Appreciation of the Model 39-2

[ColoCoug]

In the early 80s I was a reserve deputy and provided my own sidearm. I started with a Model 28, but picked up a Model 39-2 and quickly came to prefer carrying it because of weight, capacity and the fact that it was a really instinctive pointer.

Over time, for reasons I don't recall I foolishly sold that 39-2 to a good friend, who later sold it to my youngest brother. I tried for 20 years to persuade him to sell it back to me...but no joy.

About four years ago I decided that I was done trying to talk by brother out of the old 39, and my wife said she would give me one for Christmas. I fired up Gunbroker and found a good candidate, which even came with the original box. The price was actually reasonable. Must be an early 1970s build as the SN is A1556XX. I added a target sight too.

For the past few years I've been trying to love the newer one. Unfortunately I've never been able to get it to eject casings reliably. Initially there was probably one failure per magazine. In every case, the empty casing stayed in the barrel and the next cartridge was picked up and jammed against it. The casings came out easily, so they were not stuck.

I cleaned it well (I thought) and had a gunsmith check it. He said there was a lot of gunk behind the extractor, so I learned from that experience. I also thought maybe my 70 year old grip was weak, but I tried Pachmayr grips and a determined approach with a firmer grip. I still averaged almost one failure to extract in every couple of magazines.

I checked the casings that failed to eject and each had a slight scratch on the casing rim as if the extractor had dragged over the rim. That scratch was not present on the casings which ejected.

This week I received a new extractor and spring and installed them. I'll be back at the range on Monday and see whether this fixed it. I still like that Model 39 better than any other semi-auto I've held, and I love the double action first shot capability as much as I did in 1981. The photo shows the old extractor, and has a nice set of wood grips that I'm using at present since I'm now sure it's not my Weaver stance and grip that's the problem.

I'll report back.

 

[Sevens]

Obvious to some -- maybe not to others but when you begin work to remove the extractor, tap tap tap that pin downward through the access hole in the top of the slide.

That pin is a larger diameter than the top access hole. This means the pin cannot walk upwards because the hole is too small, and it cannot walk downwards because when the slide is installed on to the frame, the frame rails block any movement it might try to do.

Some fool that had one of my 745's before me decided to hog out the hole in the top of the slide and now my extractor pin walks upward on it's own.

After writing that ^^ I saw that you wrote:

This week I received a new extractor and spring and installed them.

Already installed.

I do have a question about the new extractor you installed -- where did you get this item?

Asking because quite often, a brand new extractor needs to be fit or perhaps even shaped. I know that I needed to do exactly that when I put a new extractor in one of my S&W Model 52-2 pistols. Not the same extractor, but similar.

A brand new, never used extractor dropped right in place and probably is fantastic at extracting... but until it is shaped properly, it's royally prevents feeding. Not an intermittent issue, but an "absolutely every round you attempt" kind of issue.

Report back!

 

[ogso]

Not a -2 but an original 39 owner here, I bought an additional extractor from Jack First. He has replacement -2 parts and springs if you need them as well.

 

[antilamr]

In the early 80s I was a reserve deputy and provided my own sidearm. I started with a Model 28, but picked up a Model 39-2 and quickly came to prefer carrying it because of weight, capacity and the fact that it was a really instinctive pointer.

Not to try and hijack your thread, but in 1980 I too was a reserve officer and had to supply my own sidearm. I carried my Colt 1911 since most of the other officers carried one also.

I remember seeing a deputy in court who was carrying this beautiful shiny semi auto and I fell in love. Turns out it was a all nickle 39-2. I'm still in love with these and haven't found one to call my own yet. I envy all you in free states who have greater access to find & purchase what you want.


I look forward to your report on the results from replacing the extractor. I appreciate everyone who contributes to this forum, even if I have a selfish motivation.

 

[ColoCoug]

Obvious to some -- maybe not to others but when you begin work to remove the extractor, tap tap tap that pin downward through the access hole in the top of the slide.

That pin is a larger diameter than the top access hole. This means the pin cannot walk upwards because the hole is too small, and it cannot walk downwards because when the slide is installed on to the frame, the frame rails block any movement it might try to do.

After writing that ^^ I saw that you wrote:

Already installed.

I do have a question about the new extractor you installed -- where did you get this item?

Asking because quite often, a brand new extractor needs to be fit or perhaps even shaped. I know that I needed to do exactly that when I put a new extractor in one of my S&W Model 52-2 pistols. Not the same extractor, but similar.

A brand new, never used extractor dropped right in place and probably is fantastic at extracting... but until it is shaped properly, it's royally prevents feeding. Not an intermittent issue, but an "absolutely every round you attempt" kind of issue.

Report back!

I got the spring and extractor from Numrich. I worked from the top because the extractor retaining pin had a small channel to guide the tool used to press the pin out. I didn't have a punch small enough to back the pin out from the top, but a small brad nail did the trick. I discovered the retaining pin can back out far enough to release the extractor without falling out of the slide, which was very helpful. Lining up the hole in the extractor so I could tap the pin back in took a few attempts, but I eventually got it.

I appreciate the note about potential feed problems. I'll be watching for that when I get to the range.

 

[lkabug]

I also had a failure to eject issue with one of my 39-2's. A new ejector took care of the issue completely. I used a sight pusher and proper sized pin to do the job.

 

[gmborkovic]

https://smith-wessonforum.com/smith...ectors-subculture.html?highlight=Seductive+39
For a quick read, click on this site.

 

[ColoCoug]

Thanks for the read - interesting.

Good news - I ran 100 rounds through the Model 39-2 today and not ONE failure to eject. I'm very, very pleased with that.

The comment earlier in the thread about feeding was on my mind, and I did have a few events where the first round off the top of the clip was picked up but the slide didn't go home completely. It ONLY happened with the first round at the top of the clip, and I have three mags to work with; as far as I can tell it wasn't mag specific. If I just released the slide catch with my thumb it was more likely to happen. Pulling the slide fully back made it less likely to hang up.

As I worked through the 100 rounds, the number of times this occurred steadily reduced, so my thought is that running a few hundred rounds more through it will smooth out whatever is going on. A cleaning and a little lube on the ejector won't hurt either.