Venting about new 617 issues / .22 ammo discussion

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Guitarmageddon

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Hey folks

Proud new owner of a nice shiny 617, 6". Been on my bucket list for a while, and given the latest ammo craze, figured its time I finally get ahold of something in 22. I have a R8 that is hands down my most favorite gun to ever own (next to the garand of course). But I digress.

Day one, first cylinder, about half light strikes! I only had one brand of ammo on me at the time, so I figured ok maybe this guy is just very ammo-dependent. Well today I was able to get out to the NRA hq range, and brought a broad selection of ammo with me, and to no avail, many light strikes. At one point, it was even not wanting to rotate the cylinder. yes, this can happen when junk gums up the works but on a gun with less than 5 cylinders fired through it? I doubt it. I will be sending back to smith tomorrow or tuesday hopefully. I have heard of many needing longer firing pins so hopefully the fix gives me a reliable gun.

Should I temper my expectations about how many rounds I can put through this thing in a sitting? I'd think it could handle at least a few hundred rounds before getting temperamental.

Also, Id like to get thoughts and opinions on ammo choice. I tested ALL of the below ammo with the same results across the board, with the exception of the remington on the left producing 90% or above light trikes. Maybe because this box has followed me to multiple houses and apartments over the last 12+ years and Ive never managed to shoot it haha.

Thoughts on any of these that would theoretically be the better choice for this gun?
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Imagine my surprise to hear that Remington 22 ammo doesn't perform as well as the others.

Sarcasm aside, all the others should have performed well in your new 617 in either double or single action mode. To me, it sounds like you've done the right thing in sending it back. My guess is that they'll replace the main spring with a heavier one, in addition to a longer FP. You didn't specify if your light strikes were in double-action or single, but I'd also bet that you were shooting double-action.

Regarding how many shots it takes to truly gunk one up, it all depends upon what you're firing in it. If it was that Remington junk, then 2 or 3 cylinders wouldn't surprise me. I normally stick to CCI or SK standard velocity, and Federal bulk HV on occasion, and will typically go two hundred rounds without problems. -S2
 
Speedo2 said:
You didn't specify if your light strikes were in double-action or single, but I'd also bet that you were shooting double-action.

Regarding how many shots it takes to truly gunk one up, it all depends upon what you're firing in it. If it was that Remington junk, then 2 or 3 cylinders wouldn't surprise me. I normally stick to CCI or SK standard velocity, and Federal bulk HV on occasion, and will typically go two hundred rounds without problems. -S2
Click to expand...

These were largely in double action if I recall correctly.

Mike said:
Did you think to tighten the main spring screw before when your trouble started?.......That's the FIRST thing you check when misfires occur.
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I had not done that yet. I guess going by pure feel, the trigger felt even harder than my r8, which came back from a smith factory trigger warranty job (for same reason, light strikes) so I guess I didnt think it needed to be even TIGHTER. In hindsight it seems pretty obvious that I should have at least given it a quarter to half turn or something. I feel dumb now haha.

Although Im really excited for this gun after putting off the purchase for some years, I think Im more comfortable sending it back just so they can likely give it a longer pin (and a good once-over), which seems to be the norm in how these guns come back from warranty work, reading around these forums.

bigggbbruce said:
New gun ? Used gun ? Trigger work ?
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brand new, unfired.
 
I have 2 617’s. A 4” and a 6”. I’ve shot up to 1000 rounds in each between cleaning with no functionality problems at all. Each gun may experience one or two light primer strikes per 1000 rounds but I have identified which ammo this occurs with. If I use higher quality .22LR ammo such as CCI Mini Mags for example, I will never have a light primer strike with either gun.

Yours definitely needs a trip back to S&W, IMO.
 
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most 22's have recessed cylinders any amount of dirt in the recessed area will not let the shell seat properly and the firing pin will push the shell in but will not fire the round,(like a high primer on a center fire) my Ruger single six has tight chambers and I have to push the round into each chamber or it will not fire. I also carry a tooth pick or similar tool to clean the recess channel when needed.
 
