Metal shavings in new to me 5904

[Doriangray6]

I use Lucas Red N Tacky assembly lube grease. Just a light coating applied with a Q-Tip.

 

[DPH-AK]

Alloy frame and a steel slide needs lubrication between them or the frame will suffer wear. I use Lubriplate. Also check for any rough spots on the slide rails.

TW 25b MI-COMM is pretty good too.

 

[DPH-AK]

Good deal, I will have to get some gun grease ordered. I used to have a tube of twb25 but idk where it got stashed. Thanks for the info.

I would find my tube or get a new one

 

[Txrevolvernerd]

Got some pictures, couldn’t get any of the shavings to show up, they are too small and can’t focus the camera well enough.

 

[Txrevolvernerd]

 

[GaryS]

What do the rear rails look like?

I'd say that was shot without any lubrication on the rails.

 

[Txrevolvernerd]

They are about the same as the dustcover rail and front rail by the takedown pin. Maybe a little less worn actually. Hopefully it’s not to the point of affecting anything if I keep her greased from now on. I typically clean all of mine after shooting(even my Glonks lol)

 

[Txrevolvernerd]

I’m just hoping it has plenty of rounds left in it despite the wear and isn’t just totally shot out. It looks great on the outside, they don’t do slide rail pics when you buy them at auction unfortunately.

 

[ispcapt]

My dept issued various models of S&W alloy frame/steel slides for 32 years. From the 39 to the 5904/6904. The first large law enforcement agency to issue 9mm. The last S&W autos issued were the 5904/6904.
There will be some initial wear on the frame where the slide rubs as the 2 pieces mate. It should not be excessive but it will wear shiny places on the frame rails and then should not get worse. If it does then there's something else going on that should be checked. May take several hundred rounds before everything 'fits'.
S&W metal autos needed lube. One of our range officers once said the way to tell if you've lubed your S&W enough is when oil ran out the bottom of your holster and ran down your pant leg. Maybe a bit of an exaggeration. But only slightly.
The S&W metal autos, not just the alloy frames, were meant to run wet. They aren't Glocks. Any place where metal moved against metal required lube. Heavy oil or a light grease.
RemOil is too light. It won't stay.

 

[Txrevolvernerd]

Definitely appreciate all the advice from everyone here, it’s helpful when I get into new platforms to learn what works and what doesn’t for that particular gun. All of mine are for shooting, no collectors pieces to be had, so I try and maintain as well as possible.

 

[TonyR]

I was taught many years ago that if it spins oil it and if it slides grease it. There are many synthetic products out there.

 

[Jay Hall]

Got some pictures, couldn’t get any of the shavings to show up, they are too small and can’t focus the camera well enough.View attachment 761878View attachment 761880View attachment 761881

Nice Pics!

 

[T2C]

I carried a Model 39, 439, 6904, then 5904 as a service pistol. I shot competitively with each model and sent a lot of rounds down range with them. The running joke was that on my inspection reports, they should read "weapon clean, leaks oil."

The alloy frames will show some wear and tear where the slide makes contact. The frame is the softer of the two metals, so I would be looking at the slide and identifying rough spots that need to be cleaned up. Anywhere you see shiny wear marks on the slide, frame and barrel, the weapon should be lubricated.

I never bought fancy grease. I used wheel bearing grease, then synthetic wheel bearing grease on the sliding surfaces of handguns, M1 Garands, M1 Carbines, etc., and I still do. I used synthetic motor oil where oil is an appropriate lubricant.

If the surface spins or slides quickly enough to sling off oil, it's a good place to apply grease. You can use grease on the slide rails; I would apply it to the slide and watch for debris in the grease. If you see aluminum alloy particles in the grease on the slide rails, the grease is doing its job by suspending the particles. Grease tends to attract grit, powder residue, etc., so don't be alarmed. Clean the grease out thoroughly and apply fresh grease.

I had to have frames replaced on my S&W pistols with alloy frames around the 25,000 live round mark. That was about every 2 years. I never had one make it to 30,000 live rounds. I did a considerable amount of dry firing, which also contributed to the wear and tear.

Keep an eye on your draw bar, keep the weapon lubed and it should last you a long time.

 

[jkwhaley]

I can't find those tiny tubes of GunSlick any more, so I've gone to using Mobil One synthetic grease (the red kind) and a rayon (non-cotton) swab.

 

[SGT ROCK 11B]

My duty pistols were 39, 59, 659, 5906 and 4506.

You need to lube frequently. Also the 659 had “galling” issues and the 5906 was a significant improvement.

 

[stansdds]

I've seen worse wear on S&W aluminum receivers. It does look like the previous owner was not really into providing the pistol with proper lubrication, but that is not a scary amount of wear.

 

[Txrevolvernerd]

Good to hear that it doesn’t seem to be too extreme as far as the wear goes. I found my gun grease so it’ll be getting pampered from here on out. Plus my 5906 I won on GB came in yesterday and that’ll be getting the lions share of the round count between the two. I popped the slide off the 5906 last night and was pretty relieved to see that although the outside had a lot of holster wear(probably a police trade in idk) the frame rails showed nearly no wear, there was just a bit of shiny wear on the top of the barrel and inside the bushing where they mate. So that gun will probably be my go to of the two for most range days.

 

[WR Moore]

A couple of comments: first, the recoil spring guide rod in S&W TDAs have a spring loaded plunger to help keep the slide stop in place. You want to keep that function. Second, the steel slide rails aren't the part that's wearing, it'd be the softer frame rails. You might want to closely inspect the rails and grooves in the slide and very carefully stone them if they're rough/have sharp edges.

 

[Rick H.]

One last time. If this issue really concerns you take the pistol to a known good gunsmith and have him look at it. Bring it to him clean and unassembled to save him some time, but bring all the parts for the pistol. Be specific and ask him about wear on the rails. I can think of about 3 good gunsmiths in my area that could handle this request. If you have any patches or rags with the flakes of metal on it bring that along too to show him. If he charges you for this exam so be it. If he doesn't, give him a tip and I don't mean Seabiscut in the 5th.

Rick H.

 

[Txrevolvernerd]

That may be what I do if I keep seeing it happen. I’m installing the new recoil spring in it today after work and greasing the rails, then I am going to send another 100 rounds through it tomorrow when I go to test out my 5906 that came in the other day. If I see more shaving I definitely have a gunsmith I can utilize if necessary, but that’ll be a last resort, until I’ve exhausted all other options. The more I think about how filthy it was out of the box those shavings may have been accruing in there for many years of improper lube and cleaning.