Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns newly made NON-Ruger , ROA base pin

there is a guy on e-bay selling brand new, NON- RUGER, ROA base pins ,his company makes ,he is in arkansas ,and wants 69.00 for them does anybody know anything about them how good they are ,?how good the fit? how good they work? ,they stainless steel ,here is part of the add. After years of demand and months of working with engineers, we have successfully reproduced the ultra scarce Ruger Old Army model base pin. These are made from 17-4 stainless steel and to closer dimensions than the originals. We only have them available in stainless steel at this time. They look original and are totally correct. Get them while they're hot!.. his e-bay handle is gun garage

I've installed a couple by Belt Mountain on Ruger Bisleys. Usually, the factory pins are ~.002" undersize, to allow easy installation, and the Belt pins were ~.0015 larger, for a very close fit. In both cases they were a little snug installing them, but did fit and tighten the cylinder without modification. No question it made the cylinder fit a little less sloppy, which should benefit accuracy. I like the #5 style, which makes it a bit easier to grasp.

Go here, and scroll down the page for Old Army latches:

http://www.beltmountain.com/ruger.htm

they cost a lot less than $69

Really not a good idea to fit a pin too tight. That can be a detriment to accuracy. The small play in a cylinder allows the bullet to pull it into alignment.
If chambers are the least bit off, you will wear the cone and rifling and throats can get oblong.
Use STP oil treatment on the pin, front bushing and ratchet to prevent wear and fouling bind. It still lets the cylinder move but also cushions parts.
It is no joke, seen $2500 revolvers ruined in 300 shots because they were fit too tight.

Belt Mountain is a known quantity and has been providing base pins for years, this e-bay guy who knows?

Jerry

Absolutely. There's a better than even chance that an oversize base pin will hold the cylinder firmly out of alignment. Fortunately, Ruger usually under-sizes the cylinder throats to protect the forcing cone so the base pin doesn't matter as much.

If a guy has to change the base pin, buy a range rod first. A range rod is a nice tool to have around no matter what.

I use Belt Mountain Elmer Keith style in my center fire Ruger Pistols. i fit them by using a drill at slow spin speed and 600 to 800 grit paper

N

Not that my opinion is worth more than anyone else's, but I've known Al and Evan at The Gun Garage for more than a decade now. Al is quite possibly the most knowledgable parts guy alive today, literally a walking encyclopedia of firearms knowledge. Both are very capable gunsmiths as well as great guys to have a beer with and tell loud nasty jokes. They'll treat you right and if you need an obscure part they are likely a better bet than Numrich if it's for an American made gun.

Hello all, I'm the infamous "eBay guy" and I'm here to let everyone know that we have more ROA base pins in Stainless Steel that just hit the shelves should anyone need any. We try to check the forums throughout the course of time should anyone be in need and stumbled across this thread from a batch we sold a few years back. Don't know who "TheKid" is but that was a hilarious and totally spot-on comment. Thank you for that! LOL - Evan & Al @ The Gun Garage - Siloam Springs, AR

Alphonse,
Welcome to 24 hr. Campfire. And thanks for chiming in. I have a Flattop Ruger in 44 Special that I’m gonna change out the base pin. My big and old fingers have a hard time using the standard Ruger pin.