986 Light Strikes

[cds43016]

I recently purchased a Smith & Wesson 986.

The first time I fired it I had at least one sometimes two light strikes per cylinder. All my shooting is double action.

My initial testing of any gun is with factory ammo.

I did some research on this and other forums and found out this is a common initial problem.

The recommended solution was to check the strain screw and see if it is loose. Mine was and I tightened it a bit.

I went to the range again for testing. Better but still got light strikes, although not as many. Trigger also got heavier than I like.

At the range I tightened the strain screw a bit more and the last three cylinders were OK. I would have tested more but I ran out of factory ammo.

When I got home I started to unload the moon clips and prepare the brass for reloading.

Looking at some of the primers it looks like they were hit very deep and hard.

I’ve been reloading since the late 60’s and have had many guns but never seen primers hit like this. I’m surprised they weren’t pierced. Normally there is just a small dimple in the center. That’s the way the FTFs looked but very shallow.

Apparently tightening the strain screw caused this. I didn’t notice anything odd with the primers on the first outing. But without the adjustment, I got far too many light strikes. There should be none.

I never had a problem with my 686 and never had to make an adjustment. My understanding is that the strain screw should be fully seated to avoid light strikes but I expected nothing like this. Is this normal for this gun?

I attached a few pictures of some random cases.

This is going back to Smith and Wesson unless someone can suggest a better idea. I think something else is going on with this gun beyond a loose strain screw.

I have several Smith & Wesson guns including a Model 41 that I used in Bullseye matches. Each has been of the highest quality and I never had an issue even after in some cases tens of thousands of rounds. This thing is horrible. Even the rear sight worked its way loose after a few rounds and had to be tightened. This is not the Smith & Wesson I knew and certainly something one would not expect from a $1,000 gun

How this thing got out of quality control is beyond me. They must not have fired it. What happened to American Pride and Craftsmanship? I also recently purchased a Walther PPQ Q5 and it was perfection right out of the box.

So disappointing!

Thanks in advance for your input.

 

[shocker]

Deletion..

 

[cds43016]

No it fired. But the primers don't look right.

 

[shocker]

No it fired. But the primers don't look right.

When you send it back include a photo of the primers and write a note saying the strain screw was loose.

Since the likely remedy is a firing pin swap I would guess you will have the gun back within 2 weeks of sending it.

 

[Toolguy]

It partly depends on what factory ammo you used. It's a well known fact that Federal primers are the softest, CCI the hardest, and Winchester in between. The CCI ones take a lot harder strike to set off than the Federal.

The primers that don't ignite have a shallow dent because that's what the firing pin makes initially. The fired ones have a much deeper dent from the force of the explosion pushing the primer back into the firing pin with the hammer down.

 

[cds43016]

It partly depends on what factory ammo you used. It's a well known fact that Federal primers are the softest, CCI the hardest, and Winchester in between. The CCI ones take a lot harder strike to set off than the Federal.

The primers that don't ignite have a shallow dent because that's what the firing pin makes initially. The fired ones have a much deeper dent from the force of the explosion pushing the primer back into the firing pin with the hammer down.

The Factory ammo is Federal American Eagle. The same rounds fired in my Walther look nothing like this.

The reason I use factory ammo for initial testing is to eliminate as best I can the ammo as a cause. It's possible with a reload to have primers that are not fully seated and cause light strikes.

I used the same ammo in my Walther (100's of rounds - to get the brass) and never had any problem.

 

[Lou_the_welder]

I use Winchester primers in mine. The 986 is very fickle. Its definitely a reloaders gun. Speed beez clips.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

 

[cds43016]

I mailed my 986 back to Smith & Wesson on October 26 and got it back on November 16.

I took it to the range today and fired over 60 rounds without a light strike. The primers still look like they were hit much harder and deeper than anything I have ever seen, but apparently it was not a problem to the Smith & Wesson gunsmith since I sent some fired cases with the gun and expressed my concern in my included letter.

I looked at the repair log and all it said is that they repaired the yoke, the frame and the hand. I’m not sure what the repair could have been to fix the light strikes.

I checked the timing and endshake of the gun before I sent it off and both appeared OK. I expected the firing pin and a long strain screw as the problem. So much for my amateur diagnosis!

Also included with the return documentation was a test log that showed in the comments ‘DCU’ and codes 36, 60 and 73. I have no idea of what this all means. Anyone have a magic decoder?

Any ideas what the problem was based on the repair and test log?

Thanks!