Deep cleaning & oiling ?

[Kframes4me]

I love S&W revolvers and have been collecting for about two years, most have been shot but are pristine. I am embarrassed to admit I have never taken the side plates off to clean and oil. I have purchased a book and video to do this and feel confident I can but have you ever heard the line if it's not broke don't fix it? My question to you is do you do it and if so how often. I truly appreciate all the members on this forum and the knowledge you share.

 

[Gun 4 Fun]

Watching a video and doing it yourself doesn't always equate to the same thing. You have to be VERY careful when removing the sideplate on S&W's, especially those that are pre lock guns. It is very easy to leave a tiny burr on the upper radius when removing and/or re-installing it.

S&W's are made to be run with minimal oiling. Most guys, especially if they are older and learned to oil the snot out of tools, guns, etc., early on in their lives, have a hard time not doing it to their S&W's. The factory will tell you the same thing- minimal oil, and only as needed, which is usually only a few times a year at best if the gun is actually being used/fired.

I do not remove a sideplate unless absolutely needed, or when a new gun comes into my possesion and I have reason to believe I should remove it and look around inside.

 

[Kframes4me]

Thanks for your input, I have seen marks on side plates at various gun shows from what you have described. I am not looking to go there unless necessary.

 

[old bear]

Watching a video and doing it yourself doesn't always equate to the same thing. You have to be VERY careful when removing the sideplate on S&W's, especially those that are pre lock guns. It is very easy to leave a tiny burr on the upper radius when removing and/or re-installing it.

S&W's are made to be run with minimal oiling. Most guys, especially if they are older and learned to oil the snot out of tools, guns, etc., early on in their lives, have a hard time not doing it to their S&W's. The factory will tell you the same thing- minimal oil, and only as needed, which is usually only a few times a year at best if the gun is actually being used/fired.

I do not remove a sideplate unless absolutely needed, or when a new gun comes into my possesion and I have reason to believe I should remove it and look around inside.

Kframes, The above is excellent advise.. If it were me I would follow it.

Welcome to the forum.

 

[snubbyfan]

Watching a video and doing it yourself doesn't always equate to the same thing. You have to be VERY careful when removing the sideplate on S&W's, especially those that are pre lock guns. It is very easy to leave a tiny burr on the upper radius when removing and/or re-installing it.

S&W's are made to be run with minimal oiling. Most guys, especially if they are older and learned to oil the snot out of tools, guns, etc., early on in their lives, have a hard time not doing it to their S&W's. The factory will tell you the same thing- minimal oil, and only as needed, which is usually only a few times a year at best if the gun is actually being used/fired.

I do not remove a sideplate unless absolutely needed, or when a new gun comes into my possesion and I have reason to believe I should remove it and look around inside.

Works for me.
If the gun feels gummy, sluggish or sticky, I'll pop the sideplate and give it a good detail cleaning and relube. Sometimes I'll do a spring change and smooth the guts while I have it apart.

 

[Pisgah]

There's a reason S&W owner's manuals have never given instructions on how to disassemble a revolver. Not that it is an impossible task, but it is just so rarely needed. And it IS easy to do damage. But, they're your revolvers, so...

 

[kbm6893]

The ONLY time I have removed the sideplate is when I buy a used revolver. I've seen gummed up parts in there. Blast with Brake Cleaner, lightly oil, and carefully reassemble. Never messed anything up.

 

[marinevet]

you can also blast with brake cleaner, gun cleaner…..the spray with some Rem oil, CLP, or another quality gun oil,……without taking the side plate off…….beside the hammer, or trigger…..

Semper Fi!

 

[Boogsawaste]

I make it a habit to pull off the side plate when a "new" used gun is acquired to "have a look see". My 10-5 was missing the hammer block, which to some isn't needed anyway, but to me it was important so I installed a new one. I will also admit that I don't buy the prettiest guns so it doesn't matter as much as pulling one off a pristine rare gun.

 

[opaul]

Thanks for your input, I have seen marks on side plates at various gun shows from what you have described. I am not looking to go there unless necessary.

