617 .22 lr

[revolver_ph]

what ammo do you use. the first ammo i do not recall the name as fpr the second ammo it was cci and fixes 2 of three problems

Sorry to hear of your 617 issues. Mine has been great out of the box. S&W will fix it and then you will love the critter.

I shoot Fed AutoMatch. I have shot over a case (about 4000) and had only one failure to fire. I rotated the cartridge and it fired. Maybe the priming compound was not evenly distributed.

Here is mine with a cheap green dot. I had to monkey with the cheap sight a bit at first but it has worked well since and holds zero. It would probably not survive the wet or high recoil but fine for this application. I use Burris FastFire on heavy recoil handguns.

 

[BB57]

I can't speak to the 617, but I have noted that my Model 17 can have cases that are harder to eject than .38 +P brass is in my Model 66 or Model 19. That's interesting given the far smaller surface area of the six .22 LR cases, compared to six .38's. It's stiff enough at times that the FBI reload just won't work and I've reverted to the Stress Fire method to eject the empties.

I've also noted that a buildup of powder residue under the ejector star is uncommon in the center fire calibers. If it happens it's with colloidal ball powders where the larger unburnt or partially burnt powder grains are large enough to immediately prevent the cylinder from going back in the frame.

In contrast, it is a potential issue with some types of .22 LR ammo, where the powder residue builds up under the star and starts to cause the star to bind against the recoil shield, making it nautically harder to close the cylinder.

Since I tend to shoot a couple hundred rounds per range session, I'ver started taking a plastic cleaning brush to clean the surfaces between the star and the cylinder every 50 rounds or so.

 

[themush74]

Well, if you can't figure out the proper place to post things in a forum, I guess expecting you to follow their directions to return it for repair are out of the question.

Good luck.

So...misfires and stuck cartridges are common "problems" with all .22 revolvers, and when you switch to CCI, it doesn't do that anymore. That's not a gun issue, that's an ammunition issue.

How many times did the trigger "jam", did it continue to do that with the CCI, and what precisely does that mean? Did the trigger stick to the rear after firing, did it hang up after cocking, or did it refuse to move to the rear in double-action?

Declaring it a "piece of junk" after 50 rounds...you know, you're right. Better send it to me.



What're the 617 going for? $700?

I have well over $1000 in my .22 auto. The 617 is probably just as accurate, with a trigger that's almost as good.

Model 41s are up to about $1200. Nobody who has one would ever suggest they aren't worth it. They can be finicky buggers, too. But hey--don't buy a racecar and fill the tank with pump gas. And compared to the guns that the 41 competes against, it's not very choosy at all.

I'd say the 617 is a steal. It's a scant $60 more than the GP-100 .22, and built the same way as S&W's centerfires--no cheaped-out frames, aluminum, or plastic.

As for the trigger Jam i am referring to the trigger would not pull back nor would the hammer cock back. Whatever the technical terms are it would not pull back to fire also the hammer would not pull back to single fire either. I understand this is a very reputable company but nothing should come out of the box that way whether i pay $1 or $10,00 fir something.
So there is a forum, I post what actually went wrong with my gun and i get scalded upon. not like I'm making this stuff up.

 

[themush74]

So...misfires and stuck cartridges are common "problems" with all .22 revolvers, and when you switch to CCI, it doesn't do that anymore. That's not a gun issue, that's an ammunition issue.

How many times did the trigger "jam", did it continue to do that with the CCI, and what precisely does that mean? Did the trigger stick to the rear after firing, did it hang up after cocking, or did it refuse to move to the rear in double-action?

Declaring it a "piece of junk" after 50 rounds...you know, you're right. Better send it to me.




What're the 617 going for? $700?

I have well over $1000 in my .22 auto. The 617 is probably just as accurate, with a trigger that's almost as good.

Model 41s are up to about $1200. Nobody who has one would ever suggest they aren't worth it. They can be finicky buggers, too. But hey--don't buy a racecar and fill the tank with pump gas. And compared to the guns that the 41 competes against, it's not very choosy at all.

I'd say the 617 is a steal. It's a scant $60 more than the GP-100 .22, and built the same way as S&W's centerfires--no cheaped-out frames, aluminum, or plastic.

It still misfired with the CCi ammo on DA pulls!!!!

 

[themush74]

We just moved into a brand new house. It's shocking what appliances cost nowadays. You're talking PC handgun prices for the basic models.
So, one week in, my wife complains, "the washing machine doesn't work"

OK, she calls the factory authorized "Maytag" repairman. Yes, there really is one, he services Kitchen Aid, Whirlpool, etc. They're all the same with a different badge.

Since my new place is not on any GPS maps, the guy calls and asks for directions. We tell him the Stonexxxxx development. He retorts, "OK, I know where it is".
The nice gent enters our house and says "I've been here many times, I've been in almost every house, these new appliances are very finicky" . There's some 25 houses up out of a planned 200+.


