Butler Derringer

[PMB2212]

So I picked up a little Butler Derringer last week. Took it down to the range for a little "me time" was feeding it some CCI 22 shorts which I've never had issues with before.

Almost every round either took 3+ strike of the hammer to set off or they didn't fire all-together. Being a diligent person I tried a couple different boxes of 22 short, and another brand. Same deal.

I don't know too much about disassembling firearms myself, but is there something someone with minimal experience can do. Or should I just "Bite the bullet" and take it to a gunsmith.


I'd love to get this baby shooting.



Any help would be much appreciated.

 

[Billsail]

First, clean around the hammer and every where it hits or rests in the down position. A little bit of grime coud be preventing it from falling all the way "home". Then look at the firing pin. Does it look broken or worn?

Finally, the mainspring could be weak, but the gun is most likely, dirty.

 

[PMB2212]

I took it apart today and cleaned everything, and as you had thought it was quite dirty. This helped a good deal, But it still takes a couple strikes to fire. Though I've not had as much time to test it today.

Thanks for the help!!

-Paul

 

[45collector]

Maybe it's a trick of the camera, but in the 3rd pic you posted, it looks as if the bottom part of the firing pin has been sort of rounded off a little with lots of use. That is the part of the pin that contacts the cartridge rim if I'm not mistaken. I'm betting that's your problem.

 

[Zappa]

I had one of those back in the mid 80's.
I bought it really cheap and it functioned about as good as yours does.
On the rare occasion when it actually did fire, I couldn't hit the paper at 15 feet.
It was a real joke, my buddies would take bets on how many hammer strikes it would take before it fired.
There's a reason why they're cheap.

 

[ColdDayInHell]

Cool looking Derringer. I'm looking for one for my dad. I can't find them anywhere!

 

[seanc]

I had a pair of Colts like that in 22mag. I regret selling them.

But, I assume that the hammer actually acts as the firing mechanism? Is it possible that it has worn down to the point that it is just not making contact?