Attention: S&W 642 Owners

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The last several new S&Ws I've stripped were either basically dry inside and/or had crappola left over from the production process. Each was like a new gun after a full detail strip, clean and re-lube.

Worth a try...
 
Mine wasn't bad at all....

It was smooth, but had that S&W "pause" in the DA before the hammer would fall.

I would reccommend one. Especially for the price that they are going at right now..

:D
 
The one I bought last Fall was heavy, but quite smooth. It improved a lot after the 1st 300 rounds.

Good Luck...

Joe
 
Hello. Mine are a couple or three years old but came smooth. They've been shot more than a little and have smoothed up quite a bit.

Best.
 
Mine was very heavy and the innards were full of grime. I removed the plate, cleaned and lubed, and dryfired (with snap caps) about 1000 times. It was smooth as silk after that.
 
Mine was a bit heavy new - but has smoothed out a lot after a few hundred cycles & some lube. Now a lot smoother and a bit lighter - all in all - about what I want in this sort of gun.

Most important - it was spot on at 15 yards - and always went "bang" right out of the box.
 
Like all the other new S&W revolvers, I'll shoot ~600 rounds and then bring it to my gunsmith for an action job, night sights, chamfer the charge holes, etc.
 
642 trigger pull

My 642 purchased last month has a fairly smooth trigger but it is quite stiff. You have to REALLY mean to shoot it for it to go bang. The first time I had it out it was not much fun to shoot but the second time was somewhat better as I made some adjustments to my grip. Routine dry firing seems to be smoothing it out a little more but it is still a long ways from my 686.
 
All of the new S&W revolvers that I have bought in the past ten years or so, needed the sideplate removed and the crud flushed out. Also none had much lubricant from the factory. A good cleaning and lubrication inside helped mine a lot. The factory springs are very heavy also. I usually dump the factory springs and put in Wolf when I get a new Smith
 
Pretty much same here. 642 I purchased a about six months ago was dry on the inside and had the "grime"left over from manufacture process. Cleaned, polished just a bit with very fine stones and lubed with rem-oil, trigger was a bit better. I also went down a bit on the rebound spring (15#?) and 1/2# on the main spring with Wolff units, helped a bit as well. Over 800 rounds not one light strike.

One caution on above, even after a "fluff and buff" my new K-Frame 66 will not reliably ignite primers even with the Standard Strength (not reduced) Wolff Mainspring
 
One of my relatives has a new 642 that I get to shoot a lot. Yeah, the trigger is too heavy. It impedes accurate fire. She's taking it to a smith soon, and I'm urging her to consider having a Wolff kit put in.

It's not creepy or stacky, just too heavy.

That little gun does go "bang" every time, though.
 
I'll have a new 642 sometime next week and will let you know. Never would have thought of cleaning/lubing the innards on a new revolver, thanks for the heads up.
 
Dan,My 642 was purchased new several years ago(sorry can't remember exactly when) and it came with a very useable trigger.It's my favorite J-Frame.tom.
 
I guess I have just been lucky regarding my 442 and the trigger weight/smoothness. No reason to complain about mine. It's got a perfect combat weight and it is very smooth.

Never took off the side plate to inspect cuz I didn't need to.

Are S&Ws assembly workers (remember they are a premium handgun manufacturer) actually ignoring gobs of metal filings and other visible crap when they screw on the sideplate?????

I find that hard to believe.

A little dry of lube? Maybe/possibly.

"Full of crud"? I don't think I've ever experienced that myself.

Perhaps I am just "Lucky".
 
Are S&Ws assembly workers (remember they are a premium handgun manufacturer) actually ignoring gobs of metal filings and other visible crap when they screw on the sideplate????? I find that hard to believe.
Click to expand...

No gobs of metal filings in mine, just somthing I'm guessing left over from the manufacture process. Kind of a sticky grey almost varnish like consistency muck in a very thin film inside the whole thing.

Like I said good cleaning and a little lube helped mine out.

As S/W continues to try to find new ways to build less expensive revolvers (and yeah I like most people would not buy a $1,300 642, or even a $600 one) less and less will surprise me :(
 
The greatest change in a new S&W revolver from new to post break-in was my 296, the big brother to the 642 (It literally looks like the 642 on serious steroids...). I, like JNewell & Atticus, remove the sideplate, clean & lube, dry-fire 500-1,000 times, and repeat the clean/lube. I did not change the springs in either this or my new 2" 10-11 last year, as they were destined for CC/PD use. This is a most effective 'trigger/action job'. Comparing mine to a 'like new' 296 really demonstrates the effectiveness of the 'work'.

