Hi, all. I've been lurking around here for a little while, and picked up a 6 inch Model 29-4 over Christmas along with a 3 inch half-lug barrel. I've got the proper wrench on order to swap it, but a closer look appears to show that the ejector rod will need to be swapped out to a shorter version. I know that Numrich lists them, but I was wondering if there is anything else that needs to also be changed over for this. I like the 6 inch barrel and plan to hang onto it and the other parts in case I decide I ever want to swap back to the original configuration but I would like to convert it to a 3 inch setup, to make it a bit more practical for a carry gun (along with some slightly smaller grips than the factory targets to fit my hand and take a little bite out of it with the short barrel). I know I could probably sell it and just get a Lew Horton, but then I wouldn't have the 6 inch option later on. Plus, my first big S&W was a .45LC Model of 1988 that I bought new back in the late 1980s, so the 29-4 reminds me of its vintage. Any suggestions on what else I need to do this, or any tricks to go about it? Last gun I rebarreled was an SBR Thompson from a West Hurley semi-auto (with the paperwork done first, of course) so I figure it couldn't be TOO much harder to get it loose with the right wrench to keep from tweaking the frame. But you never know until you ask... Thanks.
Rebarreling a 29-4 from 6 to 3 inch
- Thread starter Pvt.Joker
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Hi, all. I've been lurking around here for a little while, and picked up a 6 inch Model 29-4 over Christmas along with a 3 inch half-lug barrel. I've got the proper wrench on order to swap it, but a closer look appears to show that the ejector rod will need to be swapped out to a shorter version. I know that Numrich lists them, but I was wondering if there is anything else that needs to also be changed over for this. I like the 6 inch barrel and plan to hang onto it and the other parts in case I decide I ever want to swap back to the original configuration but I would like to convert it to a 3 inch setup, to make it a bit more practical for a carry gun (along with some slightly smaller grips than the factory targets to fit my hand and take a little bite out of it with the short barrel). I know I could probably sell it and just get a Lew Horton, but then I wouldn't have the 6 inch option later on. Plus, my first big S&W was a .45LC Model of 1988 that I bought new back in the late 1980s, so the 29-4 reminds me of its vintage. Any suggestions on what else I need to do this, or any tricks to go about it? Last gun I rebarreled was an SBR Thompson from a West Hurley semi-auto (with the paperwork done first, of course) so I figure it couldn't be TOO much harder to get it loose with the right wrench to keep from tweaking the frame. But you never know until you ask... Thanks.
john traveler
Member
You will need to swap out the extractor rod center pin as well as the extractor rod. It may need a bit of fitting so the cylinder opens and closes easily.
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