S&W Revo. - Stuck Side Plate
- Thread starter Bikeguy
- Start date
- Status
1911Tuner
Moderator Emeritus
Stuck!
Howdy Bikeguy,
The sideplate isn't stuck...It's a pressed fit. Remove the grips, hold the revolver by the cylinder upside down in your left hand, and rap on the side of grip frame with a soft-faced mallet or the side of a plastic screwdriver handle. It'll pop out.
Strike it just below the approximate mid-point. Do NOT pry on it.
When you replace it, be sure to get the tab at the top of the plate under the frame
recess at the top...put light pressure on the middle of the plate with your thumb, and rap on the frop frame again. It'll slip back in place. Also make sure that the hammer block is lined up in its slot in the sideplate.
Luck!
Tuner
Howdy Bikeguy,
The sideplate isn't stuck...It's a pressed fit. Remove the grips, hold the revolver by the cylinder upside down in your left hand, and rap on the side of grip frame with a soft-faced mallet or the side of a plastic screwdriver handle. It'll pop out.
Strike it just below the approximate mid-point. Do NOT pry on it.
When you replace it, be sure to get the tab at the top of the plate under the frame
recess at the top...put light pressure on the middle of the plate with your thumb, and rap on the frop frame again. It'll slip back in place. Also make sure that the hammer block is lined up in its slot in the sideplate.
Luck!
Tuner
Wildalaska
member
Yikes!
We have the S&W Sideplate rule in our shop...
Ya bring a S&W in for a cleaning and detail strip...$45
Ya bring a S& W in for reassembly after ya took the side plate off...$100
If you dont know how to get the sideplate off should you be messin in the guts?
Wildhmmm?Alaska
We have the S&W Sideplate rule in our shop...
Ya bring a S&W in for a cleaning and detail strip...$45
Ya bring a S& W in for reassembly after ya took the side plate off...$100
If you dont know how to get the sideplate off should you be messin in the guts?
Wildhmmm?Alaska
Dave Sample
member
Amen, Wildalaska. I use a lead hammer or a lead bar for this task and you have to smack it HARD. This should prove interesting later, Huh? Need we remind him that the three screws are all different and that the getting the Crane Screw in the right hole is very important for assembly?
1911Tuner
Moderator Emeritus
The High Road!
Attaway, gents! The man walks in and asks for help with a task that he's never done because he's heard that THR is a place to come for answers...and he gets
a little humiliation for his trust. I tell ya, it just makes me swell plum up with pride!
I guess some of us were just born knowin' how to take a revolver apart...
Ree-gards!
Tuner
Attaway, gents! The man walks in and asks for help with a task that he's never done because he's heard that THR is a place to come for answers...and he gets
a little humiliation for his trust. I tell ya, it just makes me swell plum up with pride!
I guess some of us were just born knowin' how to take a revolver apart...
Ree-gards!
Tuner
I have had the sideplate off of a S&W revolver before. Did a mighty fine job of getting an old model 10 that you could not pull the trigger on running again. Even took all the trigger guts out and cleaned them up real good - egads!!!!!! Anyone with a basic working knowledge of guns, a decent sense of geometry, the self control not to start removing metal, and a little patience can do it. You don't even need to know the proper names of all the pieces (I don't) as long as you pay attention to what you are doing and have some mechanical inclination.
I am not anywhere close to what you would call a gunsmith, but I'm no idiot either. I know that the screws are different.
Thanks 1911 - I have tried the screwdriver handle to no avail. But I shall try it again. You, sir, are a gentleman and a scholar.
Dave and Wildalaska - I appreciate the warning, but it is much more helpfull to either follow with an answer of how to do it or why it might not be a good idea. Tell me I might screw it up, how I might screw it up, and how I might avoid screwing it up (including not doing it if that is your opinion). I've been under the hood of several cars that I had to search a bit to figure out how to pop the hood.
I am not anywhere close to what you would call a gunsmith, but I'm no idiot either. I know that the screws are different.
