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B.L.E. · June 21, 2012, 05:12 PM

I had time to kill today so I took the mainspring and hammer strut out of the Vaquero and compared the Vaquero and ROA parts side by side.

For all I can tell, they are identical except for the ROA strut being stainless steel and the Vaquero strut being regular steel. The Vaquero has a 28 coil spring made of smaller diameter wire. This would reduce the stiffness of the spring but I suspect the Vaquero spring has a longer free length and is under more preload when installed.
I never took the springs off the hammer struts because putting them back on involves cussin' and tools and searching on your hands and knees for where that spring went when your pliars slipped.

Here's the Vaquero mainspring and hammer strut installed in the ROA.

Not only does it fit like it belongs there but the hammer cocking force feels normal and the lock works normally.

If you want a full strength mainspring, just call up Ruger and say "I need a new mainspring for my (ahem) Vaquero".

June 21, 2012, 05:12 PM	#10
B.L.E. Senior Member Join Date: December 20, 2008 Location: Somewhere on the Southern shore of Lake Travis, TX Posts: 2,603	Vaquero spring update. I had time to kill today so I took the mainspring and hammer strut out of the Vaquero and compared the Vaquero and ROA parts side by side. For all I can tell, they are identical except for the ROA strut being stainless steel and the Vaquero strut being regular steel. The Vaquero has a 28 coil spring made of smaller diameter wire. This would reduce the stiffness of the spring but I suspect the Vaquero spring has a longer free length and is under more preload when installed. I never took the springs off the hammer struts because putting them back on involves cussin' and tools and searching on your hands and knees for where that spring went when your pliars slipped. Here's the Vaquero mainspring and hammer strut installed in the ROA. Not only does it fit like it belongs there but the hammer cocking force feels normal and the lock works normally. If you want a full strength mainspring, just call up Ruger and say "I need a new mainspring for my (ahem) Vaquero".