Heritage rough rider cylinder lock up issue

[HanzMcFeely]

Picked up a 4” 6 shot rough rider recently to plink and squirrel hunt with (because, well, 12ga is just so hard to use for squirrel :facepalm: ). Having some minor issues with it and wondering if anyone else has run into this...I’m not a revolver guy, have shot them but this is pretty much the first one I’ve owned that I actually bought with a purpose in mind.

Yes, I’m aware it’s a cheap gun. That was the point. It’s gonna get abused...pot metal pistols 🤣

22lr cylinder works perfectly fine, no issues.

The problem lies with the 22 WMR cylinder. Sometimes after 3-4 rounds it locks up and won’t advance the cylinder. Almost like a case is hanging up. So far it’s happened mainly with CCI Maxi Mags and I noticed 3-4 of them had cases split/ruptured at the strike point. Switched to Aguila rounds and same thing but not as bad. Maybe 1-2 faults. It only seems to happen until things “warm up” after a few cylinders run thru it. I’ve made sure that the rounds are seating fully and after I run 1-2 through the cylinder it’s almost like I’m kicking the rounds out and causing the jam due to recoil.

Any ideas? Maybe I’m limp wristing? Bad/old ammo?


Inspection of the cylinder looks ok. No burrs, timing seems ok. I did file down a small burr at the loading gate As well as a lip inside the top of the cylinder (casting remnants).

[McSull]

Heating up and expanding is my guess

[HanzMcFeely]

Gets a bit better when it heats up though...which is what throws me off

[Bang]

I have a Heritage .22/.22WM. The cylinder-to-frame and cylinder-to-forcing cone dimensions are very generous, to put it kindly.

When the cylinder locks up, take a look at the shell you just fired. It is probably backed out of the chamber and jammed against the recoil shield. Slip a knife blade behind it and lever it forward. If heat lessens the problem, the chambers are growing a couple tenths (.0002) in internal diameter allowing the fired brass to float.

Try different ammo. The different bullet design and lube on its surface might make a difference.

Persevere for a bit hoping to break it in. Polishing the chambers might help. If all fails, I guess it's the hated return to manufacturer for correction.

On second thought, split cases is unacceptable. The gun should not be fired. Contact Heritage.

[shadango]

Try different ammo. The different bullet design and lube on its surface might make a difference.

So I found this thread while searchin for posts about jamming Heritage pistols.

After fireing a friends rough rider 6" I fell in love and bought (that day) a 4.75".....

My first trip to the range was mixed.....

Ran 18 22Mags thru it and WOW>...loved it.

Then started running some 22LRs (remington Viper) thru it and jamming every other round....

Was worried it was the pistol....and it bummed me out big time.....but....

Took it out today with the same friend and some new ammo to try. This time I had some Aguila and he had some Amcor......

NEITHER of those jammed ....not even once......I ran 6 pf the AMSCOR and about 50+ of the aguila....NO ISSUES.

Then I ran some of the viper.....FIRST SHOT JAMMED. Switched back to Aguila...no issues.....back to viper...JAM.

Then my friend tried the viper rounds in his 6".....JAMMED.

So in MY case its the ammo....

We looked closely and the Viper ammo is bulging (after being fired) at the top right under the rim/head. And that bumps it up just enough from the port in the cylinder to jam when it advances.

Here are some pictures we took.

The red circle is the two fired rounds...first one fired and sort of got tight, second one jammed.

The bulge can be seen on the LEFT spent case.....compared to an unfired Remington Viper. Cheap brass maybe?

rem viper 22LR mushroomed head.JPGrem viper 22LR after fire 2 on right in cylinder.JPG

[McSull]

So I found this thread while searchin for posts about jamming Heritage pistols.

After fireing a friends rough rider 6" I fell in love and bought (that day) a 4.75".....

My first trip to the range was mixed.....

Ran 18 22Mags thru it and WOW>...loved it.

Then started running some 22LRs (remington Viper) thru it and jamming every other round....

Was worried it was the pistol....and it bummed me out big time.....but....

Took it out today with the same friend and some new ammo to try. This time I had some Aguila and he had some Amcor......

