I recently purchased a very nice model 25-2 and was surprised that I cannot use moon clips with this revolver. With six rounds in a moon clip loaded into the cylinder, the cylinder is hard to close and will not rotate. The Wilson moon clips I was using had a noticeable burr on every edge on one side. I thought this might be the problem and returned them for some CNC made clips with no burrs. Same result. There isn't enough clearance between the cylinder and frame for the moon clips. This isn't really a problem as the revolver shoots fine without them. Fired cases are easy to extract with a fingernail. I thought the 25-2 was made for moon clips. Was I wrong?
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Model 25-2 moon clip question
- Thread starter 1ifbyland
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The Model 25 when chambered for the 45ACP cartridge is designed to be fired with moonclips. 95%+ of them will fire without moon clips. The case mouth is supported against the cylinder throat
Without seeing the revolver it will be hard to guess what has happened to yours in the few decades between when it was manufactured and when it came into your possession.
Probably the first few things I would check is to see if the ejector rod is tight. I would also check to see that the crane has not been bent.
The Model 25 when chambered for the 45ACP cartridge is designed to be fired with moonclips. 95%+ of them will fire without moon clips. The case mouth is supported against the cylinder throat
Without seeing the revolver it will be hard to guess what has happened to yours in the few decades between when it was manufactured and when it came into your possession.
Probably the first few things I would check is to see if the ejector rod is tight. I would also check to see that the crane has not been bent.
The 25-2 is designed to shoot the 45 ACP with moonclips and also the 45 auto rim. The 45 auto rim does not need moonclips, it sounds like that is what you have so let’s confirm that first. What does the head stamp say on the rounds you are trying?
OP
I'm using my .45 acp loads that I shoot in my Gold Cup. Yes, I can shoot them without moon clips with no problem but when I load them into a moon clip and drop that into the cylinder I can barely close it and it will not rotate. The revolver appears to be new, unfired as it shows no signs of use, no drag mark on the cylinder and zero signs of abuse.
FlyFish
Member
FWIW, my 25-2 functions fine with a variety of moon and half-moon clips but I find them a PITA, so switched some years ago to .45 AR and never looked back.
buckshotshorty
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I have a 25-2 which I purchased brand new in he '70s and it still looks brand new. I never had that problem with the moon clips.
If I had to guess, I'd say the previous owner could not Fire acp rounds without clips so he added a washer ( I have seen a gunsmith use these things that are very thin and go in front of the cylinder to adjust cylinder gap) to move the cylinder closer to the firing pin so that clips aren't needed. Your case is opposite....have a gunsmith measure your cylinder/barrel gap to see if it is within specks, and then go from there.
My gun works with or without clips, but for competition I always loaded auto rim cases. I always carried a wooden dowel to pop out any stuck ACP cases which is rarely a problem but sometimes does occur.
When I use clips I use 1/4 moon clips which clip 2 rounds together. That allows me to set up an entire box of ammo in the box all clipped up and ready to go but requires 25 clips per box of ammo.
Good luck and enjoy your gun.
If I had to guess, I'd say the previous owner could not Fire acp rounds without clips so he added a washer ( I have seen a gunsmith use these things that are very thin and go in front of the cylinder to adjust cylinder gap) to move the cylinder closer to the firing pin so that clips aren't needed. Your case is opposite....have a gunsmith measure your cylinder/barrel gap to see if it is within specks, and then go from there.
My gun works with or without clips, but for competition I always loaded auto rim cases. I always carried a wooden dowel to pop out any stuck ACP cases which is rarely a problem but sometimes does occur.
When I use clips I use 1/4 moon clips which clip 2 rounds together. That allows me to set up an entire box of ammo in the box all clipped up and ready to go but requires 25 clips per box of ammo.
Good luck and enjoy your gun.
Okay, it was worth a shot.
This happened to me on a k-38, symptoms are the same. On the back side (loading side) of the cylinder you will see a small nipple sticking up that will fit in a small hole on the underside of the ejector. This helps with the ejector lining up properly when closed. There was enough build up in that hole that prevented the nipple going all the way in. Really couldn’t tell by looking at it. I sprayed some foaming cleaner there and used a right angle dental pic to clean out the hole. I was surprised it worked but it did. If you don’t have a pic maybe try a toothpick or looked around for what you have that might work.
This happened to me on a k-38, symptoms are the same. On the back side (loading side) of the cylinder you will see a small nipple sticking up that will fit in a small hole on the underside of the ejector. This helps with the ejector lining up properly when closed. There was enough build up in that hole that prevented the nipple going all the way in. Really couldn’t tell by looking at it. I sprayed some foaming cleaner there and used a right angle dental pic to clean out the hole. I was surprised it worked but it did. If you don’t have a pic maybe try a toothpick or looked around for what you have that might work.
I ran across a 25-2 some time back that showed the same symptoms. It's cylinder was mis-machined and tapered from the outer edge of the cylinder to the ejector star. At the outside of the cylinder, the headspace measured correctly, but got tighter toward the center. If you have an Auto Rim case, you could put it in the chamber and see if when it was seated there is a gap under the rim at the outside. Our cure was to machine the back of the cylinder parallel to the front. That was the only one with that flaw that anyone in my circle had heard of. It shot great after the correction.
series guy
Member
There are different thickness moon clips out there. Be sure you are using the proper ones.
