So I recently bought a j-frame M&P 360 as a backup ankle gun. I like the gun and it's fierce recoil.
The last time I shot it (the second time ever), I noticed that the cylinder seemed to be more difficult to turn. I assume the gas escaping between the cylinder and the forcing cone blows all the oil out and away from the cylinder bearing leaving it dry and dirty.
I also noticed that the ejector rod seems to be slightly bent or crooked. As I spin the cylinder I can see the ejector wobble inside the crane. It also looks as though the rod makes contact in the crane in one place. Now the crane isn't bent because if it was the cylinder gap would change. So I think the ejector rod might have an issue. The ejector rod slides in and out of the cylinder with ease. Is it normal to have friction between the ejector rod and the crane? What should I do?

So I recently bought a j-frame M&P 360 as a backup ankle gun. I like the gun and it's fierce recoil.
The last time I shot it (the second time ever), I noticed that the cylinder seemed to be more difficult to turn. I assume the gas escaping between the cylinder and the forcing cone blows all the oil out and away from the cylinder bearing leaving it dry and dirty.
I also noticed that the ejector rod seems to be slightly bent or crooked. As I spin the cylinder I can see the ejector wobble inside the crane. It also looks as though the rod makes contact in the crane in one place. Now the crane isn't bent because if it was the cylinder gap would change. So I think the ejector rod might have an issue. The ejector rod slides in and out of the cylinder with ease. Is it normal to have friction between the ejector rod and the crane? What should I do?

One way to tell if it is bent is to carefully place in an electric drill, well padded of course. Turn on the drill and if the rod wobbles, then it is bent. A new rod from S&W would probably be your best bet in such a case.

Hope this helps.

Bill

What causes it to bend?

Abuse.

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Someone might have dropped it and and it landed on the side of the cylinder..that could cause the ejector rod to bend..doing a Hollywood close by just snapping the cylinder closed is probably the main reason for rod runout..a gunsmith can fix it in no time at a cost probably cheaper than a new one as the new one would have to be fitted to the revolver..a lot more work than simple straightening it..all5x