Getting ready to attempt an DA job on a 686.

S

Sling Shot

New member
DA trigger job on a S&W 686.

Hello all. I am getting my ducks in a row to make a first attempt at doing an action job on my 686. I have Jerry's shop book, and I have been studying it extensively. I am not going to mess with the single action pull as it is just about perfect, and I do not want to buy a jig to change sear angle in single action. What is the best material to use to do polishing work of the trigger surfaces and rebound slide to create a very smooth surface? I have some Spyderco ceramic stones that came with a knife sharpener, and these should be good enough to do any stoning. If you have any thing else to add that you learned while doing your own action job, please let me know. Your help is much appreciated. Good day.
Sling Shot
 
From a couple: Proceed slowly and cautiously, its awful hard to put metal back...
I like a dead flat surface - a piece of glass is good - and 600 grit wet-or-dry, then crocus cloth and polish bearing surfaces to mirrors. Very carefully, break the corners of the rebound slide, and round the edges slightly. This was told me by a guy who'd worked for S&W for many years, and seems to really help.

Use a good, light coat of moly grease on the surfaces for the next 500 rounds or so. Good luck!
 
Check all surfaces for marks.These indicate burrs so clean them up.One thing that really makes a diff is a lighter trigger return spring.Take everthing slow and easy.Double think everything out before doing it.The job is not that hard just requires some carefull work and lots of thinking.
Good luck
 
Swifter has it with the flat surface, but I use a modified version of that.

I use rubber cement to adhere various grits of silicon carbide paper to a block of steel, the surface of which I know is true.

I then use a J roller to get any bubbles out and get it as flat as possible.

When that sheet wears out, I simply peel it off.

One of the tricks of getting it really flat is to thin the rubber cement considerably with Bestine.

Maybe more trouble than it's worth, but it's what I'm used to.

I'm getting ready to try my hand at recutting the sear angle on a Model 29 single action without benefit of the jig.

I figure I can't muck it up any worse than the jackass who was in there before me and cut through the case hardening. After I get the angle recut, I'll Kasenit it to harden the surface, and then do any final dressing that needs to be done.

For the rebound slide someone on the TFL recommended relieving the back of the slide so that you essentially slightly hollow the middle. In effect, this supports the slide on two "legs" at front and rear. It can also make a BIG difference.

I didn't think it would, until I tried it myself.

For general work, I have a set of fine cut India stones (round, square, and triangular) that I got from Brownell's.
 
Hello guys,
Another part to check is the bottom arc of the trigger, where it enters the frame. Many times, there is some drag at this interaction. Make sure to remove any front to back play in the cylinder. When firing, because of recoil and heat, the cylinder will often rub the forcing cone if too much front to back play. Squaring up the forcing cone very slightly and removing cylinder play goes along way in promoting smoothness. The tool sold by Brownells for installing the trigger return spring is VERY worthwhile.
Jeff
 
Thanks for all your help. I have no gotten everything together yet to attempt my first home-made action job. I have noticed one thing though about the hammer. It is not perfectly centered in the frame and has some side to side play. Once I do get it apart, I will check for scoring marks on both sides of the hammer, and especially on the left side of the hammer with muzzle pointing away from me.
Good day. Sling Shot
 
Sling,

Brownell's sells hammer boss bushings/bearings to take care of that problem.

I just got a pack yesterday to do some work on a friend's Model 29.
 
My first trigger job went well!!!

Hello, I just wanted to update that I finally got around to doing an action job on my S&W 686. I went with the Wolff reduced power mainspring and the 13 lb rebound spring. I did some polishing on the rebound slide, and that was it for the polishing. The hammer had some side play in it, and it was rubbing the frame side. I fixed it with two .002 Power Custom hammer shims. No more rubbing, and that is good. By the way, the hammer shims can only be purchased in a 10 pack from Brownnells. I paid 13.49, and that was with the trade discount. If anybody needs 5 of them, just send me $6.50, and I will mail them to you. Anyway, I got it all put back together without messing up the side plate screws, and that was a relief. I do not know what the pull is because I do not have a gauge, but that is in the near future. The pull is definitely lighter, and I am able to roll the cylinder in DA shooting a lot better. All in all, it was a great learning experience, and I can see why everbody likes to tinker with their toys. Sling Shot
 
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