Lousy Range Day

Z

Zilmo

New member
What a crappy day at the range today. I took three guns, and had malfunctions with all three! Unbelieveable!

First, I took my early Seattle Detonics .45 Combat Master. I had seven mags loaded with several types of ammo. Three of the mags were aftermarket, so I decided to use those first, and they functioned flawlessly. Then I tried a factory mag, and it seemed tight going in, so I tried another one. This one stuck two thirds in, and would not come out for anything. Since the mag was loaded, I tapped it until it went all the way in so I could fire it empty. Afterwards, it still wouldn't come out, so the gunsmith has it now.

Next up was my S&W 66 no dash that is in the avatar. I loaded it with Hornady Critical Defense .38 and started in. Of the six, five fired, and one had a light strike. So I tried six more and two had a light strike. So I tried some Sellior .357 and two f the six had light strikes. Off to the gunsmith it went for a new spring.

Lastly, I tried out my brand new Taurus (Yeah, I know already. It's just part of my six inch stainless .357 collection.) 627 massive seven shot .357. Fired two shots, and it wouldn't index. I looked at it, and the first shot's shell had backed out of the cylinder about .04, and was hanging up on the frame. Weird! So I tried it again, and got the same thing. Tried three different ammo's and had the same results. It's as if the cylinder was bored oversize, and the fired shells are just slipping backwards out of the cylinder. What a pain in the butt. So off to Taurus it will go.

Anyway, I didn't shoot myself or anything, but it wasn't a fun day at the range.
 
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That M66 you didn't mess with the tension screw for the hammer spring. Even just a turn or two can cause light strikes:)
 
Sent the damn Taurus back today. Probably be a couple months before I get it I suppose.

The Detonics issue wasn't a big deal. Turns out the mag release pin was ever so slightly intruding in the mag well. The smith said it would be no big deal to fix.
 
That M66 you didn't mess with the tension screw for the hammer spring. Even just a turn or two can cause light strikes
Click to expand...

That's what I was thinking. I'll bet a previous owner backed the tension screw out in an effort to reduce trigger pull. The tension screw should always be snugged down.
 
That's what I was thinking. I'll bet a previous owner backed the tension screw out in an effort to reduce trigger pull. The tension screw should always be snugged down.
Click to expand...

I'll find out I guess. I didn't feel like screwing with it myself.
 
Now you see why I was puzzled you bought a taurus. After seeing the first shots of the collection, the only thing the taurus had in common was stainless and 6 in barrel. I thought it was the only one you could do without. Good luck with it zilmo.
 
Zilmo, sure like to hear what you find with your 66. I have one and I really do need one more thing to worry about. Let us know, will ya? I know your going with a new spring, but do the wear? Good idea to replace before I have a problem?
 
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If the 66's mainspring gets replaced it will probably be because:

a) A previous owner sanded, filed, or otherwise "tweaked" it, or
b) The 'smith changed it just because he could.

It's pretty hard to wear out a leaf spring like that without wearing out the rest of the gun along with it.
 
Had a much better range day today. I took my Colt M1991A1, my .40 Hi-Power, and my 9mm Hi-Power. Ran a couple boxes through each with no issues at all.

Man I love those Hi-Powers!!
 
Interesting indexing problem with that Taurus. I wonder if the larger 7 capacity cylinder makes indexing more finicky than a standard 6 or 5 round cylinder?
 
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