Rough Rider out of warranty - Barrel turning by hand

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FrankenMauser

New member
I have never been a fan of the Rough Rider.
Cheap. Cheap. Cheap. Cheap. (And that stupid, ugly, useless, frame-damaging "safety".)
They're just cheap. They have nothing else going for them.
Just today, I learned that the cylinders are 12L14 steel. For those unaware, that means they are free-machining steel that cannot be hardened or tempered. Good enough for .22 LR, sure. But cheap.
Cheap. Cheap. Cheap. Cheap.

I bought one to put my money where my mouth was. And for the jokes.
(I bought three, actually. But that is another story, with very, very few rounds fired.)

Here we are, two months out of warranty, and I found the barrel turning by hand. And I really don't think this thing has seen even 150 rounds.

If the "sights" are aligned, the barrel is loose.
If I tighten the barrel (just a bit past snug) by hand, it is over-clocked and the sights are WAY off.

I submitted a support ticket with some polite but colorful language and sarcastic questions. They emailed for clarification (likely due to sarcasm). They want me to pay for shipping and repairs.**
So, that seems to be shipping and a new frame. I don't know what they want for a new frame (they didn't quote a price), but if it is a price represented by MSRP on complete revolvers, I'll be money ahead by just buying something locally for a frame or replacement.
I am looking at well over $100**, just to send it off for Heritage to charge me for a frame (or more?).

When I bought it, the hammer stuck between half and full cock. It was incapable of firing. The trigger felt like a shovel scraping gravel off of a jagged granite rock face covered in horse dung. The hammer bound up in the frame. The main spring turned out to be too weak (required replacement). The trigger drug on the frame. Two of the screws had stripped heads. And the base pin lock assembly did not actually hold the base pin.
(I had to order this model, as there weren't any in local shops. Otherwise, I would not have bought it.)

It could not be fired when I took possession. But I am an idiot and refuse to let a cheap gun beat me. So, I fixed it.
I had over 14 hours of filing, stoning, and polishing; time and money in main spring, screw, and base pin lock assembly replacement; and well over 1,000 cycles on the action (with spent hulls as snap caps) before it functioned well enough for me to even fire it.

A year later, it has literally shot itself so loose that the barrel is turning by hand.

My mouth is now where my money is.
They are garbage. They will always be garbage.
Rough Riders are garbage.


**Shipping a firearm where I live is not easy. Handguns are massively worse. This is not Heritage's/Taurus's problem from a customer service or business standpoint, so I don't blame them. But it is stupidly expensive for me. We lost our customer service counters for Fedex and UPS several years ago, because we are rural cowpokes and "don't deserve" the finer shipping services that city folk have available. I have to schedule a pickup at my home and be there, waiting for the driver to arrive. On top of already expensive shipping, that is a $38 charge for pickup. (Yes, $38, just for a home pickup.) And I have to waste my day by waiting for the driver to show.
 
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Aguila Blanca

Staff
Considering the cost of shipping it vs. the cost of the gun, I think I would be inclined to buy some green, wicking Loctite (Loctite 290). Set the barrel so the sights are aligned, and apply the Loctite. Let it cure for at least 24 hours before handling the gun or firing it.

The Loctite 290 isn't a high temperature thread locker, but it might work. The alternative would be Loctite 272 (Red). 272 is a high-strength, high-temperature formulation that's rated "permanent" for temperatures up to 450 degrees. It's probably the better product for this application, but it's not a wicking formulation, so you would have to remove the barrel, apply the Loctite, then screw the barrel back in and align it before the thread locker reaches initial set.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
 
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stagpanther

New member
I bought one just for the hey of it--like the rossi lever guns I expect them to be pretty low-grade in manufacturing technique on Taurus's manufacturing totem pole. Mine so far seems to actually shoot--so that's a plus for me.
 
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Sarge

New member
Aguila Blanca said:
Considering the cost of shipping it vs. the cost of the gun, I think I would be inclined to buy some green, wicking Loctite (Loctite 290). Set the barrel so the sights are aligned, and apply the Loctite. Let it cure for at least 24 hours before handling the gun or firing it.

