Picked up a shooter grade mod 35 FTF from this forum. Cylinder seems too loose before and at full cock lock up. A little wiggle too when closed and uncocked. Great bore and honest wear on blueing,so pistol doesn't appear to have been abused but a pretty advanced ring on cylinder as well. Is a factory tune up in order? What/who do I ask for at S&W. Any idea as to cost? Could a pistolsmith do the same if i could find one locally? You don't see this model for sale often so I thought I should grab it,especially FTF without all those shipping/FFL transfer fees(which can get to as much ****75-$100 in my area) Did I make a mistake

Great site!Thanks,
Ischia

I would shoot it. If it's not spitting lead, I wouldn't worry about it.

Before doing any work on a S&W revolver that appears to have problems, unload the gun and give it a thorough cleaning using solvents to dissolve gummed deposits. Then lightly lubricate the revolver and see if the problem is still there. If it is, then you can start looking at repair issues.

To clarify: Cleaning a gun is not going to fix worn parts. However, just for example, I had a Model 10 which appeared lightly used but the cylinder did not always lock up. Turned out there was a glob of gunk and grease in the frame area around the cylinder stop. The cylinder stop spring and plunger (a 5 screw with the spring/plunger/screw setup) would not push the stop all the way up into the cutouts in the cylinder. A good cleaning made the gun function like new. Not always the case, but worth checking first.

I would check for proper DA an SA carry up. If that's OK, shoot it. If it carries up short, you can have the gunsmith install a wider hand. If you still have too much play in lockup, you may need a wider cylinder stop.

I would add, you would be amazed how much lockup play I have seen on guns that still shoot well. If accuracy is OK and it doesn't shave or spit, it's OK to shoot.

I had one that you could spin the cylinder when closed, I replaced just the cylinder stop and all is great.
May be even more simple, May just be muck in the clock work preventing the cylinder stop from coming up high enough.
Peter

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Assuming worn parts,what would I be looking at to replace. If more than a simple fix are parts/service available from S&W? Wiggle when closed is a concern. They just don't seem to lock up as tight as a Colt on average.

Sometimes the wiggle is a combination of the play of the cylinder stop in its window in the frame combined with play due to the center pin fitting in a somewhat oversized hole in the frame where it meets the back of the ejector star. Add to this a little play where the ejector rod locks up to the lug under the barrel and things can seem a little loose. I have seen nice S&W revolvers with quite a bit of play that still time perfectly and never shave and bit of lead and shoot very accurately.

True, but that's inherent in the different design.

ischia, let's talk. I sold you that one and I want to make it right.


Okie John