Barrel separated from frame Smith 37, what would you do...

[Mister_Smith]

I have a Smith and Wesson model 37 I bought maybe three years ago, and after owning it about a year, and shot no more than fifty rounds of standard pressure .38 Special ammo through it.

One day I noticed the barrel felt loose, and I found that it did in fact come completely loose and I was able to simple unscrew it from the frame.

I never sent it back to Smith and Wesson because I had sent another gun back to them and it was too much hassle.

So my question to members of this forum is this, wouldn't I be just as well off if I took it to a competent local gunsmith? In other words, is this a big deal to fix or is it a simple matter and any gunsmith worth his salt would be able to fix this easily?

How would they fix it?

Myself I'd kinda' like to see the barrel pinned into the frame as well but if the gunsmith can assure me it can be properly fixed without a pin, I'll accept that.

What are your opinions?

 

[RaylanGivens]

Mr. Smith, any competent gunsmith can reattach your barrel. There are many professional YouTube videos that show how it is done with proper tools. Not being a gunsmith, I would not do this job myself, even with proper tools. You are fortunate that you were not injured while shooting the pistol. Find a gunsmith, who is trained and professional to reinstall that barrel. Good luck. It's an easy fix.

 

[SAFireman]

You really NEED to have someone competent check the frame for a crack.

The alloy guns have had an issue for years - cracking in the frame (bottom of where barrel threads into front of frame). The metal is the thinnest there, and the torque that is imparted to the barrel during assembly, or fatigue can cause a crack there.

The gun has a lifetime warranty, send it to the factory. A local gunsmith can NOT fix the crack, the frame must be replaced.

If there is NO crack, then the barrel can be re-installed, but it takes special tools and knowledge to do so (more so with the alloy frame).

Good luck, and please post photos if you have a crack.

 

[Pisgah]

If there were ever a reason to send a revolver back to S&W, this is one, hassle or no. Maybe it'll take a while to get it back, but so what? What good is it right now, anyway? Call them, explain, ask for a return label.

 

[murphydog]

I think this one is new enough to be covered by the lifetime warranty - send it back. They will likely find the frame crack as mentioned above and offer you a new one in return.

 

[RaylanGivens]

In light of the possibility of a frame crack, but against your wish to send it in for warranty work, I agree with the three other posters. Send it in.

 

[DWalt]

The frame crack, if present, is usually readily seen. If it is cracked, there is no cure other than replacing the gun. I cannot think of any other reason that the barrel would unscrew easily. I avoid any revolvers having alloy frames, even though they are not cracked, simply because I want to remove any possibility of future problems. There are better things to worry about. Others are not so paranoid.

 

[Alk8944]

If it is under the lifetime warrantee you call S&W, 800-331-0852, they send you a mailing label on their dime, you send it back to them. They repair it and send back, again their dime. Where is the "big hassle"? No cost and you have a $400+ revolver back in working order! And it will probably take less than 2 weeks. How long have you been stewing over this so far?

 

[spdguns]

If there were ever a reason to send a revolver back to S&W, this is one, hassle or no. Maybe it'll take a while to get it back, but so what? What good is it right now, anyway? Call them, explain, ask for a return label.

Yes, I would most certainly send this one back......

 

[Fastbolt]

I agree with calling S&W and requesting they examine and correct it under their warranty. Why risk having the warranty voided by an unauthorized attempted repair?

The factory can either repair the revolver, or if they determine the problem can't be repaired, they can replace it. Can your gunsmith make you that same deal?

Call S&W. Easy decision.

 

[jringo8769]

make life simple on yourself and make the call...better to be safe than sorry....Smith will make it right one way or another...i would not have anyone other than Smith look at it...

 

[chief38]

If it were mine, I'd send it back to Smith with one of their pre-paid labels and let them repair it under the lifetime warranty. If they tell you that it is unrepairable they will send you a new gun. If you do not like their new guns because of their "new configurations" you could always sell it and buy anything else you wanted (an older model as well). I don't think that a barrel coming off is your fault and you should not have to eat the repair bill. YMMV

 

[g8rb8]

This is a no-brainer.
The below link should get you to the S&W page you can fill out and I bet you have contact from S&W within 1 day and I bet they will give you a prepaid shipping label.
Send a Message

 

[Alk8944]

Nearly 3 weeks since first post, no response from OP after several reasonable and encouraging responses, 12 total. Obviously he didn't really want an answer to his question!!!

 

[Mister_Smith]

I finally dug this gun out of the back of the safe, and looked at the area where many have said these frame crack. I see no crack, I used lots of light and looked under a magnifying glass, no crack visible.

I will send this back to Smith and Wesson when I get the opportunity but the Fedex shipping station is an hour away or half a day round trip so I've put this trip off for years, but I'll get the gun back to Smith one day, I don't want do without the gun, it's a handy little gun, I also have other J frames that filled the role this one was supposed to fill.

Again, thanks for all the suggestions. Oh, and as for me me not responding to everybody's responses for a long time, as mentioned, the gun was at the back of the safe and trust me, my set up makes it very very difficult to retrieve a gun.

Alk8944, please don't jump to conclusions, nor put words in my mouth about my not really wanting a response, of course I wanted responses, and I read all of them, it's just that I have not taken that gun out of the safe for over a year, it is very difficult given the location of my safe and the way guns are stored within it, and I'm not too hot to spend half a day traveling to and from the Fedex location to ship the gun back, and I work nights, not to mention the factory lost the gun I sent to them once and it took some time before they could produce that missing gun and so much time out of my life spent "on hold" on the telephone with them. Yes, it can truly be a tremendous hassle.

I truly do value the IMMENSE amount of wisdom and expertise on these sites. These forums are an invaluable source of knowledge which I value greatly, and more importantly, these sites tie fellow gun owners together, allow us to share experiences and camaraderie that would not otherwise be possible.

My apologies for being late with my sincere thanks to you all for taking moments out of your lives to answer my question.

And hopefully I'll get off my butt soon and take some photos of my other J frame Smiths, I know how much I enjoy seeing the guns of other members posted here and though I already have posted a few of my own, I look forward to posting more!

 

[Cal44]

Send it back. It's less hassle than finding a gunsmith, taking it to him, and picking it back up.

Plus S&W will pay for it rather than you.