The Loctite 290 isn't a high temperature thread locker, but it might work. The alternative would be Loctite 272 (Red). 272 is a high-strength, high-temperature formulation that's rated "permanent" for temperatures up to 450 degrees. It's probably the better product for this application, but it's not a wicking formulation, so you would have to remove the barrel, apply the Loctite, then screw the barrel back in and align it before the thread locker reaches initial set.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Click to expand...
Beat me to the keyboard, but I'll second that. I used Red to secure the arbor of an 1860 Colt replica I rebuilt 4-5 years ago. That revolver has run 16-18 cylinders of full charges since then, with no problems. I'd use it on that Heritage with complete confidence.

Clean and degrease the barrel and frame threads really well and make sure you have the barrel indexed exactly where you want it.
 
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44 AMP

Staff
Might also be worth the time to check into a very thin "spacer" washer that will allow you a "Crush fit" with the sights properly clocked.

ALONG WITH the locktite!

Hell, on that gun, JB Weld might just be enough.

OR, just get another gun and sell that piece of junk to Numrich for parts. They won't pay much, but they will pay something....
(assuming they still do that, they used to...)

As to the cost of shipping, you can thank our elected representatives for most of that.
 
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stinkeypete

New member
Ruger warranty????
CALL RUGER CUSTOMER SERVICE AND LET THEM MAKE IT RIGHT! They will send you a shipping label. You box it up, paste the label on, and... presto.

"Why No Warranty Card Has Been Packed With This New Ruger Firearm
Last Updated on Mon, 04 Jul 2022

The Magnuson-Moss Act (Public Law 93-637) does not require any seller or manufacturer of a consumer product to give a written warranty. It does provide that if a written warranty is given, it must be designated as "limited" or as "full" and sets minimum standards for a "full" warranty. Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. has elected not to provide any written warranty, either "limited" or "full", rather than to attempt to comply with the provisions of the Magnuson-Moss Act and the regulations issued thereunder. There are certain implied warranties under state law with respect to sales of consumer goods. As the extent and interpretation of these implied warranties varies from state to state, you should refer to your state statutes. Sturm, Ruger & Company wishes to assure its customers of its continued interest in providing service to owners of Ruger firearms."

They don't have a warranty and never have for any of their products, they just fix the guns for free unless you abused it.
 
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FrankenMauser

New member
A shim isn't a bad idea, but the threads are very fine. A quick eyeball says I only need 2.5-3 thou. It may be easier and more appropriate to just pein the barrel shoulder to raise some material.

Considering the cost of shipping it vs. the cost of the gun, I think I would be inclined to buy some green, wicking Loctite (Loctite 290).
(...)
Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Click to expand...
I was thinking about a thread locker last night.
I have some Rocksett somewhere. I saw it about a week ago, but then couldn't find it a day or two later when I wanted it for another job.
If it turns up, it will probably end up being used on the Rough Rider.

I have some of the it's-never-coming-off-again-without-fire, bushing-setting Loctite (600-series) in the garage. Quite old, though. May not be good any more.


OR, just get another gun and sell that piece of junk to Numrich for parts. They won't pay much, but they will pay something....
(assuming they still do that, they used to...)
Click to expand...
They do still do that. But it is worse than selling a used gun to Cabela's. Even with parts in hand, so they can see condition, they only offer about 5% of actual value for small parts and maybe 10% for barrels and certain large parts in good condition. I've seen people get offered just $5 for a complete shotgun full of sellable parts in "fair" condition.
If I bought a replacement, I think I'd just hang on to these parts for when it inevitably breaks.



I am not quite sure how I will proceed from here. I ended up finding a cheap barrel in an online auction that closed about 30 minutes after I posted this. I may see if it clocks differently than the original, before attempting any corrective action or backyard gumnsmiffing. But if the smiffing starts, it may not stop at repair. Having an actual rear sight would be nice.
 
