carry up question

[Gun 4 Fun]

I have an N-frame in excellent condition, but the carry up is not complete when cycling the action, especially in single action mode. When checking the timing the way an ex S&W armorer showed me the timing is way off. I dont know if it's just that the hand is worn on the top [it still fits snugly side to side in the window] or that the extractor star is wearing too much. The star appears worn behind every spur on the star much more than any of my other N-frames from the same time period, like possibly the star wasn't hardened properly. When I say worn behind the spurs, I mean that it almost looks like the point of the hand is actually digging in to the star and wearing away metal. Any thoughts?

 

[Gun 4 Fun]

I have an N-frame in excellent condition, but the carry up is not complete when cycling the action, especially in single action mode. When checking the timing the way an ex S&W armorer showed me the timing is way off. I dont know if it's just that the hand is worn on the top [it still fits snugly side to side in the window] or that the extractor star is wearing too much. The star appears worn behind every spur on the star much more than any of my other N-frames from the same time period, like possibly the star wasn't hardened properly. When I say worn behind the spurs, I mean that it almost looks like the point of the hand is actually digging in to the star and wearing away metal. Any thoughts?

 

[all5x]

A worn ejector will have the ratchets appear as a square when compared to one in good shape..if after checking the carry up as told to by the armorer then a trip back to S&W might be called for..they may or may not have parts so it is best to write them with the serial number, model number and see if they can fix it..some old time gunsmiths can stretch the ratchets by heating it up and then hammering them down..it would work for one more go around but then you would be back to square one..the digging in you mentioned might be the result of a hand being peened to make it work properly..a short cut and not the proper way to fix DCU..all5x

 

[Dave C]

Try checking the timing with dummy cartridges in the cylinder. Sometimes just the wobble here can alter timing on an empty cyl.

Excess endshake can also cause a failure to carry up. It's possible to have excess wear in the ratchet teeth, post a pic. However, some wear is normal and can be overcome by a wider hand.