Ruger MK iii

[aWoods]

I bought a Ruger mk iii a few months ago, and I think I've just about broken it in with 500 rounds.

What should I know about my Ruger mk iii?

I see a lot of products for this gun. Grips, speed strip kits, volquartzen parts, etc.

Also, what are the advantages of removing the Loaded Chamber Indicator? Is there a guide to do this?

 

[rooger]

You should know there are many opinions and suggestions about the MK III and you will have to make your decisions based on your wants and needs. If your MK III is not prone to jamming or stovepipes, then don't touch the LCI or extractor. It's old advice but still true with the MK III, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Some owners have trouble and some don't. On my first trips to the range, I had frequent stovepipes so I sent the gun right back to Ruger. They returned it quickly after working on the receiver and extractor. I still had a few stovepipes so I removed the LCI. Following advice at this forum, I tried different brands of ammo. Now I'm shooting Federal bulk hollowpoints and I get a stovepipe about 1 in 200 rounds...not perfect, but acceptable.
You will find much good information on cleaning and disassembly/reassembly here and also on You Tube. I hope you enjoy your MK III. The fine folks who post at this forum have made it possible for me to enjoy my MK III as much as I do! Frankly, I would have been up S___t Creek without their advice.

 

[Sitting Duck]

Please forgive my ignorance (I'm a total noob) but what is a stovepipe?

Thx,

SD

 

[contender]

For sitting duck; A stovepipe is where a fired case doesn't clear the semi-auto action completely before the bolt moves forward again, catching the empty brass inbetween the bolt & the frame. Usually the open end of the case is sticking up, looking like a "stovepipe" out the side of the action.

On the MKIII; Good advice above. "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

 

[Sitting Duck]

Thx for the info contender

 

[Wobble]

I'll second the advice, "If it ain't broke, ....." I'll also add, although some might disagree, that there is no need to break it down and clean it before you fire it, or even after you fire it. If you feel the need, clean the chamber, bore, and bolt with a little Breakfree CLP and lightly lube. The MarkIII is an amazing gun and doesn't need to be babied.

If you experience jams and stovepipes, try the following solutions, in the following order: 1) try different ammo, 2) try the well-known magazine tweak (rounding off rear tabs), 3) remove LCI tab, 4) remove entire LCI, 5) buy VQ extractor replacement, and 6) send gun back to Ruger. Hopefully, none of these will be required. Mine was problem-free from the beginning.

 

[aWoods]

Thanks All,

The only issue I have experienced with my MarkIII is failure to load Remington golden bullets, they jam on the feedramp, but I think everyone gets that. I don't think removing the LCI will fix it.

 

[BuckJM53]

I bought a Ruger mk iii a few months ago, and I think I've just about broken it in with 500 rounds. What should I know about my Ruger mk iii? I see a lot of products for this gun. Grips, speed strip kits, volquartzen parts, etc. Also, what are the advantages of removing the Loaded Chamber Indicator? Is there a guide to do this?

aWoods ... First of all congrats on your new MKIII. Secondly, in answer to your questions, I would suggest the following:

1. Contrary to the suggestions of some on the forum, I would recommend that you learn how to properly field strip your MKIII. It is truely a simple process once you get the hang of it (a speed strip kit is not necessary). The following link gives you an easy step by step procedure http://guntalk-online.com/fsprocedures.htm (IMHO, I would never own a gun that I could not maintain properly).

2. With over 30,000 rounds through my MKIII512, the only modifications that I have personally found useful to improve function are:
* Changing to a VQ exact edge extractor
* Modifying the rear lips of the magazines ( http://xavierthoughts.blogspot.com/2008 ... tweak.html )

3. Before you go to the expense of changing out the trigger, I would suggest that you see how accurate you can be with the stock trigger (when I first got my MKIII, I intended to change the trigger, but I like the stock trigger so well that I decided to leave it alone).

4. I would not recommend removal of the LCI or magazine disconnect. While some here do not like these safety features, I have never had an issue with either one.

5. Once you get the hang of the stock sights, you may want to add a red dot sight or a scope. I find the red dot useful for up to about 50' and use a 2x scope for extended distances.

Good luck with your new MKIII and enjoy the heck out of it (it is truely a fun gun) :wink:

 

[blume357]

The only things I've done to mine was put high visibility fiber optic sights on it and buy 8 more magazines.

 

[DarkStarCrossed]

I picked up 2 MKIII's 3 weeks ago, a 4.5" fluted blued Hunter and a 5.5" blued bull barrel both new.

The first range trip was disappointing, I couldn't get through a single magazine without a stovepipe on either of the MKIII's. Once back home I did the magazine modification on all 10 magazines. The next range trip was better, I was still having stovepipes, moreso with the Hunter than the bull barrel but there was improvement. The Hunter every 15 rounds or so, the bull every 25 rounds or so.

Again back home I removed the LCI's on both. I took them back to the range again the next morning and ran 500 rounds through each flawlessly...

I do agree with the notion 'if it's not broke, don't fix it' but sometimes you find you've got yourself one of the 'broke' ones...

 

[Shoot44]

Thanks All,
The only issue I have experienced with my MarkIII is failure to load Remington golden bullets, they jam on the feedramp, but I think everyone gets that. I don't think removing the LCI will fix it.

This is a good example of the fact that every gun is a bit different. Until recently, the ONLY ammo I used was the Rem GB's!! NEVER had a failure of any kind with it!

Recently, however, I shot in a couple of impromptu matches. I had a 4x Weaver Classic scope on it, and tried a few different kinds of "match" ammo to see if it mattered. BOY, DID IT!!! I had a few rounds of CCI "Green Tag" stuff, and I easily put 4 of 5 rounds in a single hole at 50' with it. Could NEVER do that with any other ammo I had shot. Problem is that I can't find it locally, and it now goes for $75/Brick online!!!!
Then I switched to a red dot sight I had lying around, just for grins, and shot a local club "fun" match. Again, I tried several different ammo kinds, and found that the Federal "lightning" stuff (all that WalMart had at the time), and Rem Thunderbolts, also shot very well in it. So I went with the Federals, and tied for first place at 10 yards. And I am NOT that good a shot!

So, it seems that my particular MKIII likes the full 40 grain slugs at somewhat higher velocity. But, they are - really - all a bit different, and you have to try the various stuff to see which works best.

As to cleaning/stripping, it is surely the most difficult pistol I own. But NOT impossible. Best advice: READ THE MANUAL!!! If you follow it PRECISELY, you will succeed. Not easy, but doable. I only do a strip-clean maybe once a year. For the rest, just clean the bore, and spray the action. That's all it really needs, if that!

I really like my MKIII, and hope you enjoy yours as much as I do mine.

 

[aWoods]

I disassembled my mk iii several times in a row to ensure that it is not a problem. =)

Thanks all for the additional info.