well, well (update)

[armorer951]

At age 65, you don't get to say...."i've never seen that before" very often.

Today, a friend and former co-worker brought me a circa 1979 model 65. I remembered working on the gun when a local officer carried it in the 80's.
He said the front sight had come off...."sheared right off", he said, with what remained of the pin still in the sight body when he recovered it off of the floor at the range.
I thought that was odd when he described it's demise over the telephone, but advised it would be no problem to reinstall.

Well, he brought me the gun today, and behold the model 65 with a "compensator" built in. The bottom of the sight slot had blown out, or had been eroded out by shooting. I'm assuming the person who milled the sight slot had a bad day, or used the wrong setting or something, and damaged the barrel during the milling operation. Anyway, I called the owner and advised he should call S&W Customer Service for a verdict.

The question is, do they still have barrels available for these models? What will they do if there are no barrels available? I'm assuming the gun will not be warrantied. Perhaps I can find a 4 inch model 65 barrel somewhere?

 

[Milton]

That is odd!! Last time I looked Numrich had some 4.125 inch barrels but no 3 inchers.
I thought I was the only one to get odd revolvers!

 

[Alk8944]

Numrich still lists the 4.125" barrel as in-stock, $141.55. Other than a barrel from an E-bay seller this is probably the best bet. I assume the barrel from Numrich is new as they usually will indicate if the part is used.

Barrel, .357 Cal., 4.125" Gun Parts | 345700 | Numrich Gun Parts

 

[TTSH]

Perhaps I can find a 4 inch model 65 barrel somewhere?

S&W K Frame Model 65 .357 magnum SS barrel 4" K559 used revolver gun part

Still available? Who knows? It's the Internet. That part could have been sold years ago.

 

[Protocall_Design]

I have 3 of them. Two have the standard ramp sight and one has a fiber optic front. PM me if interested.

 

[steelslaver]

Weird, but I think your right guy running the mill on that one either didn't set the frame up right, misread the depth or didn't set it up after installing a new cutter. Maybe the factory will do something because it was very likely a mistake on their part.

is there enough barrel in front of the extractor lug to cut it off and mill new slots and make it a like a 3 1/4". Probably not and would end up with chopped off roll marks. Easier to replace the barrel anyway.

 

[armorer951]

To my surprise, S&W advised they have no barrels (no surprise here), and they would not install the replacement barrel I have....so I guess I'll have to fix it myself.

I thought they might agree to do the work, since it was their workmanship issue that caused the problem in the first place. No apologies or compensation offered.

 

[steamloco76]

I thought they might agree to do the work, since it was their workmanship issue that caused the problem in the first place. No apologies or compensation offered.

My 2000 Ford F150 had its transmission fail at 124K miles. The garage tore it down and found no problems which would indicate the cause of a complete failure until the technician pulled the sun gear housing. Way back in 2000, the robotic welder that should have made 360 degree weld around the output gear had welded only 40 degrees or so. How it lasted 124K, I'll never know.

Guess what, Ford didn't care that it was a factory defect and the only reason the transmission failed. The 3 years or 36,000 mile warranty was long over. Cost me $1,500.

 

[DWalt]

Warranties usually cover any manufacturing defects - but only for some stated period. That is, unless the item has a lifetime warranty.

 

[shovelwrench]

It doesn't look like the cutter made it into the bore..... Looks like a definite step there... A deep cut none the less.

Is it possible he lodged a bullet in the muzzle and that was the weakest link when the next round was fired??