Colt Woodsman Dilemma

Harry,
What you said, I would not consider hyperbole; It may be simply the truth and I'm not at all offended by that. You're a respected voice on this and, I assume, other forums and I read with interest what you have to say. I simply believe in staying on subject and that a discourse on the problems encountered with Colt and Ruger revolvers, which have nothing to do with the Woodsman firing pin problem, significantly alters the vector of the discussion and is material for another, different thread.

I'll let you know how it all turns out................tog
 
more on colt woodsman

I don't know when your 3rd gen gun was made, but I have one made in 1927 that has a slide stop that has to only be fired with standard velocity ammo . Hi vel ammo will batter the slide stop over time and damage it. you can tell if it is the standard ammo only version by checking the slide stop at the back of the grip frame where the web of your thumb wraps around it. if it has cross-hatching similar to checkering, use standard ammo only. the newer versions are not available., I've checked.
 
gunny & Michael
Semper-fi and thanks for responding. This Woodsman was mfg. either in the late 50's, or early 60's and had always worked well with standard velocity ammo. To my knowledge, the last time the gun had been fired was around 1980 (I was present), when it still worked well. When my dad handed me the gun three, or so years ago the box contained a non-itemized receipt for repairs, dated 1998, which he had brokered through the infamous "Gun Room" in Portland, OR. Now then, I won't commit libel because I can't say the repair was the cause of the malfunction, but I can say, "it hasn't worked since".

I, subsequent (to the OP), have replaced the firing pin, sear, hammer and springs, cleaned it thoroughly and lightly "flitzed" the chamber and that solved the non firing problem. However, now the gun won't cycle. A closer inspection reveals a small (for lack of a better term) ratcheting notch on the hammer on this gun which apparently is not present on earlier generation Woodsmans. It appears that this notch engages the sear at cock and releases when the trigger is pulled. I have no idea how the earlier ones cocked. So, what is now happening, is the gun is firing every time, but the hammer is following the bolt forward, rather than engaging the sear, as the gun attempts to achieve battery.

I recently received an e-mail from one Robert Rayburn, saying he had the appropriate hammer, but my attempts to return mail have failed. I'm guessing I'm being blocked as spam. If any one knows how to contact Mr. Rayburn, please let me know, or if anyone knows the location of the appropriate hammer I'd appreciate knowing about that, too.

I think it's great that guys resurrect these old threads and take an interest in the results. The reason I didn't post results was the "long" time lapse between the OP and the (almost) fix.......... Lesson learned.

Thanks again and good shooting.
 
Fellas
Forgive me for my probable overstatement, ALLYCAT I do have AR15s and I do agree the weapons you mentioned are good weapons = perhaps I ran my tongue too far without thinking = I do that from time to time.
Harry B.
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Harry, you certainly haven't offended me, and I'm always interested in your advice and opinions. Honestly, when I first noticed your posts, I thought that you'd made your name up, and it was hard for me to think that you were always being serious. ;)

I sure do like my old, pristine Colt Cobra more than those five-shot S&W snubbies.

My personal experience with my Woodsman has been excellent. Had to go online to figure out how to strip it for proper cleaning, but, now that I've figured all that out, it runs great. I have noticed that the mags need to be kept clean, and, contrary to everything that I know about mags, I even lightly lube the mags.

The advantage that you have over me, Harry, is that you've actually worked on a bunch of problem firearms, while I'm blessed with possessing mostly functioning, non-defective firearms. :)
 
Firing Pin Removal on Colt Woodsman 3rd Series

To remove the firing pin:
There is a tiny slot screw, which is part of the extractor, at the extreme left side, inside the slide near the firing pin.
Using a small jewelers screwdriver, rotate the screw/extractor 180 degrees.
You can now remove the extractor section from the front.
After this, using the screw that held the handle grips together, screw into the round pin near the firing pin.
Release the pressure on the firing pin by pushing in on the firing pin using a small screwdriver and pull the round section out that has the screw in it.
This will release the firing pin so it and the spring can come out.
Reassemble in reverse order.
 
Unless you can travel back in a time machine 8 years, the OP cannot answer. 8 years is a long time to wait for someone to come up with an answer.
 
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