great idea, but with so many light strikes and resulting Failure to fire, it is really not a practical option. I believe taking it back to my shop was and is a good option right now. Should the Surefire Firing pin not do the job, then I, along with my dealer will find another option. I really like the look of the Mark IV Hunter and will do what is necessary, along with my dealer and Volquartsen to fix the issue. Had Ruger, in my and others opinion, shipped the Mark series with good trigger parts, this problem would never have reared it's ugly head. Just my opinion.
I installed the volquartsen firing pin and extractor and fired over 150 rounds using the same ammo I had issues with using the factory firing pin. I had 1 failure to fire and I hit it twice so I am assuming it was a dud. Other than that I had 0 issues. I went from 50% FTF to 0% with only changing the firing pin. I purchased another Ruger lite and the firing pin has the same profile as my other lite. I have the accurizing kit and firing pin on order.
It does seem that with the Volquartsen Sure fire Fireing pin that the MarK series guns now do function very well with the Volquartsen Trigger Kits installed. Maybe they should include it in the kits. Thank you br6ad for the update. When I talk with my shop tomorrow (CLOSED TODAY) I will mention this result.
jstanfield103
Blackhawk
I am no expert,
But here is my thought. I believe the Volquartsen hammer is to light for consistent strikes. I put all Volquartsen parts in my Mark IV except the hammer, I used the factory hammer with the Tandemkross blast shield. I like the trigger pull, and the weight of the factory hammer I believe gives it what the firing pin needs for good ignition.
I have not put a lot through it, so jury still out for a couple more weeks.
But here is my thought. I believe the Volquartsen hammer is to light for consistent strikes. I put all Volquartsen parts in my Mark IV except the hammer, I used the factory hammer with the Tandemkross blast shield. I like the trigger pull, and the weight of the factory hammer I believe gives it what the firing pin needs for good ignition.
I have not put a lot through it, so jury still out for a couple more weeks.
Thank you all for your comments and suggestions. My shop, along with Volquartsen, have installed the Volquartsen firing pin and returned the Mark IV to me. I have not yet been able to get to the range to test, but in talking with many people, it does appear that this is one of the best solutions. As explained to me, the Ruger firing pin has a hole in it to lighten the whole gun. This may be the whole problem with the light strikes. Testing later will confirm this theory. More later.
Well, I finally got to the range to test the new firing pin. As my shop (gunsmith explained) it, the original Ruger firing pin has a hole in it that helps to lighten the whole gun but as a result, with the Volquartsen trigger parts makes for many light strikes on the rim fire ammo. With the Surefire Firing Pin (without the hole)installed, it appears my troubles are now corrected. Many thanks to Volquartsen for stepping up and also to my dealer FSGuns for following up. Oh, results were at the range that all the light strikes fired without a problem and 150 more rounds were sent down range without any problems. All is finally good.
recumbent
Buckeye
What VQ charges for their accurizing MKIV kit they should include the firing pin.
You can also use MKII or MKIII firing pin they work judt fine in the MKIV. The MKIV FP is the only one with the extra hole to make it lighter.
You can also use MKII or MKIII firing pin they work judt fine in the MKIV. The MKIV FP is the only one with the extra hole to make it lighter.
recumbent
Buckeye
That's why you just buy a mkIi or III firing pin only. Lots of places sell them.
After putting many 100s of rounds down range, I can now say that my Mark IV works as intended, and very well. If I could shoot as well as the gun, I would be very happy. This is an excellent target/vermin gun and the breakdown for cleaning is super easy. The Volquartsen trigger and firing pin only add to the pleasure of shooting the Mark IV.
Rick Courtright
Hawkeye
teuthis said:
Hi,
I don't suppose the discussion of "leave it factory" vs "put other people's parts in" will ever end, whatever the subject item is: cars, motorcycles, guns, and on and on. I do know, however, what my old gunsmith boss' position on such things was, and we got a lot of Rugers into our shop. Standing joke was "Rugers are kit guns, so buy one, bring it to us, and we'll finish it for you." Anyway, his idea about trigger jobs was "Take that thing out, put a couple thousand rounds thru it, then decide what it 'needs' or you want to have done." He was a Smith guy, and told new S&W owners the same thing, especially when they had a brand new one that "just wasn't as smooth as that pre-war gun I inherited from my Dad." "Go put that 25,000 rounds thru your new gun that Dad's had thru several years of bullseye competition (or whatever) and get back to me on that comment!"
Somehow, I think the engineers at Ruger have generally done their jobs. They spec certain spring rates, and do other things along the way, knowing how things will settle in and wear much better than any of us do, as well as provide certain leeway for production tolerances, wear and user safety. The problem's not so much at their end, but in the production area. I find it hard to believe any engineer worth his salt would ever turn out a blueprint anywhere near as sloppy as the parts a stressed out production mgr might overlook while trying to make his deadline even though one of the machines needed repair/adjustment and won't turn out good parts until it gets some massaging. Another favorite saying around our shop was "Ruger's designed a lot of good guns. They just haven't made one of them yet." Those two sayings were at the "Grandma's in the room, watch your language" end of the many they had involving Ruger's QC.
Now, to give equal time to the "I'm gonna change this..." mentality: that can be a situation where the engineer had to come up with something "in the middle" which works for pretty much all the market, whereas the particular owner wants it to work best at one particular edge of the envelope and won't be subjecting the item (gun in this case) to some of the other tests the "commercial" version needs to be able to pass. That's legit, but, as we see so often, needs some shaking out to get to what works best.
So whichever path one chooses, carry on!
Rick C