Stainz
 
Just picked up my new 642 today. Trigger is heavy, but fairly smooth, the innards are clean and dry. Won't get to the range until maybe Thursday night and I'll check back here later. :)
 
I just got a 642 last night and the trigger seems heavy on it also. I won't be able to get it to the range until next week though. How do you get the side plate off? is it easy? I don't have it in front of me so sorry if it is a dumb question. I would just like to check the crud & lube setup.
 
Coupla Points-

The 642 has a fighting trigger - if you are noticing creep and grittiness I have an instant cure - press it faster:p You can make it into a match trigger, but why bother, plus it may, and a couple of you are headed down that path, influence reliability, probably badly.

Now, as to crud in the gun. The Smith assembly line is no doubt not what is was like back in the good old days, and I'd bet they still got plenty of complaints back then. Several have mentioned how dry the gun seems. It should be, relatively speaking. Most of us drastically over-lube. I wish I had said it first, but a close friend of mine puts it succinctly: "it doesnt have a dipstick"

Now, if we go OPEC with the lube, and proceed to stick the gun in the places 642s get stuck, pockets, ankle rigs, sock drawers and the like, what's goona happen? Every dust bunny out there will make a bee- , er ,bunny line for the innards, resulting in a graunchy trigger and guts full of goo.

IMHO, leave it alone. As long as it goes bang, the rest is up to you.

Mr. Trucker, please, for the sake of the gun, don't do it. You absolutely need the proper screwdriver and the method is a secret. Well somebody here will tell you but if S&W wanted you to play with its insides they would have put in a zipper, not screws. If you insist on DIY, get a Brownell's catalog and the appropriate Kuhnhausen book. If you are like me, you will keep a papre bag close at hand for the inevitable trip to a real gunsmith.
 
Coupla Points-

The 642 has a fighting trigger - if you are noticing creep and grittiness I have an instant cure - press it faster:p You can make it into a match trigger, but why bother, plus it may, and a couple of you are headed down that path, influence reliability, probably badly.

Now, as to crud in the gun. The Smith assembly line is no doubt not what is was like back in the good old days, and I'd bet they still got plenty of complaints back then. Several have mentioned how dry the gun seems. It should be, relatively speaking. Most of us drastically over-lube. I wish I had said it first, but a close friend of mine puts it succinctly: "it doesnt have a dipstick"

Now, if we go OPEC with the lube, and proceed to stick the gun in the places 642s get stuck, pockets, ankle rigs, sock drawers and the like, what's goona happen? Every dust bunny out there will make a bee- , er ,bunny line for the innards, resulting in a graunchy trigger and guts full of goo.

IMHO, leave it alone. As long as it goes bang, the rest is up to you.

Mr. Trucker, please, for the sake of the gun, don't do it. You absolutely need the proper screwdriver and the method is a secret. Well somebody here will tell you but if S&W wanted you to play with its insides they would have put in a zipper, not screws. If you insist on DIY, get a Brownell's catalog and the appropriate Kuhnhausen book. If you are like me, you will keep a papre bag close at hand for the inevitable trip to a real gunsmith.
 
Coupla Points-

The 642 has a fighting trigger - if you are noticing creep and grittiness I have an instant cure - press it faster:p You can make it into a match trigger, but why bother, plus it may, and a couple of you are headed down that path, influence reliability, probably badly.

Now, as to crud in the gun. The Smith assembly line is no doubt not what is was like back in the good old days, and I'd bet they still got plenty of complaints back then. Several have mentioned how dry the gun seems. It should be, relatively speaking. Most of us drastically over-lube. I wish I had said it first, but a close friend of mine puts it succinctly: "it doesnt have a dipstick"

Now, if we go OPEC with the lube, and proceed to stick the gun in the places 642s get stuck, pockets, ankle rigs, sock drawers and the like, what's goona happen? Every dust bunny out there will make a bee- , er ,bunny line for the innards, resulting in a graunchy trigger and guts full of goo.

IMHO, leave it alone. As long as it goes bang, the rest is up to you.

Mr. Trucker, please, for the sake of the gun, don't do it. You absolutely need the proper screwdriver and the method is a secret. Well somebody here will tell you but if S&W wanted you to play with its insides they would have put in a zipper, not screws. If you insist on DIY, get a Brownell's catalog and the appropriate Kuhnhausen book. If you are like me, you will keep a papre bag close at hand for the inevitable trip to a real gunsmith.
 
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