Side Plate Removal and Internal Clean

[flundertaker]

I am ashamed to admit but I have never had the cajones to remove the side plate of a revolver. I hear and see horror stories of buggered screws and damaged or ill fitting side plates as a result of back yard gun plumbing. I dont want to damage any of my own guns in the learning process. Now I have a situation where I have a K frame that sounds like a handful of sand mixed with sticky Karo syrup in the action when you cock the hammer. Obviously something needs to be done. How hard is it to remove the side plate and clean out the internals and re oil or grease the necessary parts? I have no interest in doing my own trigger job or anything crazy. I just want to clean out whatever is making the horrible sound and hopefully smooth the action with proper lubrication. Talk me into and thru it. Please.

 

[ankona]

Not hard to do. Make sure you have the proper fitting screwdrivers for the screws & take your time.
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78YecqRm_fs[/ame]

Also not a bad idea to read:
The S&W Revolver: A Shop Manual Book by Jerry Kuhnhausen

If you are still unsure of yourself take it to a gunsmith.

 

[Geno44]

Others here have much more knowledge than I do but it is possible to do damage to a gun when removing the side plate. Another method that will help a lot would be to remove the grips and use a can of spray carburetor cleaner to wash out the internals from every possible angle. Spray up from the bottom, cock the hammer and spray down from the top. You can use the whole can. Wear eye protection. A face shield is better. Then allow the gun to dry. You can blow it out with an air compressor if you have one. Then wash it out again with an aerosol lubricant such as Rem-oil and allow it to drain overnight before replacing the grips. While this may not do as complete a job as a thorough take down, I would argue that it is a lot better than nothing.

 

[flundertaker]

I watched the video and have successfully taken it apart. I left the cylinder release and cylinder lock in place because the guy in the video did.

My question now is what gets lubed, what lube and how much?

 

[jepp2]

I would never encourage you to do something you aren't comfortable with. I watched some of the YouTube video (around the portion that he was reinstalling the side plate), and wasn't impressed.

The manual referenced is good, and what I started with, but the Trigger Job video by Jerry Miculek is FAR superior in my opinion. "Trigger Job: Complete Action Tuning for Smith and Wesson Revolvers with Jerry Miculek" DVD is an excellent guide for dis assembly, tuning, and reassembly. Very well done and very detailed.

 

[Louchia]

Others here have much more knowledge than I do but it is possible to do damage to a gun when removing the side plate. Another method that will help a lot would be to remove the grips and use a can of spray carburetor cleaner to wash out the internals from every possible angle. Spray up from the bottom, cock the hammer and spray down from the top. You can use the whole can. Wear eye protection. A face shield is better. Then allow the gun to dry. You can blow it out with an air compressor if you have one. Then wash it out again with an aerosol lubricant such as Rem-oil and allow it to drain overnight before replacing the grips. While this may not do as complete a job as a thorough take down, I would argue that it is a lot better than nothing.

I do the same except with Gun Scrubber.

 

[Pef]

I watched the video and have successfully taken it apart. I left the cylinder release and cylinder lock in place because the guy in the video did.

My question now is what gets lubed, what lube and how much?

For a "new used" gun, I open it up and I just clean everything off with Hoppes No. 9, wipe it dry and the let it dry. Then I apply a light coating of Hoppes Elite gun oil - but any oil will do. Rebound slide, side of hammer, etc. Trigger pivot pin and hammer pin get oiled too. Then all back together.

 

[Pef]

Also, if you want to start tinkering with Smith revovlers, buy The S&W Revolvers - A Shop Manual - New Expanded 5th Edition - 2014

It's avaialable on amazon. Tells you what you need to know.

 

[S&W SS Revolvers]

Yes please!!! Get a basic gun screwdriver set from Brownells (thay have one made in US) and get the rebound spring tool.

Read the manuals or watch the videos others suggested. Be slow , be careful and do not force anything. I was just like you and now I am comfortable taking these apart...slowly , carefully and I am very much mechanically inclined.

Lay out the screws in order or better yet punch some holes in cardboard and stick them in it in their respective positions. Mostly just treat it like a fine watch. Oil any moving or sprung parts with reasonable amounts of quality gun oil.

Doing lots of shooting you may want gun grease in strategic areas. Well that's my 2 cents...

 

[amazingflapjack]

Unless a repair is needed, I use non chalking brake parts cleaner by removing the grips and in every position, with hammer back and down, spray the fire out of it while moving it around-has worked great for me.

 

[flundertaker]

Unless a repair is needed, I use non chalking brake parts cleaner by removing the grips and in every position, with hammer back and down, spray the fire out of it while moving it around-has worked great for me.

Non chalking??? I see non chlorinated and regular. Is Brake cleaner safe for blued finishes? Not that I have anthing to worry about on this particular gun since the finish is ***** but for my future knowledge.

 

[Laketime]

Never a reason to take a side plate off unless there is a problem.Even most gunsmiths are reluctant to remove a side plate unless needed.The five gunsmiths I've known are in agreement on this ,and mentioned that the majority out there get removed by tinkering gun owners.Gun Scrubber followed by Remington oil aresol is all you need to keep things clean and not overly lubed.

