Smith And Wesson Spacers

[johnny blaze]

I need some spacers (shims, bearings) not exactly sure what they are called, for correcting endshake on a Smith and Wesson. I cannot find them anywhere.
Also, what thickness are they available in?
Any information would be appreciated.

 

[highorder]

www.brownells.com

their search function is horrendous. give them a phone call and they will fix you right up.

 

[johnny blaze]

Thanks, I will try that.

 

[Old Fuff]

Be aware that doing the job right requires more then dropping a bearing (washer?) into the cylinder. You need to ream the inside of the yoke barrel (on which the cylinder revolves) and square the end with a second tool. After putting the bearing inside the cylinder replace the yoke and give the front of it a sharp rap with a plastic-headed hammer. Needless to say you don't do this with the extractor, center rod and extractor rod in place...

Then reassemble the extractor, put the yoke and cylinder back on the frame, and check for end shake. Add an additional bearing if necessary, and repeat the above.

 

[johnny blaze]

I called Brownells and they could not find the parts. Also checked the web site with nothing found.
Anyone have the part number for these?
Old Fuff - what tools do I need to ream the yoke barrel and square the end?
I called S&W about fixing this under warranty. The guy told me that I cannot expect them to fix a 17 year old revolver. He said that it would have went bad long before this.
I told him that I had not shot it much and the lock up is tight, but the play is about .010.
He said that I could send it back in, but they would probably charge me 100.00 to fix it.Did not offer a free shipping deal. So much for repairing a almost new old Smith and Wesson. The guy was really short with me.
Found a almost new cylinder assembly, but was told that it would have to be fitted to fit this revolver.
Is it that hard to fit a cylinder. There is a thread on here now that touches on it, but not much information. Is this something that can be done by me?
Thanks

 

[highorder]

I just took a look at the Brownells catalog, and everything you need, aside from the know-how is here:

http://www.powercustom.com/

 

[HammerBite]

Link to endshake bearings at Brownells.

It took about three seconds to find them.

 

[Old Fuff]

johnny blaze:

Fitting a new cylinder isn't a practical option, and overally expensive as well.

Hold on, and I'll get back with the information you need later.

 

[johnny blaze]

Thanks everyone for the information.
Old Fuff - I'll be waiting for your information,

 

[BBBBill]

Just be aware that you can get it too tight. Zero endshake sounds nice, but can result in a gun that ties up from heat expansion when shot. Also, depending on the fit of your ratchet, your headspace may close to the point that rims will drag/bind on the breach face, maybe to the point that you can't even close the cylinder. None of that is insurmountable. You just have to understand the way everything is supposed to fit so that you don't change something critical in the process.

 

[johnny blaze]

That is a good point.
I read somewhere that the head space should not over .009 and should be between .003 to .006. Is that correct?
I am still trying to figure out the whole headspace problem and how it is caused.
And the fact of shimming it and what that actually does, (reMoves some of the play in the cylinder).
I know that my cylinder when opened, has a lot of movement on the rod, way too much.
I know that I can take it to a gun smith, and maybe get a good job. But, just like a 45 I worked on, I learned a lot about them, and how they worked. I really like to learn new things.
I have several books here trying to educate myself.
I just read that there is several ways to fix this problem, one is with shims. The groove that the cylinder made must be removed and the end of the rod squared.
The other way involves a lot of tools, stretching metal, etc.

 

[Old Fuff]

The depth of the hub on the extractor determines headspace. Hopefully no one has fooled with this on your gun. Cylinder endshake allows the cylinder to creep forward, and increases the headspace – which is one reason it needs to be corrected. Endshake is back and forth movement of the cylinder (as opposed to rotational movement). When the cylinder is open it can move backwards to a considerable degree, but this doesn’t matter so long as it can’t jump over the lug in the frame at the bottom/rear of the cylinder window.

The tools and Brownells part numbers are listed below. Be aware that the tools as well as the bearings are not inexpensive. If you do indeed have .010” of endshake I’d buy the .004” size bearings, and use 2.

The screwdriver set is optional, but if you are going to do much work the screwdrivers are necessary. Otherwise you’ll ruin the screw heads.

Kuhnhausen’s manual is a must! Without it you can easily ruin something that will cost much more then the book. Read it until you understand it.

Besides these things you will need a set of feeler gauges and a plastic-headed mallet or hammer. Any hardware store or automobile parts & tools shop can fix you up.

#713-100-002 Power Custom endshake bearings: (K-frame/.002”)
#713-100-004 Power Custom endshake bearings: (K-frame/.004”)

#713-030-000 Power Custom Yoke Facing Reamer:
#080-627-000 Yoke/Crane I.D. Reamer

#080-088-003 S&W screwdriver set

#924-100-001 Kuhnhausen S&W Shop Manual