Polishing SP101

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jpb in me

Single-Sixer
Joined
Dec 18, 2009
Messages
212
Location
Maine woods
rob from what I've read ruger requires you to send them your firearm so they can replace the hammer. They keep your old hammer. It makes no sense to me. Its such an easy hammer to take off and replace. I too would love to have both. I have a friend who manages a machine shop, am going to look into having him make me one. If it works I'll sell you one :D
 

sebtool

Blackhawk
Joined
Oct 3, 2009
Messages
678
Location
Mo - south of STL
jpb in me":3bfdsnmq said:
rob from what I've read ruger requires you to send them your firearm so they can replace the hammer. They keep your old hammer. It makes no sense to me. Its such an easy hammer to take off and replace. I too would love to have both. I have a friend who manages a machine shop, am going to look into having him make me one. If it works I'll sell you one :D

If they've got a wire edm it may not be too bad. Depends on the management's attitude, too. Good luck.

Just for grins I pulled up Numrich Arm's schematic, andthey had the 'spurless hammer assembly' all the way at the bottom for $13.70, but it's sold out. Might be worth checking with them. They do note that it's normally factory fitted, fwiw.
 

QB

Single-Sixer
Joined
Sep 20, 2008
Messages
386
Location
Carrollton, TX
jpb in me":utnf7a5y said:
IMG_0112-1.jpg

Those are beautiful grip panels. Do you mind telling me where you purchased those? I'd like to see if they still have some....I just love the grain and color.

Thanks
 

jpb in me

Single-Sixer
Joined
Dec 18, 2009
Messages
212
Location
Maine woods
QB, i found those grip panels totally by chance from a guy that had never used them. Paid a whopping $15 for them. :D
 

Flash

Buckeye
Joined
May 21, 2005
Messages
1,164
Location
Pennsylvania, USA
Jimbo357mag":1nymypkv said:
Here is a really nice polish job by Flash.

FlashSP101.jpg


...and I found this about polishing Ruger stainless revolvers after doing a search. I'm sure the process would also work for re-blue prep.

Polishing Stainless Steel

You'll need a well lit area to work. A work bench would be a good area. You'll want a comfortable chair because the process takes quite a while. You'll need to set aside some time and be patient. It's not an easy process, but the rewards are worth it.

A couple warnings before you get started. It's probably NOT a good idea to sand or polish the front of the cylinder or the rear of the barrel by the forcing cone. The width of the gap between the cylinder and the barrel is critical to the proper operation of the revolver. Sanding or polishing these areas will increase the gap and may adversely affect the operation of your revolver. Be gentle with the cylinder when it's flipped out. Applying too much pressure could loosen the cylinder (I didn't have this problem). I recommend removing the grips before you get started.

Where to start… First you need to judge the depth of the existing scratches in the steel. This will help you decide what grit sand paper to start with. Deeper scratches will require a lower grit sand paper. Unfortunately this requires some experience. If you don't have any experience, then you'll have to make an educated guess. On my new Ruger GP-100 revolver I started with 800 grit sandpaper. Some of the scratches were pretty stubborn and I probably should have started with 400 or 600 grit.

You'll want to start wit the lowest grit sandpaper and work up to 1500 or 2000 grit. I've heard that generally you should double the grit every time you switch sandpaper, but investing a little extra time and sandpaper with intermediate grit papers will probably produce a better final surface. I used 800, 1000, 1500 and 2000 grit paper.

Find the areas with the deepest scratches and begin to sand them out. Tear off a small piece of sandpaper. Smaller pieces will make it easier to get in the smaller areas. Larger pieces are better for the larger, flat areas. Use a circular motion with light pressure. Periodically switch to a back and forth motion with quick, light strokes. This will clean up the area so you can check your progress.

The sandpaper will periodically load up (small particles made of metal powder will build up on the sandpaper). When the paper gets loaded up its ability to cut the metal is greatly reduced. This can be used to our advantage. When the paper begins to load up, switch to quick, light strokes in a back and forth motion. This will polish the area much nicer than a new piece of paper because the paper won't be cutting nearly as deep. After the paper is loaded up, it's best to get a new piece.

