Howdy

[Dr.Tramp]

New member from Cheyenne WY here. I inherited an ex police model 10-10 revolver in 38sp with a +P barrel. Shoots nice but I'm experiencing light strikes on some ammo so I suspect it may need a new firing pin and I've been trying to figure exactly when it was manufactured so that I order the correct part.
The serial number on the frame under the crane is BRR0232 with Mod 10-10 under that and the only number on the crane itself is 201.

Mahalo. Dr.Tramp...........

 

[HughD1]

Is the strain screw tight?


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[Babysitr]

Welcome from Illinois...HughD1 is correct, pull the grips, ch. strain screw, give it a good cleaning and oiling then performance test again!

 

[two-bit cowboy]

Welcome aboard, Doc, and Semper Fi.

I don't have any BRR serial numbers in my database, but I would guess 1994.

I agree with the others, as Gomer Pyle would have said, "Clean, clean, clean."

 

[lkabug]

Welcome from the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Check that strain screw as noted above, and give it a good cleaning.

 

[Zarr]

Welcome from Western Massachusetts. You're in the right place for answers.

 

[stansdds]

Welcome to the S&W Forums!
Light strikes are most often caused by a strain screw that has either been shortened or has backed out. Check the screw, make sure it is tight. Some people will shorten the strain screw, trying to get a lighter trigger pull. It is also possible that someone replaced the main spring with a lighter spring. Any of these issues will cause light primer strikes and seem to be the most common causes of light strikes.

 

[bananaman]

Welcome to the FORUM from Michigan! I have purchased K frames that came to me with shortened strain screws. You can usually see sloppy workmanship on them. Changed them and never had an issue again. Are you shooting new loads, or reloads? The reason I say this is hard ammo primers can be a problem for some guns. Bob

 

[lppd4]

Welcome from the Great State of Texas. I'm already envious of you, because of where you live. My wife and I really enjoy Wyoming in the summertime. We vacation there often to escape this Texas heat. This forum has more knowledge assembled here than you can imagine. Awesome resource for all things S&W

 

[OLDSTER]

Hi from North Dakota

 

[Dr.Tramp]

Thanks everybody. The strain screw is tight with no signs of modification. It happens most when shooting Magtech ammo but also occurs with other factory ammo and reloads. Least common with reloads.
Thought of firing pin wear because I've had it happen with other older firearms.
The only other S&W I have in the safe is a 422 field model so no comparison there and the only other revolver I have with the same firing pin design is a 1917 Colt service revolver in 45acp.
Will clean everything again and see what happens.
Ride Safe. Dr.Tramp............

 

[mdf9183]

Welcome from Bastrop, Texas

 

[steelslaver]

A slightly longer strain screw might fix it. Might try spraying brake cleaner around the firing pin channel. I have never had a problem with a firing pin myself. The main spring and screw yes

 

[bgrafsr]

Ahh, Magtech. When I use Magtech SP primers, I get misfires several times out of a batch of reloads. Very frustrating to say the least. I try to stay with Winchester or Federal SP primers.

 

[stansdds]

Some ammo feature easy to ignite primers, Federal being considered the easiest to ignite. Some ammo feature primers that seem to be more military grade, meaning it takes a really good strike to ignite them. I have little experience with Magtech ammo, but I know CCI/Speer ammo and primers require more energy to ignite than Winchester or Federal primers.

 

[oink]

Try the old spent primer between the screw and the spring trick. Try one with the anvil removed first.

 

[Muley Gil]

New member from Cheyenne WY here. I inherited an ex police model 10-10 revolver in 38sp with a +P barrel. Shoots nice but I'm experiencing light strikes on some ammo so I suspect it may need a new firing pin and I've been trying to figure exactly when it was manufactured so that I order the correct part.
The serial number on the frame under the crane is BRR0232 with Mod 10-10 under that and the only number on the crane itself is 201.
View attachment 529068
Mahalo. Dr.Tramp...........

Welcome Doc.

Just what exactly are you referring to as a "+P barrel"? According to S&W, all of their revolvers that are model marked are safe with +P loads.

 

[Dr.Tramp]

Welcome Doc.

Just what exactly are you referring to as a "+P barrel"? According to S&W, all of their revolvers that are model marked are safe with +P loads.

The barrel is stamped "38 S&W SPL. +P"

 

[Dr.Tramp]

Try the old spent primer between the screw and the spring trick. Try one with the anvil removed first.

Thanks. I'll give that a try. Does anybody have a length dimension for the screw and is it suppose to have a flat or round face?
This one has a flat face but doesn't look like it's been ground down.
Ride Safe. Dr.Tramp............

 

[Dr.Tramp]

I found a number of pics of the strain screw online and it appears that it is suppose to have a round face so I ordered a new OEM one from Numrich.
When it gets here I'll measure it against the one I have to see if there's any difference in overall length.
Ride Safe. Dr.Tramp.............
BTW. If anybody plans on visiting the Cheyenne area you might be interested to know that the shooting range I have a membership at, Otto Road, sponsors a cowboy action competition every 4th of July. Great fun even if you're just a spectator.
Cowboy Action Clubs - Otto Road Shooting Range

 

[stansdds]

I think the marking on the barrel specifying 38 Special +P started in the late 1980's or in the 1990's. I know the current production Classic Model 10 has that same marking.

 

[Dr.Tramp]

I think the marking on the barrel specifying 38 Special +P started in the late 1980's or in the 1990's. I know the current production Classic Model 10 has that same marking.

You may be correct. A friend of mine has an earlier heavy barrel model, a 10-6 I think, and it's not stamped +P.
He got it when he was an LEO and kept it as his back up gun when his department went to 9mm auto loaders. Then when he retired it became his nightstand piece.
Ride Safe. Dr.Tramp..........

 

[Rustyt1953]

 

[Dr.Tramp]

The new strain screw from Numrich arrived this morning so I checked its length against the one that was in the revolver and found that the old one was .022" shorter than the new one. Installed the new one and it does appear to increase the trigger pull in DA mode but not a great deal.
I think my father intended for my mother to use this 38 so he may have shortened the screw in an attempt to decrease the trigger pull for her.
Next step; out to the range with the same ammo I was having problems with to see if anything changed.
Ride Safe. Dr.Tramp...............

Update: I tried all the Magtech stuff that didn't fired the first time again and this time about a third of it fired which left 17 out of 50 rounds as duds.
I also shot 50 rounds of Federal and reloaded ammo and all of it fired with no problem.
The Magtech ammo (150 rounds) was something I got real cheap from a guy, and now I know why, and it's not a biggie because I can always use the brass.
So I'm going to take the remaining 100 rounds out to the range and what doesn't work I'll just pull the bullets, dump the powder, de-prime the brass, clean and reload it.