What do do with this 608 issue....

[duck911]

Hi all,

I have a Taurus 608 (.357 8 shot) and I love the gun - when it works. it really has a great trigger and is a pussycat to shoot .357's out of. However, it rarely works for more than a few rounds.

I believe I have a cylinder gap issue between the cylinder face and forcing cone:

1) When the gun is clean, I can dry fire it all day long and it functions perfect
2) When firing the gun, within a handful of shots, the gun begins binding up
-- trigger is really tough (almost impossible) to pull in DA
-- hammer is really tough (almost impossible) to pull in SA
3) I can clearly see scrape marks on the cylinder face and forcing cone
4) to replicate the problem, with a dirty gun I can dry fire towards the ceiling of my living room all day long, but when I point the gun to the floor it periodically binds. When it binds, I can see ZERO space between the forcing cone and the cylinder.

I the cylinder does not have but maybe a couple thousands play front to back, although the floor/ceiling test makes me think that may contribute to the problem. I believe the real problem is that the gap clearance is super tight and the heat and fouling from shooting is causing the issue.

So, I want the gun to function properly, but I do not want to send it to taurus only to wait 6 months for the gun back. I just called them and caught one of their reps at 5:55 PM their time and I could clearly tell he was ready to go HOME.

I am perfectly willing to pay a fair amount for a competent smith to look at the gun, and do whatever is necessary to fix the gun so it will be done in a reasonable timeframe.

Any ideas? I live in Loveland but would travel to Denver...

thanks,

--Duck911

 

[Jim K]

There is a tool called a 90 degree chamfer tool that is used to trim the barrel and increase the barrel/cylinder gap, but not all gunsmiths have one, and they are too expensive to buy for a one-off job. A really good smith might be able to do the job with a file, but it takes some practice to get a straight cut.

I suspect that the binding is not caused by dirt, but by linear expansion of the cylinder when it heats up from firing. A lot of folks believe the tighter the b/c gap the better, but too little can cause problems also.

Check with your local gunsmiths and see how much the job will cost and if they have the tool.

Jim