F

FrankenMauser

New member
Ruger warranty????
CALL RUGER CUSTOMER SERVICE AND LET THEM MAKE IT RIGHT! They will send you a shipping label. You box it up, paste the label on, and... presto.
Click to expand...
Yea, um... Taurus doesn't honor Ruger's non-warranty on Heritage firearms.

Heritage (Taurus) -- Manufacturer
Rough Rider -- Model line


Ruger is farther north, and unaffiliated.
 
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44caliberkid

New member
I was thinking JB Weld before I even read that part of the frame. I just bought one in January. Haven’t had the weather or time to shoot more than about 25 rounds through it.
 
4

44 AMP

Staff
They don't have a warranty and never have for any of their products, they just fix the guns for free unless you abused it.
Click to expand...

Ruger has a warranty. The stand behind their guns. Always have, I expect they always will.

What Ruger doesn't do these days is issue a WRITTEN warranty. And, I think with good reason. Rather than spend (waste) their money trying to write, and rewrite a warranty that met the varying (and changing) requirements of different places covering written warranties, Ruger simply decided not to issue a written warranty. It is entirely legal and well within their right to do it that way.

30-40+ years ago Ruger had a written warranty. You are in error saying that they never have had one for any of their products. They did, I have copies. :D

back on topic, there's another solution you might consider. USE the old S&W system. DRILL that sucker and PIN IT! :D
 
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Bill DeShivs

New member
Whatever you do to the gun remember-the frame is zinc (ok, zamak) and whatever you correct will happen again. Zinc is soft, but brittle.
 
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veprdude

New member
Cabela's had these on Black Friday special. A friend of mine bought several future headaches.

I'll stick with the Ruger Single Six.
 
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FrankenMauser

New member
The Ruger Wrangler is much more bang for your buck, over the Heritage crap. It is not Single-Six/Nine/Ten quality, but it is a solid choice. Especially for the price.

I have, however, heard that a huge number of them currently have to go back for repairs, right out of the box or after the first range trip. There seems to be a QC problem with internals, as well as inconsistent Cerakoting ending up way too thick in some areas.

I got one of the very first ones and I love it. It is a great little budget revolver and shoots very well - and just a hair low of point of aim.
(I ordered it within 2 hours of the first production run coming into stock at Davidson's. I am glad that I did.)

There are now 3-4 (maybe 5?) more in the family, after people shot mine or the second one, belonging to cornbush (member here). One had a Cerakote thickness issue, but it was on the cylinder and recoil shield. The owner just rotated the cylinder by hand until it self-clearanced where it was going to wear with use anyway.


back on topic, there's another solution you might consider. USE the old S&W system. DRILL that sucker and PIN IT!
Click to expand...
When the barrel turned in my hand, my first thought was, "Wait. It can't do that. Aren't these pinned?"

They are not. But perhaps this one will be.

And I did find that Rocksett. :D


Zinc is soft, but brittle
Click to expand...
Not when it is liquid. ;)
 
F

FrankenMauser

New member
The cheap barrel came in.
Clocks well short. (100+ degrees)

Which barrel will be used, I don't know. Unsurprisingly, I have more money in accessories and additional cylinders than the base revolver.

But I think this stupid pile might have a future different than "repair".
My brother suggested some Jim March mods. I find this suggestion enticing and attractive.

I don't want this Heritage any more, but don't want to sell it. So fun is the likely answer.
If I want another-nother single-action 22 revolver, I'll buy a Super Wrangler. (To be put to shame by my amazing Wrangler; but it will have .22 WMR capability.)
 
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Carmady

New member
Clocks well short. (100+ degrees)

I don't want this Heritage any more, but don't want to sell it. So fun is the likely answer.
Click to expand...

That front sight might be good for shooting it gangsta style.
 
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JohnKSa

Administrator
A quick eyeball says I only need 2.5-3 thou.
Click to expand...
I'd cut a piece of aluminum can to size/shape, sand it thinner if necessary. When it was right, install it with some permanent thread locker and call it good. Bet it will last forever.
 
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