H&R 999 Sportsman

I've got one made in 36 I've had for over 30 years. Never had a lick of trouble out of it. Its very accurate and doesn't spit lead.
 
Here is my 999 from 1942. My dad worked at a golf course when he was 14 to buy it. It was his first gun. I have never shot it. It just sits in a case under the bed. I was offered a little over a year ago 800 cash for it.
 
H&R model 999

H & R 999 AU code 1980. I recently bought it at a pawn shop. When I purchased it their gunsmith had had it for about 3 months. It would not extract reliable. The gunsmith said that he could not find parts for it. I replaced the hook, slide, and pivot bolt. That fixed the ejection problem. The gun works fine except I cannot remove the cylinder. The pawn shop man implied that his gunsmith may have replaced the cylinder catch. There seem to be no movement when the release is depressed.

Any idea on removing the cylinder without depressing the release? I have a
new catch on the way however, I have never seen what is visible with the
cylinder removed. I don't want to damage anything other than maybe the
catch. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks
 
Have you tried just pulling the latch up all the way, beyond the point needed for opening the gun, and holding it there while you turn the cylinder backwards?

The 999 was the top of the line for H&R, and underwent a lot of small changes over the years, but still suffered from the old type lockwork and H&R's inability to find capital for a "clean paper" redesign. The trigger pulls were never as good as that on an S&W or Colt, the chambers were not always in alignment, the barrels were not always as good as they should have been, the hammer fall had a lot of "bounce", the grip was never as good as other DA revolvers, etc.

A big problem was that the 9 shots resulted in a fine ratchet that wore out easily.

Jim
 
My first revolver was a 999. Even then I knew it was a cheaply made barely adequate handgun. It didn't take long in the repair business to confirm that. Can't imagine anyone mistaking it for a well made quality piece.

I find that a little harsh and judgmental. While I will admit they are not on a par with a Smith or a Colt, the 999s were still pretty decent guns compared to some others. The workmanship was excellent, albeit the design was archaic. I had some come across my bench for repair as well, and I do have some criticisms about them, but I never saw them as "barely adequate."
 
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