Bobbed hammers?

[gwalchmai]

How many of you have bobbed your hammers? I have a 637 that I like to carry and so far I've never had an issue with the hammer snagging. I carry it in a Hume JIT belt slide and sometimes in a Smartcarry. I rarely carry it in a pocket holster. Is it worthwhile to bob? I'm sure it lowers the value but this is not a collector grade gun so that doesn't scare me. It may possibly increase the reliability with hard primers but I've never had a failure with it as it is.

I have no doubt I can do it. I bobbed the hammer on a Taurus 85 and it turned out great, but I'm not sure it's necessary.

Thanks!

 

[TNDave]

I pretty much always bob the hammer of a carry gun. There is no reason to use single action thus no need for the hammer spur or single action capability. I have not ever personally had a hammer spur almost get me killed, but have a friend who is alive because a hold up man's hammer spur got caught on his pants when he tried to pull his gun giving my buddy time to react.

Here is a pic of my 2" Model 10. It was no beauty contest winner when I got it so cutting the hammer doesn't matter. I wouldn't mess up a valuable gun, but for a gun that is just going to be shot a lot and sweated all over who cares. You can always buy an extra hammer and bob it and keep your original if you want to.

 

[Bat Guano]

Dehorned my wife's M37 over 25 years ago. Made it a perfect little carry piece. The odds of needing SA in a gun like that are zilch. I do prefer my 442 which has nothing at all to snag, ever.

 

[10-12]

I picked up a Model 13 with 3" barrel for pocket carry. The hammer spur had to go. Even though the gun has been "rode hard and put up wet" it is still a Model 13 and they are not that easy to come by. So I bought a used hammer off of this forum, deburred it myself and it worked great. If I ever decide to sell the gun, or restore it, I still have the original hammer with the spur. I could have deburred the original hammer and then bought another when/if I decided to sell it but then, the hammer would not have been original to the gun. No would could tell but I would know and would not sell it that way.

Just my opinion.

Bill

 

[gwalchmai]

What kind of grips are those, Dave?

 

[6gunSam]

I love the Bobbed hammers

I have my everyday 4" M10 bobbed, my dressup M65 3" semibobbed, and as soon as I can afford a spare hammer I will bob my 22-4TR. looking for more spare K/L hammers and triggers for future projects.

 

[flop-shank]

I bob all my snubs (except the NAA single actions, that wouldn't work too well) and have yet to regret doing so in the least. I may even bob my 5" 629.

 

[38-44HD45]

What kind of grips are those, Dave?

I'll answer for Dave: Precision Gun Specialties. You can get them from Brownell's, and they are very reasonably priced. I like them a lot.

Another vote for bobbing from me. My 3" 65s are both bobbed, as are both my 4" Model 10s and a few of my other Smiths. I even recontoured the hammer on my Colt Magnum Carry, although it would fit the "semi-bobbed" category.

 

[ladder13]

I carry pre-bobbed Centenials.

 

[palmetto99]

My EDC is a model 60 (.38 spl) with a bobbed hammer. It's no collector, so I don't worry about resale value. It goes in most pockets pretty well, but usually rides IWB. I also have a model 60-9 with a MIM hammer. I've seen those bobbed too, but those look a little odd to me.

 

[bubbajoe45]

I have an 3" M13 with a bobbed hammer and like it. I like the idea of a semi-bobbed hammer a great deal. I think it would be practical to have the best of both worlds - you can cock it if you need to, but it's not going to snag.

 

[BugEater]

Keep the hammer

I like having the option. I carry my M64 2" in a Galco hip holster. Snagging isn't an issue.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

What about swapping out your hammer for one from a 638 or a 642??? Has anyone done that with their exposed hammer J frames??

 

[gwalchmai]

What about swapping out your hammer for one from a 638 or a 642??? Has anyone done that with their exposed hammer J frames??

From what I understand it won't work. The geometry is different.

 

[stoneman]

A 642 or 342 hammer will work in your gun. There are forum members that have done it, it looks very similar to the bob job I did on my 637 that I posted last week. I'm not sure if a 642 hammer will work on single action though. Thats the only plus to bobbing the hammer in your gun. A new hammer will set you back about $50 whether you get one for a 637 or 642.

Chris

 

[OLDFED]

How about a quick and dirty lesson on the bobbing process? Thank you!

 

[gwalchmai]

How about a quick and dirty lesson on the bobbing process? Thank you!

For my Taurus 85: with the hammer down I drew a line with a Sharpie along the hammer where it met the frame.

With the line as a guide I used a very fine toothed hacksaw to cut the excess hammer and spur off , then cleaned the cut with 80, 150, 400, and 1500 grit sandpaper. I then polished it with Flitz to a mirror shine. It came out nice.

 

[flop-shank]

How about a quick and dirty lesson on the bobbing process? Thank you!

I take my lockwork apart. I grind down my hammer spurs on a disc sander. Go slow and dip the workpiece in coolant as you go, so as not to overheat it. Clean thoroughly. Reassemble.

 

[gwalchmai]

pics added:

 

[stoneman]

http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-revolvers-1980-present/103084-j-frame-hammer-mod-possible.html

Here is a link to some posts from last week.