PROBLEMS with my S&W .357 686 Plus

[SelfTaughtIntel]

i had purchased a S&W 686 Plus .357mag from my local gun shop 07-10-2012 and picked up on 07-20-2012. As you can see i've had this firearm for less than a year now, I went to my local range this past friday 03-08-2013. I put my first 7 down range without a hick-up, then i reloaded and proceeded to attempted to put a few more down range. The 8th shot flawless, then 9th........That's where S.H.T.F. The round went off, and as i looked down range, there was my barrel off of the revolver ! The firearm is now in two pieces. My jaw hit the floor, i have never seen this or heard of this from a S&W product. I have put less than 600 rounds through this revolver, and for this to happen it is quite frightening as somebody or myself could have been seriously injured. Just want to get your guys thoughts on this, and see what you guys think i should do ? I emailed S&W over 3 days ago and nothing back yet....

 

[SelfTaughtIntel]

here are some more pics.........

 

[SelfTaughtIntel]

And one last pic to go with all the rest....

 

[wheelyfun66]

Never seen anything like that......!!
Will be glued to this thread....

 

[kwselke]

They sure don't make them the way they used to. Seriously, I'd call them immediately and not wait for an email reply. There is another thread here about new revolvers launching barrels. I believe it was chalked up to over torquing of the barrel. It definitely needs investigating by S&W. I'm sure they will do right by you.Things like this are the makings of recalls.

 

[shawn mccarver]

i had purchased a S&W 686 Plus .357mag from my local gun shop 07-10-2012 and picked up on 07-20-2012. As you can see i've had this firearm for less than a year now, I went to my local range this past friday 03-08-2013. I put my first 7 down range without a hick-up, then i reloaded and proceeded to attempted to put a few more down range. The 8th shot flawless, then 9th........That's where S.H.T.F. The round went off, and as i looked down range, there was my barrel off of the revolver ! The firearm is now in two pieces. My jaw hit the floor, i have never seen this or heard of this from a S&W product. I have put less than 600 rounds through this revolver, and for this to happen it is quite frightening as somebody or myself could have been seriously injured. Just want to get your guys thoughts on this, and see what you guys think i should do ? I emailed S&W over 3 days ago and nothing back yet....

Those blasted unreliable one piece barrels. . . .

LOL



Seriously, call them and nicely request a shipping label. They will fix you right up. This happens and there are metallurgy experts on here that know why. It has been reported with one-piece barrels, two-piece barrels and in S&W, Ruger and other brands.

S&W will either fix this one or give you a new one if there is frame damage.

This is not common, but it does happen, and "it was just your time."

Sorry from all of us, but it happens occasionally.

 

[SelfTaughtIntel]

I called S&W and was on hold for the warranty center for 51 minutes and never got through so i hung up

 

[Titegroups]

Too awesome!

 

[garbler]

What you need are some macro or good quality photos of the fracture face. In other words where the barrel left the frame. That fracture face will tell the whole story to somebody who knows how to read it. That would be a testing lab with a metallurgist or a good metallorgrapher. A failure of this type could be attributed to a number of possibilities but not many given the age of the gun and materials.

I would say off hand you may have a form or ductile fracture possibly due to over-torque of the barrel during installation. Fractrure of this type are quite easy to read since they leave signs of plastic deformation of the metal. Then again it could be an inclusion or flaw in the barrel shank. I could go on and on but the fracture face will tell the story.

I would let S&W have the receiver and barrel shank back but I personally would keep the barrel so that you at least have proof of what the hell happened. They will of course pressure you for all the pieces or evidence. It is the only way they can control you and this problem. However you need to retain at least one half of the fracture face if you think there is any chance you may not be handled in this properly or perhaps want to send a strong message to the factory that such failures are beyond tolerable. Imagine this flaw being one of your cylinder chambers and the top strap coming back in your face or hurting somebody nearby ?

 

[SelfTaughtIntel]

^^^ I really like that idea !!! I mean nobody was hurt....THIS TIME....But I would hate it to have been fatal or very damaging to myself or others around me. I think I will keep the barrel !

 

[qrachel]

Barrels Flying Off Guns, Film and Commentary at 11:00

I'm new to shooting and love S&W revolvers, especially the 686. I just bought a new 4" + 357 and I am thrilled and waiting for the CA waiting period to expire.

