S&W Model 59 not always cocking hammer

M

Miata Mike

New member
So far I have shot reloads from the guy I bought this gun from a while back and factory Federal FMJ 115 grain. I would say about 4 or 5 times out of 10 the hammer fails to cock into the single action firing position. Not the end of the world, but I should not have to manually cock the trigger half of the time. Double action trigger pull is ugly heavy. ;)

Today I had one stove pipe out of 50 shot, not sure if this is related. Before I went out I field stripped it and gave it a good cleaning and lube. I would like to think I wasn't limp wristing it, but at this point I will listen to all suggestions.
 
Is it ejecting when the hammer doesn't cock back? Weak loads? Was it doing it with the factory loads?

Also, was the decocker reengaging during the cycling? When it fails to go into single action, are you able to pull the trigger and fire a round?

It doesn't sound like you're limp-wristing.


Miata Mike
S&W Model 59 not always cocking hammer
So far I have shot reloads from the guy I bought this gun from a while back and factory Federal FMJ 115 grain. I would say about 4 or 5 times out of 10 the hammer fails to cock into the single action firing position. Not the end of the world, but I should not have to manually cock the trigger half of the time. Double action trigger pull is ugly heavy.

Today I had one stove pipe out of 50 shot, not sure if this is related. Before I went out I field stripped it and gave it a good cleaning and lube. I would like to think I wasn't limp wristing it, but at this point I will listen to all suggestions.
Click to expand...
 
Yes it was ejecting every load except for one. It did it with reloads and the factory loads. Very snappy muzzle flip compared to my PT1911.

When it fails to go into single action, I am able to pull the trigger and fire a round......an ugly long trigger pull I might add. :barf: So I was manually cocking it back.

I'm not quite sure what you mean by "was the decocker reengaging during the cycling?" It would stay coked back sometimes and not sometimes with no pattern that I could see.
 
If the gun extracts and eject OK, then the slide is coming back far enough to cock the hammer. If it doesn't, then something is wrong with the gun. That is a fairly complicated gun and unless you are very familiar with it, I don't recommend you try to do the work yourself. I will warn you that new parts might be required and the repair could be costly. It is most likely that a/the previous owner tried to work the gun over to "improve" the trigger pull and what you are seeing is the result.

Jim
 
I will talk to the original owner. I doubt that he messed with it, but you never know.

I was hoping it would be something simple like the guide rod recoil spring was bad or something like that.
 
The 1st Gen 59 IMO is a little off balanced due to having an alloy frame.

Going back to your issue... Based on what you described, the pistol is cycling all the way through. The hammer/sear is not engaging properly. You will need to have it looked at by a smith.

My comment regarding the decocker was off the mark because you're able to DA fire.



Miata Mike
Yes it was ejecting every load except for one. It did it with reloads and the factory loads. Very snappy muzzle flip compared to my PT1911.

When it fails to go into single action, I am able to pull the trigger and fire a round......an ugly long trigger pull I might add. So I was manually cocking it back.

I'm not quite sure what you mean by "was the decocker reengaging during the cycling?" It would stay coked back sometimes and not sometimes with no pattern that I could see.
Click to expand...
 
Get it to a GOOD gunsmith ASAP! From my experience with Smith autos, they tend to have very smooth DA triggers. It honestly sounds to me like someone tried to do a trigger job and only succeeded in butchering the sear. If the hammer is falling back to DA it may begin to slam fire. I personally don't think the gun is safe to shoot in it's current condition. At the very least I would replace the sear and all springs.
 
Thanks for the advice. I will not shoot it until fixed. I work with the original owner. I'm sure he will be honest about it's past or work with me on it.

The idea of slam fire is something I never thought of and to tell you the truth scares the heck out of me. If you were to guess, how much do you think a good Gunsmith might charge for the repairs BamaBowtie suggested?
 
Yep, I would agree with getting it to a good gunsmith and letting him fix it for you. I have an original S & W Model 59 that I got back in the 80's that has always been flawless. I can't recall that it has ever FTE'd or stovepiped. When the SHTF it will be on my hip, it's that reliable and accurate.

The double-action trigger pull is kind of heavy. Luckily, the second through 13th round are easy enough.
 
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