My Model 25-2 appears to have over-sized throats. .452 lead bullets fit into the throats easily with a tiny bit of wiggle room. Calipers show .455 to .4555" as throat diameter. I got severe leading at the forcing cone end of the barrel shooting hardcast .452 LSWC bullets.
I will slug the throats to get better measurements, but meanwhile where can I buy over-sized lead bullets? Penn will make them up to .455 but it looks like that may not be big enough. Best case is .0005 OVER max throat diameter, right?
I really don't want to get into casting my own bullets at this point. If that's the only alternative, I'll do a lot of research here and elsewhere.
Is
THIS BULLET a possible alternative?
I won't pretend to be an expert, however I do have a lot of experience casting bullets, sizing and lubricating them, and shooting them. I have a broad collection of revolvers and have NEVER in my life had problems with a revolver cylinder size.
In my opinion it is NOT the job of the cylinder to size the bullet prior to it's entering the forcing cone of the barrel. If anything it should have a little space as to allow a small amount of the high pressure gas to "center" the bullet in that as it leaves the cylinder on it's way to the barrel. Having a .452 diameter bullet pass through a cylinder with a .452 throat would in my opinion be WRONG!
I know that may believe that just because someone worked in law enforcement that they are automatically granted expert about guns. Let me tell you that among those who I have had the pleasure of knowing... most have said I was a better shot than they were, and knew more about guns than they ever would.
No offense meant toward anyone on this board. If you cast bullets youself you'll know that you must lubricate and size them before they can be loaded. sizing must be matched closely to the barrel groove diameter. Which can only be obtained accurately by using cerobend and making a cast of the barrel. Or driving an oversise pure lead ball through the barrel with a wooden dowel.
I had a conversation with a gunsmith at S&W last week as I sent in my model 28 to add wide trigger and hammer. I asked him about this issue, and he had the same opinion that I hold on the subject.
It would be like having case length too long in a rifle... the pressure upon ignition would be increased because the case would be occupying the throat area, and not permitting the neck to expand sufficiently to release the bullet and could perhaps create unsafe pressure.
It may seem like all should be precision... Yes accuracy is based on repeatable results. But if your cylinder throats are .454 or .453 or even .455 it's likely ok... because the .452 diameter bullet (precision sized) is only going to have half of that variation on each side... so maybe somewhere between .0005 and .0015 of space. Consider the area of the base of the bullet... then calculate the area of the ring of space left by the throat gap... It's a very small portion of the bullet's area.
The same holds true with the gap between the cylinder and the barrel... a couple of thousanths is nothing... It doesn't have to be that close... Nice if it is... but not an issue.
I know I will have offended some of you who believe otherwise. However I challenge you to examine all of the other reasons why you may have had inaccuracy other than the alleged throat size issue. And then tell me that you still believe as you did.
One reporters opinion...
David -
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