 

[italiansport]

I carefully remove the grips, the crane and cylinder and the sideplate but usually just stop there. I then spray the internals thoroughly with gun scrubber, re-oil and re-install the sideplate .
It never ceases to amaze me as to how much crud washes out of the mechanism and how much smoother the pistol operates after I'm finished. I just cleaned and re-lubed a newly acquired Model 19 a few days ago that you could barely cock beforehand. It now operates like a brand new gun.
Jim

 

[drgbike]

I just pried mine of with a screwdriver and a"Small" Ballpeen hammer, no wait that was my Harley!! Just joking just listen to the other guys and you cant go wrong, if you get lost just stop and reread.. Its like riding a bike.

 

[Beachblaster]

I recently purchased a 64-8 with substantial frequent flyer miles on it. Gun store parking lot store at the $200 table no less. The index card said it had a "crunchy'' trigger and was an ex-police service weapon. After picking it up I went to a local gunsmith to get an estimate on a tune up and cleaning. I got no respect at all. He knew I was a retired framing contractor and asked me if I had ever torn apart any of our pneumatic nailers. Well yeah. ''So, man up and let's get this done.'' I have an easy 30 years on this guy, no respect at all, but ok.
So he tells me the basics of taking off the side plate. I go home. I get that done. It was gummy deluxe up in there so I decided to just get a coffee can and I soaked it overnight in Simple Green. Used a gentle stream of warm water and a soft toothbrush the next day to wash the crud off. Air blast dry. Lots of gun oil on action and drain it overnight. More air blasting, followed by a regular cleaning and wipe down. It shoots real fine, I am stunned. I plan to buy the Jerry Miculek book and practice on this one, little money invested and I actually enjoyed the process. The process did include blues music and one or two fingers of Daniel's single barrel on ice.
And for those of you new to this forum, stick around and soak up some of the incredible knowledge so many of these members are willing to share.

 

[chief38]

As long as you use a proper fitting hollow ground screwdriver bit and have mechanical and technical abilities you should be fine. Disassembly and reassembly of a Smith Revolver is not all that difficult for a person with mechanical skills.

If you have "two left thumbs" and lack mechanical and technical skills then a flush out with an aerosol can of Remoil or Rig #2 Oil (outdoors would be best) is probably the best route to take. Remove grips and have at it. Shake it and let it drip dry before using. These two solvents are thin and viscous and will clean, lube & protect. They will not gum up and will not attract dust and debris.

IMHO the flush-out method is not as good as complete disassembly, however it is way better than nothing and will certainly aid in cleaning and lubrication.

 

[stu1ritter]

When you buy a used gun, it's much like a used car in that you have no idea of what the maintenance has been. Read the book, watch the DVD, take it apart and clean it and lube it. You buy a used car you change all the fluids to establish a ground zero for your maintenance patterns, do the same with your guns. They will greatly appreciate the care.

 

[Double-O-Dave]

Not trying to throw rocks here, but I watched the first five minutes of the video and saw and heard several things that are counter to everything I've ever learned, been taught, and/or done to a S&W revolver.

I'm no gunsmith, but you should not switch the crane screw and the "other" screw that is the same size. Despite having the same length and gauge, they are different screws and should not be switched. The crane screw is a fitted part, and compared to any screw from the entire revolver can be readily seen to be different in shape. As others have indicated, there are ways that you can keep the screws in proper order and position, and this should be done as it is very important.

A proper fitting screwdriver is important. To me, nothing says "Bubba was here" faster than buggered up screw heads.

Please don't beat on the receiver (the side opposite of the side plate) to remove the side plate with a rubber mallet, etc. Instead, you should securely hold the piece with the side plate up, and then rap the handle with a hammer handle, or screwdriver handle. By the way, I often hold a shop rag over the side plate while doing this, and I pad the work area with a folded towel to catch any parts that might fall (this has never happened to me, but I like to play it safe). Two or three good taps is usually sufficient to get the side plate to "pop" off. Likewise, I always reinstall the side plate using finger pressure only to press fit it back into place.

I've been doing the above for over 30 years - since I first accidentally dropped my S&W Model 686 into a big pile of sand - with good results.

Best of luck,

Dave

 

[BigBill]

I take all my used revolvers and new revolvers apart, wipe them down, clean them and lube them. Right away. My pistols get the same treatment.

In some military surplus rifles from Egypt I've found sand inside the stocks and one rifle had pine needles in it.
We need to disassemble every gun.

 

[italiansport]

I'm going to relate something here that is probably heresy to most of you but I've seen it first hand. S&W usually puts on a weekend clinic at my local gun club once a year. There are usually two S&W factory gunsmiths included and for a donation to the NRA(usually $20) they will work on a Smith you're having problems with. They "tuned up" my Model 28 a couple of years ago.
However if you think they sit there tapping on the off side of the revolver frame to get the sideplate off you'd better think again. Yep. They just carefully pry if off the same way we've all been warned against doing for many years. I personally saw them service a half dozen revolvers in this manner.
Jim