I recently purchased a new model 629 revolver (2.5 in barrel with fixed sights,
part of the special run S&W did for Camfour). I recently took the gun out for the
first time.

It was a lot of fun and didn't have nearly the recoil I expected.

However, I did have one problem. I am normally an autopistol shooter and I have
large hands. I noticed that my normal grip position sometimes brushed the cylinder.

When shooting full magnum loads I had no problems (approximately 70 rounds), but
when I shot some .44 specials I had a couple of instances where the hammer fell
and the rounds failed to fire. I opened the cylinder and didn't see any firing
pin hits (i.e. no light strikes). I continued shooting with this happening a couple
more times.

When I got home I tried to reproduce the problem when dry firing using some snap-caps
and I was able to cause the problem to happen again but only if I pushed the cylinder during it's rotation intentionally and I was only able to do it once. The firing pin strike is off center and misses the "primer"
area.

Here is an image of the snap cap after the fry fire.


And one from the range session



Should I be concerned? Do you think this is a defect or just poor technique? Is
it dangerous?

Thanks for the help,

Roger

I recently purchased a new model 629 revolver (2.5 in barrel with fixed sights,
part of the special run S&W did for Camfour). I recently took the gun out for the
first time.

It was a lot of fun and didn't have nearly the recoil I expected.

However, I did have one problem. I am normally an autopistol shooter and I have
large hands. I noticed that my normal grip position sometimes brushed the cylinder.

When shooting full magnum loads I had no problems (approximately 70 rounds), but
when I shot some .44 specials I had a couple of instances where the hammer fell
and the rounds failed to fire. I opened the cylinder and didn't see any firing
pin hits (i.e. no light strikes). I continued shooting with this happening a couple
more times.

When I got home I tried to reproduce the problem when dry firing using some snap-caps
and I was able to cause the problem to happen again but only if I pushed the cylinder during it's rotation intentionally and I was only able to do it once. The firing pin strike is off center and misses the "primer"
area.

Here is an image of the snap cap after the fry fire.


And one from the range session



Should I be concerned? Do you think this is a defect or just poor technique? Is
it dangerous?

Thanks for the help,

Roger

Your fingers are probably keeping the cylinder from locking up. If the gun were to fire with the cylinder seriously out of alignment, it could be very dangerous.

Can you post a picture of the gun in your hands as it would be when you shoot it?


Okie John

Anytime a gun goes click instead of bang it could be a problem depending on the circumstances

The gun could also fire while the chamber is not properly aligned with the forcing cone which could be a problem as well (lead spitting or worse). While you should keep your fingers off the cylinder while firing, it sounds as though the gun may need a little attention.

I would have the sideplate removed and clean the action thoroughly, making sure any crud, dried up lube etc., is cleaned out and then check the timing. If you are new to revolvers I suggest you have a local gunsmith or knowledgeable friend do this for you as it would be easy to bugger up the sideplate while removing it.

If the timing checks out OK you're good to go, otherwise it would need some minor repair/adjustment to make it right.

Just my .02,

Bill

__________________
Bill

The off-center firing pin strike is chacteristic of the cylinder stop failing to lock in the cylinder notch during cycling. In a new gun, this is usually caused by debris or a burr preventing the stop fully raising into position. On well used or abused guns, this can be caused by wear or damage to the cylinder notches. See if it changes during single action or double action shooting.

Inspect the cylinder stop and cylinder notches carefully. If no damage or burrs are found, you can flush out the action using a spray cleaning solvent. Cycle action smartly while holding the cylinder release latch rearwards. Repeat. If debris (filings, chips, etc) fall out, you might consider removing the sideplate to do a thorough cleaning, or have a gunsmith do it.

Roger,if you can`t correct the problem and would like to sell the 629 I would be interested in buying it.Thanks.

rrowley,
Welcome to the forum.
Others have mentioned lockup and you may not know what to look for. When firing the gun, it‘s important that they cylinder lock in position (relative to the barrel and hammer) before the hammer falls. That little lug that projects up from the frame (below the cylinder) is the cylinder stop. Put a drop of oil on it. Dry fire the gun slowly (DA) and you should hear the stop “click” into the cylinder notch just before the hammer falls. You can hold the trigger in that position and verify with the other hand if the cylinder is engaged and locked from rotating. Check each chamber. Check the single action lock up too. Thumb back the hammer very slowly and verify that the cylinder locks in position before the hammer cocks for each chamber.

Watch you technique. Keep your hands off the cylinder when firing. When shooting DA, pull the trigger all the way through and hold it. Be smooth on the trigger, don’t slam it back. Make sure you completely release the trigger between shots. Don’t slam the hammer back with your thumb when cocking for SA firing either, firm but gentle!

If it’s a new gun and it doesn’t lock up properly, phone S&W and have them fix it.

__________________
"I also cook."

Thanks for the good write-up. I am new to revolvers and was wondering just exactly what "lock-up" was.

On my second outing with my 629 I also had about 5 FTF out of 50. There was no mark on the primer at all.

I checked lock-up as you mentioned above and a few times it did click in after the hammer dropped and I rotated the cylinder. It seems off by just a hair.

It was also fairly cold and the revolver was a bit dirty. Hopefully after a good cleaning this problem will go away.

That happen to me on my 8&3/8th 629-0.
I sent it back to S&W and they deburred the cylinder stop. Not having the cylinder aligned with the bore while pushing a bullet down the tube at 1200 fps is dangerous.

Welcome to the forum. / Nice gun!!!!!
SEND IT BACK. Notime2

I have now noticed that it is happening on 2 of the cylinders. Does the gun somehow know that the cylinder is not locked and then stops it from firing?

NO, it does NOT!

Either the cylinder is going past the "Stop" area or it is not "Carrying up" (not going far enough).

It sounds like a call to Smith is in order. This CAN be dangerous. Firing without the cylinder aligned can be dangerous.

Call Smith and ask them to send you a mailing label to send the revolver in for service.

Dale53

If you were not having FTFs, the cause of those offset firing pin indents could also be the cylinder unlocking during recoil and the hammer rebounding to hit the primer again.

29/629 before the Endurance package were prone to this phenomenon.

The effect is seen on these 500 WE primers when the gun was fired from an incorrectly set up holding fixture (don't ask...).



And here is another gun problem manifesting itself on the primers. These are from a 1911 where the barrel was not locking up properly and the action opened too early on firing.

NO - it can't help itself. Please take the gun to a good gunsmith, or send to S&W, and have it serviced. If thorough cleaning (also of the cylinder and yoke) has not solved your problem, and the gun still fails to index into battery in both normal single- or double-action fire, it needs repair.

This is not a fatal thing (for the revolver) or even uncommon. Probably most of us have seen brand new revolvers with similar problems - at least I have. It should be inexpensive to repair. Discontinue use until you can resolve the problem.

I will get it checked out. Can someone tell me why the hammer would fall and there would be no mark at all on the primer?

Also, it is only when dry-firing double action that it sometimes does not lock-up. It locks up fine after single action. All of the FTF's I had were in single action and again there were no marks on the primer. Maybe there is another issue?

Had a problem on the range yesterday with a brand new production 629 Classic 5" barrel. Cylynder came unlocked while firing Remington factory 240 grain, but ALSO the the hammer stopped working. I could pull the trigger completely to the rear and hear a click but the hammer would not move. I kept the casings from previous rounds and they are all center hits by the firing pin. What's up with my trigger?