Over the past year, I've sold my Pythons and acquired three LNIB
S&W revolvers... one is SS and the others are Blue. All are around mid-1970's vintage.

Did S&W ship these with any kind of pre-oiling/packing grease?

Any original lubrication will now be near 40 years old and I was thinking of removing grips & side plates to de-grease and re-lube the innards, then scrub the barrel & cylinders and oil lightly.

Is this necessary/recommended?

Any info appreciated.

Thanks-mogwan

I don't know what was originally used as a lubricant back then but more then likely it's hardened up and dried out over the years. I would certainly clean such a revolver before using it. If after removing the side plate you don't want to do any further disassembly I'd recommmend cleaning out with CLP or some other similiar product. I've done this in the past with good results. Others of course will have different opinions.
Jim

I've seen Smiths WITH & WITHOUT lube in them over the years depending on how close to break time it was when they assembled the gun - LOL!

I personally make it a regular practice to disassemble, clean and lube all (newly acquired) guns before shooting them - not bragging here, but I am quite familiar with most Smith firearms. If you are not comfortable with disassembling the guns I would do one of two things..........

1) Use a viscous all-in-one cleaner, lube and RP like Remoil or Rig #2 Oil and spray the heck out of the gun after removing grips. Spray through all openings and either shake out well or use compressed air to blow excess out. One of the reasons I recommend these two products is that they both evaporate leaving the good stuff behind and will not leave a gummy greasy residue to attract dust and powder residue. Both of these products are thin and will dissolve old oil and grease when flushed out clear.

2) The second way is to bring the guns to a qualified GS or someone thoroughly familiar with the disassembly and re-assembly to have the service performed.

Some guys just suggest to shoot the guns as-is and have no worries, but that is just not my style. There have been LNIB guns I've seen that are really clean and not gummed up at all and yet others look as though they still have the cutting oil and fluids on them from the manufacturing process. If you do decide #2 is for you just make sure you have the PROPER screwdrivers and the PROPER know-how prior to popping off the side plate. I'd hate to see you ruin a LNIB Revolver. While #1 is not quite as good as #2 IMHO, it's WAY BETTER and safer if you are a novice.

[QUOTE=chief38;138091674]
I personally make it a regular practice to disassemble, clean and lube all (newly acquired) guns before shooting them - not bragging here, but I am quite familiar with most Smith firearms.



Same here. I have seen them bone dry, muddy dirty and everything in between.

Great....I just acquired an as-new 686-3 as my 1st revolver and now I'm afraid to go shoot the thing!

Don't be afraid! It's very unlikely that the lube, or lack of lube, on your new gun is going to have any noticeable effect on your shooting it. It is a good idea to run a dry patch through the barrel and chambers just to mop out any junk that may have accumulated. If the gun is working right there is no need to take it apart and do a detail cleaning before shooting it.

It's my opinion that you can't clean a gun too often. You can use the wrong products, or overly aggressive techniques, but if the action is satisfactory when dry-fired, just practicing the old solvent patch/dry patch/oil patch sequence thru the bore and chambers can't hurt a thing.
As above, the need for further attention may warrant more advanced skills or the services of a professional.

Larry

It just so happens that yesterday I helped a friend out when he brought over a recently acquired Colt Mark lll Official Police that was manufactured in the 1970's and had never been serviced. It felt a bit stiff and gummy and so I completely stripped it. He was amazed at the congealed oil, rust and grime inside the Revolver - I wasn't all that shocked as I have seen this many times in the past. A few hours later the old Colt was all cleaned, rust removed from the internals, lubed and reassembled. This is why the first thing I do when buying a new gun is to do this procedure.

I would give the bore a good scrub.

If the action feels smooth, I wouldnt bother taking the side plate off. I would put a few drops of CLP in it to provide a lube. If it does feel gritty, I would take the grips off and spray down the action with gun scrubber. Then relube with CLP. If that didnt work, then the side plate may have to come off. Some of the older guns have had oil dropped into the action that has hardened. I recently picked up a M12-3 with this problem. After cleaning the action, it works great.

What's your intended use.

If you're paying LNIB prices for '70s vintage, I presume you're thinking from a collector's standpoint.

If so, there's no real point in pulling them apart for cleaning and lubing, and a few arguments against it -- particularly if you're unfamiliar with pulling a sideplate and detail stripping the action.

Better to give them a gentle, standard cleaning with a mild gun cleaner; swab the bore and charge holes and wipe the revolver down. Store, and repeat periodically.

If you plan to shoot them, then yes, a thorough cleaning and lubing is called for. The suggestion to use a pro if you're not familiar with doing this is a good one.

So, again, it comes down to your intended use. Which is?