Thanks 1911 - I have tried the screwdriver handle to no avail. But I shall try it again. You, sir, are a gentleman and a scholar.
Dave and Wildalaska - I appreciate the warning, but it is much more helpfull to either follow with an answer of how to do it or why it might not be a good idea. Tell me I might screw it up, how I might screw it up, and how I might avoid screwing it up (including not doing it if that is your opinion). I've been under the hood of several cars that I had to search a bit to figure out how to pop the hood.
1911Tuner
Moderator Emeritus
Still Stuck
Bikeguy...Try this:
Trim a popsicle stick down on the end until you can wedge is under the sideplate.
Lever up on it lightly while you whack on the grip frame. Might help to use a little
penetrating oil around the edges and let it sit for a few hours. Warm the gun in an oven for a bit...maybe 20-30 minutes..until it's just past uncomfortable to hold in your hand. Might work.
Luck!
Tuner
Bikeguy...Try this:
Trim a popsicle stick down on the end until you can wedge is under the sideplate.
Lever up on it lightly while you whack on the grip frame. Might help to use a little
penetrating oil around the edges and let it sit for a few hours. Warm the gun in an oven for a bit...maybe 20-30 minutes..until it's just past uncomfortable to hold in your hand. Might work.
Luck!
Tuner
Standing Wolf
Member in memoriam
I'd be inclined to soak a really sticky, reluctant side plate in mineral spirits overnight before attempting to remove it: old oil can turn into decidedly sticky stuff over a period of decades.
Wildalaska
member
Well gee tuner, do you want people messin around in the guts of revolvers having never done it before?
Ill tell ya, Im not a gunsmith meself, but I daresay I have reassembled 20 Smiths in the past few years...my motto is...
Hey (Insert Gunsmith Name Here)...you do it
WildandialwysmixupthescrewsAlaska
Ill tell ya, Im not a gunsmith meself, but I daresay I have reassembled 20 Smiths in the past few years...my motto is...
Hey (Insert Gunsmith Name Here)...you do it
WildandialwysmixupthescrewsAlaska
1911Tuner
Moderator Emeritus
No Gunsmith
Ahhhhhhhh...Notta problem WA...Just a little on edge today. Guess I just like ta
make people feel good about comin' to THR with their problems and took it wrong.
Later on!
1911IliketotrytohelptheguysoutTuner
Ahhhhhhhh...Notta problem WA...Just a little on edge today. Guess I just like ta
make people feel good about comin' to THR with their problems and took it wrong.
Later on!
1911IliketotrytohelptheguysoutTuner
Dave Sample
member
How are we supposed to know what you know if you don't tell us? Why don't you bother to get the name of the parts right? I told you how I do it and you are free to try that or not. Please do not be a Chronically Offended poster here or with me. You asked a question and you got a lot of good answers. I did not flame you nor was I out of line with my post. I have not done any Smith and Wesson work since they rolled over for Slick Willie, but I still know how it's done. We try to help people like you and Tuner may be a mind reader, but I am not, nor do I play one on TV.
1911Tuner
Moderator Emeritus
Chronically Offended
He did tell us what he wanted, Dave...He said that he wanted to get the sideplate off. That is, to the best of my knowledge, the correct name for that part, by the way.
Seemed like a pretty straighforward question to me...and he got what I thought was a condescending response...which appears to have been an incorrect assumption on my part. WA doesn't post enough over here for me to get a handle on his personality, so I figured that he was being snippy with the guy.
Then, when you rolled in with:
"Amen, Wildalaska. I use a lead hammer or a lead bar for this task and you have to smack it HARD. This should prove interesting later, Huh?"
It went south from there. I don't respond well to having people who ask legitimate questions humiliated simply because they don't have as much experience or knowledge as some of the others. We're here to help...
not to make other people feel like morons.
Thank you for your cooperation.
