Revolver Cleaning Woe...

[Rottentofu]

Shot my GP100 for the first time. Came home and did some cleaning and ended up with this...(Please see the attached).

Is there anyway I can fix this?

[S.P.F.]

Are you referring to the ejector rod center pin scratch on the recoil shield?

If so, is it a cosmetic line, or grooved deeply? I've always been under the impression that a cosmetic line is somewhat normal.

Or instead, are you referring to what looks like galling marks on the upper third of the shield?

['ol shooter]

That looks like galling at the top of the recoil shield. Doubt cleaning caused that. Is it a brand new gun? A better pic or two would help. If that is galling, call Ruger and maybe they will want to see a pic before they take it back for repair. It sure shouldn't look like that.

[S.P.F.]

I thought that GP100's did not have a counter-bored cylinder. If so, it's rather odd that the cylinder would make contact there. If anything, the brass cartridges would be making any potential contact. Is it certain that this wasn't in this condition before firing?

[Rottentofu]

Brand new gun. Not like that before firing. Only turned out like that after cleaning. Attached another pic.

What is galling? What could cause that?

[SkyHawk]

Can you let us know exactly what your concern is - what are you seeing that needs fixing or what changed after you fired & cleaned it??? So far neither pic is very helpful - expecially considering you didn't highlight any feature or flaw.

[Rottentofu]

Can you let us know exactly what your concern is - what are you seeing that needs fixing or what changed after you fired & cleaned it??? So far neither pic is very helpful - expecially considering you didn't highlight any feature or flaw.

The area around the firing pin is totally scratched up. Is this normal? Some said normal cleaning shouldn't have caused these scratches. I only used cloth and a soft brush for cleaning.

Just saw your updated post. What are tooling marks?

[SkyHawk]

The area around the firing pin is totally scratched up. Is this normal? Some said normal cleaning shouldn't have caused these scratches. I only used cloth and a soft brush for cleaning.

Unless you cleaned it with a rasp or sulfuric acid, I don't see how cleaning did that. It looks like some sort of tooling marks left over from manufacturing, but someone else may know more.

Here are your two pics with a focus on your area of concern.

[usmcspud]

Rugers are good guns. Have owned and still own many. Having said that, Ruger is not known for their removal of tool marks. If it functions fine and shoots well then don't sweat the small stuff.

[S.P.F.]

What is galling? What could cause that?

"Galling" is a anomaly that occurs with some metals in sliding contact of two separate parts. Essentially it is a physical "merging" of the contact faces that results in damage ranging from scrape-like roughening to complete cold welding of the two parts. Certain Stainless Steel alloys can be prone to the damage. Adequate lubrication usually works just fine as a preventative.

However, as I noted before, I didn't think the cylinder actually contacts the recoil shield on a GP100, and if so, it's unexplainable how it would happen here. Additionally, if it did occur during shooting, it should have been difficult to cycle the cylinder, at least you would notice it there first. That is why I speculated that it might have been preexisting, and maybe not galling during usage.

A pic of the cylinder face would help.

[Rottentofu]

"Galling" is a anomaly that occurs with some metals in sliding contact of two separate parts. Essentially it is a physical "merging" of the contact faces that results in damage ranging from scrape-like roughening to complete cold welding of the two parts. Certain Stainless Steel alloys can be prone to the damage. Adequate lubrication usually works just fine as a preventative.

However, as I noted before, I didn't think the cylinder actually contacts the recoil shield on a GP100, and if so, it's unexplainable how it would happen here. Additionally, if it did occur during shooting, it should have been difficult to cycle the cylinder, at least you would notice it there first. That is why I speculated that it might have been preexisting, and maybe not galling during usage.

A pic of the cylinder face would help.

Please see the attached pic for the cylinder face.

Thanks all for the help so far!

[jdmacl]

I guess I'm missing the issue here. I have a Ruger, several Sigs and several S&W handguns, and I find that few surfaces on the interior of the guns are polished smooth. Is there a functionality problem? As many will point out, guns are tools, meant for function, not beauty.

[Barang]

Send the pics to Ruger and have them analyze your concern.

[Octaviob]

The angle of the lighting seems to be making the surface finish appear rougher. If the lighting is set at 90 degrees (to the side) to the flat surface, surface anomalies will cast a shadow making them appear worse. If you set the lighting at 0 degrees (directly on top) to the flat surface, it will minimize the surface roughness.

Cleaning kits do not contain anything hard enough to disturb the steel used for making firearms. You would have to use a file or sandpaper to rough up the surface. I agree with usmcspud that it looks like it came that way from the factory. Ruger probably figures it is a surface that no one really looks at except for when they are loading, unloading, or cleaning the gun.

[Pauliedad]

Does it function?
Yup, it's a Ruger.