M18 leading problem

[WyoStillhunter]

My M18 seems to lead more than I think (wish?) it should. I bought it used in great condition a couple years ago. Ser. # is SK42+++. It may have been a LEA (practice?) firearm as it has what looks to be CCSO scribed on the left side of the frame below the cylinder where many LEAs put departmental ID #s.

I have been shooting it in a local "fun" league. During the seven week league season I put about 100 rounds per week through it. The other nine months of the year it gets used very little. After a 50-round league night, and certainly after a 100-round practice session, it is the dickens to get clean. Leading occurs in the front of all six chambers and in the first 1/4" - 1/2" of the barrel.

Ammo has been mostly bulk such as the CCI Blazer and Win. 555, etc. Last week I fired 50 rounds of Remington Subsonic and 50 of CCI Standard Velocity to see if the lower velocity made a difference. Based on that one "test" I can't see that the leading was any less.

Thoughts? Advice? Insights about ammo, etc. from your experience? Cleaning tips?

 

[bbgun]

model 18 leading problem

maybe its the ammo,i shoot my 18-3 daily,48 rounds target pratice,6 days a week.i clean it once a month.i use federal value pack,it does get hard to load at the end of the month but accuracy does not seem to be a problem.to me the remington & winchester is to dirty.

 

[CajunBass]

I've never had any problem with copper wash ammo.

 

[sunday bill]

Like bb said. Maybe a little crud in the chambers after hundreds of rounds. Never a leading problem in any 22 I ever owned.

 

[scooter123]

Another vote for the Federal bulk pack copper washed, it's a very clean shooting 22LR. The only negative is that in my 617 it's not as accurate as the Winchester Xpert HV or Wildcat. The Winchester will group 2 inches at 35 yards, the Federal only about 3-3.5 inches.

As for leading, on my 617 it hasn't been a problem with any type of ammo. Since you're seeing leading in the chamber throats, I am inclined to suspect that they have some coarse machining in them that is actually tearing the surface of the bullets. If this is the case, it will cause exactly the issues with leading that you are reporting.

Since hones this small don't exist the remaining options are to try replacing the cylinder. If your model 18 is post 1989, it is covered by a lifetime warranty so you should contact S&W about having it serviced.

Another alternative is something that I sort of hesitate to recomend. That is Fire Lapping the cylinder and barrel. If you decide to take this approach, I would urge a cautious approach and do the absolute minimum required to reduce your leading issues. The chamber throats don't have to be perfectly smooth, all you need to do is break down the high sharp edges that are tearing the surface of the bullets.

 

[Captain Hornet]

Gentlemen, I have a 18-3 , Sn K9042XX. I bought this neat revolver new in 1961, the first year we were married. We moved to the country and this was the go to yard gun. We have since retired it to the safe where it lives , only to come out every couple of years or so. It is like new but I wish it wouldn't lead like it does. Just ten rounds or more well make a mess in the forceing cone and barrel. It did not seam to mater what brand of ammo was used. So now all of it's duties have been taken over by a Ruger MK II. I have been very happy with the Ruger and I can't see ever replaceing it. David

 

[Culina]

Another +1 for the Federal Copper washed value packs, they extract easy and they don't gum up the face of the cylinder.

 

[WyoStillhunter]

Thanks for the replies. I will have some time over the holidays to look for a variety of ammo to try. I will try to get some of the copper wash.

 

[Frank46]

What you might be getting is a slight buildup of copper from the copper plated bullets. Scrub that out with any good bore solvent and try some flitz metal polish on a tight patch. About 20 trips back and forth should do it. Then clean as usual to get the black gunk out of the bbl. I have a british martini 22 caliber target rifle. Hardest thing was to try and remove the copper fouling out of the bbl. Used to soak the bbl overnight with hoppe's and get green patches the next day. Took almost a week before i got clean patches. Hope this helps. Frank

 

[Chubbs103]

I've got a M17 that leads terribly at the cylinder throats with the Winchester X-pert bulk. It gets so bad that the top strap and the front 1/4" of the outside of the cylinder gets coated. No problems at all with CCI mini-mags. Of course those are the most accurate for me as well (although the Winchester do better for me accuracy wise than the Federal bulk). It helps that I just got a really good deal on 500 of the mini-mags.

 

[Snuffy2]

Snuffy2

This is going to be a little long, but maybe worth reading.

I have a Colt Diamondback .22 that used to lead like crazy. After 100 rounds or so a good scrubbing would produce strips of lead from the bore 1/2 inch or more long. Accuracy was lousy when it leaded up.

I got a couple boxes of standard velocity .22 shorts and a can of Turtle Wax auto rubbing compound. With a Q-tip I put just a dab of the rubbing compound in the forcing cone and fired a .22 short behind it. Repeated this process about 20 or so times, then cleaned the gun VERY thoroughly. Result: the bore now shines like a mirror and doesn't lead at all. Accuracy was unaffected except that it doesn't go to pot now when the gun gets shot a bunch.

YMMV, but it's simple to do and I can't see how it could harm the gun. Just be sure to only put a very small amount of the rubbing compound in the forcing cone. The chambers in my DB were OK, so I didn't try to lap them. That might be a bit trickier to do.

Snuffy

 

[Snuffy2]

This is going to be a little long, but maybe worth reading.

I have a Colt Diamondback .22 that used to lead like crazy. After 100 rounds or so a good scrubbing would produce strips of lead from the bore 1/2 inch or more long. Accuracy was lousy when it leaded up.

I got a couple boxes of standard velocity .22 shorts and a can of Turtle Wax auto rubbing compound. With a Q-tip I put just a dab of the rubbing compound in the forcing cone and fired a .22 short behind it. Repeated this process about 20 or so times, then cleaned the gun VERY thoroughly. Result: the bore now shines like a mirror and doesn't lead at all. Accuracy was unaffected except that it doesn't go to pot now when the gun gets shot a bunch.

YMMV, but it's simple to do and I can't see how it could harm the gun. Just be sure to only put a very small amount of the rubbing compound in the forcing cone. The chambers in my DB were OK, so I didn't try to lap them. That might be a bit trickier to do.

Snuffy

 

[jspick]

I had a model 18 from the 60's. It leaded badly and was very inaccurate, even when clean. I have 2 model 17's that are problem free. I could see no difference in the three with a bore scope. I sold the model 18 to a guy I know "as is". He thought he could fix it. I have not heard back from him yet.

I find copper coated bullets not to be a problem with leading but plain lead bullets lead shot in shorter barrels lead more than my longer rifle barrels. If I use plain lead I try to use the ones that are lubed.

I can not see where fire lapping would hurt your gun. Probably help it.

John