1917/45 Question

[CajunBass]

I purchased a fairly nice looking 1917 a few weeks ago. I haven't had a chance to shoot it yet, but a poster on another forum to me that I shouldn't shoot factory "hardball" in it. Never heard that before. Anybody know anything about that? I probably wouldn't since I reload most of my own ammo, I was just sort of surprised to hear that.

[CQB27]

It was made for "factory hardball" as he calls it. Modern 45acp standard full metal jacket, 230 grain ammo is pretty much the equivalent of the issue ammo the revolver was built for in 1917/1918. I have shot thousands of rounds of Winchester White Box 230 grain full metal jacket through my 1917 and the hundred year old soldier is none the worse for wear. Me thinks the internet expert is a little sideways on this one.

[deadin]

I think he may been thinking of the Webleys that have been convered to .45 ACP or Auto Rim. They were designed for lower pressure and, at the ww1 era, lead bullets.

[CajunBass]

No, he said there was some concern about the quality of the steel in some of the 1917's due to Smith & Wesson ramping up production so quickly that quality control slipped off enough that the government had to come in and run the plant.

He might be right, I've just never heard it, or read anything about it.

I'm not going to call his name, but he's someone who has always seemed to know what he's talking about. He's not someone I think of as an "internet expert," but he's just the only person I've ever heard say anything like that, going back to when I used to read Skeeter Skelton and Jeff Cooper.

[sodacan]

Good to go with 230 grain standard velocity ball ammo. It's the only thing I shoot out of my S&W and Colt 1917's.

[Muley Gil]

That feller is incorrect. The reason the government took over the S&W plant was that they were too slow. S&W was building their 1917s to pre war standards, including the blue finish. If you look at a Colt 1917, it will look pretty rough, but it is still functional.

Oh and as to the strength of a S&W 1917, the government mandated that they be heat treated. So, no problems there either.

[Hondo44]

[QUOTE=CajunBass;139607585]No, he said there was some concern about the quality of the steel in some of the 1917's due to Smith & Wesson ramping up production so quickly that quality control slipped off enough that the government had to come in and run the plant.

He might be right, I've just never heard it, or read anything about it.
QUOTE]

We all get something wrong on occasion including the experts. The poster may have been thinking of British contract .455 service revolvers which frequently have been converted to 45 ACP.

Muley Gil is above, is correct. The 1917 military contract cylinders were required to be heat treated specifically for the 19000 pressure of hard ball ammo (required to reliably operate the slide of the Colt 1911 Auto).

It's above the pressure of the ~15000 design pressure of the other Smith N frame cylinders of that period. Revolvers converted to ACP should be limited to 45 Auto Rim ammo, specifically designed with 15000 pressure for revolvers, or equivalent loading in ACP ammo..

And in fact the army contract requiring heat treated cyls led to S&W heat treating all of its revolver cyls by 1920 until 1945 on non-magnums (due to improved steel). HT was continued only on magnums of that period.

[CajunBass]

Thanks all. I was reasonably sure, as much reading and such as I do, both in books, magazines, and more recently the internet, I would have run into something to indicate that before. I certainly didn't think I ever had or I probably wouldn't have bought the revolver.

I might not shoot it a lot, but I plan to shoot it.