Sigh - thought I got one of the good new 66-8's, any advice?

[dutch686]

Bought a new 66-8 3in last Sat. Went over it, and didn't see any issues with the finish, the barrel insert or the lock up. New rounds would drop in and the cylinder would rotate as expected.

Today took it to the range, and didn't get through 3 cylinders. The cylinder would bind at one spot after firing. New rds. drop in and rotate just fine.

I thought it was my ammo which was S&B 38 and Win 38's, but both brands did the same thing. I checked my cylinder ejector rod, and it is tight.

Any suggestions for a home remedy before I make arrangements to send it back to S&W?

 

[robertrwalsh]

Dirt under the ejection star could do this. Also a bent ejector rod could do this. Also a tweaked ejector star, though that is not terribly likely. Odd that it does not do it before firing, only after. Have you tried spinning the cylinder while fully loaded with live rounds to see if it hangs up? It should free-wheel with no problem if you pull the hammer back just enough to disengage the cylinder stop. Do this VERY CAREFULLY, preferably outdoors, in the safe direction, with your finger NOT in the trigger guard.

 

[BoulderTroll]

Bought a new 66-8 3in last Sat. Went over it, and didn't see any issues with the finish, the barrel insert or the lock up. New rounds would drop in and the cylinder would rotate as expected.

Today took it to the range, and didn't get through 3 cylinders. The cylinder would bind at one spot after firing. New rds. drop in and rotate just fine.

I thought it was my ammo which was S&B 38 and Win 38's, but both brands did the same thing. I checked my cylinder ejector rod, and it is tight.

Any suggestions for a home remedy before I make arrangements to send it back to S&W?

This may not help since you had the issue with two brands of ammo, but both of my Uberti SAA clones would bind up with S&B ammo, and no other ammo. I believe S&B uses very thick bases on their shell cases, for what it's worth.

 

[stansdds]

Definitely make sure there is no debris trapped beneath the extractor.

 

[dutch686]

Thank you for the advice. Yes it will free spin with new rounds loaded, only binds when fired, and only in one spot. The other cylinders move normally until the binding spot.

I did check for "stuff" under the star, but these rds were the very first fired since purchasing. Both S&B and Winchester factory rounds load and spin freely until fired, and then it binds in just the one spot.

 

[Nightowl]

Check for scratches on the face of the cylinder for scratches or rub marks. Some cylinders are not square and if there is some endshake or a tight B/C gap some debris can really bind the cylinder.

 

[Smokewagon70]

Since we are talking about the Model 66 can anyone help me determine the production year of a six inch barrel model 66-3 with a BFF34** serial number ?

 

[swagmeister]

Brand new gun? Send it back. I would not mess with it trying to find out the problem. Sadly, as stated many times before on this forum and other forums, quality control at S&W, as well as other firearms manufacturers, has suffered greatly the last several years. Good luck.

 

[dutch686]

Dropped at FedEx for warranty work and will have them do an action job on it as well.

 

[stansdds]

Dropped at FedEx for warranty work and will have them do an action job on it as well.

Don't forget to let us know how the repair service and action job go.

 

[dutch686]

A little disappointed. Warranty repair takes 4-6 weeks. Thought maybe a couple of weeks. I didn't ask when setting up the rma. That's on me. Also found out it is 5-6 mos to get paid work completed. So I'm canceling the trigger job work. It shouldn't take that long. I'll just find a local smith to do the work.

 

[-BTM-]

Bought a new 66-8 3in last Sat. Went over it, and didn't see any issues with the finish, the barrel insert or the lock up. New rounds would drop in and the cylinder would rotate as expected.

Today took it to the range, and didn't get through 3 cylinders. The cylinder would bind at one spot after firing. New rds. drop in and rotate just fine.

I thought it was my ammo which was S&B 38 and Win 38's, but both brands did the same thing. I checked my cylinder ejector rod, and it is tight.

