Finish reaming K22s, or, How To Solve Difficult Extraction In .22lr S&Ws

[BC38]

A big THANK YOU to Marylander. He loaned me his reamer and I reamed the chambers of my little 9-shot High Standard Double 9.

I got about the same amount of metal out of my 9 chambers as what PzKfW5 shows in this photo from the post that started this thread (though not as much as he shows in his final photo in that first post)

[/quote]

I haven't had a chance to shoot it yet but I'm pretty darned confident that the "get-me-a-hammer" extraction problem is solved.

New rounds that used to have to be pushed into the cylinder with my thumb just drop right in ALL the way to the rim now - and they all fall out together at once - just by turning the cylinder upside down now. No need to even touch the ejector rod.

Like so many others, I was really surprised at how much the reamer removed from the cylinders. However, I didn't end up with the the sharp ridge in the throat area of my cylinder like others have shown in some of the posted photos.

I don't know if that is indicative of how much more they reamed out of theirs, or if it is just a minor difference in the reamers?

Anyhow, I can't wait to shoot it again now. Once again, THANKS Marylander , your reamer will be packed up and shipped back to you on Friday with a tracking number provided via PM.

 

[GBertolet]

I just left mine bare. Every time it is cleaned, there is always solvent/oil residue on the chamber walls.

 

[H Richard]

Leave bare. Assuming you clean after shooting it and wipe a little oil in the chambers. Just make sure to use plenty of cutting oil when doing the reaming.

 

[GBertolet]

Save some money, and get the solid pilot. You are only going to turn it by hand, and getting the live pilot would be overkill for this application.

 

[jimc00]

Oil for reaming

You can use the oil that Home Depot sells for threading pipe. It is a cutting oil loaded with sulfur.

 

[Notch8]

Any negative consequences?

Hello all. First post here but frequent reader. Just wondering if there are any downsides to reaming a cylinder on an older, somewhat collectible S&W? I've been thinking about doing this to my 1952 K22, my 17-2, and my 617-1. All exhibit difficult extraction after a few cylinders full have been fired. Just last week I had trouble with my K22 after only the second cylinder of Norma Tac22. That is some greasy stuff! So, my question is would reaming the cylinder diminish the value of the gun? All three of these guns are near mint condition. Not planning on selling but still curious just the same. Also, what about rust? Obviously the reaming will remove the bluing from inside the cylinder therefore leaving it unprotected. I would of course keep a quality gun oil on the metal but was wondering if anyone has had this problem after reaming? Thanks for any replies. John.

 

[AJ]

Hello all. First post here but frequent reader. Just wondering if there are any downsides to reaming a cylinder on an older, somewhat collectible S&W? I've been thinking about doing this to my 1952 K22, my 17-2, and my 617-1. All exhibit difficult extraction after a few cylinders full have been fired. Just last week I had trouble with my K22 after only the second cylinder of Norma Tac22. That is some greasy stuff! So, my question is would reaming the cylinder diminish the value of the gun? All three of these guns are near mint condition. Not planning on selling but still curious just the same. Also, what about rust? Obviously the reaming will remove the bluing from inside the cylinder therefore leaving it unprotected. I would of course keep a quality gun oil on the metal but was wondering if anyone has had this problem after reaming? Thanks for any replies. John.

Most of the folks here get the chamber reamers. I just bought a .22 rifle mop and I had a block of jewelers rouge. I chucked the mop with one section of cleaning rod into my cordless drill. Loaded the mop up with jewelers rouge and commenced to polishing the chambers. I did maybe 10 or so passes at each chamber. No problems with extraction after that. So, for $1.50, my 17-2 has no extraction problems to drive me bonkers. Worked for me......

 

[GBertolet]

The revolver cylinder reamer, cuts only to SAAMI specifications, no more. It would only remove a few slivers of metal. Does not touch the cylinder throats. No harm when used properly. Only does, what the factory should of. Besides that, who would ever know that you reamed the chambers? You can't tell by looking.