Skippyjon Jones said:
OP, if I may suggest to contact S&W customer service for a warranty repair. They will pay for shipping both ways too. The only downside may be taking longer than usual in this period. For me warranty repairs took from 2 weeks and 8 weeks total turnaround time. Now 8 weeks or more maybe, I'd ask.

Anyway, here's my experience. Couple of years ago I bought a new 617-6 4" that had all sorts of trouble, including lots of misfires as yours do. Mine also had sticky chambers and what appeared from visual inspection, incorrectly cut (not round) chambers. Contacted S&W and sent it for warranty repair. Parts replaced were the cylinder, firing pin and mainspring. Since that repair this 617 became my most reliable 22 revolver - it would fire without issue any 22 ammo I had tried (including several shown in your pics), even ones that won't work that well in my K22 and 17-9. It went from lemon to supreme shooter.

My opinion is that no, it's not normal for that 617 to be that picky. They can do a lot better than that.
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Interesting and moderately reassuring to know they should at least have some experience fixing this seemingly common occurrence. I went back and forth on the 6 inch versus 4 inch. Truth be told I probably would have gone for the 4 inch if one came available that was priced right. I'm used to the R8 now and love that oddball 5 inch barrel.

I do also think that a few of the chambers are tighter than others. Seems like the tolerances in a few spots are almost dare I say too close. But ill leave it for the specialists to tell me.

Just a downer that a new gun has to disappear for a few weeks just after I bring the thing home. Hoping for a quick turn around. I will update all here about my experience to shed light on current warranty work time frames, if anyone is curious.
 
My 6" 617 works well. A misfire every few hundred rounds but that's probably because I shoot mostly promo rounds. Had some extraction issues when new a few years ago, but they cleared up after a few cleanings and polishing the cylinder bores with bore bright. I like it. Sounds like you should send yours back to the mothership.
 
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My 617 loves Federal BYOB 40 grain bullets as well as Remington Bucket Of Bullets and it's favorite, Federal HV. All three print fantastic and I can shoot over 200 rounds without having to run a brush through the clinders.

Other loads shoot tighter but are not as forgiving in reliability. For Steel Challenge Matches I'd rather have the gun go off every time that have to eat a string or 2.

I've been fortunate enough to have friends give me their DS-10 speed loaders for the 617. When someone wins some at a match they gravitate into my shooting bag. ( nice to have friends )

The reason I have to clean it so often is that the bullets will not extract without having to bang on the ejector rod.
 

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My 617 had some problems with double action. Turned out it was the plate in the frame for the safety. Removed it and put in the Original Precision plug. Problem stopped. Otherwise, Remington ammo was so dirty that I took a brass brush with me to the indoor range, and used up all I had left to get rid of it. 20-30 rounds, ejection tight, scrub and repeat. It shoots Aguila, CCI, Winchester, and Federal fine. And no dirt clogs after 20-30 rounds.
 
My 617 4" functions perfectly, however, I do find that it starts to feel a little stiff after a hundred rounds or so.
I don't worry about that, though. A quick cleaning and it's loose as a goose.

ALL .22 ammo is dirty to some extent, some worse than others.
I do find that CCI Std.Vel. is pretty clean and I can shoot 3 or 4 boxes in a session and it doesn't make much difference.
 
I bought a 4” 617 a couple of years ago. It’ll shoot anything I put in it and the only misfires I’ve had were due to a rare bad cartridge. When I have a misfire I’ll take the cartridge and attempt to fire it again. Most of the time it won’t fire indicating a defective cartridge. I’ve put several thousand rounds of various ammo through it with less than a dozen misfires.

I generally shoot bulk Federal I get at Walmart. It’s the red box 550 rounds for around $20. It’s accurate, reliable and fairly clean. I clean my guns after every range trip and would guess I e put 250-300 rounds of Federal through it at a session.

The dirtiest ammo I e found and the one IVe found will consistently foul a revolver after a half dozen cylinders Is Remington Thunder Bolts. My wife has a 317 Smith and it fouls even faster with thunder bolts. The only thing I can shoot them in is a rifle.

I have a model 34 and Thunder bolts foul it very quickly to the point the cylinder won’t turn. It only takes a few cylinders full to shut it down.

