Ruger O/U probelms

Larry J

Larry J

Active member
I've got an older 20ga red label. It hasn't been used for about a year, until yesterday. Pulled the trigger and nothing happened. yep, the safety was off. I emptied the gun and tried to dry fire, but it would only fire half-way. The pin sounded like it fired, but that's unclear. The second barrell won't fire and the trigger is stuck in the fired position. The gun won't open. The safety/barrell selector won't budge. I suspect the pins might be frozen/rusted in place, or maybe a spring is broken. Any sugestions on how to open it, other than rapping on it. i'd like to at least have a look before taking it to a gunsmith. thanks.
 
Yep. I'd pull the stock off and the forend - burn those for firewood and recycle the metal.

T
 
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If you are going to take it in to a smith anyway, just leave it alone. You might end up doing more damage than is already done. Maybe the gunsmith will let you watch as he takes it apart.
 
Okay, I feel better now. You can pull the stock easily to get at the guts, two recoil pad screws and a bolt in the stock. You should be able to see everything. One warning is that they are very specific as to the torque on the stock bolt, so look that up before you reinstall.

If it is unloaded, I'd just send it to Ruger - by shipping it to them you have the added bonus of the chance of it being lost or destroyed in shipping.

T
 
Todd,

After removing the stock, I managed to open the action. The pins move and there are no obvious broken parts, it just won't fire. Any thoughs?
 
Todd,

After removing the stock, I managed to open the action. The pins move and there are no obvious broken parts, it just won't fire. Any thoughs?
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If you have a torch you could try cutting it into several pieces, otherwise I don't have any suggestions other than sending it to Ruger for them to deal with.

T
 
I'm trying to figure out if your just not a ruger fan or actually have first hand experience and know that it can't be fixed.
 
Larry,

I have no idea what is wrong with that particular gun. I own one Red Label and I'll own it forever because I would never wish that horrible thing on anyone else, so if I keep it I've spared someone the trouble. So, you can count me as not a fan of Red Labels, but Ruger does make some fine centerfires.

I would just send it to Ruger, they are used to fixing those horrible things as it seems that just about every one made gets back to the factory at least once. Mine was back 3 if not 4 times.

T
 
I hate to pile on since you aren't getting a lot of helpful advice, but I worked in a gunsmith shop for about year after college and learned that red labels have a lot of problems. If I recall correctly, my boss would work on them if they didn't need parts, but Ruger won't ship parts, so most of the time the gun just goes to the factory.

It's too bad they have that reputation since they are the only american made o/u that's affordable to the common person. I like the look, and would otherwise be interested in a 20 or 28.

NR
 
thanks guys. i'll talk to the factory. it's an old gun that i bought at a show nearly 20 yrs ago. might just be time for a new one.
 
Sounds like WD40 moment. Buy a case......Some one on here recommended it. Its like duck tape can be used on every thing.
 
Larry,
Like my friend Scott I own one too. And it pains me to say that it has been home to new hampshire as well. However, never because of a malfunction. I dropped mine and broke the stock.
I will say I think that most owners have a good run with their gun and I like mine.
The folks at the factory are very good and I would call monday and get it on its way. The 20 is a very nice gun when it comes to feel and handling.
 
Larry,
Like my friend Scott I own one too. And it pains me to say that it has been home to new hampshire as well. However, never because of a malfunction. I dropped mine and broke the stock.
I will say I think that most owners have a good run with their gun and I like mine.
The folks at the factory are very good and I would call monday and get it on its way. The 20 is a very nice gun when it comes to feel and handling.
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Bob,

I'd add that the stock to action junction is poorly designed as well, making for broken stocks. Mine failed too without ever being dropped - in fact mine failed at Ruger (gee, I wonder how that happened) and was replaced by them.

They are good with service, I had the gun rebarreled, safety spring fixed twice, new stock, ejectors tuned and locking lugs honed before I gave up. I will say that every single person I've talked to face-to-face who has owned one for more than a year has sent theirs back at least once and that is 5-6 people. Taking a bigger sample, I'd guess 1/4 -1/2 have had a problem - not very good odds for a gun marketed as a "prestige" gun. I once heard of a guy that had a buddy that had an uncle that had a Citori malfunction :).

I bought the gun in my youth with stars in my eyes about it being American made. Shoots well enough.

You been getting out?

T
 
I too have a Red Label but mine is in 28 and I absolutely love it. Quality appears to be fine, as I use it for everything but ducks, turkeys and crows. That means dove, quail, occasional pheasant, rabbit and lately even sporting clays. I love the feel of it due to its weight as well as I believe they call it an english stock and the drop at comb (?). Anyway, the fit and feel of this gun is far superior for me than the Citori I have. Overall quality may not be as good but I have heard that Rugers service is second to none. I'd send it in, they should go through the whole gun. Good Luck.
 
