J Frame break in guidance 101

[okarturoq]

Dry fired it 50 times last night. I couldn't tell a difference.
Going to fire a box of ammo through it this weekend. Nothing like live firing it. Plus, I need the experience and practice.

 

[ridgewalker]

I have a new 642, actually it's about 5yrs old. Recently I decided to pull it out of the box and fire it. I have fired 2 boxes of ammo through it. I have read that a good way to "break in" is to dry fire it about 10K times using snap caps. Can I use the same snap caps to dry fire it that many times? Any specific ammo to use or not use to a break in ? I just buy the least expensive that I can find.
I also have heard that it not good to dry fire a gun ?

Besides the trigger, I really enjoyed firing the gun. The rubber grips fit my hand great. I would like to replace them sometime, but that would only be for cosmetic reasons. I would also like to polish the cylinder.

I think this thread is very interesting. Lots of different opinions on breaking in a 642 revolver.

When I get a new revolver, I like to shoot it as soon as I can. If I can, I like to give it a normal cleaning first. It is surprising how dirty some new revolvers can be. Also I use M Pro 7 cleaning products and I have found their claim that it is easier to clean your gun after it has been conditioned by M Pro 7 is true.

There are 2 aspects of dry firing. First, there is some smoothing due to wear or breaking in the action. Secondly and IMO more importantly is the practice aspect for the shooter. Dry firing allows us to practice keeping a steady aim while pulling the trigger without the potentially flinch inducing explosion of live fire.

For dry fire practice, generally I prefer to use my steel framed revolvers although I occasionally dry fire the aluminum framed ones too. I am more likely to use Snap Caps with the aluminum frames than the steel frames. I often dry fire with no Snap Caps too.

Regarding practice ammo, experiment with different brands to find the cheapest, best ammo that will give you consistent accurate results and will be easy to clean. I mostly use FMJ because I feel it is easier to clean the gun after shooting.

Here are a couple of my J frames, a 442 and a 642.

 

[M3Stuart]

Ok folks. We've been down this road a thousand times. In my humble opinion;

1. I don't think dry firing stretches the spring, or lightens the pull much, if at all.
2. I do think dry firing smooths the edges on the internal action. Which makes the action smoother, but not much, if any, lighter.
3. I think dry firing makes your finger stronger and more 'used to' the action. Muscle memory perhaps?
4. See the youtube video where Masood Ayoub discusses lightening the trigger pull on a SD gun. The short version: not recommended.
5. I think I used to 'attention focus' on this. But now I try not to.

Your mileage may vary!

Edit: you can shoot snap caps in a revolver until the rim(s) breaks off. Then, you send the broken one(s) (A-Zoom) back to Lyman and they send you a new one(s).