Just picked up a used S&W M36. Is it ok to dry fire this J frame? It has the exposed hammer with firing pin attached. My old man raised me to never dry fire his old revolvers but I hear of lots of people dry firing the 442/642 without issue. Any guidance appreciated.

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Bible believing, America loving, Truck driving, Gun carrying, Country boy.

You can dry fire it to your hearts content.

If you go to S&W's website you can read it here-
FAQs - Smith & Wesson

Thank you for the quick reply. What about running +P ammo in the 36? Is that ok?

Thx again!

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Bible believing, America loving, Truck driving, Gun carrying, Country boy.

I don't dry fire my guns, just don't want to add wear for no good reason. Dry firing is something that was supposed to aid bullseye
target shooters by developing muscle memory I believe. Why dry fire a
snubby? Sometimes accidents are caused by "unloaded" guns being
dry fired indoors. Just my opinion.

I think it would be ok to shoot todays factory +p ammo in moderation
in your 36, just not much fun though.

There are two good reasons to dry fire a snubby. First, if you dry fire a gun, the action slicks up over time without adding the wear to the gun that you would through live fire. My 642 has been dry fired thousands of times and is slick as snot. Was not that way from the factory.

The other reason is that learning the long pull of a double action takes some practice for someone who isn't used to it.

I do not know how old your 36 is I would suggest using snap caps so that the firing pin is not falling on an empty chamber. It's also another safety step by putting snap caps in the chambers you'll be sure there is no live ammo in the gun.

This is sound advice.

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Dom

I had to have a firing pin bushing replaced, it had become egg shaped. I was told that it was from dry firing. Not a big deal, but snap caps are cheap..

While noisy , there should be no injury caused by the projectile - eh?

Always obey the primary safety rule!
ALWAYS keep the gun pointed in a safe direction.

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In dog years I'm dead.

I don't worry about my steel non-rimfire guns but I do not df my airweights for the reason stated above, it's hard on the bushing.

My M36 was made in 1981. I asked S&W about +P and said no.
Inadvertantly I was shooting at the range and did not see the tiny +p on the old box of rounds someone gave me years ago.
Fired about 20 rnds. Stout recoil and louder than usual bangs got me to look at the box a whole lot closer. Not unmanageable and no damage done, but I gave the rest of the box to someone with a .357.
Depending on when your M36 was made, you might have different results. A quick email to S&W with the SN would get you an answer in a short time.

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Pete.

Thanks to everyone. Great info here.

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Bible believing, America loving, Truck driving, Gun carrying, Country boy.