I had a 12 ga. Citori but didn't like it for duck hunting so I traded it in on a Red Label Sporting Clays model about fifteen years ago. I love that gun and have always hit well with it. Nice wood and it fits well in my hand, but a little heavy for upland where I use my 20 ga. Winchester 101. The only problem I've had with my Ruger was the safety detent spring weaknd after about 14 years and thousands of shots. It got to where recoil would put the gun back on safe after the first shot. My gunsmith was able to get a spring and fix the problem.

Now after sticking up for the Ruger Red Label with my actual hunting experience I have to relay my gunsmith's opinion that inside the Ruger not at all elegant, lots of cheap cast metal parts that seems to work well from an engineering standpoint but offend him from a traditional gunsmith standpoint. He much prefers the insides of a Citori or Win 101 over the Ruger design. To summarize I like my gun for looks and function, but looking inside the gun is a bit like watching sausage being made.

John
 
Larry,
Like my friend Scott I own one too. And it pains me to say that it has been home to new hampshire as well. However, never because of a malfunction. I dropped mine and broke the stock.
I will say I think that most owners have a good run with their gun and I like mine.
The folks at the factory are very good and I would call monday and get it on its way. The 20 is a very nice gun when it comes to feel and handling.
Click to expand...


Bob,

I'd add that the stock to action junction is poorly designed as well, making for broken stocks. Mine failed too without ever being dropped - in fact mine failed at Ruger (gee, I wonder how that happened) and was replaced by them.

They are good with service, I had the gun rebarreled, safety spring fixed twice, new stock, ejectors tuned and locking lugs honed before I gave up. I will say that every single person I've talked to face-to-face who has owned one for more than a year has sent theirs back at least once and that is 5-6 people. Taking a bigger sample, I'd guess 1/4 -1/2 have had a problem - not very good odds for a gun marketed as a "prestige" gun. I once heard of a guy that had a buddy that had an uncle that had a Citori malfunction :).

I bought the gun in my youth with stars in my eyes about it being American made. Shoots well enough.

You been getting out?

T
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My Citori failed to fire twice in cold weather right after I moved to Montana 18 years ago. It might have been something as simple as too heavy a lubricant for our cold weather, but I lost faith in the gun and not knowing Ruger's reputation I traded it for a Red Label. Ignorance is bliss as I have very much liked that Red Label over that Citori, one thing being the shape of the receiver, both are bulky in 12 ga, but the RR is a lot sleeker in my hand.

John
 
I had a 12 ga. Citori but didn't like it for duck hunting so I traded it in on a Red Label Sporting Clays model about fifteen years ago. I love that gun and have always hit well with it. Nice wood and it fits well in my hand, but a little heavy for upland where I use my 20 ga. Winchester 101. The only problem I've had with my Ruger was the safety detent spring weaknd after about 14 years and thousands of shots. It got to where recoil would put the gun back on safe after the first shot. My gunsmith was able to get a spring and fix the problem.

Now after sticking up for the Ruger Red Label with my actual hunting experience I have to relay my gunsmith's opinion that inside the Ruger not at all elegant, lots of cheap cast metal parts that seems to work well from an engineering standpoint but offend him from a traditional gunsmith standpoint. He much prefers the insides of a Citori or Win 101 over the Ruger design. To summarize I like my gun for looks and function, but looking inside the gun is a bit like watching sausage being made.

John
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Yeah, the safety spring is a classic Red Label malfunction. I had mine back to them twice for that. I was just joking on the Citori - we are able to break everything out there.

My main problem is that the action shot loose on mine, real loose, as in hold the gun horizontal and turn it side-to-side and you can feel it flop. They rebarreled it and after a thousand or so rounds it was loose again, they tweaked the action and told me it was to "spec" and bid me farewell with a new stock that didn't match the forend in color or finish (but did offer that I could buy a new forend for $80 when the stock was not broken when I sent it to them).
 
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Like I said, ignorance is bliss as I have been happy with this gun since I got it back in 1994. In my case after almost 14 years, I don't feel the safety spring wearing out was out of line, but had it happened earlier, or multiple times like you experienced I would have been upset. My gun is still tight.

My Ruger is pretty much my go-to gun for duck hunting except when I use my Dad's 870 for nostalgic reasons, I hit better with the Ruger though. I guess now after reading these post, I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop.

John
 
Like I said, ignorance is bliss as I have been happy with this gun since I got it back in 1994. In my case after almost 14 years, I don't feel the safety spring wearing out was out of line, but had it happened earlier, or multiple times like you experienced I would have been upset. My gun is still tight.

My Ruger is pretty much my go-to gun for duck hunting except when I use my Dad's 870 for nostalgic reasons, I hit better with the Ruger though. I guess now after reading these post, I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop.

John
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Sorry about that. I think my gun was pretty loose from the beginning - and I surely had more trouble than most. The best solution is a pair of red labels and maybe a couple Berettas as backups.

T
 
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