Anyone know Why S&W 686 Accuracy Would Go Fast?

V

vitesse9

New member
I posted a while back about my concerns that I may have damaged the muzzel crown on my fairly new 686P. Anyway, after than, I was able to get some decent results with .38s, so I gave up on the crown issue. But, over the past two months or so, I just haven't been able to get her to shoot straight. I've tried different ammo, I've tried indoor/outdoor conditions. But the only consistency I seem to be getting is consistent inaccuracy.

About the same time as I noticed accuracy really start to suffer, I also noticed a "rattle" coming from inside the lockwork. I've heard this is normal for Smiths (is it?). I also had the lockwork bind up on me once. Although a good spray down with Bore Scrubber and some RemOil Dry Lube got it functioning again, it seems to have lost that "tight and precise" feeling.

I'm thinking about sending the gun into to the Performance Center for a good cleaning and inspection. I also think I might ask them to look at the crown and see if it needs to be recut.

Anyone have any thoughts on the matter before I spend the $ to ship it and have it worked on?
 
Have you tried it in a Ransom Rest? If you haven't got access to one I suggest you make a rest or use a sandbag. Until you do this you can not be sure if the fault is with you or the gun. As for 'rattle' this is odd - is everything screwed up tight? Have you cleaned any oil or grit out from under the star? What sort of ammo are you using? Need more info Dude.
 
The rattle comes from the hammer block. It floats in a slot in the works and "rattles" when you shake the gun. That is normal.

Any double action S&W will bind if you double clutch the trigger. If you squeeze halfway, release the trigger, and then squeeze again you will eventually catch the point in the lockwork where the mechanism binds. This is not a fault of the revolver. It is "operator error." It won't happen with a pull all the way through.

Accuracy problems could have a number of causes. What made you think that you had damaged the crown? Did you drop the revolver? If so, a dinged crown could have resulted, or you could have bent the yoke causing a cylinder alignment (ergo a lead-shaving situation) problem. Is the rear sight blade solidly in place? A trip to a good gunsmith might be in order if you can't get decent groups from known good ammunition, and the factory has some good gunsmiths.

Clemson
 
Yea, I dropped the gun when I first got it (cleaning it). It has s ding on the clyinder and a scratch along the from of the muzzle (not in the crown). The reason why I thought it was the crown, though, was I used to clean it without a crown protector.

As for ammo, I've tried a lot. UMC 125 gr. 357, some commercial reload .38s (which gave me the best groups), corbon .357s and .38+ps and countless others. I've also tried from sandbags without much success.

It was an absolute tackdriver when I got it, that's why I wonder if it needs a trip to the Performance Center.
 
That ding on the cylinder could easily have bent the yoke (aka "crane"). The gunsmith can check that with a special tool. Send it in for repair.

Clemson
 
Hammer block rattle? No wonder I don't have it - the first thing I do is take them out and throw them away (Yes, I know it's naughty).
 
Clemson is the man with a plan. A bent crane will ruin your accuracy as the bullet enters the forcing cone at a slight angle bearing agains one side of the forcing cone more than the other. JM$.02worth. Have your gun checked out by a good gunsmith who deals with revolvers. Cheap money.

Jungle Work
 
Impact just took the words out of my mouth or fingers :) If you start to lead up or even copper builds up the accuracy will go south. I had a Ruger with a clean barrel totally lead up in 18 rounds to the point the bullets were hitting sideways.If you got a penlight look down both ends of the barrel around the forcing cone some build up is normal but the rest should be reasonably clean.
 
How do I tell if there's lead or copper fouling when the bore looks clean, and there's no more fouling on the last patch?
 
Have you tried letting someone else shoot it and see if its a repeat problem?? Could just be all in your head! :p It could be copper build up...its often hard to see in a bore. Get some sweets copper solvent...quickest and best stuff on the market that ive found. If you use it and start pulling out blue patches, thats probably your problem.
 
Get a bronze brush and run it through the barrel a few times. Then try a clean cotton patch. The patch should run through the barrel smoothly. If not you may a lead problem. The best way to clean lead is to get Hoppes lead remover brass cleaning patches. I'm looking at them right now on page 293 of the new midway catalog #2. I used them when I leaded up the barrel on my Ruger 45 colt. They work good. The first patch I run through the barrel came out full of lead. I run the same patch three times and then three more times with three other patches. In other words till the patch come out clean. My old Ruger went to shooting real good after that. The difference in accuracy was unbelieviable.
 
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