K Frame Cylinder Play (Help)

[3" 66-3]

Newbie question,
I have a 2 1/2 inch 66-2 that has a little cylinder play / movement fore and aft. Of the three K frames I own, the revolver I'm referring to seems to have the most movement. Timing appears to be okay, only other thing I can note is the cylinder latch requires pushing forward farther than the others in order to facilitate release. I apologize if this is the wrong place for this question, just learning my way around here.

Thank you..

 

[M29since14]

I am not sure what your question is, but if it is what I think, it sounds like you need an endshake washer or two, and that your centerpin may be just a bit short. Before you put in any endshake washers, might check to see if you have yoke shake too.

Before you do anything, check to make sure your extractor rod is tight.

 

[snubbyfan]

I am not sure what your question is, but if it is what I think, it sounds like you need an endshake washer or two, and that your centerpin may be just a bit short. Before you put in any endshake washers, might check to see if you have yoke shake too.

Before you do anything, check to make sure your extractor rod is tight.

What he said.

 

[3" 66-3]

My mistake, my question is what is the best course of action to take. Is it something a local gunsmith can fix or do I need to send it elsewhere? Anyone know of a good gunsmith in NM?

Extractor rod is tight.

 

[snubbyfan]

If the problem is just endshake then it can be easily repaired by a gunsmith. I haven't been in NM in nearly 50 years so I'm sure things have changed.

 

[M29since14]

You can order the bits and pieces you need from Brownell's and do the repair yourself if you are reasonably handy. What you have to do is not a lot more complicated than cleaning, and there are lots of folks here willing to give free advice.

If you want to get professional help, Nelson Ford in Phoenix seems to be pretty handy with S&Ws.

 

[dfariswheel]

Your first step is to determine how much end shake is present.
To do this, buy a cheap automotive feeler gage set at a car parts store or hardware store.

Push the cylinder forward and hold it there while you use the feeler gage set to measure the gap between the barrel and the closed cylinder.
Then push the cylinder to the rear and hold it there while you gage the gap again.

Subtract one measurement from the other and that's how much end shake is present.
In the S&W, end shake of over "about" 0.006" needs repair.
There are several methods of repairing excess end shake, including stretching the cylinder yoke shaft and installing greased, hardened stainless steel washers in the cylinder.

For information: the actual barrel-cylinder gap of a revolver is with the cylinder toward the BACK. With the cylinder forward you get a false reading that the barrel-cylinder gap is too tight.
Ideally a barrel-cylinder gap is around 0.005", but these days S&W is passing gaps of as much as 0.012" as "In spec".