He did tell us what he wanted, Dave...He said that he wanted to get the sideplate off. That is, to the best of my knowledge, the correct name for that part, by the way.
Seemed like a pretty straighforward question to me...and he got what I thought was a condescending response...which appears to have been an incorrect assumption on my part. WA doesn't post enough over here for me to get a handle on his personality, so I figured that he was being snippy with the guy.
Then, when you rolled in with:
"Amen, Wildalaska. I use a lead hammer or a lead bar for this task and you have to smack it HARD. This should prove interesting later, Huh?"
It went south from there. I don't respond well to having people who ask legitimate questions humiliated simply because they don't have as much experience or knowledge as some of the others. We're here to help...
not to make other people feel like morons.
Thank you for your cooperation.
FPrice
Member
Guys...
I am NOT a gunsmith in real llife. Nor do I play one on TV or the Internet.
But I do sleep in Holiday Inn Expresses from time to time.
And in my humble (or not-so-humble) opinion anyone who owns a mechanical device should be knowledgeable enough to perform some basic level of owner service to insure the continued functioning of said afore-mentioned device. The level of service will obviously differ with the complexity of the device.
Take for instance an automobile. Everyone who owns an automoble (with some exceptions I'll address later) should be able to do things like check and fill all fluids, change tires, look under the hood and determine if most pieces are still connected in the proper location, up to possibly being able to change the oil. In short, be able to accomplish those tasks reasonablely necessary to insure continued functioning of the device under routine circumstances. Exceptions would include those who for certain reasons (mainly physical) cannot exert themselves enough to do these tasks. My 75 year old mother comes to mind. She's not quite agile enough to do most of these things - but then, that's why she has me around.
On the other hand we have the modern firearm. A moderately complex piece of machinery that many of us on this board use on a daily basis. And most of us are more than just simple firearms users, in fact most of us pride ourselves on our abilities to use firearms safely and expertly. And again I feel that anyone who owns and uses a firearm should be able to take care of that firearm and perform some level of owner service to insure the continued safe and efficient operation of the item. In this case being able to take your firearm apart into it's component pieces (at least as far as does NOT require anything more than simple tools), clean and lubricate these pieces, check for any gross problems, correct any "simple" problems, and re-connect everything back into a functioning unit.
True confession time: I have brought a bag containing one big lump of metal and several smaller pieces to a gunsmith and knelt before him beseeching him to perform his miracles and restore these inamimate objects back to life.
Now it's very possible that one could be just a simple user of mechanical devices and be a perfectly functional human being. For example, get in your car, drive it everyday, and then on a regular basis take it to another person and ask them to perform these routine items in exchange for pieces of currency or electronic offerings. Or on a regular/irregular basis simply put bullets in your gun, take bullets, magazines, or spent shell casings out and every few years approach your local gunsmith in their temple and make offerings to them so that your prized possession will be re-incarnated into a functioning item of joy.
You could do that but then instead of being the master (as much as possible) of your devices, they will be in some small or not so small way your master.
Someone on either THR or TFL had as a tagline Robert Heinlein's excellent listing of the many varied things he thought each human being should be able to do. While an imposing list and possibly one which would stretch ALL of us to our limits, Heinlein's point was well-taken. Human beings are meant to be multi-functioning. Lower life forms can afford to do just one thing only.
So I vote for learning to be able to take the sideplate off your S&W (I am learning), poke around inside, and re-assemble it by your self.
edited to add: For anything else, there's Credit Cards.
I am NOT a gunsmith in real llife. Nor do I play one on TV or the Internet.
But I do sleep in Holiday Inn Expresses from time to time.
And in my humble (or not-so-humble) opinion anyone who owns a mechanical device should be knowledgeable enough to perform some basic level of owner service to insure the continued functioning of said afore-mentioned device. The level of service will obviously differ with the complexity of the device.
