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S&W Revolvers: 1961 to 1980 3-Screw PINNED Barrel SWING-OUT Cylinder Hand Ejectors WITH Model Numbers


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  #1  
Old 02-24-2011, 09:50 PM
wnr700 wnr700 is offline
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Default .357 wont seat in cylinder...

I have a Model 581 (no dash/no recall stamp), that frankly has been rode hard and put up wet.

It's a dream to shoot and have had no issues with .38 Special ammunition. 300 rounds and no issues extracting or loading. Trigger is great and it shoots accureatly.

Tonight I decided to loaded up some .357 Winchester and the CCI and had the same issue. The last 1/8th inch (just a guess) has to be really forced into the cylinder chamber. It takes a significant amount of pressure to get it into the cylinder. I can feel the extractor rod being pushed ever so slightly with the pressure applied.

Exxtracting is a chore as well. I can't imagine extracting without a dowel after a few cyylinders of .357

I bought this for mainly IDPA, home defense, and the range.

Are these significant issues? My main concern is safety.

For the price I paid, I can live without .357 but I love the gun and want to continue shooting her.
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Old 02-24-2011, 10:00 PM
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That is a nice gun , first of all. If you shoot .38spl ammo and do not thoroughly clean each and every cylinder , putting .357mag ammo becomes a chore with all revolvers. Not saying that is the case here but, clean it thoroughly first then try the .357mag loads. If it is still too tight , it has to be the chamber diameter.
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Old 02-24-2011, 10:22 PM
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What he said! Clean the charge holes after shooting .38 Special. They are "about" 1/8" (.135") shorter than .357 Magnum, you get a build-up of powder and lead fouling at the mouth of the case that causes an obstruction. It takes a lot less than 300 rds. to create a problem usually.
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Old 02-24-2011, 10:36 PM
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Just thought I'd offer you a coupla pennies.
Is it one chamber in particular? is it nicked or damaged? had this issue with a mdl 29 that an irresponsible individual had possibly loaded to hot and the case expanded more than it perhaps should have, and this person proceeded to use a sharp implement to extract said cartridge, and the round would not seat without extra force, so I deduced that shooting the hell out of it was the remedy, after almost 300 rounds and a very sore lower arm assembly, I found that it did help slightly but the extraction was still difficult. Just took it to a smith and it wasn't but 10 bucks and about 10 minutes, I believe he reamed it out, however being a 357 I think the previous poster has the right idea, it could be the prior owner was shooting a lot of lead 38's, I'd hit it with a brush real good before I went to the smith.
keep your powder dry
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Old 02-24-2011, 10:51 PM
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Use a .40 cal. bronze brush and plenty of Hoppe's #9. Get the brush just into the chamber throat and rotate it several turns. Then a snug-fitting patch all the way thru and back, inspect and repeat as often as needed to arrive at a clean chamber. Repeat the above 6 times, and you should see the end of your chambering problem. Get back to us with results.

Larry
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Old 02-24-2011, 10:57 PM
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Get a chamber brush. They are bigger than bore brushes. Apply solvent wait 15 mins. Put brush in drill and work each chamber Bach and forth. Repeat until the solvent patch is clean. You might need to get some lead away clOth and wrap some strips around a .30 cal brush. Chuck that brush/cloth and polish each chamber.

I had similar trouble from shooting 45 colts in my 460. The above procedure fixed my gun and I never shot anymore shorts.
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Old 02-24-2011, 11:17 PM
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What shape bullets did you reload? Wadcutters need to be seated much deeper in the case than round nose, or they won't chamber. Some reloading manual specs regarding OAL don't help much with wadcutters and the like.
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Old 02-24-2011, 11:18 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by duckloads View Post
You might need to get some lead away clOth and wrap some strips around a .30 cal brush.
If you want to use it in the chambers, it will work, but, be careful....The Lead Away will take blueing right off.

You likely have a huge carbon ring in there...scrub. Scrub some more. Wrap Chore Boy around an old brush and scrub some more with a good solvent, Hoppes or Ballistol should work fine.

(Quick question, it IS marked as a .357 Magnum, right?
I remember some LE contract L frames were chambered in .38 Special...)
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Old 02-24-2011, 11:43 PM
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I recently read what seemed to be a good tip to remove a 38 Special ring from a 357 Mag cylinder. If you reload slightly expand an empty 357 case and push it into the cylinder to remove the ring. Haven't tried it but others report it works well.
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Old 02-27-2011, 04:37 PM
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A good cleaning worked...

Should have thought of that...
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Old 02-27-2011, 05:58 PM
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Old 02-28-2011, 01:46 PM
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Another cleaning option is De-leading Wool, I believe by Cylinder & Slide. I got some form Midway. Cut a small amount and wrap around a bronze brush and scrub out. Works well on leaded up barrels also.

I'm sure you have the problem others have identified as the carbon/lead/residue left in the chambers after shooting .38's. It often only takes 30 to 50 rounds to make this a problem. Clean chambers after every range trip, and take a brush to the range with you and take a few passes every once i awhile to keep the build up down.
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357 magnum, 38spl, 581, cartridge, extractor, fouling, idpa, sig arms, solvent, winchester

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