I have a NIB S&W Model 396 Night Guard in caliber .44 S&W Special.

It easily chambers .44 Magnum ammunition. (240 LSWC, 250 JHP, and 250 JFP - both factory and reloaded ammo),

The ammo is obviously in .44 Magnum cases, chambers easily, and the cylinder turns with room to spare.

The Model 396 is a 5-shot .44 Special on an "L" frame.

Is this normal?

Isn't this asking for trouble, given the fact that .44 Magnum ammo is much more prevalent than .44 Special ammo?

Doesn't it seem that it would be just a matter of time before someone tried to shoot some .44 Magnum ammo in this .44 Special revolver?

Thanks

It isn't normal but it isn't unheard of.

It is potentially extraordinarily dangerous.

Call S&W at their 800 #. They will send an overnight box at their cost and will very likely fix or replace the gun very quickly and return it directly to you.

Somebody in production and in quality control both screwed up on that one. That is a lawsuit waiting to happen.

You shouldn't fire 44 magnum in it. That said, I seriously doubt it would blow up or bulge, rather just show extensive wear and looseness after very few rounds. Just don't do it.

Now I need to see if I have the same problem with my new 396NG
I need one round of 44mag

+1 on what he said

I wonder how the cylinder fit in the window? I am basing that question because I thought the n frame 44 mag cylinder would be longer than a L frame 44 special cylinder.
Now tell us, how did that 44 mag cartridge get in there in the first place?? Also, looking at the cylinder hole do you see a rim inside it??

The round of .44 Magnum found its way into the revolver intentionally. I did not have any .44 Special ammo loaded, but plenty of .44 Magnum ammo on hand.

I had two new reloaders that I wanted to check to see if they would properly align with the chamber of the revolver, and thoght I would see how they worked.

I fully expected the .44 ammo to partially chamber, and that was OK, as I was essentially just checking a reloader/cylinder alignment.

Much to my surprise, the ammo chambered fully. Subsequent tests with other .44 Magnum ammo showed that it all chambered in the revolver.

I obviously have no intention of shooting any .44 Magnum ammo in this revolver.

Since the difference in .44 Magnum and .44 Special ammo is pretty minor, (the .44 Magnum case is 0.125" longer than the .44 Special case), it isn't really much of a difference in length. I don't know the specific dimensions of the "window" in "L" frame revolvers vs, "N" frame revolvers.

Paulg/26:

If you perform this check, would you be so kind as to let me know what you find?

Thanks

i got the revolver 2 weeks ago and i don't have any 44 mag
maybe somebody over here can donate a round
none of my friends are shooting 44 mag
but i am interested to see

Since the "L" frame was primarily designed (I think) around the .357 Magnum cartridge with a max case length of 1.290", it makes sense that the cylinder length would be plenty long enough to be able to chamber a .44 Special (max case length is 1.160") or a .44 Magnum (max case length of 1.285) since they are both actually shorter than a .357 Magnum.

It's an L-frame cylinder reamed a little too deeply. It does happen. It is potentially dangerous.

Yep... and that sure brings the question to mind that if the cylinders are now being made on modern (automated) CNC type equipment... how many cylinders were made that way because something was amiss with that particular machine or programming? Wow...

I think you guys are exactly correct, and it would be really nice if anybody out there had another Model 396 Night Guard that they could check to see if it will chamber .44 Magnum ammunition.

Anybody? How about somebody you might know?

How about a user-friendly gun store with a 396 Night Guard .44 Special in stock that woul be willing to drop a load of factory .44 Magnum ammo into the cylinder?

if i have time to get to the indoor range today
ill borrow a round from them
i am curios

Ok I will suffer because of my stupidity, if a 44 mag fits in a L-frame, what happens if you fire it?? Now follow along with my reasoning, the 44 special cylinder probably has more metal between the cylinders since it is 5 instead of 6 shots. So besides the larger recoil why would the L-frame fail??
Doesn't taurus have a similiar sized revolver in 44 mag? Plus the Lipsey Ruger has six holes and I do not think its cylinder is any larger.
I know what it is like to be blind, wanting to see but unable because the powers that be do not trust us, that is why photbucket is blocked.
So get your calipers out, measure cylinders, and what should the proper depth be for a 44 special versus what are you finding in the 396 night guard. Lastly, could it be the 44 mag cylinder stuck into the wrong frame??