Take for instance an automobile. Everyone who owns an automoble (with some exceptions I'll address later) should be able to do things like check and fill all fluids, change tires, look under the hood and determine if most pieces are still connected in the proper location, up to possibly being able to change the oil. In short, be able to accomplish those tasks reasonablely necessary to insure continued functioning of the device under routine circumstances. Exceptions would include those who for certain reasons (mainly physical) cannot exert themselves enough to do these tasks. My 75 year old mother comes to mind. She's not quite agile enough to do most of these things - but then, that's why she has me around.
On the other hand we have the modern firearm. A moderately complex piece of machinery that many of us on this board use on a daily basis. And most of us are more than just simple firearms users, in fact most of us pride ourselves on our abilities to use firearms safely and expertly.
And again I feel that anyone who owns and uses a firearm should be able to take care of that firearm and perform some level of owner service to insure the continued safe and efficient operation of the item. In this case being able to take your firearm apart into it's component pieces (at least as far as does NOT require anything more than simple tools), clean and lubricate these pieces, check for any gross problems, correct any "simple" problems, and re-connect everything back into a functioning unit.True confession time: I have brought a bag containing one big lump of metal and several smaller pieces to a gunsmith and knelt before him beseeching him to perform his miracles and restore these inamimate objects back to life.
Now it's very possible that one could be just a simple user of mechanical devices and be a perfectly functional human being.
For example, get in your car, drive it everyday, and then on a regular basis take it to another person and ask them to perform these routine items in exchange for pieces of currency or electronic offerings. Or on a regular/irregular basis simply put bullets in your gun, take bullets, magazines, or spent shell casings out and every few years approach your local gunsmith in their temple and make offerings to them so that your prized possession will be re-incarnated into a functioning item of joy.You could do that but then instead of being the master (as much as possible) of your devices, they will be in some small or not so small way your master.
Someone on either THR or TFL had as a tagline Robert Heinlein's excellent listing of the many varied things he thought each human being should be able to do. While an imposing list and possibly one which would stretch ALL of us to our limits, Heinlein's point was well-taken. Human beings are meant to be multi-functioning. Lower life forms can afford to do just one thing only.
So I vote for learning to be able to take the sideplate off your S&W (I am learning), poke around inside, and re-assemble it by your self.
edited to add: For anything else, there's Credit Cards.
1911Tuner
Moderator Emeritus
Pokin' Around
FPrice said:
So I vote for learning to be able to take the sideplate off your S&W (I am learning), poke around inside, and re-assemble it by your self.
______________________
Yep. Besides...it's a simple matter to remove the sideplate and spray the gunk out without goin' any deeper than that if cleanin' and re-oilin' is the only object of the exercise. And, if a man gets the notion to take it all the way down...Well...
The ol' Smith hand-ejector ain't exactly a Swiss watch either. Not too hard to figger out.
FPrice said:
So I vote for learning to be able to take the sideplate off your S&W (I am learning), poke around inside, and re-assemble it by your self.
______________________
Yep. Besides...it's a simple matter to remove the sideplate and spray the gunk out without goin' any deeper than that if cleanin' and re-oilin' is the only object of the exercise. And, if a man gets the notion to take it all the way down...Well...
The ol' Smith hand-ejector ain't exactly a Swiss watch either. Not too hard to figger out.
sm
member
Agree with Standing Wolf - I have let soak in Mineral Spirits first. Removal of Stocks and I show why the "icky" will act like a vacuum and not let go of sideplate...that was how I was shown.
Fridge magnet from the Pizza place keeps the screws in order. Then using a pc of wooden dowel, the plastic part of a screwdriver or that pc of heater hose that has yet to find a trash can - tap the grip area.
Ingenuity 101:
S&W K frames -
Ladies and new shooters didn't always want to mess with smithin' " My butter knife is not hollow ground..." Some lady students - I swear.
" I bought this thing to shoot and carry - not play with it" - Ladies keep it simple.
Okay, with the proper screwdriver I show how to remove grips or stocks ( lesson in definiton is fun). Now the second proper screwdriver they get is the one for the crane . They can keep with up 3 screws and two screwdivers ( or bits) " They make a butter knife bit for this B&D thingy?"
