# Ruger Mark Pistol Magazine Tuning/Smoothing



## SGWGunsmith (Jan 8, 2015)

It should be no secret that Ruger Mark I replacement, Ruger Mark II, III & 22/45 magazines are folded and welded from sheet metal stampings. The process involved with the forming of these magazines will most often leave the follower button track quite rough and gritty feeling when the follower button is run up and down in the track. When the rough condition is really bad the follower button can sometimes cause misfeeding and rounds can nose dive into the feed ramp. Not only annoying, but this condition will cause missed targets due to stoppages. Here is a step by step process I have developed over the years to smooth out your Ruger Mark pistol magazines so they perform flawlessly and provide assurance that 10-rounds are all fed into the chamber properly.

I made up a handy tool that I use to help with disassembly of the magazine and then to help with getting that snake-like spring back into the magazine body when the time comes for that.



This tool is made from a coat/shirt hanger cut to 6-inches in length. The working front end is then rounded to a smooth radius and then polished to a mirror finish. That end is then bent so it's a half-inch long at 90°. Some have reported that they use a hex-wrench instead of taking the time to make this tool. The fault with that process is, you now have six rather sharp corners on that hex wrench that can and will scratch the inner surfaces of the magazine body.We want the inside surfaces to be as smooth as possible to help prevent gunk and bullet nose lube from accumulating in those scratches. Smooth is better.

Using either end of the newly made tool, you can poke one end of the tool into the bottom plate of the magazine, and then push the base off of the magazine body. The longer end may work better for the 22/45 style magazines.



Once the base has been removed from the magazine body the magazine spring plunger & spring will come out the bottom of the magazine. The magazine follower will now slide up and down freely. Align the follower button with the circle cut-out in the bottom of the magazine and pull the follower button out of the follower. The follower will now slide out of the magazine body. Set these parts aside for later attention.

The follower button track in the left side of the magazine is where some really nasty edges can be found. I made up a hard-wood block with a 60° included angle used to back some #400 emery paper to run up and down that track to remove those rough edges present. Then, if you have a buffer, or moto-tool, a felt wheel or bullet shaped felt bob charged with rouge is used to polish that track to a mirror finish. If you don't have either of those tools you can then change to #600 emery paper and then go to #1200, if you like, for a very smooth finish.



It's very easy to then polish all of the feed lip edges with the buffer or moto-tool, or the smoother grades of emery paper to get any sharp edges removed that will shave lead off the bullet and brass of the cartridge case. We don't need those shavings getting into the chamber. That should complete the polishing of the magazine body. Now for one other trick I've been using for years. Using a cotton swab, drag that swab all around and over the the follower button track and feed lips, several times. If you notice *ANY* cotton fibers being pulled off the cotton swab, more polishing in that area is needed.

Next, we need to pay some attention to the follower button. Here is a picture of a follower button as often found being used in these magazines.



Pretty rough looking eh? Here's how I polish the follower button, paying particular attention to the face that rides up against the inside and outside edges of the follower button track in the magazine. I normally chuck the smaller diameter end in my lathe to spin the follower button. I know, not many have a lathe, but an electric drill will work just as well to chuck on that small diameter, lock the drill into the spinning mode and then fold up a small sheet of #400 emery paper that will fit into the recess in the follower button. Polish the face of the button smooth, the bottom of the groove and then the other side so it shines. We want this part to slide up and down in the follower track as smoothly as possible.
Here's a picture of the button after polishing (left pic), it's kind of dark but you get the idea, and here again, as shiny as you can possibly get it.



Next, we need to get the spring plunger smoothed and that part can also be chucked in your electric drill and polished to a shiny, slippery finish. The smoother these parts are the less likely gunk will stick to 'em and the better they will operate.



Now, take a look at the follower. On the front face and then the back face of the black plastic follower, you'll normally find a flashing line from the molding process involved with forming the follower. Use the #400 grit emery paper to smooth those faces so the follower will slide up and down in a nice smooth manner.
That pretty much does it for preparing your magazine and internal parts for running very smoothly. We now need to clean all the sanding & buffing residue out of the magazine body. I use some 3/8-inch long handle bottle brushes with a one-inch cotton patch wrapped around the bristles. The patch is wetted with EEZOX and the internal magazine body is cleaned a couple of times. I have used a .38 caliber NYLON bore brush in the same manner on a cleaning rod. Once you are sure that the magazine internals are clean, we need to get that snake of a spring back into the magazine. Here is where your coat-hanger tool will keep your language civil and make the job very easy.

Install the follower in the magazine body and align the hole in the follower with the circle with the *LEFT* side of the magazine, facing up. Then, install the follower button into the follower. Slide the follower up and down a couple of times to admire your work and feel how much smoother the follower button tracks. I only emphasis paying attention that the follower button goes into the left side, because it can go into the right side just as well. Let's stick with the left side. Next we want to install the follower spring and follower spring plunger as in the picture below.



Hook the short end of your nifty tool into the spring coils, about where it is in the picture, and push the spring down into the magazine body so the plunger has completely disappeared below the bottom of the magazine body. Slide the base plate into the bottom of the magazine body and then forward toward the shank of the tool holding the spring down. Push the magazine base right up to the tool shank, but leave a little bit of room so you can tilt the tool forward and get it out of the way. Push the bottom base all the way on until you feel it "click" into place. OK, grab another magazine and have at it.


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## CW (Mar 20, 2015)

Nice tips. I like the spring tool. That'll help with several mags.


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## SGWGunsmith (Jan 8, 2015)

Thanks! Yah, I catch hell sometimes on other forums for providing folks with some of the tools I use that can come in handy, and are FREE. Somebody always wants to sell us some gizmo that we can make easily enough. :mrgreen:


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