28-2 Forcing Cone Question

[Jack Flash]

I'm grabbing at straws here:
1. Maybe the bevel sped up assembly slightly? I have never joined a barrel to a frame but it looks like a pretty tight fit. Maybe a the bevel made starting it easier?
2. The bevel would help the revolver continue to function despite heavy powder fouling on the front of the cylinder?

I admit the above are pretty far-fetched. Someone else?

 

[Kurusu]

I'm grabbing at straws here:
1. Maybe the bevel sped up assembly slightly? I have never joined a barrel to a frame but it looks like a pretty tight fit. Maybe a the bevel made starting it easier?
2. The bevel would help the revolver continue to function despite heavy powder fouling on the front of the cylinder?

I admit the above are pretty far-fetched. Someone else?

Your guess is as good as mine.

Edit. And I agree with you on this. It was made before the barrel went in.

 

[kraynky]

My 28 ND is a 6", with a bevel. I'd never noticed, and had to go look. It is an S serial number, in the '58-'59 range.

I also have a blued 4" barrel for it that is also beveled.

 

[tenntex32]

Both of my 6" HPs have the bevel. (Assuming we are calling the slight bevel a bevel.)

S/N N86945
S/N N268387

HTH,
Dale

 

[Abbynormal]

Beveling the forcing cone was a gunsmith trick from the 60's, 70's and 80's. A cone shaped plug with a centered drilled hole was inserted into the muzzle and a conical for lack of a better term de-burring/counter sink tool with a hole drilled into the center and threaded was on the chamber end. That way, the parallel line of the barrel bore was theoretically and as practically possible was centered

A rod was inserted thru the muzzle end stopper and threaded into the de-burring/counter sink tool and the cutting tool was rotated to evenly cut the angle taper of the forcing cone. 19 degrees seem to stick to mind.

Basically, it opened up the forcing cone so that the bullet had a wider and more even path to the rifling of the barrel. I can attest that it did increase accuracy when coupled with a good action job.

Brownells still lists it:
BROWNELLS 5 DEGREE PLUG & CHAMFER KIT
080-000-022WB
5° Plug & Chamfer Kit

 

[Alk8944]

Any S&W revolver built before approximately 1968 will have the end of the barrel shank beveled. After that they stopped, cost-cutting you know.

 

[Jack Flash]

Any S&W revolver built before approximately 1968 will have the end of the barrel shank beveled. After that they stopped, cost-cutting you know.

Some of us have HPs from the '50s that lack the bevel. And many of us have M28s from the mid-70s with the bevel.

Abbynormal:
Are you talking about an interior cut? That is, improving the forcing cone itself? We are talking about an exterior bevel, something that wouldn't have anything to do with bullet travel.

 

[S.B.]

Some I own are some aren't?
Steve

 

[MrG5122]

Any S&W revolver built before approximately 1968 will have the end of the barrel shank beveled. After that they stopped, cost-cutting you know.

My N frames:
1957 44 Magnum 5 screw- No bevel
1958 44 Magnum 4 screw- No bevel

Early '70's 28-2 - bevel
Late '70's 27-2 - bevel

 

[BillyMagg]

Forcing cone

Some of us have HPs from the '50s that lack the bevel. And many of us have M28s from the mid-70s with the bevel.

Abbynormal:
Are you talking about an interior cut? That is, improving the forcing cone itself? We are talking about an exterior bevel, something that wouldn't have anything to do with bullet travel.

Yep, and 11 degrees was the supposed "perfect angle" for the forcing cone, LOL. This external angle likely helped in getting the barrel started squarely into the frame.

 

[garbler]

As was mentioned earlier breaking or beveling the edge of the barrel extension was typical in the production runs years ago and still is with custom gunsmiths today. No decent gunsmith likes to leave a raw machined edge kinda of like a good shipwright can’t tolerate showing end grain or butt crack. Every time I set a barrel back or installed new I broke or beveled the edge. It takes about a minute to do and is just right.

BTW since this is a Smith & Wesson forum I just think it’s not a bad idea for everybody to use the correct terminology for the gun and it’s parts. So the forcing cone is an internal machining feature of a barrel only. It is cut to various degrees or angles by different manufacturers. The currently preferred 11° cones were not factory years ago as those were normally 9°. Calling the barrel shank extension the ‘ forcing cone ’ is kind of like calling a chamber the cylinder. Same piece of steel but different.

The barrel has a shoulder cut to mate to the front of the frame to regulate depth then there is the barrel shank which is threaded and made up into the frame followed by the shank extension which extends back to the cylinder with a proper cylinder gap between. The forcing cone is cut within this extension to provide an easy transition for the bullet from chamber to barrel. But it is an internal feature of the barrel just like the grooves and lands.

Not trying to be argumentative or too picky but this is the Smith & Wesson Forum so it probably won’t hurt to nudge a little. I hope

Regards

 

[S.B.]

As was mentioned earlier breaking or beveling the edge of the barrel extension was typical in the production runs years ago and still is with custom gunsmiths today. No decent gunsmith likes to leave a raw machined edge kinda of like a good shipwright can’t tolerate showing end grain or butt crack. Every time I set a barrel back or installed new I broke or beveled the edge. It takes about a minute to do and is just right.

BTW since this is a Smith & Wesson forum I just think it’s not a bad idea for everybody to use the correct terminology for the gun and it’s parts. So the forcing cone is an internal machining feature of a barrel only. It is cut to various degrees or angles by different manufacturers. The currently preferred 11° cones were not factory years ago as those were normally 9°. Calling the barrel shank extension the ‘ forcing cone ’ is kind of like calling a chamber the cylinder. Same piece of steel but different.

The barrel has a shoulder cut to mate to the front of the frame to regulate depth then there is the barrel shank which is threaded and made up into the frame followed by the shank extension which extends back to the cylinder with a proper cylinder gap between. The forcing cone is cut within this extension to provide an easy transition for the bullet from chamber to barrel. But it is an internal feature of the barrel just like the grooves and lands.

Not trying to be argumentative or too picky but this is the Smith & Wesson Forum so it probably won’t hurt to nudge a little. I hope

Regards

I agree but, I do have some machineing experience.
Steve

 

[Carrier]

My lowly 28-3 does not have the bevel.