So I then introduced them to Mineral Spirits, Hoppe's 9 ( reminds them of Daddys) CRC Brakleen and a can of Compressed Air like for PC/ electronics. The hair dryer they know about.
This allows them to inspect, maintain, and remove nelphs all on their own . They use whatever gun oil they want, they use pipe cleaners and long wooden Q tips.
If things need more than than they consult a gunsmith, " you fix it...can I shoot this one while you fix mine". Ladies bring cookies and stuff when they go to certain smiths...that is why their guns get fixed while they wait, or ahead of guys.
Depending on round count , every six months ...or when that smith wants home baked goods...a real gunsmith will inspect and clean the gun - if need.
Fridge magnet from the Pizza place keeps the screws in order. Then using a pc of wooden dowel, the plastic part of a screwdriver or that pc of heater hose that has yet to find a trash can - tap the grip area.
Ingenuity 101:
S&W K frames -
Ladies and new shooters didn't always want to mess with smithin' " My butter knife is not hollow ground..." Some lady students - I swear.
" I bought this thing to shoot and carry - not play with it" - Ladies keep it simple.
Okay, with the proper screwdriver I show how to remove grips or stocks ( lesson in definiton is fun). Now the second proper screwdriver they get is the one for the crane . They can keep with up 3 screws and two screwdivers ( or bits) " They make a butter knife bit for this B&D thingy?"
So I then introduced them to Mineral Spirits, Hoppe's 9 ( reminds them of Daddys) CRC Brakleen and a can of Compressed Air like for PC/ electronics. The hair dryer they know about.
This allows them to inspect, maintain, and remove nelphs all on their own . They use whatever gun oil they want, they use pipe cleaners and long wooden Q tips.
If things need more than than they consult a gunsmith, " you fix it...can I shoot this one while you fix mine". Ladies bring cookies and stuff when they go to certain smiths...that is why their guns get fixed while they wait, or ahead of guys.
Depending on round count , every six months ...or when that smith wants home baked goods...a real gunsmith will inspect and clean the gun - if need.
1911Tuner
Moderator Emeritus
Input from sm
Good info, Steve. Thanks.
One thing I forgot tomention is that, after soaking it with a penetrant/releasing agent...lightly tapping around the edges with a plastic screwdriver handle will often break a really stubborn plate loose. Do NOT rap it in the center...
Edges only. If the sideplate gets sprung, ya might have a handfulla trouble.
Good info, Steve. Thanks.
One thing I forgot tomention is that, after soaking it with a penetrant/releasing agent...lightly tapping around the edges with a plastic screwdriver handle will often break a really stubborn plate loose. Do NOT rap it in the center...
Edges only. If the sideplate gets sprung, ya might have a handfulla trouble.
sm
member
Well , I have to admit one of the best examples of ingenuity ...
...the gun had soaked, the lady had tapped "lightly" ...she was afraid of damaging the sideplate...perhaps a bit gun-shy of messing up...sideplate didn't loosen.
Laying on the wood kitchen table, she bangs the table...kept banging the table, until she BANGED the table hard...vibration works if'n you get enough.
" I didnt' hurt the gun did I". she asked.
I was concerned about her hand
" I used my weak hand, I'm not that dumb?"
Women - ain't they great?
...the gun had soaked, the lady had tapped "lightly" ...she was afraid of damaging the sideplate...perhaps a bit gun-shy of messing up...sideplate didn't loosen.
Laying on the wood kitchen table, she bangs the table...kept banging the table, until she BANGED the table hard...vibration works if'n you get enough.
" I didnt' hurt the gun did I". she asked.
I was concerned about her hand
" I used my weak hand, I'm not that dumb?"
Women - ain't they great?
