My adult son borrowed my older 4in Smith and Wesson model 63 22lr. He brought it back with the extractor star somehow separated from the extractor rod. In all the exploded drawings of Smith and Wesson revolvers it always shows the rod and star as one piece and doing a quick google search I don't see any disassembly videos that show the extractor being taken apart.

Is the star simply pressed onto the rod?

I took the cylinder out of the revolver but I did not take the cylinder apart. I simply pressed the star back onto the rod and made sure it all lined up with the pins and pin holes in the star and gave the star a few taps with a rubber mallet so that it was pressed back into place. I've reassembled my 63 and everything seems to function fine.

I have no idea what happened to get the star to pop off? That is a discussion I'll have with him later.

What else should I do if anything??

Thanks for your time.

Send the gun back to S&W to have the extractor replaced. The extractor and it's shaft are assembled by induction brazing and the joint has failed. The extractor in a gun with the "old style", "round" with alignment pins, is a factory only part!

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Gunsmithing since 1961

That's just dandy. Thanks for the info.

You might contact Tony South at Micro-Precision Welding in Michigan. They specialize in custom welding, and do many kinds of gun repair. They may be able to "re-attach" your extractor to it's stem, and salvage the existing cylinder assembly.

I have used them in the past. Their prices for custom work of this kind are very reasonable.....as are the turn around times. I would contact them by phone. I have had problems communicating with them using the "contact us" tab on the website.

TIG Welding, Micro Tig Welding, Mold Welding, Micro Laser Welding | Micro Precision Welding

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Ret. LE, FA Instr, S&W Armorer

Don't mess around trying to repair that extractor yourself, contact Smith Customer Service and they'll send you a shipping label to send the revolver back to the factory. When you fit the extractor to the revolver, the ratchets either have to be filed or cut with what Smith calls a cutting arm. I'm of the opinion that they will repair your revolver under warrantee.

I concur 100%. There are times when welding is a good option (like when some dufus drills a hole in a frame to mount a scope in the wrong location or your bargain Taurus has a frame crack), but in this case, the best cure is to contact S&W. You may have to ask for a shipping label as it seems they don't always offer them, depending on who you talk to. I don't know if they will repair the original one or replace it, but either way, it will be done right.

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So many S&W's, so few funds!!