Not trying to make excuses for you receiving a bum handgun, but quality is lacking in many product areas.

BTW, there was nothing wrong with our washing machine, it was user error.

i guess i need to learn how to shoot a revolver sorry S&W

 

[hoc9sw]

I've already said "send it back", so we'll leave that one.

I own a GP100 in .22 and in .357. Went by my LGS, and they have the 617 in two sizes on sale, so had to fondle them. But I was disappointed in the finishing. It was inconsistent, and comparing the two, the Ruger on their shelf appears cleaner and brighter than the 617 just to start. Barrel was straight, action worked, and I am still considering the purchase, but I see a lot of work to bring the finish up to par (lots of scratches and buffing marks in the SS finish).

I am still considering one based on the price.

 

[Tom S.]

As for the trigger Jam i am referring to the trigger would not pull back nor would the hammer cock back. Whatever the technical terms are it would not pull back to fire also the hammer would not pull back to single fire either. I understand this is a very reputable company but nothing should come out of the box that way whether i pay $1 or $10,00 fir something.
So there is a forum, I post what actually went wrong with my gun and i get scalded upon. not like I'm making this stuff up.

What you've described sounds like you are short stroking the action when firing double action. I've seen this and experienced it first hand on many guns, and is a fault of the operator, not the gun. Try shooting single action only and see what happens. If it functions OK, then try shooting DA with a slow steady pull. If it works for both of these, then I'm sure it's what I suggested. It happens when you hesitate slightly during a fast DA pull, enough to let momentum get ahead of your pressure on the trigger, or if you happen to let slightly off the trigger and then try to apply pressure again. This would explain why S&W found nothing wrong with the gun. The 10 shot 617 has a very short throw because the cylinder doesn't have far to travel. In theory, this would seem to help stop the short stroke from happening, but in my experience it actually makes it worse.

 

[ladder13]

i guess i need to learn how to shoot a revolver sorry S&W

I wasn't implying that YOU don't know how to operate you gun only that we didn't know how to operate our washer.
I'm self deprecating, sorry you missed that.

 

[JamesArthur60]

Maybe it's not a big deal.

1. Yes it sucks, you purchased an expensive NIB firearm and it has factory flaws pertaining to the functional operation.

2. It's a S&W. They will fix it for free. They will even send you a free S&H label. It will be returned to you free of charge.

3. You could be a leg up on other NIB gun owners. Your personal gun is going to get personal attention. Be inspected, maybe refined with upgrades (it's happened) and repaired to better working conditions than when you initially received the gun from the factory line. It may have missed QC before being wrapped in paper and boxed, but now it will be eyeballed by a repair technician.

BTW, I had a $1500.00 PC952 shipped back to the factory two times for repair. It happens, you are not alone.

Good luck!

 

[labworm]

I wasn't implying that YOU don't know how to operate you gun only that we didn't know how to operate our washer.
I'm self deprecating, sorry you missed that.

I'm surprised to hear about the washer purchase, so the misses isn't using the wash board anymore.

 

[ladder13]

I'm surprised to hear about the washer purchase, so the misses isn't using the wash board anymore.

Looks like you came out of winter hibernation All is well in Bahhhston.

 

[labworm]

Looks like you came out of winter hibernation All is well in Bahhhston.

Everything is fine with me, Stanley Cup just around the corner

 

[prairieviper]

I feel your pain. A revolver costing as much as a 617 should be expected to work and work well, right put of the box. Mine didn't. My new 617 had failure to fire problems and after checking everything I could check and not finding a remedy, I had to contact S&W and return it to them for repair. S&W customer service was great. I phoned them a couple of times to check on the status of the work and was courteously kept informed. S&W replaced the strain screw and firing pin. From the time I handed my gun to my dealer to send it in until I had it back in my hands was exactly 12 days. It has been flawless ever since. It's hard to beat that for service!

You have the top of the line S&W .22 revolver. I would let S&W repair it and then enjoy your new gun when you get it back. If you like it as much as I like mine, it will become your number one range gun.

 

[Dave Lively]

I really like revolvers.

I really like 22s.

But I am done with 22 revolvers. I have said that before only to buy another but this time I really mean it.

The ammo tends to be dirty which can bind up tightly fitted actions. Case rims can vary in thickness which can cause binding. And the ammo is hard to set off so you have to choose between unreliable ignition or a very heavy DA trigger pull. It seems like small guns with a 9 or 10 shot capacity tend to have more problems with the action binding up but I don't know if that is due to the parts being small or the other problems associated with 22 revolvers.

I have owned a couple of 22 revolvers and shot several more. The first one I owned was a Taurus 94 I bought about 25 years ago and had to send back a few times for repair. The action started binding up in SA twice and once the barrel started twisting. The DA pull was very heavy as expected. I attributed those problems due to its being a Taurus and sold it but after shooting a couple of small S&W .22s I swore off 22 revolvers instead of buying a S&W 63.