If the side plate is removed correctly there shouldn't be any tell tale signs it was ever removed. Side plates are removed by striking the grip frame not using something to pry it off that would leave a mark on the side plate.

 

[Gun 4 Fun]

If the side plate is removed correctly there shouldn't be any tell tale signs it was ever removed. Side plates are removed by striking the grip frame not using something to pry it off that would leave a mark on the side plate.

That's true regarding how to remove them, but doing so still runs a real risk of leaving the burrs. It is extremely easy to do no matter how careful you try to be. There is seldom a reason to do so these days, especially with the spray cleaners available.

 

[amazingflapjack]

I don't take the plate off unless I detect a reason to do so, even then, if there is sticking, or the like, I remove the grips and insert the nozzle of a can of non marking brake parts cleaner in front of and behind the trigger and hammer while cocked and uncocked, upright and inverted. After a few minutes, when it is dry, I lightly lube. I have used this method on guns that would not operate at all (revolvers) with great success, and I am no stranger to removing side plates, etc.

 

[H Richard]

One of the most important things is to use a "correctly" fitting screwdriver. This is what usually causes any marks left on a side plate. I have some 100+ year old S&W's that the side plate has never been off of. I will usually be able to tell from the exterior condition and the "feel" of the action if the side plate needs to come off.

 

[Clovishound]

I purchased a model 10-5 earlier this year. It was a trade in from a security company. I am not an experienced revolver guru. I thought about removing the side plate. The trigger is smooth as silk, everything works as advertised. I have probably run a thousand rounds through it this year. I will leave well enough alone.

 

[rburg]

And in my typical contrary attitude, I think most of the answers here are off the mark. That's a nice way of calling it organic fertilizer. Even new S&W guns aren't immune to problems. And if you think about the answers given, they kind of contradict each other. The most common suggestion about oil the heck out of it is what leads to the problem.

First, oil hasn't always been great. Its varied all the way from bacon grease to sewing machine oil. I feel certain old motor oil has been used because I've done it myself (separate story.) Since you really don't know how an old gun has been cared for a one time detail strip can be pretty revealing. I've found everything from balls of tar to a spiders nest. You won't get that out with a quick spray of some aerosol. You may start to dissolve the tar ball. Since I generally like old revolvers, anything from the 1930s can be assumed to have gone thru some tough times. Depression era guns weren't cared for by driving across town to the gun shop and buying some brand name gun lube or even CLP. The folks used what they had.

New guns aren't perfect. Especially S&W. My long running favorite carry gun is a nice little 337. I got it new and was dry firing it. Every time I did that I'd get some green oil out on the trigger. I'm guessing someone at S&W dumped in an extra quart before sealing it up. So I took the sideplate off to see what was going on. The gun felt smooth enough, but inside was even more oil. And grit! It had cutting chips inside. That was the minor roughness I felt on occasion. So I did the same thing as I do with Triple Locks. With the gun open and exposed, I just used a little powder solvent (Outters) and q-tips and removed every trace of greenness. Then I used a couple (that means 2 to you city folks) of drops of RemOil (because it was sitting on the desk in front of me). And again using off brand q-tips, I smeared it around as best I could. I actually put the drops on the hammer pin and trigger pin, but harvested enough oil to smear on as many contact surfaces as I could.

I have no doubt it was factory, since I saw the gun come out of the shipping carton.

One 2nd model 44 was so gummy it wouldn't cycle. I feel certain a prior owner had adhered to the old theory about just adding more oil. It was such a gummy mess inside the parts wouldn't move. But it cleaned up nicely and I did add back in some oil. And I really don't care what the factory says. What do they know? They never keep a gun very long, they only make and sell them. Its even in their best interests to have them fail so you buy another new one. The last thing they're experienced at is working with old guns that maybe have a checkered history. Maybe their repair shop sees some, but most are fixed locally by gunsmiths or shade tree types (like me.)