Any suggestions for a home remedy before I make arrangements to send it back to S&W?

Same chamber every time? Where is it binding?

 

[dutch686]

Same chamber every time? Where is it binding?

Was the same chamber. Unfired it would spin freely. Fire a cartridge and it would bind in the same spot. All case manufacturers would bind in the same spot.

 

[L-2]

Post 7, the "BFF" prefix relates to 1990. Although the thread's subject is the OP's specific Mod. 66, not Mod. 66s in general.

1990 – BDY, BEB, BEE, BEH, BEN, BER, BEY, BEZ, BFA, BFC, BFF, BFJ, BFL, BFN, BFP, BFZ

Supica, Jim; Nahas, Richard. Standard Catalog of Smith & Wesson (Standard Catalog of Smith and Wesson) (p. 491). (Function). Kindle Edition.

 

[bigggbbruce]

Possibly poor finish of that chamber or ejector. Brass swells when fired jams it against recoil shield and binds when rotated. Look closely at the brass that binds.

 

[dsf]

I've noticed a fair number of threads regarding proud ratchet teeth, causing the trigger to stick in the rearward position - causes the hand to bind in its slot as the parts mesh up. Eventually wears in and goes away.

 

[walkin' trails]

I bought 43c just after Christmas and it’s spend more time with warranty than is has with me. It’s supposed to be en route to me again. I grew up with and prefer S&W revolvers, so to have to go get something else is not something that appeals to me.

First range session with a variety of ammo, it spit lead, hard to eject, bound up with certain rounds, and shot four or more inches left of POA. After returning with a new Cylinder and barrel/cylinder gap adjustments, it still spit lead occasionally and still shot way left. Hoping it will now shoot POA and not shoot left or display any of the aforementioned problems.

 

[66fan]

Bought a new 66-8 3in last Sat. Went over it, and didn't see any issues with the finish, the barrel insert or the lock up. New rounds would drop in and the cylinder would rotate as expected.

Today took it to the range, and didn't get through 3 cylinders. The cylinder would bind at one spot after firing. New rds. drop in and rotate just fine.

I thought it was my ammo which was S&B 38 and Win 38's, but both brands did the same thing. I checked my cylinder ejector rod, and it is tight.

Any suggestions for a home remedy before I make arrangements to send it back to S&W?

The barrel gap might be too tight. After firing the cylinder rubs the forcing cone. My 686+ with 3 inch barrel did this. I sent it back to S&W. They kept it a month and sent it back saying it was OK. The barrel gap wouldn’t take .006 gauge. So I got rid of it. Couldn’t depend on the gun to rotate without stopping. I think the barrel and cylinder got hot and swelled up. Just saying!

 

[Invictus357]

A little disappointed. Warranty repair takes 4-6 weeks. Thought maybe a couple of weeks. I didn't ask when setting up the rma. That's on me. Also found out it is 5-6 mos to get paid work completed. So I'm canceling the trigger job work. It shouldn't take that long. I'll just find a local smith to do the work.

That's a shame about cancelling the trigger work. It's crazy that the lead time is so long on it now.
I sent two revolvers back to SW for their master action revolver package. Absolutely worth every penny.

 

[shuter1]

A little disappointed. Warranty repair takes 4-6 weeks. Thought maybe a couple of weeks. I didn't ask when setting up the rma. That's on me. Also found out it is 5-6 mos to get paid work completed. So I'm canceling the trigger job work. It shouldn't take that long. I'll just find a local smith to do the work.

When you get it back, assuming the issue is corrected, you may want to install a Wilson Combat mainspring and rebound spring yourself and see what the trigger pulls end up at before taking it to a gunsmith. I've found that, generally, you'll end up with a 3lb SA and around 8.5lb DA after $20 and 15-20 minutes work. Not the same level as Smith's Master Action Job (at least the one I have from 30 years ago), but plenty good enough for most uses in my opinion. Several good YouTube videos on how to do this. Just a thought...