Last year I saw the ads Ruger was running stating the new GP100 22 had the same light trigger pull as the centerfire version and I liked the idea of a nice 22 revolver so much I ordered one sight unseen. The DA pull was about 15 pounds and SA it was nearly 7. It was smooth in DA and crisp in SA but heavier than I expected. The Ruger was accurate and as reliable as 22 can be but I never really warmed up to it. Part of that was the trigger and part of that was the gun being really heavy for a .22. I knew how much it weighed when I bought it but hoped it would be one of those guns that feel lighter than they really are. It wasn't. I also had a Ruger Single Six for several years which always worked fine but was less accurate and more trouble than my S&W 41.

Like others have suggested I would send your gun back and let S&W fix it. But when it comes back consider selling it and buying a nice 22 semiauto. When fed good ammo they are trouble free compared to revolvers. I really like my S&W 41 but Ruger and other companies makes nice ones too. Just make sure that if you get the Ruger it is the new model that is easy to take apart.

I bought my S&W 41 in the early 90s and it broke before I got two full magazines through it. Something in the slide broke and the gun locked up solid. I sent it back to S&W, they fixed it and it is now one of my all time favorite guns. No problems that were not ammo related in over 20 years and many, many thousands of rounds through it. QA issues are nothing new. And S&W has always stood behind their products. While I prefer and recommend 22 pistols over 22 revolvers give S&W a chance to make it right before you look at other 22 revolvers.

 

[Flintlock1]

I bought my 17 in 1982, I think?? Too far back to remember... With the long tom barrel, it has been flawless from the start and is the finest revolver I have ever owned - among many. Still, 22 ammo quality varies a lot and does have some impact on experience at the range. I had some case sticking issues in the past and did not like pounding them out with my palm, so I took it to a good smith who gently honed the chambers and the problem has only happened very occasionally since. The residue build-up solution has been spoken to and I agree - bring a range brush, as these guns can eat a lot of ammo in a session with resultant fowling getting pretty bad.

Today, my biggest issue - which is minor in terms of functional problems - is that the ejector rod rotates out of the threaded position every two cylinders and can jam the crane if I don't give it a pinch to re-seat it. I do this subliminally now and don't even notice. Like me, it's getting old.

The comment about short stroking the trigger in DA mode is something to consider. I've done that with my M60 and former M66, both of which are made for defensive shooting and should be exercised that way in rapid combat training. Problems can happen, as evidenced by the recent breakage of the hammer nose (firing pin) on the 60 - going to the smith today..

The 17's and 617's are more target/small game oriented handguns and single action fire is the best and most reliable method of use, IMO. When operated in SA, the accuracy is astounding over any distance that a .22 round can be landed.

I hope S&W comes through for the OP.

 

[AzShooter]

I had the same problem as the OP when testing different ammo. The cheap stuff was so dirty that after one cylinder the chambers would not extra the cases unless I clean the gun with a brass brush. That same junk will get under the star and cause problems with the trigger.

Keep it clean and use good ammo. CCI in any variety will work flawlessly in my 617. So does Federal Automatch. I count on the ammo to work every time because I'm shooting Steel Challenge matches and can't afford to have the gun not fire or be able to reload when needed.

I can run about 500 rounds of the good ammo without having to clean the cylinders or under the star.

My gun is also tuned very well. It has a 7 lb double action trigger and will reliably fire the ammo I suggested.

The worst ammo I tried : Thunderbolts, Armscorp, Aguila, Winchester.

Bring a brush with you to the range and do a quick cleaning often and that should solve your problems.

Smith will send you back a gun in perfect working order. After that you need to take care of it. Break it in like a new car. Run good ammo for at least 500 rounds.

 

[smoothshooter]

Cylinder Replacement for Model 617

I have 2 of the S&W .22 revolvers with the aluminum cylinders and occaisionally have the sticky chambers problem.

Am considering calling S & W to see if they will replace the aluminum cylinders with stainless ones so I can scrub the chambers with copper brushes instead of nylon ones, and not have to baby them so much.

Has anyone here had that done?

 

[themush74]

As stated i was going to post when I received my 617 back. S&W replaced all needed parts, cylinder, firing pin and Spring. I took it today and so far all is well. It took about 5-6 weeks for the repair. so far so good.

 

[mod29]

...S&W replaced all needed parts, cylinder, firing pin and Spring...

All those parts replaced on a new gun? Wow. I wonder how that got out of the production area when it was new with that many problems..?

Hope it works great for you from now on, glad you have it back in time for summer.

 

[prairieviper]

Glad to learn your 617 is back and working. Mine has been flawless ever since coming back from S&W. I hope yours is too.