Model 19 durability

[Harassor]

With pretty much all of my wheel guns I shoot reloaded cast lead because I'm cheap and I stay away from maximum velocities because I don't enjoy scrubbing lead out of the barrel. I will say that leading doesn't seem to be a problem with the moly coated units I get from Bear Creek Supply however.

I do have a nice stash of factory loaded jacketed 158 grainers, mostly Federal. I'm just curious how many full power factory loads my pinned barrel Model 19 can digest before things start to rattle too much?

 

[gman51]

From what I have read the 19 was prone to problems shooting magnum rounds. How many before problems occurred I don't know.

 

[mod29]

I do have a nice stash of factory loaded jacketed 158 grainers, mostly Federal. I'm just curious how many full power factory loads my pinned barrel Model 19 can digest before things start to rattle too much?

I don't know how many full-power rounds it would take to loosen your model 19.
Having said that, 158-gr is the correct ammo to use if you want to shoot full-power ammo. You're probably aware that factory 125-gr loads are suspected of cracking the forcing cone at the 6 o-clock position on M19s and M66s.

Most people will suggest using full-power ammo sparingly in that revolver, and I'll agree with them.

It'll handle it, but what's the point?
Those revolvers are not in production and parts can be hard to locate. No sense in pushing them too much.

For carry-ammo (self-defense, woods-walking, etc), sure, use full-power if you want. I would.

But for general target shooting, your light handloads are just the ticket.

 

[Pisgah]

K-frame S&W .357 magnum revolvers have gotten really too much of a rap over the durability issue. The fact is, the problem of cracked forcing cones is not all that common, and occurs almost exclusively after a heavy diets of 125 gr. and lighter jacketed bullet loads. Full-power 158 gr. loads are what these guns were designed to shoot.

Now, having said that a K-frame .357 will wear out faster than an N-frame revolver firing magnum loads. It's sheer physics -- lighter/smaller components take a harder beating than bigger/heavier components. But like everything in life, the K-frame magnums represent a trade-off -- a lighter, handier package to carry which will last you a mere umpteen-thousand rounds, versus a bigger, heavier package that will last you 1.5 umpteen-thousand rounds but will end up costing you significantly more in chiropractic costs if you carry every day.

 

[Jim Watson]

A friend shot a documented 6000 rounds of Magnums through one without failure. Plenty of 2400 and 150 gr cast SWCs, no light JHPs.

 

[ISCS Yoda]

Personally, I prefer to stay away from lead bullets but if the moly coating prevents leading and other dirt issues so be it. Not my cup of tea but I get your point.

Stories of magnum loads causing cracked forcing cones or otherwise loosening up Model 19s abound. I will shoot magnum loads though a K frame just for fun on rare occasion but not as a steady diet. I have done it in my somewhat rare 4" Model 10 chambered for .357 Magnum but not often! So I treat my Model 19s the same way. If I have to, or simply want to shoot full house .357 Magnum loads I have L frames and N frames for that amusement. And a couple of Rugers.

I blew a Model 19 to smithereens twenty years ago with overloaded ammunition. Once was enough.

 

[Laketime]

I've owned four of these models over the years,and was never really able to shoot any of them loose.I believe if a model 19 was your one and only gun,and shot it weekly with full power loads then you might see the results.

 

[Birdgun]

Have fun shooting your "Combat Magnum." I sure enjoy shooting mine with both .38 Special lead and .357 Magnum SJHP bullets. In fact, I shoot my Model 19 better than any other handgun I've ever shot.

God bless,
Birdgun

 

[diyj98]

I had a 66 get very sloppy on me. But it was used when I got it and I put quite a few hot loads through it. Anything will wear out with enough use. It only makes sense that the K frame will wear faster than an L or N frame over time.

 

[Voyager28]

Stay away from hot 125gr rounds and, IMHO, you will not live long enough to wear out a Model 19.

Bob

 

[BAM-BAM]

We'd all like to know the answer.......................

Would be really nice if some rich guy would shoot a 19.. to destruction.... w/ 158 gr soft point or hollow points...................

urban legends often have a basis in fact.......... but this one has weighted heavily on the 19 for 40 years.

 

[SquarePizza]

Some of the documentation detailing the history of the manurhin mr-73 and the french anti-terror forces says that they ditched the S&W M19s because they were loosening up and required maintenance by the 190k mark.

Now, the documents claim these guys were shooting 40k rounds a year, each person. Take it as you will... but I would be seriously pressed to get to 190k rounds across all of my guns and I've been shooting for 24 years.

 

[kthom]

All I can say is that I carried and shot the same Model 19 for many years. During most of those years, I was an academy firearms instructor, a district range qualification officer, and I normally fired the revolver two or three times a week in addition to the requirements of those responsibilities, sometimes quite a lot, sometimes not so much. I would conservatively estimate that the gun was fired between 500 and a thousand rounds most of those months. The ammo fired was both .38 Special and .357 magnums, almost all of those were 158 grain bullets, with several 140 and 160 grain Speer half jacketed SWC bullets that were my reloads. A very few 125 grainers were fired, but I did not like anything about them so I quit them. Ratio was probably 60% .38 Special and 40 % .357.

Bottomline is that that Model 19 was still in good shape and going strong when I had to turn it in (a sad day for me!!!). It was very well maintained but it made a lot of miles and gave excellent dependable service and was as accurate at the end as it ever was!

 

[Harassor]

I very much appreciate peoples' experiences and thoughts here. I have 8 wheelguns, two are chambered in .357. Thanks again!

 

[Nightowl]

The model 19 was designed back when police mostly practiced with .38 Special wadcutter ammunition and carried .357 Magnums on duty. This practice was discontinued when liability issues arose and when officers that had never fired .357 Magnums had a rude awakening when duty situations occurred. The idea that you should practice and qualify with the ammo that you carried on duty finally penetrated the culture and duty ammo was used to qualify. That was a difficult day for a a lot of officers!
My old department went back to .38 Special after the new chief tried to qualify with the .357 Magnum!!

 

[Qc Pistolero]

I've been and still am the owner of many S&W .357mag.I shoot heavies in them(162 to 166gr bullets at a little over 1300FPS chronoed).
I've found that you will have to shoot a lot of full power ammo to loosen up a K frame .357;not an impossible task but if you want to do it,tell your wife and kids that they won't see much of you in the coming years.These little pieces of steel are tougher than most people think.
But if you are concerned about it(justifiable if you bought the gun used 'cause you then don't know its background),why not just back off a bit on the throttle and load it to less pressure.A 1200Fps 158gr load is something to be reckoned with at the receiving end while being still fun on the giving end.
Qc

 

[Snapping Twig]

I keep my 160 & 170g cast SWC loads to 1200fps and am very happy with the results. No light weight bullets for my K frames.

I used to load a mid range magnum for them, but no more, no reason to unless you want to.