Slick up a Heritage

[thedogdidit]

I have a Heritage that has the action of an MRE turd. Absolute junker. Wasn't quite that bad when I bought it though. Just curious, has anyone taken the time to slick up the action on one? If so, is there a substantially noticeable differece? I am going to do it just for practice, but curious if anyone has done this

 

[41Dude]

Maybe first try something like gunscrubber spray cleaner then a small dose of Break-Free CLP (or your favorite lube)
You would be surprised how little an amount of grit will kill the feel of your action.
If you have already done that I offer no other ideas. I am not familiar with Heritage innards.
Good luck.

 

[krw]

My Dad bought a Mule once. Tried to put it on track at Salisaw. That didnt work either

 

[41Dude]

Good morning. I am surprised with the lack of input.

 

[contender]

I think the lack of input is due to a few things.
(1) This is a Ruger Forum, not a Heritage forum.
(2) Many here may have a Heritage,, but most don't tinker with the innards of any gun.
(3) Due to the many various ways a Heritage is build,,including the types of steel or other materials,, many may feel it's just not worth it to try & "gunsmith" the action.

The idea of a good internal cleaning MIGHT help,, but I have zero experience with the internals of a Heritage. I've never owned one, took one apart, or anything like that. But the ones I have handled,, or shot,, have never impressed me when compared to my Rugers. I'm sure I could figure out how to get into one & work the action,, because I do get into some of my Rugers. But a good internal cleaning has never hurt a gun.

 

[GasGuzzler]

No offense but it's a throw away gun to many people therefore not much in the way of aftermarket support. Someone with the skill to slick it up likely doesn't buy one in the first place. They are surely fine for the price point and as mentioned, several members here at Ruger Forum have one and like them.

 

[Mike J]

Maybe first try something like gunscrubber spray cleaner then a small dose of Break-Free CLP (or your favorite lube)
You would be surprised how little an amount of grit will kill the feel of your action.
If you have already done that I offer no other ideas. I am not familiar with Heritage innards.
Good luck.

I think 41 Dude has the right idea. I notice in your original post that you say the action felt better when you first bought the revolver than it does now. That is surprising. Usually triggers get better with use not worse. A good cleaning or detail strip, clean & lube might make a big difference. I believe there are videos online showing how to disassemble & reassemble. If I did disassemble it I would inspect the parts for wear/breakage. There is a good chance that hosing it out & applying lubricant could make a big difference.
The trigger pull on the Heritage I had was decent but it was older. They are owned by Taurus now I think. I plinked a lot with the one I had. I sold it because there was something else I wanted more.

 

[BULL'S-EYE]

Try giving it a good cleaning, if that doesn't help pull it apart and examine the action parts. If any are damaged, there's plenty of replacement parts available on the Heritage website...

Parts & Maintenance - Shop Heritage Mfg

All the parts, tools, & supplies for proper cleaning & maintenance or replacement of worn components of your Heritage revolvers.

shopheritagemfg.com

 

[NC FNS]

I've got a Heritage that will be donated to my "learn how to be a gunsmith" project. Others I've handled are nice, but this one was misaligned when assembled, and the hammer catches the frame a bit, resulting in failure to fire quite often.

 

[wheelgun1958]

This is the heritage I thought of.

No, it's not mine.

 

[peachhead]

This is the heritage I thought of.

No, it's not mine.

I'll trade ya

I have a heritage. I've never been inside of it, never thought about trying to slick it up because I just ain't that fond of it.
Then again, I never put a lot of work into a wrangler either. But I might one of these days.

 

[protoolman]

I'm going to slick up a heritage right after I send my Hi-Point 9mm to Bill Wilson . A Ruger Wrangler is twice the gun to start with and I won't be gunsmithing much on that either.

 

[gnappi]

I have a Heritage that has the action of an MRE turd. Absolute junker. Wasn't quite that bad when I bought it though. Just curious, has anyone taken the time to slick up the action on one? If so, is there a substantially noticeable differece? I am going to do it just for practice, but curious if anyone has done this

Pay no attention to the goofing on your gun, everyone starts somewhere.

 

[Kevin]

I have never handled a Heritage, so I can't comment on the action at all.

But do people still squirt toothpaste up into the action of a gun and then dry fire it and work the action with the toothpaste to slick up the workings? I remember hearing this way back when.

I've never done it and not sure what the toothpaste would do to the finish of the gun.

 

[XUSNORDIE]

I've never done it and not sure what the toothpaste would do to the finish of the gun

Toothpaste is an abrasive. Folks used to use it as a poor mans polish.

When I was first learning how to work on guns, a well known smith from Poway Gun Works handed me a tube of Flitz and said "This is the best there is, just don't brush your chompers with it".

 

[GasGuzzler]

I use toothpaste with baking soda in it as polish frequently. Last used it to remove white golf tee paint marks off a matte black driver I was repairing.

 

[Sam Summey]

As a spectator, my thoughts are, most folks who buy the Heritage product are looking for cheap, looks good (which they do), and have little or no taste in firearms. Besides it has an external "safety" which has to be good.

 

[contender]

^^^^^ ^^^^^

 

[thedogdidit]

Alright folks, I have been busy as a sumbitch lately and haven't had a chance to respond. Yes, I know that a heritage is not a ruger. Nowhere near the quality. Fit, and finish aint there. Im not trying to turn a Chevette into a Corvette, or a Fiero into a Ferrari. So I hope that is out of the way. This Forum is named for our favorite brand but does allow us to ask questions on many brands. Hell, we even get to talk about non gun related subjects as well.....shocking I know.
I have owned the gun for about 3 years now and have def fired 6 rounds through it, possibly 12 but I doubt it. I bought it new at RK on a sale for like 60 bucks. Never knew anything of Heritage at the time. I mainly just cycle cocking mechanics of the trigger/hammer while bored in front of the idiot box.
I have a good collection of many many other fine firearms that I have acquired of too many decades, and know my way in and out of them as if I created them. I have a pretty decent collection of Ruger SA's, but don't know the innards of a revolver. YET.
This was the purpose of the post. Just to simply ask if anyone has done it.

 

[BULL'S-EYE]

Alright folks, I have been busy as a sumbitch lately and haven't had a chance to respond. Yes, I know that a heritage is not a ruger. Nowhere near the quality. Fit, and finish aint there. Im not trying to turn a Chevette into a Corvette, or a Fiero into a Ferrari. So I hope that is out of the way. This Forum is named for our favorite brand but does allow us to ask questions on many brands. Hell, we even get to talk about non gun related subjects as well.....shocking I know.
I have owned the gun for about 3 years now and have def fired 6 rounds through it, possibly 12 but I doubt it. I bought it new at RK on a sale for like 60 bucks. Never knew anything of Heritage at the time. I mainly just cycle cocking mechanics of the trigger/hammer while bored in front of the idiot box.
I have a good collection of many many other fine firearms that I have acquired of too many decades, and know my way in and out of them as if I created them. I have a pretty decent collection of Ruger SA's, but don't know the innards of a revolver. YET.
This was the purpose of the post. Just to simply ask if anyone has done it.

Well said.
NOTHING brings the Gun Snob's out of the woodwork like mentioning Heritage.