I made a big mistake on a 66 and need help!

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keystonearms

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Howdy! Okay so I am cleaning up a Smith 66 2 1/2" tonight and there was "ooze" coming out of the frame and running down the trigger. I cleaned it several times and it kept coming so I decided to take the side plate off....Mistake #1. I started poking around inside and took the gun over to the sink and used some gunscrubber to spray it out a bit. Upon further inspection, there were piles of dirt/grease inside so I decided to further disassemble it...Mistake #2. I held the slide back, removed the hammer, the slide assembly and transfer bar. No Biggie. Then Mistake #3 happened, I pivoted the Hand backwards and gave it a tug and pulled it right out of the trigger assembly. There is a small spring inside there that seems to keep tension on the hand forward. Can a man with no special tools/gunsmithing experience put this back in without sending it off? If so, there are 2 pins that go through the hole, one long and fat, other short and skinny. Which of these pins does the spring rest on? I appreciate any help anyone has, let me know if she can be saved!
 
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No problem. Trick here is to start the hand into its holes in the trigger, then depress the spring past the holes and press the hand the rest of the way into place. After trying numerous "tools" to do this, the blunt end of a bamboo BBQ shewer works best for me.

If you contemplate any such work in the future, I would strongly recommend that you spring (no pun intended) for Jerry Miculek's excellent DVD. It will keep anu out of trouble and soon pay for itself.
 
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Okay great. Next dumb question. The spring protrudes out of the back of the trigger assembly preventing me from lifting it up all the way. Does it need to be inside the assembly? Will the pin push beyond the spring without it being all the way up?
 
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keystonearms said:
Okay great. Next dumb question. The spring protrudes out of the back of the trigger assembly preventing me from lifting it up all the way. Does it need to be inside the assembly? Will the pin push beyond the spring without it being all the way up?
Click to expand...

You're going to do this with the trigger on a firm surface with the little pushrod lever facing up. I do this with the hand holes on the back side (away from me). The spring leg you want to depress will probably be back against the pushrod or close to it. With the chopstick, just press in the slot on the back of the trigger to push the spring leg past the hand holes then snap the hand in and release the spring. Takes 10x longet to describe than it does to do the trick.
 
Gotcha. I never removed the trigger from the gun. I saw there were some "Pieces" down underneath there so I was afraid. I took a metal 3/32" punch and pushed down from the top on the coil and the arm of the spring went up, it looked like it would clear but when I tried to push the hand pins down in, the hand hit the metal punch. If I had the chopstick, I could probably get it without removing it from the frame. If I remove it, will I get into more trouble?
 
To remove the trigger, first remove the main spring, then the hammer by squeezing on the trigger so the hammer just clears, then work it up off its post. Remove rebound slide & spring. Then pull back on the hand to clear frame and gently work the trigger off its post. Not a big deal. Reassemble in reverse order.

By the way, in the long run you did NOT make a mistake! You will have a clean and properly lubed gun and you will have learned how a S&W Revolver functions, assembles and disassembles. You may need some assistance, but you have not ruined anything, so take your time, don't panic, and take good mental notes on what you are doing.

When you have cleaned out the inside of the frame, I would use Remoil or Rig #2 OIL (not the grease) to lubricate it. Both of these products will quickly evaporate leaving behind rust protection and lubrication without the oily mess and without attracting more dust & dirt.

NOTE: Gun Scrubber is a good product for cleaning out neglected guns, but just be aware that it removes ALL rust protection and lubrication so it is imperative that you get some oil on the bare metal parts soon after cleaning then with the Gun Scrubber.

Chief38
 
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Thanks Chief, I will take your advice. I left the gun on the bench last night and decided to sleep on it. I am feeling better this morning and ready to tackle my task. I will try removing the trigger and installing the hand. I'll try to post a photo later of the end results. This is one Pretty 66!

Marc
Keystone Arms
 
Love the chopsticks and BBQ "MacGyver" tricks. I broke down and bought the GunSmither tool which makes short work of the removing and installing the spring. I agonized countless times using make shift tools (not as good as the chopstick/BBQ tools) for years. The GunSmither tool is a decent $19.95 investment given the number of takedowns I do. Good luck on this one....I'm guessing you will have your 66 up and running in no time.
 
Well I got a chance to take it apart, the rebound spring is strong, I was surprised. The Trigger is now out of the frame and the little coil spring is now laying on the bench. The little "Connecting Rod" as I call it, came out of the trigger assembly and now I have to ask, do I need that rod installed for the little coil spring to have resistance against? I cannot make hide nor hair of where the spring sits now that it is out of the gun. Perhaps my next post will read "WTS Basket Case Smith 66"!!! Chief, I didn't get a PM with a number, you better resend it, I'm not frustrated...yet, but need a better understanding of where the spring sits. I bought 6 of these 66s NIB and it is a bit frustrating that the answers that I need are sitting right there, but I don't want to take another one apart! Thanks for putting up with my inability here.
 
Alright Stop the PRESS! I got it. I put the little "Connecting Rod" back in the trigger assembly and pinched the end of the spring against it, held the largest diameter brass punch that would fit inside the trigger against my belly and the trigger against the bench and with my free hand, slid the hand down and let the brass punch go, reinstalled the unit, reassembled and she works like a dream! Thanks for all the help, I am now a seasoned Vet and thank goodness for Mama's cookin', if it weren't for the belly, who knows where I might have ended up!

I want everyone to see this 66. It is polished to a mirror shine with White Synthetic grips with the Smith Logo, it is just awesome. I will take a pic and add it to the thread before it closes.

Thanks again for everyones help.
 
Yep I believe I do. It is a dash 5 but no lock. I think the short end of the spring is supposed to have a home there, but I used the little rod to hold it in place. I guess all is well that ends well, even if I had to improvise a bit. Thanks for the post.
 
keystonearms said:
Yep I believe I do. It is a dash 5 but no lock. I think the short end of the spring is supposed to have a home there, but I used the little rod to hold it in place. I guess all is well that ends well, even if I had to improvise a bit. Thanks for the post.
Click to expand...
I have a 2 1/2" 66-5. It's a FMFP MIM gun. I ground down the width of a screw driver to just fit the opening in the underside of the MIM trigger to push the spring end with to install the hand. It became a dedicated MIM hand spring installation tool. The hand spring is one you keep a spare of because they're very easy to launch into never-never land.
 
You think the hand spring can be easily lost? The little pin/spacer in the end of the cylinder release mechanism is a real ROCKET! I ran an Ethernet cable underground to my shop and when it came through the wall, I went up and over my overhead door. The Wireless Router is mounted some 15 feet up the wall, the little pin hit it!!! I luckily found it. Went to reinstall it and told myself "Okay, hold your finger on it until it is inside the frame" and PPPeeewww! Launched it Again! They should make bullets out of this stuff.
 
For God's sake man, get that gun, your hands and your tool inside a clear plastic bag before you have your way with it.
 
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