NEITHER of those jammed ....not even once......I ran 6 pf the AMSCOR and about 50+ of the aguila....NO ISSUES.

Then I ran some of the viper.....FIRST SHOT JAMMED. Switched back to Aguila...no issues.....back to viper...JAM.

Then my friend tried the viper rounds in his 6".....JAMMED.

So in MY case its the ammo....

We looked closely and the Viper ammo is bulging (after being fired) at the top right under the rim/head. And that bumps it up just enough from the port in the cylinder to jam when it advances.

I will post some pictures we took.

Welcome to the forum.

I think the Viper 22 lr has a longer overall length than most 22lr ammo. I think they are the same length as cci stingers.

[HanzMcFeely]

Thanks Bang. I’m going to take it to the range this week and see if filing down the burrs/ledges made any difference, song with blue loctite and retightening on all the screws. I did end up digging some brass/powder/what have you out of my left index finger though from the 2 range trips I’ve made with it so if that happens again I’ll scrap the thing or throw it in the trunk of the car for worst case scenario.

Really don’t want to ship back to heritage/Taurus at this point...not sure it’s really worth it tbh. It’s splitting cases at the rim, rest of the case is ok. If it happens again I’ll try and grab a pic. This is my first 22mag, so I’m not sure what to expect... I think you are correct though, it does seem like the brass is floating out of the cylinder when it fires. There have been a couple that wouldn’t come out of the cylinder without using the table edge to force the ejector rod.

It’s really a shame, it’s a damn accurate pistol at 10-15 yards once you adjust the vent front sight And figure out the pattern hold on it

In the pistols defense also, I did take to the range without a detailed first time out of the box cleaning and lube job. All I really did was run a couple patches thru it with cleaner and lube til they came out clean. After league match on Sunday though, and filing/loctite I stripped it down completely and hit everything with cleaner and lube.

[HanzMcFeely]

Took to range today after cleaning things up last weekend. 50 rounds of Cci maxi mag HP with no Noticeable issues. 36 rounds of Aguila silver eagle and this happened (2-3 other cases sprayed a bit also). 3rd round of my last cylinder. Completely wrapped itself around the cog and locked the cylinder this time, disassembly was required. Still only having issues with the magnum cylinder. Put 100+ 22lr thru with zero issues.





Note: that is my trigger finger and yes those are powder burns also. There’s about 4 spots on my support hand that got sprayed. Still digging powder and lead out of my hands. Real kicker is this happened 8” from my face from a rest and I felt the splash on the cheeks.

Calling to bitch at heritage tomorrow and demand my money back. For what I paid I’ll be going to buy a Ruger wrangler with whatever I can get out of this (or a replacement one that goes up for sale immediately). I don’t trust this gun or anything from heritage/Taurus anymore.

[Bang]

WOW! The gaps fore and aft must be astronomical, plus the cylinder is probably sliding. I don't know if Taurus is actually making these Heritages, but I'm thinking there are guns out there having the same potential to injure and there should be a recall on any with axial play or unacceptable gaps.

ETA: Interesting discussions dating back to 2011:

https://www.google.com/search?q=heri...hrome&ie=UTF-8

[HanzMcFeely]

WOW! The gaps fore and aft must be astronomical, plus the cylinder is probably sliding. I don't know if Taurus is actually making these Heritages, but I'm thinking there are guns out there having the same potential to injure and there should be a recall on any with axial play or unacceptable gaps.

ETA: Interesting discussions dating back to 2011:

https://www.google.com/search?q=heri...hrome&ie=UTF-8

Yup...it’s gonna go back, if I can ever get in touch with them. Every call so far to their customer service department has yielded no luck. Either not open or phones are broken due to technical difficulties.

Now that you mention it about the cylinder sliding, for shits and googles I watched everything as it was moving and I cycled it and it does look like it’s sliding on the cylinder rod. I can watch the cylinder rod rotate when the mag cylinder is in. It doesn’t do it with the 22 Long rifle cylinder so I wonder if it is a timing issue.

Pretty sure they are owned by Taurus and I wouldn’t be surprised if they manufacture them too now...at the very least they share an address with them 🤷🏼*♂️