Do you take your revolvers apart?

[spanishjames]

Are you brave enough to take the sideplate off a revolver, and take it apart completely? I don't mean removing the barrel, just the parts that can be lifted out, including pins, springs, etc. Are you confident you could take a revolver apart and put it back together?

 

[hoghunting]

That's the best way to really clean the internals and check for wear.

 

[warningshot]

I don't take my revolvers apart, but I'll take your revolvers apart. I want mine to work. Fake it to you make it. Yes, Sir.

 

[FM12]

I have and can (Smiths) but sometimes it wasnt pretty! The slide rebound spring can be a booger to replace, at least for me.

 

[Bailey Boat]

There's a Mod 66, 2.5" on my bench as we speak that was totally apart yesterday for cleaning since it's a new acquisition into my personal inventory. Gotta make sure it's right before I carry it.......

 

[CajunBass]

Never have, never will, never saw any reason to. That's why they invented Gunscrubber.

Actually the only guns I've ever taken apart were com-bloc military surplus.

 

[22-rimfire]

Nope. Don't intend to take one apart unless it breaks and I have no other options. My first choice would be to find a gunsmith.

 

[Stressfire]

Completely apart?

Depends on the gun. If nothing is wrong, I don't see the point. Then again, different models have different issues.

Not really a whole lot to disassemble on my GP 100. Taking the grip off for a blast of Break free every once in awhile is about as apart as it ever gets.

 

[Wallyl]

Take apart a S & W revolver

I have done so and have found it was best not to. You can open up the side plate and spray with carb cleaner..blow out with comprssed air,let it dry and lube (minimal amount). When cleaning I have found that it really was not all that dirty.

I had a pin break off on me on model 24 when I opened it up jand I never did figure out how to postion that spring mentioned above in a model 29...what a PITA... I'll never do that again!


I have taken apart Ruger Blackhawks...a bit tricky but comparitively easy.

 

[RKG]

1) I have no hesitation in disassembling and reassembling a S&W DA revolver. But then I've been factory trained.

2) For the most part, I advise most folks not to disassemble their revolvers. In part, some special skills or training is important (perhaps even "necessary"); in part, you'll do a better job and reduce the risk of damaging something if you have a couple of special tools; and in part (and the largest part), because it is completely unnecessary.

3) Revolvers with a high round count can pick up some combustion product crud in the hand slot, which can be cleaned with a dental pick without disassembling the revolver. Revolvers that are daily carried tend to pick up some lint in the hammer channel, which is best cleaned with a tooth brush from the outside. S&W revolvers do not tend to pick up crud in the lockwork inside.

4) S&W revolvers do not require and should not receive heavy internal lubrication, and do not require frequent re-lubrication.

5) Spraying the internals of a revolver with solvent -- the "flush it out" approach -- is a bad idea and I strongly recommend against it.

 

[Mike Irwin]

I have no fear of taking my Smith revolvers down to the smallest component parts.

I am working up the nerve to do the same with my Colts.

 

[efield]

I have taken apart a few of my Smith & Wessons and Rugers. It was scary but I was able to put them back together somehow. (and they worked) However, I do not have the intestinal fortitude to attempt this on my Colts.

 

[Single Six]

Nope. To me, some things are best left to professionals. This is one of them.

 

[Wallyl]

Cleaning a revolver

RKG....as you have been trained how....will go with what you say about the the spraying/flushing. I have done it and it worked quite well..one has to let it dry out.

Had a problem with a M-57...shooting single action, when cocking the hammer the cylinder would sometimes not rotate and lock as it should. I removed the side plate and lightly oiled the critical areas and never had teh problem again

With a M-29 made ten years ago again shooting double action...sometimes when the trigger is pulled the hammer woudl drop but the transfer bar would be out of position--so it would not fire. I tightened the tension on the mainspring strain screw and that helped...I then spray lubed the internals--made it worse. Did a carb cleaner flush and it now works just fine..any ideas what was going on with that. I have four N farme S & W pistols and this is the only one that "acted up" like that. I do not use heavy loads in it, prefering medium loads.

 

[EdInk]

I have done it but there really is not too much need.

 

[rem44m]

I wish I knew how to do it. Still don't know if I would though.

 

[RKG]

With a M-29 made ten years ago again shooting double action...sometimes when the trigger is pulled the hammer woudl drop but the transfer bar would be out of position--so it would not fire. I tightened the tension on the mainspring strain screw and that helped...I then spray lubed the internals--made it worse. Did a carb cleaner flush and it now works just fine..any ideas what was going on with that. I have four N farme S & W pistols and this is the only one that "acted up" like that. I do not use heavy loads in it, prefering medium loads.