After a few minutes the original scratches should begin to disappear. When the scratches are gone, finish the area with quick, light strokes in a back and forth motion. This should leave the area without any scratches and a dull shine.

If the original scratches aren't coming out after sanding for a while you may need to start over with a lower grit sandpaper. Alternatively you can just continue to sand, eventually the scratches will come out.

Moving on… When those deeper scratches are all sanded out, your surface should be left with a dull shine. Now switch to the next higher grit paper and repeat the same procedure until you reach 1500 or 2000 grit sandpaper. Before switching sandpaper check and make sure there are no scratches left in the surface (other than the ones made by the sandpaper of course). Don't rely on the next grit sandpaper to take out the smaller scratches. Don't move onto the next grit until all the scratches are completely out. Those little scratches will become more and more visible as you move to smaller grits. Don't rely on the polishing paste to magically remove scratches. The polishing paste is not made to remove scratches, just to remove the haze and produce that mirror shine. When you start a higher grit, your basically sanding down the scratches you made with the pervious grit sandpaper. Sanding perpendicular to the previous grit will help you see when all the previous scratches are gone.

By the time you reach the 1500 or 2000 grit paper, the surface should almost have a mirror finish. Remember the polishing cream is just meant to take the haze out.

After you finish your highest grit sandpaper it's time to switch to the polishing paste or liquid. Get your electric drill, attach the buffing wheel, apply a little polishing paste to the surface of your steel and begin to buff. It only takes a little bit of polish, especially after the first time using the buffing wheel. Use light pressure and moderate speeds. It's best to use an assortment of buffing wheels that will help you get into all the smaller spaces. Start with the tighter woven wheels and buff the entire surface a few times. Next switch to the looser wheels and repeat the process.

After buffing you should have a mirror shine. If you find a scratch or a dull spot then you'll need to go back to the sandpaper and sand them out. For scratches start with lower grit papers and work back up to higher grits and then buff. For dull spots try the 1500 or 2000 grit paper with light pressure, then buff again.

...Jimbo
Thanks Jimbo.
I used the silicon carbide paper to smooth out the mill marks. The warning was filed off with slow strokes while carefully following the contour of the barrel, then followed up with a 180 grit flap wheel. I then used two buffing wheels on a motor that puts out 1750 rpm. One wheel using gray rouge and the other using green. I get my supplies from this store in Gettysburg. http://www.supergrit.com/ This store has the most complete supply of grinding and polishing media and tools, that I've ever seen in one place. The gray rouge will cut pretty quick so go slow. I polished and then wiped the area with a clean rag to see the results. In some cases where Ruger's grinding was rough, it took a few tries with the gray until the area was smooth but once the whole gun was smooth, then the green is used. With this rouge, I could really bear down against the wheel to get that mirror look but keep in mind, the edges can get rounded so be conscious of how you're polishing and.......Good Luck.
 

Rob1109

Bearcat
Joined
Dec 22, 2009
Messages
25
Location
United States
sebtool":2u95u0j3 said:
jpb in me":2u95u0j3 said:
rob from what I've read ruger requires you to send them your firearm so they can replace the hammer. They keep your old hammer. It makes no sense to me. Its such an easy hammer to take off and replace. I too would love to have both. I have a friend who manages a machine shop, am going to look into having him make me one. If it works I'll sell you one :D

If they've got a wire edm it may not be too bad. Depends on the management's attitude, too. Good luck.

Just for grins I pulled up Numrich Arm's schematic, andthey had the 'spurless hammer assembly' all the way at the bottom for $13.70, but it's sold out. Might be worth checking with them. They do note that it's normally factory fitted, fwiw.

If the triggers are "factory fitted" then are they "in the rough" somehow when produced? Would they require that much hand finishing to make them fit? Just wondering.......any thoughts from anyone?
 