 

[britbike1]

Why?

Does anyone know why smith doesn't do this at the factory? They have to know there are tight chambers and I would think they would have made chambers to sammi spec.

 

[Notch8]

Agreed that most people would never know it had been done, except for those types that hang out on a forum such as this one. So, realistically, probably no harm to the value. As far as telling by looking all one has to do is look in the cylinder and you could see the blue is gone. Probably wouldn't register with most people. The question still remains though if this might be inviting rust for anyone that doesn't take adequate care of their gun. I'm just weighing all the possibilities before I do it. Thanks for the replies.

 

[merl67]

Does anyone know why smith doesn't do this at the factory? They have to know there are tight chambers and I would think they would have made chambers to sammi spec.

They do finish ream at the factory, but what probably happens is the finish reamers they are using get worn, and not replaced often enough. Probably not off enough to be out of spec, but off enough to cause extraction issues.

 

[Notch8]

Does anyone know why smith doesn't do this at the factory? They have to know there are tight chambers and I would think they would have made chambers to sammi spec.

Lots of different specs. I believe its been stated elsewhere in this thread that Smith used a match chamber instead of standard .22lr chamber, which is looser. The gun has been regarded somewhat as a target model, thus they used a tighter chamber in the effort to increase accuracy. However as I understand it, the accuracy comes more from the chamber throat dimensions (and of course the barrel, as well as the barrel and chamber lining up properly)

 

[tominboise]

Just ordered the reamer today based on this thread. Have three S&W's ready for the treatment. As a note, Brownells does not have the 8oz bottle of cutting fluid at this time, but that's easy to pick up locally. I may do before and after targets with them.

 

[SweetMK]

Alright, I gotta apologize first,, for my stupid question that follows,,,

No one has mentioned reaming an autoloader barrel, or a rifle barrel,,

Can this chamber reamer be used on other weapons other than revolvers?
Someone mentioned that this may improve accuracy?
(I have a "different brand" autoloader that is not as accurate as I would expect,,
possibly the chamber could benefit from reaming?)

Come to think of it,, I have a Ruger autoloader rifle that will only shoot high dollar ammo without jamming,,that rifle might benefit from this reamer also,,,

 

[merl67]

The only stupid question is one not asked. Yes this reamer could be used on any 22lr gun would it help accuracy I don't know, but my first thought would be no. It could possibly help an autoloader with extraction issues.

 

[GBertolet]

Cylinder reamers, are for revolvers only. To do rifles, you need a different reamer. Be sure you are getting the correct one.

 

[Protocall_Design]

For the revolver, you need a reamer with a pilot to fit the throats. For a gun with chamber integral to the barrel, you need a reamer with a pilot to fit the rifling (smaller). If you want to do all, get a reamer with changeable pilots. Any gun other than a high end match rifle or pistol will probably benefit from this process.

 

[CScott]

Reaming chambers and diminished value

How can reaming the cylinders reduce the value of the revolver? Assuming it is done correctly, which is very easy to do, it only serves to improve the "fit and finish" similar to polishing and smoothing the other working parts of the piece. If there were a burr on the muzzle causing accuracy problems, would it reduce the gun's value to remove it? It seems to me that reaming should be part of any "action job" for improved function, accuracy, and reliability, not to mention sheer enjoyment of plinking.
My Models 63 and 17 benefited greatly from ensuring proper dimensions of the chambers.
Scott

 

[Notch8]

Well, I wasn't sure how some people would view that procedure. Lots of folks think if anything isn't exactly as it left the factory then it isn't still 100% and wouldn't pay a premium price. I guess it all depends on the individual and exactly what has been done to the gun as to whether someone may or may not think it has been devalued. I'm definitely not saying it does diminish value, I'm just asking what most of you all think. Since I'm not getting rid of any of mine anyway I guess the whole question is irrelevant.

 

[Notch8]

I will probably be calling Manson this week to order the reamer. If so I will report back with the results. Seems everyone is pretty happy with the way their gun turned out.