Copper wash ammo is generally pretty clean and lead, due to the lube, fouls quickly.

My wife’s 317 has tighter chambers. Some ammo is tight when loading and hard to eject. Others like Federal drop in easily and eject easily. I’ve not measured the diameter of different ammo but it’s pretty obvious they vary quite a bit.

Smith will get it straightened out.
 
.38SuperMan said:
I bought a 4” 617 a couple of years ago. It’ll shoot anything I put in it and the only misfires I’ve had were due to a rare bad cartridge. When I have a misfire I’ll take the cartridge and attempt to fire it again. Most of the time it won’t fire indicating a defective cartridge. I’ve put several thousand rounds of various ammo through it with less than a dozen misfires.

I generally shoot bulk Federal I get at Walmart. It’s the red box 550 rounds for around $20. It’s accurate, reliable and fairly clean. I clean my guns after every range trip and would guess I e put 250-300 rounds of Federal through it at a session.

The dirtiest ammo I e found and the one IVe found will consistently foul a revolver after a half dozen cylinders Is Remington Thunder Bolts. My wife has a 317 Smith and it fouls even faster with thunder bolts. The only thing I can shoot them in is a rifle.

I have a model 34 and Thunder bolts foul it very quickly to the point the cylinder won’t turn. It only takes a few cylinders full to shut it down.

Copper wash ammo is generally pretty clean and lead, due to the lube, fouls quickly.

My wife’s 317 has tighter chambers. Some ammo is tight when loading and hard to eject. Others like Federal drop in easily and eject easily. I’ve not measured the diameter of different ammo but it’s pretty obvious they vary quite a bit.

Smith will get it straightened out.
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Yes you are pointing out things I've just started to discover these past few days, as this is my first 22 handgun. Its taken me this long to finally get my hands on one. It was this, or a victory PC version. Truth is, I may just end up owning both soon enough. Although, I've been admiring the model 41's these days, but I've got other PC revolvers to acquire first before dropping another grand on a gun!
 
In general, CCI makes the best 22 RF ammo. In a close second position is Federal and third/fourth is between Winchester and Remington. That's my own opinion of the "Big 4 ammo Co's".

I've never tried Fiocchi, Aguila, Wolf, or other imported rimfire ammo so I won't comment on them as I have no experience with them. My Eley experience was not positive after buying 4 different types of that maker's ammo. At least IMO I think CCI is better than the Eley at a fraction of the price! Maybe my firearms just didn't like the Eley - who knows......
 
Guitarmageddon I have both the 617 and PC Victory 22 with the carbon fiber barrel. Both excellent guns but really different experiences when shooting. Both are equally accurate but the red dot adds another level to shooting.

It would really be a tough decision if I could only own one because they’re so different. I guess if I had to pick though I’d pick the 617. To me it just has the right feel and look. The 617 I have is the only one I’ve shot and the action is the smoothest I’ve ever shot. The gun just feels right in every respect. It’s weight, balance, action and a number of other characteristics that are hard to put your finger on. I have several other 22 handguns and none have that perfect feel.

Speaking of the Victory, at around 850 rounds it developed major ejection problems. I wound up contacting Smith and talked them into sending new extractor parts but that didn’t solve the problem. The problem was a failure to fully eject a spent case a out 4 times a magazine. Prior to this it functioned perfectly. My ammo remained the same and I tried a half dozen types to see if that would help. No Lucy with that though.

I read on the forum about bending the ejector slightly so I thought I’d give it a try and then if that didn’t work send it to Smith. I bent the ejector a couple thousandths and sure enough it worked. Since then I’ve run a few thousand flawless rounds through it. Matter of fact I took it out last week and fired a couple hundred flawless rounds through it.

My wife shoots too and we frequently shoot reactive targets. The Victory is superb for that with the red dot. You can really blaze through your shots.
 
I have found the ammo my 617 4" likes the best is the aguila that you have in your pic, The super extra 40 copper washed.
Mine required the forcing cone to be cut (it was a real lead spitter ) and the cylinders reamed to function properly. after that it was a good shooter.
 
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