Dave Sample
member
Tuner: I answered his question. I told him the exact way to get the side plate off. This is an approved method used by people who do S&W work. I assumed that if you do not know how to get a sideplate off that the rest of the story would prove to be very interesting because I have a bunch of special tools for smithing Smiths. The pistols have a complicated mechanism and are not easy to work on. You can't tune these kind of guns by scraping them with a pocket knife and and wiping the sear and hammer on your blue jeans. I am sorry that the poster chose to take my comments the wrong way. You are absolutley right. We do not ever want to treat these folks like morons , or the way you treat me. My life does not depend on me being a hero of the internet so I just have fun here. I guess you are right. Anyone with a screwdriver can work on guns. They ain't a Swiss Watch, you know.
Wildalaska
member
I dunno guys, I think there is a big diff between charging spark plugs (whichyou cannot even do on some new cars at all) and poking in the gut of a S&W...
In my eyes the original poster made it seem like he had no idea how to get it off, not that it was stuck...if ya dont know how to it off, you shouldnt be digging in it....
I can think of more than one time I have seen a gunsmith take a wack on a new S&W to get the sideplate off and other parts come with it too Now me, I just toss whats left over in a bag, mind ya.......
WildleadhammerandfootAlaska
In my eyes the original poster made it seem like he had no idea how to get it off, not that it was stuck...if ya dont know how to it off, you shouldnt be digging in it....
I can think of more than one time I have seen a gunsmith take a wack on a new S&W to get the sideplate off and other parts come with it too
Now me, I just toss whats left over in a bag, mind ya.......WildleadhammerandfootAlaska
I don't want to get into the middle of a contest, but I have worked on a whole lot of Smiths from the Model 1 on down and generally they are fairly simple, compared with the DA Colts, at least.
Stuck sideplates usually respond to a whack on the side of the grip with a plastic hammer. I never strike the sideplate itself; it is thin enough to bend even on modern guns and even thinner in the old guns with the hammer block coil spring in the side plate. Even after a thorough soaking in solvent, I have had to use a brass wedge (like a screwdriver) to pry the plate, inserting it in the curve at the grip, not beside the hammer. That has never failed, but it is a last resort.
I agree that folks who are not mechanically inclined should probably stay out of the innards of a revolver, but the S&W is not (to quote someone) a Swiss watch, and cleaning and oiling is pretty simple. The only tricky parts are removal and replacement of the trigger return spring and the replacement of the hand. With the new actions, those procedures are easier than they used to be.
So my suggestion to Bike guy is as follows:
If it isn't broken, leave it alone. It can be cleaned with a good spray solvent followed by a few drops of good gun oil.
If you MUST take the gun down for the helluvit, you may create more problems than you are capable of solving; you might ruin the gun or have to pay big bucks to a gunsmith to have it fixed. But that is your choice.
Jim
Stuck sideplates usually respond to a whack on the side of the grip with a plastic hammer. I never strike the sideplate itself; it is thin enough to bend even on modern guns and even thinner in the old guns with the hammer block coil spring in the side plate. Even after a thorough soaking in solvent, I have had to use a brass wedge (like a screwdriver) to pry the plate, inserting it in the curve at the grip, not beside the hammer. That has never failed, but it is a last resort.
I agree that folks who are not mechanically inclined should probably stay out of the innards of a revolver, but the S&W is not (to quote someone) a Swiss watch, and cleaning and oiling is pretty simple. The only tricky parts are removal and replacement of the trigger return spring and the replacement of the hand. With the new actions, those procedures are easier than they used to be.
So my suggestion to Bike guy is as follows:
If it isn't broken, leave it alone. It can be cleaned with a good spray solvent followed by a few drops of good gun oil.
If you MUST take the gun down for the helluvit, you may create more problems than you are capable of solving; you might ruin the gun or have to pay big bucks to a gunsmith to have it fixed. But that is your choice.
Jim
Didn't mean to start a firestorm!
Got the side plate off without having to resort to solvents - just a bit more spirited "tapping"!