I wouldn't make a diagnosis without having the revolver in front of me. However, I can observe:

There is no transfer bar in a S&W DA revolver. I presume you are referring to the 1947 hammer block.

Positioning of the hammer block is controlled by a pin on the rebound slide that rides in a cam slot in the hammer block itself. The rebound slide, in turn, is positioned by a strut connecting it to the trigger (for rearward movement) and the rebound slide spring (for forward movement). It is theoretically possible for the rebound slide to be hung up so as to be too far aft (given trigger position) but not for it to be too far forward. (I say "theoretically possible" because I've never seen it happen with any S&W revolver.) When the rebound slide is aft, the hammer block cammed down (so as to enable full hammer travel), while when the rebound slide is forward, the hammer block is cammed up (so as to interdict full hammer travel). So if it really was the hammer block position that was causing your problem, my guess would be that the hammer block may be a bit deformed. But I stress that, long distance and sight unseen, this is just a guess.

People have been loosening the mainspring tension screw for decades. This leads to all sorts of problems, but since the mainspring tension has no effect on position of the hammer block, so I don't think it caused what you have reported.

In any event, this revolver should be examined and, if necessary, repaired by a qualified S&W smith.

Had a problem with a M-57...shooting single action, when cocking the hammer the cylinder would sometimes not rotate and lock as it should. I removed the side plate and lightly oiled the critical areas and never had teh problem again

Same caveat about distant diagnoses. I'm not sure what "as it should" means, but generally sluggishness in cylinder rotation is caused by either crud under the extractor star, a bent ejector rod, or a partially unscrewed ejector rod. Please note that some ejector rods are right hand threaded and some are left hand threaded; you have to know which applies to your revolver before trying to adjust the ejector rod seating.

 

[Zhillsauditor]

I have disassembled almost every revolver I have owned, but only one completely (an Iver Johnson Supershot 8--by which I mean removing all the pins and the barrel). The only one I haven't is a colt SAA; I tried two other colts DA revolvers and had a major headache getting both back together, which has put me off colt DAs completely.

I normally polish the rebound slide on all my S&W DAs with a stone and then a light cotten cloth and mother's mag. Most everything else I leave alone, except the springs, which I routinely replace. The rebound spring is a pain unless you have a good specially made tool, which costs less than $20.

Ruger SAs seem to me much more difficult. Dan Wessons are easier, although the mainspring can be a bear (but you only have to remove it to change it). Never owned a ruger DA.

 

[codefour]

On certain S&W revolvers I shoot a lot, I will remove all the internals and put them in the ultrasonic cleaner. Dry them all with an air compressor that has a water seperator and lube em up.

I also install Wolfe Springs in all my revolvers. I use an India stone to hone the contact points especially the sear and trigger. Smooths them right out. Some people can not believe I do my own trigger jobs. They really are not that hard.

If you use an India stone or the like, be very careful. You are not removing metal just honing it very slightly.

 

[RKG]

I normally polish the rebound slide on all my S&W DAs with a stone and then a light cotten cloth and mother's mag. Most everything else I leave alone, except the springs, which I routinely replace.

Polishing the sides the rebound slide is OK, as there is a limit to how much damage one can do -- though usually you will get more bang for your effort by polishing the frame and side plate raceways that bear on the sides of the rebound slide.

Polishing the bottom and, particularly, the top step of the rebound slide should be done with great care, as removal of metal here can alter critical dimensions and affect both function and safety.

There are really only two springs that might be replaced. Using a lighter mainspring in a K, L or N-Frame revolver can reduce DA trigger pull weight, but if over done can also lead to light strikes and, in N-Frames, to damage to some parts on guns that are used for fast double action shooting. Using a lighter rebound slide spring can reduce SA trigger pull, but if over done can lead to both function and safety issues.

I should have added to qualifications to my priors:

1) Armorer training does not make one a gunsmith. (The general distinction is that an armorer for a particular class of firearm is qualified to disassemble and reassemble it, observe parts that need to be replaced, and replace parts that do not require substantial hand fitting. A gunsmith is one who is qualified and equipped to make parts or alter the physical shape and dimensions of parts.) I am not a gunsmith.

2) All of my comments are based on pre-MIMS S&W DA revolvers. I have examined some "modern" revolvers, and observed some similarities and some differences, but I wouldn't touch one and do not consider myself to be even armorer qualified with one.