5 Screw cylinder stop removal???

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Picked up an old 5 Screw, that's in need of a real good cleaning. I removed the trigger guard screw, spring and plunger, but can't seem to get the little bugger out. Does the hammer stud need to be removed in order to complete the process? TIA.
 
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Picked up an old 5 Screw, that's in need of a real good cleaning. I removed the trigger guard screw, spring and plunger, but can't seem to get the little bugger out. Does the hammer stud need to be removed in order to complete the process? TIA.

You may need to remove the trigger, but that should not be necessary. Once the spring and plunger are out it should simply lift off its stud as long as the stop is down. It is probably nothing more than dried oil that is keeping the cylinder stop from coming out freely. A bit of solvent on the stud should take care of that.

Why would you think the hammer stud would have to be removed????
 
You may need to remove the trigger, but that should not be necessary. Once the spring and plunger are out it should simply lift off its stud as long as the stop is down. It is probably nothing more than dried oil that is keeping the cylinder stop from coming out freely. A bit of solvent on the stud should take care of that.

Why would you think the hammer stud would have to be removed????
Ha, I meant the trigger stud...doh. The stop won't come down far enough to clear the window on the bottom of the frame, it hits the trigger stud. It might just need to be slid farther forward for the bevel on the latch to go down far enough to clear the window. I put some kroil around the latch pin, hopefully that will clean it up a bit.
 
The Stud never gets removed (unless it breaks of course)! Sometimes the Cylinder Stop is a bit difficult to sneak out on some revolvers. In your case I'd leave it in place and use some Birchwood casey Gunscubber to get all the crud off and out from behind it. You have an old model and getting a replacement stop at this point might not be as easy as you might think. If it does not come out easily, do not force it and leave well enough alone! I have had some difficult ones and have always succeeded but I've been at this for a while and probably have a replacment somewhere. Just clean it with the Gunscrubber, lightly lube and call it good. You will be thankful you did! Bending or breaking it would be a major pain in the butt!
 
The Stud never gets removed (unless it breaks of course)! Sometimes the Cylinder Stop is a bit difficult to sneak out on some revolvers. In your case I'd leave it in place and use some Birchwood casey Gunscubber to get all the crud off and out from behind it. You have an old model and getting a replacement stop at this point might not be as easy as you might think. If it does not come out easily, do not force it and leave well enough alone! I have had some difficult ones and have always succeeded but I've been at this for a while and probably have a replacment somewhere. Just clean it with the Gunscrubber, lightly lube and call it good. You will be thankful you did! Bending or breaking it would be a major pain in the butt!
I just picked the gun up last weekend and wanted to see about bringing it back to life, since it was a gummed up mess. I figured that since I had it taken down that far, I'd just remove the cylinder stop and make it a complete job. But, like you, I decided that I should just leave it in, flush it, blow it out and call it good.
FWIW, do you think that S&W installed the cylinder stop first and then installed the trigger stud? If not, I don't see how the cylinder stop could have been installed. Please, educate me, I love to tinker with these things and increase my knowledge.
Also, I noticed that the cylinder stop spring was bent a bit after I removed it, is that normal, or should it be replaced? It's probably only 115, or so years old...
 
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What you might try is to flood the recess where the cylinder bolt resides with brake cleaner (be sure all non metallic parts such as the stocks have been removed) turn the frame over and, using a plastic-faced or wooden mallet, tap the frame on the opposite side. If the cylinder bolt is loose in its recess, it should just fall out. This has worked for me numerous times.
What you might have is a "hydraulic lock" between the inner face of the locking bolt and the machined face of its recess caused by the build up of dried oil and grease (like liquid between two flat panes of glass-you can slide them all around but you can't pull them apart by only lifting the panes). Clearances there are pretty tight and it doesn't take much to offer resistance.
Installation is by tilting the locking bolt upward at the bottom and dropping it over its pin while feeding the arm up and through the cutout in the frame. Be sure to oil it sparingly after it's re-installed. Then re-install its spring and screw in the forward trigger guard. Before re-installing the side plate be sure to check that the locking bolt moves up and down freely through its slot in the frame without binding.
Hope this helps.
 
I just picked the gun up last weekend and wanted to see about bringing it back to life, since it was a gummed up mess. I figured that since I had it taken down that far, I'd just remove the cylinder stop and make it a complete job. But, like you, I decided that I should just leave it in, flush it, blow it out and call it good.
FWIW, do you think that S&W installed the cylinder stop first and then installed the trigger stud? If not, I don't see how the cylinder stop could have been installed. Please, educate me, I love to tinker with these things and increase my knowledge.
Also, I noticed that the cylinder stop spring was bent a bit after I removed it, is that normal, or should it be replaced? It's probably only 115, or so years old...

The spring could very well be bent a little - sometimes they do exhibit slight bends. That in itself does not make it non functional and if you have the proper replacement I suppose you could replace it. On the other hand, if it is doing its job and it works, you might just leave it and not go out of your way to find another one.

S&W might have installed the stop prior to installing the stud but I will also say I have also seen more modern revolvers with stops that one would swear could not come out! They could get bent over time or they could have been forced in at the factory. While most come out easily, I have seen a few that broke my shoes getting out. Like I said above, I am fairly well stocked on original replacement parts for the revolvers I own so there are times I have replaced ill fitting or damaged parts. Other times I have just reused the original. Revolvers, like other mechanical devises have internal operating parts that "take a set" and sort of "fit to function" themselves over time.

In your case because of the revolvers age I would not push your luck too far. As the saying goes, ..... "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".
 
In the second picture of post #5, The cylinder stop looks different than any I have ever seen. There is not a cutout on the bottom to clear the trigger stud. There is a pin in the side.

It looks like someone modified an original stop by making it 2 pieces and then assembled it in place, driving the pin in last. I don't think you will get that one off without cutting it in 2, between the main body and the trigger pivot pin. Then you would need to pull the part on top of the pin upward through the stop window.
 
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That spring is probably just crudded up with old oil. Soak with Kroil for a day or two then take a paper clip and put a Teeeny bend in one end, small enough you can insert up the hole. File a sharp edge on it and insert to grab the spring and pull it out.
 
That spring is probably just crudded up with old oil. Soak with Kroil for a day or two then take a paper clip and put a Teeeny bend in one end, small enough you can insert up the hole. File a sharp edge on it and insert to grab the spring and pull it out.

I have the spring and plunger out, I just wanted to remove the stop for a good cleaning.
 
In the second picture of post #5, The cylinder stop looks different than any I have ever seen. There is not a cutout on the bottom to clear the trigger stud. There is a pin in the side.

It looks like someone modified an original stop by making it 2 pieces and then assembled it in place, driving the pin in last. I don't think you will get that one off without cutting it in 2, between the main body and the trigger pivot pin. Then you would need to pull the part on top of the pin upward through the stop window.


Wow, did not see that till you mentioned it! Hard to believe the gun would function at all with an "articulated", for lack of a better word, cylinder stop.
 
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So I held a small screwdriver in front of the stop, keeping the notch above the frame and was not able to move the notch down, so it's very positive. It appears that the notch portion, extends thru the pin and completely into the section that pivots on the stud. My guess is that it's factory and not a bubba job.
 

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