Ruger 22/45 questions

[juniour]

Hi,
I got a New Ruger 22/45 and have a couple questions about function and parts on this thing.
I am getting rid of the mag disconnect and was installing a mk11 bushing with spacer washer I made. I noticed this issue assembled with the bushing and then with the original disconnector parts both with the same result.
First thing I have noticed is that the sear when in the cocked position with the hammer will sit on the edge of the hammer bushing or the mag disconnect not allowing it to fully engage the hammer. Is this normal? Shouldn't the sear fully engage to the bottom of the hammer notch? The tip of the arrow is where My Sear catches.
I barrowed bullseye's picture to try to show what I'm talking about.


The second thing with this gun is that it appears to have 2 clicks when pulling the trigger to fire. I believe the first click comes from the trigger haveing so much uncontrolled pretravel that the disconnector bar is forced into the hammer bushing and won't pop up untill the pressure is relieved off it by pulling the trigger. It looks to Me that if I could reduce the pretravel the disconnector would No longer beforced into the hammer bushing when the trigger is at idle. The disconnector would then be able to work easily up and down with no false click. I'm guessing this is normal for these guns also and the ability to adjust pretravel would be the fix?

Thanks for any input.
Larry

[Bullseye]

A tale of two triggers.

In the first photo, while a little hard to see, is the sear face is hitting the head of the hammer bushing while engaged with the hammer.



In the second photo, much clearer, we can see an example of the hammer bushing head not touching the sear while engaged on the hammer's hook.



What has happened here is the head of the second sear was turned to decrease the diameter of the head as to not touch the sear face and increase sear/hammer engagement. The first picture shows a typical unmodified hammer bushing.

While the sear does touch the hammer bushing head, in most cases there's plenty of hammer engagement for the pistol to function fine. In fact, the engagement is such that the pull of the trigger feels even crisper as the sear doesn't have to travel very far down the hook to the let-off point. As long as the hammer and sear stay engaged there's no need to change the diameter of the hammer bushing head. Unless you prefer a longer pull feel on the trigger.

The disconnector is not being prevented from rising by the hammer. Actually it is the small metal tab on the bottom of the disconnector lever which is hindering the disconnector's rise. When the trigger is pulled, this tab is caught under the sear, in a slot, until the trigger is released sufficiently to move the tab rearward. If the relief slot in the bolt is properly positioned, when the bolt is fully closed, the disconnector lever can raise upward and position the metal tab on the back edge of the sear to allow the trigger to dislodge it with the next pull of the trigger. That "click" sound is the disconnector lever rising. You can adjust the pretravel to reduce the trigger travel with a properly equipped adjustable trigger. But you cannot adjust the pretravel so much that the metal tab doesn't disengage with the sear slot. If you do, then the trigger will fail to reset and it will not allow the sear to move when the trigger is pulled by the operator.

So, the clicking sound you hear is normal with a Ruger .22 Automatic pistol.

Hope this helps.

R,
Bullseye

[blue68f100]

The Clark bushing in my MKIII limits the sear engagement. As long as you have a min of 0.018" you should be fine. The more engagement you have the more creep you will have in the trigger.

Make sure the washer on your spacer does not interfere with anything. I have used some Red Loctite on a few bushings to hold them tight to the hammer. This eliminates one of the 3 rotating surfaces and reduces creep and inconsistent feel. Makes it easier putting things back together when the parts can't fall out.

[juniour]

Great,
Thanks Bullseye & blue68f100
Good to hear that the sear resting on the bushing is normal. Kind of odd though as compared to other ignition parts though. I'm going to leave that as is as it does engage the hammer good and creep We don't need.
I do still think the disconnector click is from the uncontroled pretravel of the trigger. The disconnector bumping and resting on the front of the hammer bushing is being used as a stop for all forward travel of the trigger. That little sear catch tab on the bottom is free and clear and not touching anything. As soon as I put a little pressure on the trigger takeig the pressure off the disconnector click she comes up. Annoying. My mk11 does not do this but it also does not apear to use the disconnector as a trigger stop.
There's a really large amount of space in the slot between the front of the trigger and the Frame of this 22/45. All trigger movement is limited by the slot in the disconnector.
Larry

[blue68f100]

Depending on the trigger, some have pre-travel adj screws. I added one to my factory MKIII factory trigger. If you do this you will need to file the nub off the trigger. The nub is suppose to seat a mag if not fully seated. If you don't you will not be able to insert a magazine. I don't think you can apply enough force with a loaded mag through the trigger if you tried.

Add the pre travel adj and you will be happy. You have to have some pre-travel for the disc to reset.

[juniour]

Huh,
I wondered about that nub. I'll have to look at that. I'm planing on installng adjustment screws for the pretravel and maybe overtravel. Sounds like I'll be happy then. I'm not looking for perfect but don't like that click.
I do have one more question though at the moment. If I install the small screws on My original trigger hw do You think the plastic frame will hold up where the screws bump into it? Will I eventually wear a gouge into the frame from the screws? Or mght there be a better way of going about it? I have a bridgeport and am pretty handy.
Larry

[Bullseye]

Where the pretravel screw touches the frame, inside the trigger well, there is a metal insert for the front mounting lug. The overtravel screw would touch the polymer frame only if you install it in the trigger face. However, your trigger already has an overtravel adjustment screw in it. This screw is above the trigger pivot pin in the front face of the trigger. It is hard to see because you must remove, or lift up, the trigger in order to adjust this overtravel screw.

You're missing a piece of the trigger/sear/disconnector interaction. The little tab is what prevents the disconnector from lifting upward at the wrong time. But that is not the only way upward movement of the disconnector is restricted. First you do not want the disconnector to engage the trigger while the trigger is still pulled rearward or partially rearward. This is auto-fire. Each pull of the trigger must only result in one firing of a cartridge to be legal. The way the pistol is designed is that the bolt must be fully closed and the trigger must be released by the operator before the trigger can be engaged again in sustained fire operations. The click you hear is the disconnector lever engaging the back side of the sear after the tab clears the slot. The only way this happens is when the sear is engaged on the hammer and the trigger is release by the operator. Sometimes the disconnector lever hangs up a little and then the disconnector lever can raise up when the user places their finger on the trigger. Over time the parts will wear sufficiently to prevent this from occurring when the trigger is depressed slightly. You can hear the clicking sound when you are dry-firing but it is not audible when wearing hearing protection during live fire. The only way the trigger is engaged is when the back side of the sear is in contact with the little tab on the lower edge of the disconnector lever. If the tab is still in the sear slot the trigger feels like it is not connected to the trigger - because when the tab is in the slot, it isn't connected.

You can set up your trigger to minimize movement by including a pretravel screw. However you must have a little bit of pretravel movement in your trigger or it will not reset properly during sustained fire operation. No pretravel means, no click, which also means no firing.

Hope this helps,

R,
Bullseye