S&W 442 - Ti Cylinder swap w/unexpected bonus

[doctorj357]

Got a Titanium cylinder at auction to put in my 442. The auction was a whole assembly from a 360sc (cylinder, ejector, ejector rod & crane) and got it for a very good price.

After I did the cylinder swap, yes it is 2oz lighter. But what shocked me was the differences in cranes. Separately I weighted the 442 crane in at 1.1oz. And it must be steel as a magnet stuck to it. The 360sc must be aluminum or scandium because it weighed in at .3oz and no stick to magnet. So I installed that too and my 442, with bantam grips, checked in at 11.6oz empty. My little BG380 without laser only comes in at 12.1oz empty, so I think this 442 is gonna be a hand stinger with +P

Does anyone know what material the crane on a 360sc was made from? Because of the color miss match, what options would one have in making the crane match the black frame?

 

[doctorj357]

quick call to the mothership, the 360sc crane/yoke is aluminum and according to them should post no risk to the 442frame if fired with correct pressure 38spl or even +P

 

[GT_80]

call me crazy, but I like the steel frame guns better. I carry my model 36 square butt or my Charter Arms undercover more than my 637, and anything lighter than that I cannot imagine is fun to shoot. I get the "lighter is better" for carry, but I prefer something I want to shoot...

 

[Hondo44]

It is aluminum alloy as you were told, but the Sc means it also has a smidgen of scandium in it Less than ~5% which gives it extra strength like the 360Sc frame.

Just for comparison sake, the 442 frame is just standard alum alloy and is anodized black. The 360Sc is anodized clear which retains the alum alloy silver color. The anodizing also imparts some additional strength not unlike case hardening, and durability to the finish albeit not as good as blued steel. So for the yoke to be color matched to your 442 frame, get it anodized in black like the 360PD.

 

[doctorj357]

call me crazy, but I like the steel frame guns better. I carry my model 36 square butt or my Charter Arms undercover more than my 637, and anything lighter than that I cannot imagine is fun to shoot. I get the "lighter is better" for carry, but I prefer something I want to shoot...

I hear you. I have had about 150+ pistols in my time, so I got to play with just about 1 of everything. And what I've found is I'm a glutton for punishment. I like guns that don't fit the average demand. Heck I used to carry a Rossi 44mag with a 2in barrel. Steel frame, 5-shot, but only weighed 30oz. Nothing half a bottle of Tylenol wouldn't fix afterwards.

 

[germansheperd]

call me crazy, but I like the steel frame guns better. I carry my model 36 square butt or my Charter Arms undercover more than my 637, and anything lighter than that I cannot imagine is fun to shoot. I get the "lighter is better" for carry, but I prefer something I want to shoot...

Interesting. If you ask 10 people on the street what the best handgun is they will most likely say "Glock". Glocks are polymer. Isn't aluminum stronger than polymer?

 

[doctorj357]

It is aluminum alloy as you were told, but the sc means it also has a smidgen of scandium in it Less than ~5% which gives it extra strength like the 360sc frame.

Just for comparison sake, the 442 frame is just standard alum alloy and is anodized black. The 360sc is anodized clear which retains the alum alloy silver color. The anodizing also imparts some additional strength not unlike case hardening, and durability to the finish albeit not as good as blued steel. So for the yoke to be color matched to your 442 frame, get it anodized in black.

Ok, yeah and knowing that now, I probably have a few places here in MI that can do the job locally. The cylinder I have no desires to change, but would like the yoke to match

 

[Hondo44]

A rubber Hogue or other grips with padding on the back strap, unlike the Uncle Mike's grips that came on your 442 or the Hogue Bantam grips, will take the sting out of shooting such a light gun.

Beware that some heavy bullet ammo will pull bullets from their cases under recoil and lock up the gun now that your 442 is so light.

 

[GT_80]

In regards to my steel vs airweight comment- I strictly meant revolvers... When I carry a Semi, I usually always have a polymer gun, unless its a Beretta or 1911, which I don't carry often.

 

[hyena]

You out did me! I switched my 642-1 cylinder to titanium, and with wood Altamont boot grips it weighs in at 12 ounces even. And yes, it's unpleasant to shoot. But nice to carry. I'd leave yours the way it is. I mean, assuming it's for concealed carry, who's going to see it? And it looks interesting.

When I first put the wood grips on, I shot five Buffalo Bore #20A's in it, quickly, to make sure I could do it. Now what I do is shoot the first five of my handloads bare handed each time I shoot it, then put on a glove to save my hand for the remainder of the shots. I have since switched to Speer Gold Dot 130 gr +P for carry, because they shoot to point of aim.

I've thought about a 340PD, because I much prefer .357 magnum for self defense, but I'm pretty sure I could not stand that much recoil. I've got a 640 Pro for that anyway.

 

[colt_saa]

So for the yoke to be color matched to your 442 frame, get it anodized in black like the 360PD.

Or you can have it ceracoated in black

 

[JimCunn]

Same weight as me, depending on which grips I use.
My favorite round is 147 gr 9mm jhp for 292 ft-lbs.
It hurts my thumb.

 

[Teddydog]

Sharpie?

Kidding. Interesting project. The only ultra-light revolver I have is a Taurus Titanium .44 Special.

Rob

 

[Hondo44]

Unless you do the entire gun in cerakote (about $200 and it will look painted 'cause it is) just the yoke will be an ugly miss-match to the 442 frame. Anodizing is cheap in comparison.

 

[Jeff97223]

You out did me! I switched my 642-1 cylinder to titanium, and with wood Altamont boot grips it weighs in at 12 ounces even. And yes, it's unpleasant to shoot. But nice to carry. I'd leave yours the way it is. I mean, assuming it's for concealed carry, who's going to see it? And it looks interesting.

When I first put the wood grips on, I shot five Buffalo Bore #20A's in it, quickly, to make sure I could do it. Now what I do is shoot the first five of my handloads bare handed each time I shoot it, then put on a glove to save my hand for the remainder of the shots. I have since switched to Speer Gold Dot 130 gr +P for carry, because they shoot to point of aim.

I've thought about a 340PD, because I much prefer .357 magnum for self defense, but I'm pretty sure I could not stand that much recoil. I've got a 640 Pro for that anyway.

I had a 340PD, too, and found it very unpleasant to shoot with 357 magnum ammo. The odd coincidence is that I, like you, now own a 640 Pro. Much better to shoot and I don't find the extra weight to be any great burden

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

 

[MG34/bar]

I have a 342 with the Titanium cylinder that I bought about 2001 (pre-lock). About 2 years ago while cleaning after a shoot I noticed that the barrel of the crane (portion that goes in the center of the cylinder) had a circular crack. Sent in to S&W and they had it fixed and back to me in about 10 days.
I noticed that the new crane/yolk was no longer Aluminum as had been the original, but was the same steel part as on my 642. Don't know if that was substituted because S&W no longer had the Aluminum part, or that they had problems with that part in the original revolvers and now use only the steel part. I really can't tell the difference in the weight of the gun just holding it, so I appreciate your described weights.