Is it possible for the cylinder stop or center pin to shear off or break in any way with repeated opening and closing of the cylinder? What about loss of timing with repeated dry firing due to wearing of surfaces?

I open and close the cylinder on my 442 quite a bit to unload and dry fire, or check the cylinder, and this thought crossed my mind.

The centerpin is thick and doubtful you will ever hurt it opening and closing your cylinder. There is much more wear associated with actually firing the gun than dry firing. Just keep in mind that your gun is a tool made of machined parts which can usually be brought back into spec if something wears too much.

roar,

I have never heard of an ejector rod or yoke "breaking" from normal use. Most damage to those parts is due to mishandling. It is a very large "no-no" to flip the cylinder open or closed as is usually done by some macho type with no real knowledge of the fine tolerances of the gun. If you look at the front of the revolver, the seam between the yoke and the frame should barely be perceptible. If it is large or very obvious, the gun has probably been abused and is not in proper alignment. (That can often be corrected by a skilled gunsmith.) If you open and close the cylinder properly and eject the empty cases properly, your revolver will long out last you.

I don't believe that dry firing a modern center fire revolver will hurt it. I would advise against dry firing a rim fire revolver because the risk of peening the rim recesses on the cylinder exists.

Bob

Thanks for the responses so far. I learned right away before I even bought my first revolver that you should never flip the cylinder open or closed, and so on.

I was more wondering about the breakage or wearing of parts due to repeated opening and closing, or dry fire. I know that I could always replace a part if anything became worn and out of spec, but I suppose I was more wondering if anyone ever had first hand experience of seeing something like this happen.

thanks again

roar,

You can expect your M442 to literally fire many thousands of standard velocity rounds without excessive wear. At 5 rounds per cylinder, that is a bunch of openings and closings. I think you will detect the wear in your wrist long before you see it in the revolver.

Bob

Good point! I love this little revolver, it is such a cool gun. It's definitely one of my favorites.

Yesterday I happily bought a new pair of shorts so I can get back to properly pocket carrying my 442, now that the weather is getting nicer.