Flash

Buckeye
Joined
May 21, 2005
Messages
1,164
Location
Pennsylvania, USA
Rob1109":3e6p4fuz said:
sebtool":3e6p4fuz said:
jpb in me":3e6p4fuz said:
rob from what I've read ruger requires you to send them your firearm so they can replace the hammer. They keep your old hammer. It makes no sense to me. Its such an easy hammer to take off and replace. I too would love to have both. I have a friend who manages a machine shop, am going to look into having him make me one. If it works I'll sell you one :D

If they've got a wire edm it may not be too bad. Depends on the management's attitude, too. Good luck.

Just for grins I pulled up Numrich Arm's schematic, andthey had the 'spurless hammer assembly' all the way at the bottom for $13.70, but it's sold out. Might be worth checking with them. They do note that it's normally factory fitted, fwiw.


If the triggers are "factory fitted" then are they "in the rough" somehow when produced? Would they require that much hand finishing to make them fit? Just wondering.......any thoughts from anyone?
Ruger requires that the hammer and trigger be factory fitted because if it's done wrong(by the owner) and the gun accidentially discharges when Ruger supplied the part, they will be liable. Since they're fitted in house, Ruger has the documentation to state that the fitting was done in accordance with factory safety standards. I disassembled my SP-101 down to every screw and pin and there is nothing that was cast in the rough that required much fitting. Some holes are reamed for a smoother bearing surface but other than that, it goes together like a Lego set and in the condition it's cast in. I swapped parts just for the hell of it, since I have a few SP's and they all fit together like the Blackhawk parts do. Ruger is just playing a good game of CYA.
 

Rob1109

Bearcat
Joined
Dec 22, 2009
Messages
25
Location
United States
Flash":2fmvu0nm said:
Rob1109":2fmvu0nm said:
sebtool":2fmvu0nm said:
jpb in me":2fmvu0nm said:
rob from what I've read ruger requires you to send them your firearm so they can replace the hammer. They keep your old hammer. It makes no sense to me. Its such an easy hammer to take off and replace. I too would love to have both. I have a friend who manages a machine shop, am going to look into having him make me one. If it works I'll sell you one :D

If they've got a wire edm it may not be too bad. Depends on the management's attitude, too. Good luck.

Just for grins I pulled up Numrich Arm's schematic, andthey had the 'spurless hammer assembly' all the way at the bottom for $13.70, but it's sold out. Might be worth checking with them. They do note that it's normally factory fitted, fwiw.


If the triggers are "factory fitted" then are they "in the rough" somehow when produced? Would they require that much hand finishing to make them fit? Just wondering.......any thoughts from anyone?
Ruger requires that the hammer and trigger be factory fitted because if it's done wrong(by the owner) and the gun accidentially discharges when Ruger supplied the part, they will be liable. Since they're fitted in house, Ruger has the documentation to state that the fitting was done in accordance with factory safety standards. I disassembled my SP-101 down to every screw and pin and there is nothing that was cast in the rough that required much fitting. Some holes are reamed for a smoother bearing surface but other than that, it goes together like a Lego set and in the condition it's cast in. I swapped parts just for the hell of it, since I have a few SP's and they all fit together like the Blackhawk parts do. Ruger is just playing a good game of CYA.

For the cost of the bobbed hammer ~$13.50 I will try a drop-in (if I can find one) and if it doesn't work I'm not out enough to matter. Thanks for your good info....
 

azrugershooter

Single-Sixer
Joined
Feb 10, 2009
Messages
147
This wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I think a little sanding before hand would make it a little smoother finish but IMO it's not bad for being bored and speeding an hour with a buffing wheel.

Speedsixproject002.jpg


Speedsixproject001.jpg
 

azrugershooter

Single-Sixer
Joined
Feb 10, 2009
Messages
147
Thanks Flash I like your Sec six as well. But this is addicted........
beforeandafterbuffing.jpg

This is a week of sanding and then the buffing wheel just to have it reblued! :D I know the pic quality sucks! The top one really looks much better than the bottom.
 

azrugershooter

Single-Sixer
Joined
Feb 10, 2009
Messages
147
Nice Flash. I like that 5 1/2 SBH. Is that a hunter grip frame? I have a friend that wants me to turn his 10 1/2" SBH stainless into a polished gun. He kicks himself for not buying a factory gun when Ruger made them?
 
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