I had never heard of a model 35 until a few months ago when one showed up at my LGS and followed me home. (Essentially a Mod 34 .22 with a 6” barrel). Now I have acquired a Mod 35 parts gun for a very reasonable price - I think because few people knew what it was?

Judging by the condition of the parts, I conclude that this gun was badly neglected but not abused. There is hard dried crud on all internal parts but no wear or damage. Also some light rust and bluing loss. The grips are not original but Herretts that should refinish well. All the parts are there with the exception of the frame, even the hard to remove firing pin and bushing. All the screws are clean with no head damage.

My plan is to ream the cylinder to .22 Mag and end up with a Model 35 convertible. But first, a lot of cleaning and then checking the cylinder for fit, alignment, timing, end shake, etc. I’ll probably test fire as a .22LR, too. If all works out, I’ll then ream it for WMR and most likely reblue it as well.

Should be a fun little project.

Attached Images

	M35 Parts 01.jpg (163.7 KB, 79 views)
	M35 Parts 02.jpg (149.9 KB, 62 views)

...wonderful little guns.

I' got a 70s vintage that has been fitted with a Model 51 .22 Magnum cylinder...very accurate. Something S&W should have done...6" 51 instead of just the 3.5"....

Bob

Had a chance to test fit the new cylinder today. Clearances between the new / original are fairly close: cylinder to recoil shield gap is .014 for both, however cylinder to barrel gap is .010 / .006 respectively. The main issue so far is the trigger reset sticking on three chambers. It sticks all the way back but will release with a small push. At this time, I suspect the hand is sticking but I’m not sure why yet. More investigation is required!

Put some drywall anchors or other snap caps in it and dry fire it a bunch. The most likely reason is the hand is just barely rubbing by the tooth and when it is that tight working it will rub a tiny bit off each tooth and smooth it out. The hand being way harder than the teeth it will take a bit off the teeth not the hand.

You could also figure out which chamber and the tooth for each of those and give each a few passes with a very fine file

I too, think the hand is probably rubbing on the teeth. Feels like it will need more than just wearing in, though. I have marked the chambers but think I’ll try some Prussian Blue on the teeth as well. It might show some rubbing more than others. I also have the hand that was originally fitted to that cylinder and can try that too.

It’s gonna have to wait a couple of days, tho. Tomorrow is fishing weather!

Well I tried some Prussian blue and then a Sharpie but wasn’t able to determine where the hand is rubbing or sticking. So I tried the other approach and fitted the spare hand. It has a slightly different profile at the tip. The gun now functions perfectly with both cylinders.

The next step is to ream one cylinder to .22 mag.

Now that the cylinder fits and works properly, I got busy with the reamer today. This is almost the easiest part. I use a Manson .22 WMR finishing reamer with lots of cutting oil. In this case I ran the reamer (in a drill) until it just kissed the top of the chambers. A full cylinder of unfired shells clears the recoil shield and rotates freely. A trip to the range will determine if fired shells also clear properly. I can always cut a little deeper if necessary.

Attached Images

	M35 WMR Proj 02.jpg (194.9 KB, 12 views)
	M35 WMR Proj 03.jpg (119.3 KB, 12 views)

The old timers put toothpaste in the hand area to fine tune with a lot of dry fire. I'd try that before doing anything serious.

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Chris
SWCA #2243 SWHF #292

I am curious about the accuracy you will get. Nominal for a 22lr barrel is 0.222 vs 0.224 for a wmr. I wonder if you will need to do any forcing cone work. A .22 WMR bullet will have no problem swagging down 0.002 so the accuracy could be surprisingly nice. Best of luck, take photos.

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SWCA #3929, SWHF #1010

Ah, the ol redneck action job. Coat the entire action with toothpaste and dry fire a bunch. Supposed to really smooth it out. Probably works well enough to polish metal but in this case I think more reshaping is required. However the replacement hand is working great.

I am aware of the barrel diameter differences. WMR generally tends to be quite accurate through an LR bore. A previous revolver I converted worked out very well with no forcing cone work. It will be interesting to see if POA shifts between the calibers - I hope not!

I'd love to find another 22lr cylinder for my old Colt Diamondback and do the same thing. I've owned it for about 40 years and it isn't going anywhere until I kick the bucket.

Accuracy is just fine, this kind of conversion has been going on for decades or longer

I've done the same thing to a Model 34 snubby years ago

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"Acta non verba"