BUT, I've got to say this . . . this is one freakin, catastrophic failure with huge safety and reliability concerns. I'm a retired Boeing exec and know that s___ happens; such a failure in the a/c industry would damned near be immediate cause to "ground the fleet" and could certainly cause a full fleet inspection within a day or two. I get consumer goods are different, but guns are inherently able to contribute to horrific circumstances - there must be ZERO tolerance for this and immediate and comprehensive customer support to address the matter.

S&W ought to be all over this like . . . well, you get the picture. I'm a bit shaken about my new 617 and 686, and just so you know I've been the senior quality exec at a huge manufacturer; and therefore, am not moved to rash comments.

However, three days and no email response and 50+ minutes in the customer service wait queue - that's outrageous. I'd consider posting the pictures on Utube and Facebook, calling a national news agency and embarrassing the poop out of them. I'd also write to the CEO, head of customer service and let them know personally what it's like to be an S&W product user and customer - and for damned sure S&W owners definitely shouldn't fall into the, "Oh, it's just a 1 time, no harm : no foul situation." Business as usual this is not!!!

We have one of the most corrosive conversations occurring around the 2nd Amendment in our fair land's history, and one of the MAJOR players acts like a 1st class jerk! They've got to do better than that!

Sorry for the rant, but this matter was and is what it is, and it was dangerous and gives concern to the well-being of the consumer and those who might be in their proximity when using S&W products.

Take care all,

 

[andyo5]

I have heard of this before. Specifically on the Model 620 which was also a 357 Magnum. The problem resulted from overtightening the barrel during assembly and resulting cracking of the barrel threads where they attach the barrel to the frame.
You are under lifetime warranty, right?
Don't fool around with emails. Call S&W customer service, explain what happened; and ask for them to send you a call tag for UPS pickup. You will get your gun repaired at no cost to you and sent back to your home.
I have been there and done that.

 

[SelfTaughtIntel]

Well that is very refreshing to hear, I just want my gun back to the way it was lol.

 

[Hillbilly77]

Smith & Wesson Customer Service - 1 (800) 331-0852, ext. 4.
Call them and they will take care of you. You said you bought the gun new, so you have the Lifetime Warranty on your revolver.

You posted that you wanted to keep the barrel, but I'm sure they will want it returned with the gun.

 

[Aguila9]

I have never had a problem with their customer service. Nor have i ever been on hold for longer than five minutes. Keep us informed.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

 

[ISCS Yoda]

I would not waste time with e-mail. Ship the gun to them. If you can't get through to get a shipping label just include the shipping receipt in the box. Write a nice letter and explain exactly what happened and put it with the gun.

If they haven't changed their policy they will give you certain choices:

1. If they determine it's a metallurgical problem or other factory problem they'll replace it. Period.

2. If they determine it was something that you did they'll let you have any gun of theirs at their cost. *

3. They'll ship the whole thing back to you if neither of the first two items works for you.

*You didn't say what ammo you were using. They'll want to know.

I blew up a Model 19 in 1997. I didn't get it resolved until 2000 but that was my fault; I was dilatory, not S&W. They were VERY nice and after they determined that it was the fault of the ammo that I was using (someone's hand loads) they sold me a gun at their cost.

Further details another time.

***GRJ***

 

[scooter123]

FYI, one piece barrels on revolvers have been failing like this for a very long time. Most likely since the time of the first centerfires but it could date back to the early rimfires and black powder revolvers. It's cause is typically an inclusion such as a small void or bit of carbide in the "wrong" spot. File it under Stuff Happens.

As for the risk of injury or loss of life, that would only happen if you were in the middle of a gunfight. If you think about it, everything that took place when your barrel shot off took place downrange from your hand and would also be downrange from a neighboring shooter.

Good news is that it's a well known mode of failure that is easily attributed to a manufacturing defect so your warranty will cover this. A bit of bad news is that there is potential for damage to the frame when they try to remove the remaining barrel stub. As a result you may receive a brand new revolver with a brand new serial number. If that happens they will not be able to ship your gun back to you, it will have to be shipped to a dealer local to you and go through a new Firearms Transfer. IMO you should be talking to the dealer you purchased your 686 from and arraigning for that potential so you don't have to pay a new transfer fee.

 

[Printer]

Self,
Wow, I'm surprised. Calling the service dept probably won't get you anywhere until they have the gun and have a chance to look at it. Unless its an ongoing problem that they are aware of.
Bob

 

[Bello]

At least it will be easy to clean

 

[Maximumbob54]

Put it in the mill and turn down the shoulder to set a proper barrel to cylinder gap?

That sounds like too much work. Just put your shoulder into that barrel wrench... There, all done.