All was well inside - looks like it has hardly been shot. It was clean as a whistle, just a little too dry. So I left well enough alone and just cleaned and lubed. Trigger pull is already a bit smoother, though I suspect 99% of that is in my mind.
My initial post was probably a bit lacking in detail. Sorry If I was not clear on what exactly I had tried.
Thanks for the help guys.
Got the side plate off without having to resort to solvents - just a bit more spirited "tapping"!
All was well inside - looks like it has hardly been shot. It was clean as a whistle, just a little too dry. So I left well enough alone and just cleaned and lubed. Trigger pull is already a bit smoother, though I suspect 99% of that is in my mind.
My initial post was probably a bit lacking in detail. Sorry If I was not clear on what exactly I had tried.
Thanks for the help guys.
Powderman
Member
Best stuff for getting stuck parts loose--
is good old Kroil. I have used this stuff on lots of things, and it has all responded favorably to a treatment with Kroil.
And, an added plus--
As it had been discovered by benchrest shooters, this stuff really helps in fouling removal. Just swab the bore down, and let it sit--overnight is best.
Then, clean as usual. Lead and copper fouling responds especially well.
If you have stuck parts, don't despair. Just remove the grips, and soak it in Kroil for a few hours.
www.kanolaboratories.com
is good old Kroil. I have used this stuff on lots of things, and it has all responded favorably to a treatment with Kroil.
And, an added plus--
As it had been discovered by benchrest shooters, this stuff really helps in fouling removal. Just swab the bore down, and let it sit--overnight is best.
Then, clean as usual. Lead and copper fouling responds especially well.
If you have stuck parts, don't despair. Just remove the grips, and soak it in Kroil for a few hours.
www.kanolaboratories.com
Model520Fan
Member
Well, since everyone else is expressing opinions not directly answering the original question, I will toss out something that 80-90% of the poster here know, but only one came close to mentioning. I am tossing it out for the 10-20%, so it would save time if the 80-90% would refrain from feeling insulted and, more important, saying so.
The hardest part of removing a sideplate is usually selecting and operating the screwdrivers. Yeah, screwdrivers. Buggering up a frame is not pretty. But it is pretty easy to do. And if you don't do it while removing the sideplate, you can always take another shot at it while replacing the sideplate.
Just my $.02.
The hardest part of removing a sideplate is usually selecting and operating the screwdrivers. Yeah, screwdrivers. Buggering up a frame is not pretty. But it is pretty easy to do. And if you don't do it while removing the sideplate, you can always take another shot at it while replacing the sideplate.
Just my $.02.
Dave Sample
member
I think I met Wildalaska at the Shot Show and showed him EAGLE 1. I know I visted their booth and liked all those guys.
I should correst something I said about the Strain Screw. According to S&W, it should aways be tight, period. They say to adjust the trigger pull by filing the end of it down to adjust the pull. I have done that and then ordered 6 of those screws from Gil Hebard so I could replace them if it got a little too much off. I then went to adjusting them AFTER using Blue Locktite on the threads so as to keep them in place, but not allow them to back out. I would use Purple Loc-tite now, because I use that in the SA 1873 Tune-Ups that I still do for the public. I have to confess that I do some things that the book says don't do. The man who was absolutely correct in saying the strain screw should be tight. He was right on the money! I apologize for not making that clear in my previous post.
I should correst something I said about the Strain Screw. According to S&W, it should aways be tight, period. They say to adjust the trigger pull by filing the end of it down to adjust the pull. I have done that and then ordered 6 of those screws from Gil Hebard so I could replace them if it got a little too much off. I then went to adjusting them AFTER using Blue Locktite on the threads so as to keep them in place, but not allow them to back out. I would use Purple Loc-tite now, because I use that in the SA 1873 Tune-Ups that I still do for the public. I have to confess that I do some things that the book says don't do. The man who was absolutely correct in saying the strain screw should be tight. He was right on the money! I apologize for not making that clear in my previous post.
- Status
