M69 Take 2... got it to the range today!

[fortyshooter]

Got a nice break in the Florence rain and shot a 100 round mix of my reloads thru the M69 today and very pleased.
Best plinking loads were my Matt's Bullets 230 gr. SWC with GC loaded over 9 gr. of Unique with nice group in picture. This was one handed from 12 yds. in SA.
The Xtreme 240 and 200 gr. plated bullets did well too with same 9 gr. of Unique.
The Missouri Bullets HYTech coated bullets 240 gr. SWC shot OK but I didn't like the build up in the barrel as the Matt's Bullets shot cleaner with little to no lead in the barrel.

Really liked my Hornady 200 gr. XTP load with 11.4 gr. of Unique as they were pleasant to shoot one handed with the factory grip!
This would make a fine self defense load!

The revolver had less residue on it since they got the gap right and very pleased with how it functioned.Only issue is the rubber grip has a split in the seam about 3/4 inch long right below hammer...is it supposed to be like that?
Will get down there again late next week for more fun!

 

[1sailor]

Odd that you had a leading issue with the Hytech coated bullets. I have fired thousands of coated bullets from SNS through my .357's with no leading at all. Same for my 9mm, .40S&W, and .45acp. Maybe it's a .44 mag thing.

 

[brjr51]

Odd that you had a leading issue with the Hytech coated bullets. I have fired thousands of coated bullets from SNS through my .357's with no leading at all. Same for my 9mm, .40S&W, and .45acp. Maybe it's a .44 mag thing.

Me too. I've had nothing but great results with SNS coated 158gr .38 but experienced leading with the 240gr .44.

And sounds like they finally got your 69 straightened out.

 

[HamHands]

The best sauce for anti-leading; is two or three cylinders of copper jacketed pills at the end of the session. Two clicks to the left on the rear sight will bring that group almost perfect centerline of your targets. Otherwise, good shooting and 100 rounds each session is perfect for my favorite caliber! YMMV.

 

[Paul105]

The factory grips are two piece, so there could be a slightly irregular or open seam on the back due to a loose screw or more likely imperfect fit of the two pieces -- I'd call it normal. Here's a picture of the factory grips on one of my 2 3/4" M69s

Glad all your issues were resolved. Now go out and enjoy the heck out of it.

 

[fortyshooter]

The factory grips are two piece, so there could be a slightly irregular or open seam on the back due to a loose screw or more likely imperfect fit of the two pieces -- I'd call it normal. Here's a picture of the factory grips on one of my 2 3/4" M69s

Glad all your issues were resolved. Now go out and enjoy the heck out of it.

Thanks for the info on the grips! I had forgotten they were two piece. The grips seem to work well for me so far.

As for the performance of the coated bullets it might just be the build up of coating residue in the barrel. The lead bullets I was shooting shot really clean with the gas check. The hardness was supposed to be 11-12 Bhn. Will be ordering more of those!

 

[S&W ucla]

Tightening the grip screw too much can sometimes cause that.

 

[PsTaN]

Nice to see the gun is back and performing the way you wish. What kind of velocity are you getting on that 200XTP/11.4 Unique load?

I get 1107fps from 10.5 Unique under a Bayou 215 grain powder coated SWC.

 

[fortyshooter]

Nice to see the gun is back and performing the way you wish. What kind of velocity are you getting on that 200XTP/11.4 Unique load?

I get 1107fps from 10.5 Unique under a Bayou 215 grain powder coated SWC.

My chrono was giving erratic readings the day I tested those loads,which was before the gun went back to S&W, but I did get to try the 200 gr. XTP in my jug test. From the expansion and load maybe in the 1000 fps range. I will test those and others again over the chrony.
Here is a pic of the bullet recovered from jug test...

 

[nipperdog]

Glad to hear that your 69 is doing what it Ought to. I only shoot Copper Plated Bullets in mine at 1200fps or less, so Leading is not an issue

 

[Rammer Jammer]

My simple solution to stop leading in my revolvers was to just stop reloading any lead bullets.

Only plated and jacketed for me!

 

[fortyshooter]

The Matt's Bullets gas checked 230 SWC worked great with no leading issues. I honed out the cylinder throats so a .430 bullet just slides in. And of course used a pin gage while doing so.

 

[PsTaN]

The 215 Bayou I shoot don't leave any leading even though they are sized to .430. They don't slip right through the throats, but I havent seen any negative results, and they are accurate.

Edit: I checked again and the .430 Bayou dont slip through the throats ... neither do .429 XTP's, but they do seem to fit better. I can hit an 8" plate at 50 yards with the Bayou ... hard for me to change that load.