I have a nice S&W 48, that I would LOVE a .22 Long Rifle cylinder for. Does anyone here know of a reliable source for one?

You'll probably have to look for someone who wants to part with one, which is unlikely. They generally have to be fitted, and most came with the revolvers when originally purchased. I have never been a fan of shooting 22lr out of a 22mrf gun because of the slight difference in the cartridges. Accuracy does suffer. I had a model 51 that was not as accurate with the 22lr cylinder. You may be happier just buying a model 17 or 18. Good luck.

Not inexpensive but here you go:

+ Bowen Classic Arms + Home

Cylinders turn up on eBay and other auction sites occasionally. I've done somewhat the reverse of what you want to do; found a "new" apparently unfired 22 WMR cylinder ($50 a few years ago; probably a tad more now) and had it fitted to a pre-18. Works fine, accuracy seems as good as with the 22LR. The slight difference in bullet diameter could be an issue but seems not to be a problem with this one. Good luck.

Jeff
SWCA #1457

Have you tried Numrich? (Gun parts international)

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

Wow! It looks like I'd be better off finding a model 18. I haven't seen one of those for sale in years. Guess, I should start saving some money.

Try Jack First for obsolete gun parts. They bought a great deal of S&W parts inventory several years ago. I got an unissued .22LR cylinder for my M48 there, and then sent the cylinder and gun to S&W for fitting. Have bought other S&W parts from them since.

This enhancement of my M48 has been entirely satisfactory, and the LR cylinder lives in the gun. If accuracy with the .22LR has suffered compared to .22 WRM I am unable to detect it.

I have found several cylinders on both ebay and GunBroker over the last few years. Prices ran from $100-200.00. Some were complete and some just the cylinder and star to which all the internals had to be procured.

My experience has mirrored Murdocks in that I find little accuracy difference between my 48s with Long Rifle cylinders and my 17/18s.

Have also done the reverse and put Magnum cylinders in 63s, 17s and 18s.

Bob

Ditto to those who mentioned Numrich/Gun Parts and e-Bay. I've gotten cylinders both ways. I needed a "blank" for Project 616 and didn't want to pay the cost of a custom from Bowen (although in the end it would have probably been better for my application.) I found a nice-as-new blued one on e-Bay soon after I got finished on 616 which of course is stainless.

Froggie

I have a 'deal' for you. I too fitted a .22LR cylinder to my M 48. I'm a retired pistolsmith and it was done right. It shoots and ejects great. The only kicker is that the only new cylinder I could find at the time was in stainless steel. I no longer need it because I am heavy into the M 617 now and I fitted a .22 MRF cylinder to one. ............ So, one time offer: I will sell and mail to you my M 48 stainless .22 LR cylinder for $195. I can't guarantee absolutely that the 'fit' will be perfect on your M 48. If I had your gun and my cylinder on my workbench, I could. But, given S&W's history of very tight working tolerances, I'm think that it should be a drop-in for you. Given all that I will give you right to return at your expense for full refund. BTW, I like the looks of a SS cylinder in a blued revolver. PM if interested. ........ Big Cholla

Check the "Accessories/Misc - For Sale or Trade"

That's where I found the 22LR cylinder and yoke to convert my M48-3 to 22LR,

You can also post in the "WANTED to Buy" section and see if anyone might have what you need.

Class III

A very interesting offer, I shall discuss this with my financial manager. I shall PM you soon, with and answer soon either way.