So my method is pretty standard. I pick up the revolver and test snap it. Yes, I clear it first. But then I normally take the sideplate off to look at the internals. Just like I wanted to do with a new date as a teen. And I start with the ever present q-tip. The non sterile China ones from the flea market at $1 a bunch. If I find any dirt or metal, I continue to clean it that one time really good. You DI would be proud of the interior. Then I oil it a bit more than the dry-runners suggest, and button it back up. It seems to work pretty good.

Back to the well used motor oil thing. A story, always a story. When I was 15 I pumped gas for the summer. And I saved my money. I wanted a shotgun to go hunting with my dad. At least then he wouldn't treat me like his hunting dog, sending me into the briar patches to flush out things. So I bought an 870. And it was a watershed year. Boy did I learn things. Among them, not to ever trust a weather guesser on TV.

So off we went with my new shotgun. We'd been out more that year than any other in memory. I was my dads excuse for going hunting every Saturday. And the guess at the weather was that with light drizzle in the early hours then clearing up and sunny before noon. So the light drizzle turned into steady rain, which then morphed into a downpour by noon. As all rabbit and bird hunters, we brought our lunch. We took refuge in an old, semi collapsed barn to eat. And sitting there, I was sick. My nearly new shotgun had red rust forming on the barrel. I'd oiled it well the night before, but the oil was no match for the deluge. So I got up and wandered over to the collapsed part of the old barn. I'd seen the Ferd 8n under the timbers before. I'd made calculations on how I could even drag it out. But I could get to the side where the oil dipstick was. So by leaning over I got my fingers on it and pulled. Out it came with some coal tar like substance on the end. I was a happy boy.

So I took it back over to where my dad was cussing at me and proceed to cut a small square off my shirt tail. I had an oily patch! And by just running it up and down the barrel, I had all the oil smeared around and the red off the barrel and on the patch. My dad was amused. But then in a show of confidence I'd never seen before or since, he told me to cut him one off my shirt. No reason for mom to yell at him, too. And then He had me go dip the stick again and give him some oil. His Win M12 cleaned up just as well. In an emergency, almost any oil is better than none. Sure, when we got home we got it off and used real honest gun oil. For that next 6 to 8 hours, old motor oil did the trick.

Worse than genuine oil was the first versions of WD40. It did get water off but it was also varnish based. No more a lubricant than a bucket of water. But it had the tendency to form an actual gum anyplace it could accumulate and dry. They've since reformulated it (more than once.) And its now one of the best first-aid kits for hunting guns. Yes, I live where it rains. Sometime way too much, like outside right now. Its better than oil for a few hours. Just know its limitations and don't exceed them.

So if you get a new to you gun, see what's inside. I know that you can remove most of the evil by soaking the gun (less grips) in a pan of ATF (automatic transmission fluid). Over night with it kind of warm, like with a light bulb shining on the pan. Sure, it stinks. But if you're too sorry (lazy) to do it right, at least the gun will be slick inside.

 

[Jaymo]

A long soak in Dexron will get it lubed and pretty clean.
I soak my ratchets in it, to clean/lube them.

If the factory preservative oil has dried to shellac consistency, carb cleaner gets it out better than brake cleaner.
I disassemble mine, clean them with carb cleaner, and follow up with brake cleaner.
Carb cleaner will leave a slight film that the brake cleaner removes.
I then, lube with FP10, Tetra Gun, Break Free, Tri Flow lube, Ballistol, Mobil 1, or plain mineral oil.

Carb cleaner is better at loosening/removing gummed up lube and carbon deposits, but doesn't leave the surface completely dry like brake cleaner does.
Brake cleaner removes the kerosene-like film left by carb cleaner.
That allows the oil to stick to the metal.

The great thing about carb and brake cleaners is they come with a spray straw that allows you to reach deep down in the gun.

WD40 also works well for removing the gummed up gunk.
Follow it up with brake cleaner, of it will turn into it's own varnish over time.
The great thing about a complete strip is it allows you to stone the rebound slide and remove a LOT of the friction/grittiness in the DA trigger pull.
I'm still not comfortable stoning triggers much. Unless I'm trying to cure hammer push-off, the only stoning I do is a couple of strokes with a fine, mild, hard ceramic plate. I just want to smooth the high spots.
Lots of shooting will take care of the rest.