627-5 extractor locks up on 357

[vquad]

hello all,
1st time poster
new to s & w revolvers but not guns,anyways,
i wanted my 1st smith revolver to be something special...came across a good deal on a performance center 627-5 and i couldnt resist.
the gun is great condition and shes a soft shooter
heres the problems:
1)the extractor locks up TIGHT after firing but only on 357 magnums,no problems ejecting the 38's
cleaned,oiled,cleaned again,oiled,3 different ammos with the same results
2)about 1/2 the pulls im getting a light primer strike...i tightened the strain screw all the way down(it was loose)...
same result
smith wants the gun back but because im not the original owner its not under warranty
any ideas where to start before i box it up?
thanks in advance,mark

 

[cornfed83]

You said this is a Performance Center gun. Is there any chance that it is chambered in .38 Super? Not to insult your intelligence but its a mistake that could have happened. Just a thought.

My understanding is that Smith and Wesson should warranty it for you without questions asked, but I might be wrong.

 

[vquad]

heres a pic
shes clearly labeled 357???
its a 2006 serial # as near as i can figure

 

[JoeHatley]

Are the chambers clean? Perhaps the gun has been fired mostly with .38 specials and there is a little carbon build up at the front of the chamber that is making extraction with the longer .357 cases difficult.

 

[scooter123]

Are the chambers clean? Perhaps the gun has been fired mostly with .38 specials and there is a little carbon build up at the front of the chamber that is making extraction with the longer .357 cases difficult.

My money would be on this as your problem. Probably 95% of the time 357 Magnum revolvers are shot using 38 spl. ammunition. As for why, if you haven't noticed it yet the 357 Magnum ammo runs about 10 dollars per box more than 38 spl.

This makes it CRITICAL to scrub the chambers completely clean after shooting 100-200 rounds of 38 spl. If you don't you'll develop a carbon ring in the chamber that can make it difficult to fully seat a longer Magnum and also make extraction difficult.

So, your problem is the Previous Owner Blues. Because it's very likely the Previous Owner of your model 627 only shot 38 spl. and didn't bother with cleaning the chambers in the cylinder completely. Good news is that a good cleaning of the cylinder will probably provide a solution. More good news is that it's a stainless revolver, so you can used some rather extreme solvents to get the cylinder spotless. One extreme method that should work is a dip and soak carburator cleaning kit, something you would never want to try with blued steel or nickle plating. Another method you can use is to chuck up a 40 caliber bronze brush in a drill and run it on slow while keeping the brush wet with a good solvent.

Take a fired 357 Magnum casing and use it as a "gage" to check on how clean you have each chamber. Once you find a fired casing will seat completely without any force and fall freely out of the cylinder you are basically done.

 

[vquad]

Any recommendations on a high quality cleaner/solvent?

 

[vquad]

Can I assume some of y'all have experienced this before?
I have a ruger security 6...never had this happen before
but I've only shot 357 through it...makes sense

Any thoughts on the light primer strike outside of the strain screw?

 

[CWH44300]

Yup but remember its just a thought, maybe some of the force from the hammer is being used to drive the case into the cylinder so the primer strike is not all it should be, loaded rounds should" rattle around " in the cylinder, a good cleaning might fix her up

 

[lebomm]

The .40 cal. brush on a slow elec. drill is a good suggestion. Try this technique using GI Cleaner, Rifle Bore generously and it should get rid of those carbon rings with little effort.

 

[Bosshoss]

Are you using the full moon clips? Both problems could be caused by not using the clips if the gun was tuned for them.
Just checking.

 

[da gimp]

wondering if there isn't a tiny sliver of lead at the front of severalchambers in your cylinder that would be hard to see against the stainless steel.............

improperly belled cases/ or bullets set at a tilt on charged cases while reloading can produce a tiny (& sometimes large) lead sliver that the previous owner left in them...........

 

[vquad]

it happens with and without the moon clips
i dont reload(yet) but i have no idea if the 1st owner did

 

[vquad]

it does appear that maybe i havent cleaned the chambers as well as i should or thought i had
back to square 1
ill give her a good cleanup and see what happens
also i removed the grip and the strain screw has backed itself out again after only 4 rounds(the other 4 had the light strikes)
hopefully some blue loctite will resolve that issue
like scooter said POB
thanks for all the help...ill keep ya posted
mark

 

[vquad]

Well I cleaned her from stem to stern and here's what I've found.
New rounds go in smooth and free fall out without even the use of the extractor
Turn the gun upside down and they fall right out
Doing the same with spent rounds causes 3 of the chambers to completely jam the extractor,completely
I tried 3 different kinds of ammo and 150 different rounds(new and spent) and kept ending up with the same results
Here's the kicker...spent ammo won't even load in those same 3 chambers.What the heck?I'm confused...How could this be an ammo problem?
All of this ammo loads,shoots and extracts effortlessly from my ruger.

 

[parabarbarian]

Any thoughts on the light primer strike outside of the strain screw?

Has the mainspring been replaced? Some people will put in a reduced power mainspring in to get a lighter trigger pull. Also remove the firing pin and check that there is no build up of crud in the channel.

 

[vquad]

ok,
so heres a picture of the 3 chambers that are "jamming" the extractor
i've never seen this before
the picture shows spent rounds trying to be reinserted into the chambers
they are sitting at the location where they are because the amount of force required to push them further just jams them up
the other 5 chambers will drop right in
i just purchased 2 new boxes of ammo today...hopefully get some range time and see what happens

 

[ladder13]

smith wants the gun back but because im not the original owner its not under warranty
mark

Not to worry Mark, I sent back a 642 with cracked frame, they replaced the gun under warranty. I was at least the 2nd owner of the gun. If need be, call them and they'll send you a return label at no cost to you.

 

[Badquaker]

Take a strong magnifying glass and look inside the cylinders. I thought one of mine was spotless until I looked REAL close. The lead build up can be tough to get out.