S&W Mdl 10-5 question

[Wayne Smith]

New to me S&W mdl 10-5 that I just got and went through Outpost's check of functioning and it appeared to pass in all regards - but this is the first time I've done it and probably screwed up some stuff. Anyway, took it to the woods Monday to shoot for the first time and, while it has a beautifully soft double action it will also turn past the bolt stop? and lock up. This does not happen when firing but when I close the cylinder and turn it to index.

I'm guessing the bolt stop or bolt stop spring - if there is such a thing - is the culprit.

If it matters I was shooting a 148gr button nose wadcutter in front of 2.3gr BE.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Just going by what you've described it does sound like a weak, bent, or cruddy bolt stop spring. Anyway, that's a good place to start. But I'm a little mystified by your statement that it passes it and then locks up, as the bolt stop is part of the locking process. If you fire it single action, when the hammer is cocked you should see the bolt stop in it's upward position locked into a bolt stop slot in the cylinder. When you close the cylinder and turn it slightly until it locks up, it locks up because the rotation is stopped by the bolt stop. Otherwise, it would spin freely. A properly operating bolt stop is very quick and snappy, so if yours happens to be working properly maybe you're just not seeing it pop up?

DG

[JMax]

Perform the 4 way cylinder stop function check. First make sure it is unloaded. Open the cylinder and hold the revolver in your firing hand. Pull back the thumb piece and hold it to the rear. Pull the trigger double action and watch the cylinder stop, it should drop below the frame top surface and pop back up, slowly release the trigger and the stop should move forward towards the muzzle and the back to the rear. Down, up, forward and back.

Check timing, make sure that the revolver is unloaded, insert three empties with an empty chamber between empty cases or dummies. Close the cylinder and slowly pull the trigger double action. The cylinder stop should pop up into the stop notch and have a slight resistance after it is in the notch as the trigger is pulled to the rear before the hammer falls.

Throw by, with the empties still in the cylinder and the revolver is still un-loaded pull the trigger rapidly to make sure the the stop engages the notch locking the cylinder in place before the hammer falls, if it skips on any cylinder then the cylinder stop and its spring needs to be replaced and the stop fit to the revolver.

[Outpost75]

Great feedback Gentlemen! Bravo Zulu All Hands.

[Wayne Smith]

Now all I need is the time to get to it!

[Wayne Smith]

Got to it. It passed all the above checks. I will have to take it out and shoot it more to see how it functions. Last week in the woods we were hot and tired - very hot and humid that day. When the range opens and I have time to take it I will report back on it. It only failed after shooting about 70 rounds and with a full cylinder - closing the loaded cylinder and indexing it was when it failed.

[Petrol & Powder]

Wayne, I'm not sure I understand the issue. Are you saying that when you close the cylinder it rotates freely and doesn't lock?
But the cylinder indexes and locks properly when the action is cycled in DA?

If I understand the issue (and there's a chance I don't) that just sounds like a sticky cylinder stop. When you close the cylinder, the cylinder stop is being pushed down from the top by the exterior of the cylinder as opposed to being pulled down by the trigger when the action is cycled. So while the cylinder stop may function perfectly normal when acted upon by the trigger, it occasionally sticks when acted upon force applied from the opposite direction. You can sometimes duplicate this by opening the cylinder and pushing the cylinder stop down with your finger. If it stays down or is sluggish as it raises back up, you will have your answer. I have seen cylinder stops that will work perfectly when pulled down by the trigger but will hang up when the force is applied from the top.

This condition is often caused by old gummy, dried oil or a small burr in the "window" or on the cylinder stop itself. The solution is generally very simple and just requires cleaning. If cleaning doesn't fix the issue, you can disassemble the gun and check the cylinder stop and the window in the frame. You never want to remove material from the stop or open up that window but sometimes cleaning up a small burr or machining mark will fix the issue.

[JMax]

70 rounds is a clue, look for powder residue trapped underneath the extractor. Powders like Clays, Bullseye, TiteGroup and 231 Are all low residue with Clays leading the pack. Also unload the revolver, take the grips off, cock the hammer and spray out the lock work, let it dry and lube with BreakFree or other suitable lube, not WD40. Then try again.

[Wayne Smith]

No, this only happened twice and both times when I had loaded it with a full cylinder and closed it and tried to index it. Since this is a returned police gun? from overseas I'm willing to assume that any burrs have worn off?

The gun was working normally for approximately 80 rounds prior to the above happening. It fired fine once I cleared the first lockup - by opening the cylinder and closing it again. Once it happened the second time around - the next cylinder full - I stopped shooting it and put it up. We had multiple other guns to shoot, after all. Both times with a full cylinder it turned past the index - where the cylinder stop should have stopped it - and locked up the hammer and trigger. I hope this better describes what happened.

[JMax]

It sounds like the rebound may not be returning and is consistent with hammer/trigger locking up. I would clean and lube like I described. And burrs should have been knocked off by now. Another possibility is that a trigger or hammer pins were not completely seated and dragging on the frame or side plate and starting to gall. Remotely it could also be yoke alignment. I live in No VA near Culpepper and if this continues we could meet and I could go thru it for you.

[Petrol & Powder]

Wayne if you have the tools and knowledge, I think all that model 10 needs is a good cleaning.

[Thin Man]

As long as you are cleaning this revolver, locate a set of very small screwdrivers. You know the kind: 6-7 drivers in a flip-top box to be used for very small screws as in glasses stem screws, etc. Find the driver with a blade that will barely fit the width of the cylinder's stop notches and gently scrape all of the grunge out of those notches. Follow that with Q-tips wet with bore cleaner to remove the last of the grunge and you are finished with them. This cleaning will help guarantee cylinder stop engagement and function and bring you a smile.