The longer Magnum round may chamber but the crimped portion of the case mouth may be riding on the very end of the larger diameter of the chamber, just ending where the throats of the chambers begin. If so, when fired, the brass case may be unable to un-crimp fully as the pressures of the powder burning pushes the bullet forward. This can cause the pressure to skyrocket and destroy the cylinder.

I have seen this with a couple of off-brand guns chambered for the .38 Special but into which .357 Mag ammo barely fit.

If you have any fired .44 Mag cases, try inserting one of those and see if it chambers fully or if there ends up being some space between the front face of the case rim and he rear face of the cylinder.

Payton, the major risk to the L frame .44 Special being damaged would more likely be the rear of the barrel, the forcing cone section, cracking, rather than the cylinder rupturing. They are thin there, fully capable of standard .44 Special pressures, but not likely .44 Magnum pressures. That portion of the L frame barrel is the same diameter in both .357 Mag and .44 Special guns.

Buff, thanks for that answer.

I appreciate the feedback from everyone. The revolver is presently in the hands of a custom gunsmith in Phoenix, AZ having an action job done and getting the lock disabled. I expect it back by the 3rd week of September.

When I get it, I will drop some fired rounds of empty .44 Magnum brass into the cylinder and let you know how it fits (or doesn't fit).

Thanks.

I do understand the danger implications but cannot help but think. HMMMM could also take cool, custom shotshell loads.
We just had "out of the box,look on the bright side training at work" and I spent the time daydreaming about improving guns.

That is an interesting thought.

I am highly cognizant of the potential danger this revolver could create if it were in the hands of a neophyte.

For now, I am the only person who will have access to it, and am looking forward to getting it back from the gunsmith and getting it cleaned and tested.

I will remain especially cautious and ensure that at some time in the future the chamber issue is addressed.

Thanks

I just bought a used 396NG a week ago today (DCFxxx). After reading this thread, I immediately checked my gun. No, a Mag. cartridge will not chamber. Thought you might want to hear from one other member right away.

H-F Hank
NRA Bene.
USAF Vet

The revolver is at a gunsmith's and you did not mention this to him ?

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Hook686

Thanks very much for the information on your 396 Hank.

Hook: Yes, I pointed this issue out to him and we discussed it.

Thanks

45Raven, What's it like to fire the 396NG? With a 2 1/2" barrel and just at 24.2 oz. I would think it's a handfull even with 44spls.

I am not a recoil junky...I find the 200 gr Gold Dot Blazer load in the 3" 18 oz. 396 Air Lite to be very pleasant and manageable.

Edit to add: More pleasant and manageable than 130 gr +P .38 Special loads in a 2" 13 oz. 342. The 342 loaded that way recoils very sharply, and the smaller grip doesn't help any, either.

I just checked my 396NG It will NOT chamber 44 mag.

ENH: Thanks very much for sharing the info with me.

H30: The best way I can desribe recoil with the 396 is as follows:

I have a 13.5 ounce Ruger LCR that I shoot handloads (practice) and Buffalo Bore factory loads (carry) in. The handload is a 158 grain LSWC at 835 FPS. The factory load is a 158 grain LHPSWC at 827 FPS.

I have not shot any ammo in my 396 yet, as it is NIB and getting an action job done on it. I have, however, fired one that belonged to a friend. The ammunition was a handload and it was a 240 grain Oregon Trail LSWC that chronographed at an average MV of 794 FPS.

Both loads are stout, but tolerable, and I would say that the recoil of each of those revolvers with that ammo is almost exactly alike.

So . . . . . in my experience, a 240 grain bullet at about 800 FPS in a 24.2 ounce revolver is almost exactly like a 158 grain bullet at about 800 FPS is a 13.5 ounce revolver.

got to the range today and tried 396 will only work with 44 spl

Thanks very much for following up with me.

I tested both of my 396s (forgot to test my 696). Neither the CEC or CEM prefix guns will fully chamber a 44 mag. But there isn't much sticking out, and I think I might even be able to force the cylinder closed. The 44 mag stands out about as far as a cartridge that uses a moon clip. Which is not very far.

I agree with the earlier poster who suggested the case mouth crimp was resting on the end of the chamber cut. Might get real interesting if someone had a heavy crimp (most Maggies have heavy crimps to keep subsequent rounds from jumping). Seems to me S&W has given us handloaders some leeway in overlength Special cases. We'll be able to get away with not trimming them for a long time.

Thats important to many of us because we load fairly mild powder charges in our Specials, and it means case life is nearly forever.

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Dick Burg