Rossi 38 spl rough chambers

[bedwards]

Have a 5 shot Rossi made in 1980 that has rough chambers near where the head of the cartridges are in each chamber. They are not dirty as I have cleaned them and can see and feel them with a steel pick. Any advice on the easiest way to polish them out as I don't have a reamer and really not comfortable using one?
much thanks

 

[MelvinWalker]

I would take a copper brush for a .38 cal. like in a standard gun cleaning kit, and attach it to a standard cordless drill...Spray the cylinder liberally with PB Blaster and wait a little bit...Then hone away.

The copper/bronze brush won't take away any steel, but it should remove minor imperfection and slight rust build up.

 

[bedwards]

Ok, will try that tomorrow. It looks and feels like rough tooling marks. They are high spots in a circle in each chamber.

 

[kev74]

JB bore paste is another non-aggressive option.

I wrap a cleaning patch around an old brush, put a little JB bore paste and a drop or two of oil on the patch, then run it in the chamber on a drill as recommended above.

 

[stansdds]

Polishing the chambers may make extraction of spent shells easier. so a chamber reamer may be needed. Polishing compound is not likely to remove a significant amount of metal and if the roughness is still present, then the chambers would need to be reamed. The problem with that is the diameter of the chambers. If they are already within spec or near maximum diameter, reaming would make them oversize.

 

[bedwards]

I haven't tried pushing lead in the chamber to measure. Will do that today. I know its not the best way but with dial calipers I got .378 which is tight.

 

[MelvinWalker]

JB bore paste is another non-aggressive option.

I wrap a cleaning patch around an old brush, put a little JB bore paste and a drop or two of oil on the patch, then run it in the chamber on a drill as recommended above.

Based on what the OP said lower in the thread, I agree 100% with you... Factoring in a small, imperfect tooling mark in the center of each cylinder, that cylinder may need more of a slightly aggressive approach like what you suggested.

Also, OP, once you get it smoothed out, I would degrease the cylinder, and place the cylinder in the sun til it is almost too hot to touch... Then give it several coats of Brownells "Oxpho blue" inside the chambers, and oil liberally,

 

[Protocall_Design]

You want to be around .382. Polishing won't get there. You need a finish chamber reamer with lots of oil.

 

[bedwards]

It's not a very nice revolver. It resides by the back door with snake shot where I walk the dog. We live on the river and have had 3 dogs bitten over the years. I only slugged two holes but got .383 and .384 so maybe its just the ridges I see inside.

 

[bedwards]

Well, after a good bit of work, its pitted I believe.

 

[MelvinWalker]

Well, after a good bit of work, its pitted I believe.

Probably slightly so, but for what you use it for, it'll be fine...It looks pretty decent from your pic.

 

[Rudi2]

For a grab and go snake shot pistol, looks like it will probably be good for what you need. Rossi's aren't the cream of the crop to start with, but they work.

 

[bedwards]

I knew it was a truck gun when I bought it used. I guess I missed the pitting in the chambers. It does shoot just fine. I have gotten several snakes with it.

 

[MelvinWalker]

I actually have a Rossi Model 68 3 inch .38 special that I bought 35 years ago for $100 in a pawn shop. The shop owner had about a dozen of them in the case, all of which had been traded in from some South American police department and imported for sale. The bluing was about 10%, but the gun itself was fine.

I kept it a few years and gave it to my mom when my dad died to keep in her nightstand. When my mom died, I got it back and a couple of years ago, we had a tropical storm on the way and I wanted a project, so....I stripped it down and cleaned it of all oil...Got it scalding hot in boiling water and put multiple coats of Brownell's Oxpho-Blue on it...Let it dry good and I oiled it up and gently re-assembled it.

I got an original box and manual on Ebay, and now it looks so good, I don't want to fire it to scuff my "professional" bluing job up..