Ejector Rod Dinged Up

[Fred in Alabama]

I have a 629 Mountain Gun. The end of the hollow ejector rod and the pin inside it are getting dinged up really bad. So much so that this weekend I could not make the cylinder release work and had to take it home, pop off the side plate and use a flat blade screwdriver to gently force the pin forward so I could swing the cylinder out. Yeah, I know, it makes me cringe when I read it too. So has anyone else had this problem? How do I fix this?

 

[armorer951]

629

The peening at the front end of the center pin you describe is pretty common, particularly in large caliber magnum revolvers. This peening or "mushrooming" at the end of the center pin occurs when the pin strikes/impacts the front locking bolt during recoil.
Fixing the problem involves removal of the c. pin from the cylinder assembly and cleaning up the damage to the end of the pin.....or the fitting and installation of a new pin. Installation of a new center pin spring during the repair process can help mitigate the problem. Depending on the extent of the damage, the extractor rod may need to be replaced as well.
I'm not sure about why this occurs in some guns but not others. My gut feeling on the cause of this problem can be traced back to how the center pin's final length is trimmed.....it's ground down. I believe this grinding operation and the excessive heat it sometimes produces contributes to a "softening" of the metal in this area. Just a theory though, could be complete hogwash.

 

[Nevada Ed]

If the metal parts are not protected from damage when being
disassembled for cleaning etc., they will need to be fixed or
replaced some where down the line.

I got tired of messing with my second hand revolvers that I
had and just finally got replacement parts.
A scared end or bent rod are a pain and just a minimal price, will fix the problem.

You can try to fix the problem but most of use do not have the correct equipment to do it correctly.

Good luck

 

[Fred in Alabama]

Thanks for the feedback. I bought the gun new in 2004 and only have around 1000 rounds through it. I called S&W and they gave me a return label for it so I sent it back to them for repair.