Finally a 625

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

The last time I saw a S & W 625 JM was almost 3 years ago at a time when my pockets had nothing but lint in them. Yesterday I stopped in a shop that I go to whenever I'm passing by, because it's about 30 miles from my house, and there it was, a shiny new 625 JM that was test fired at the factory on 5/5/15. I called the guy over and said "I'll take it." He looked surprised. I said, "I'm sure you don't remember me but I come in every few months and occasionally buy a gun but I always ask if you have, or can get, a 625 JM." I could see that a light came on in his head. So he gave me a bit of a discount and it was mine.

[Maximumbob54]

No pictures of said 625 JM? I feel somehow robbed...

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

Coming soon.

[Artful]

First - Congratulations - I think you'll enjoy it a lot.
But 2nd....

Don't try and push the 625 to be a magnum - PLEASE
S&W rep at NRA show told me the steel isn't the same
nor is the heat treatment as the magnum revolvers.
as evidenced by these photo's

http://gunman.biz/wp-content/uploads//2011/07/blownsw625jm011.jpg

http://gunman.biz/wp-content/uploads//2011/07/blownsw625jm021.jpg

http://gunman.biz/wp-content/uploads//2011/07/blownsw625jm031.jpg

Some advocate boring the cylinder to shot 460 Rowland, or shooting .45 Super loads.
I advise against it.
Some say you can load the .45 Auto Rim brass hotter than .45 ACP standard Pressures of 18,000 to 21,000 PSI -
I don't advise that either.
And remember the case volume between 45 Auto Rim and 45 ACP are different! Adjust your loads accordingly.

[bouncer50]

Is S&W using cast steel now instead of forge steel like they use too.

[Dale53]

I have no idea what caused that horrible loss, but it has all of the classic look of a double charged case.

I have a pair of 625's including a 625-8 JM Special. My standard target load is 4.0 grs of Bullseye (or equivalent - currently Titegroup) behind a Mihec mold for the #68 H&G bullet (WW+2% tin) sized at .452". My accuracy runs well under 1" at 25 yards from a rest. I would have to guess that I have run somewhat north of 30,000 rounds through my pair of 625's without issue or signs of wear. I DO have a "heavy" load but seldom shoot it as I don't hunt anymore (too old and feeble to drag a deer out of the woods). However, 7.0 grs of Unique behind a Lyman 454424 sized at .452" (my NOE version weighs at 250 grs) chronographs at 900+ fps. That is well within the limits of this revolver for continuous use. Elmer Keith used 7.5 grs of Unique behind the same bullet (as published in the early Lyman manuals) but 7.0 is enough for me. Again, I seldom need heavy loads as my work these days is at the range. However, I mention it as it would make a dandy defense load. I might mention that Lee's 230 gr truncated cone bullet (I use the regular lube groove) makes for a really rapid reload when used in full moon clips. Those TC bullets slip into the gun like a grease eel! Loaded to hardball specs, they will have considerably better terminal effect with that rather large flat nose. SWC bullets do not load quickly. They work well for range and hunting use but the bullet shoulder hangs up on the chambers when attempting a speed load.

If you treat your revolver well, it'll be in good shape for generations!

Brian Pearce has an excellent article on the .45 Auto Rim with hunting loads in Handloader (August-September 2008). I use both .45 ACP cases (with both steel clips and Rimz hydrocarbon/polymer clips). The steel clips require tools to use and the Rimz clips can be easily loaded and unloaded with the fingers) and .45 Auto Rim cases. I use Starline .45 Auto Rim cases (buy in quantity from them direct and save money). Starline makes several runs a year but you may have to wait until they come up again. Until then, just use .45ACP cases.

Regarding .45 ACP cases, I prefer military but they do require swaging the primer pockets (a one time affair). After 100+ years of using large primer pockets, the military cases are currently small primers (Gr-r-r-r:twisted:). You DO have to watch out for those. They work well but it's another aggravation when you are running a progressive press to have to change out, etc.

Again, congratulations on acquiring a great revolver.

FWIW
Dale53

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

First - Congratulations - I think you'll enjoy it a lot.
But 2nd....

Don't try and push the 625 to be a magnum - PLEASE
S&W rep at NRA show told me the steel isn't the same
nor is the heat treatment as the magnum revolvers.
as evidenced by these photo's

http://gunman.biz/wp-content/uploads//2011/07/blownsw625jm011.jpg

http://gunman.biz/wp-content/uploads//2011/07/blownsw625jm021.jpg

http://gunman.biz/wp-content/uploads//2011/07/blownsw625jm031.jpg

Some advocate boring the cylinder to shot 460 Rowland, or shooting .45 Super loads.
I advise against it.
Some say you can load the .45 Auto Rim brass hotter than .45 ACP standard Pressures of 18,000 to 21,000 PSI -
I don't advise that either.
And remember the case volume between 45 Auto Rim and 45 ACP are different! Adjust your loads accordingly.

This gun was bought purely for target and plinking. So only light and medium loads.

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

Regarding .45 ACP cases, I prefer military but they do require swaging the primer pockets (a one time affair). After 100+ years of using large primer pockets, the military cases are currently small primers (Gr-r-r-r:twisted:). You DO have to watch out for those. They work well but it's another aggravation when you are running a progressive press to have to change out, etc.


Dale53

I'll actually be using federal small primer brass so that I can leave my 550b set up for small primers

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

141580

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

Shown with moon clips full of the only factory ammo it will see, when I get a gun fresh from the factory I like to put a box of factory through it just for a baseline test.

[imashooter2]

Congrats! the 625 is a favorite of mine.
<=========

Call Ranch Products direct and you can get 100 moon clips for $35 delivered.

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

Congrats! the 625 is a favorite of mine.
<=========

Call Ranch Products direct and you can get 100 moon clips for $35 delivered.

Very good to know.

[imashooter2]

And if you have a golf course near you, ask at the pro shop for a broken club shaft. You can make a very handy demooning tool with one by notching the end similar to the tools Brownell's sells.

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

I actually already ordered the browning tool. for $15 I will have it sooner than I will have time to make something similar.

[Maximumbob54]

Very nice. You really lucked out with a nice cut of wood in the Hogue. Since you are only doing target shooting you might try some Rimz clips. They work more than well enough for range work.

[imashooter2]

It is true that the Rimz work well for the range and require no tools. I'm an old USPSA shooter and never consider anything but steel. :oops:

[jeepyj]

Very nicly done! I've been working on my 625 target loads. 45s are Interesting wheelgun for sure!
Congratulations on you nice find.
jeepyj

[BigAl52]

I will second the Rimz clips they are great and there all I use in my 625. It also happens to be one of my favorite revolvers. I shoot it regular at the indoor range and I am not sorry I bought it at all. I am now looking at the 929 just because I have enjoyed shooting the 625 so much. Al

[EDK]

Back in the "gun of the week" period from S&W, I scored a 5 inch 625 and later, a 3 inch. Great guns. They got the 5.8 of 231 and H&G 68 load that was fashionable for 45 ACP in the day. I need to crank up the full wadcutter mould from NOE and see how that works in them.

[Petrol & Powder]

I don't know who destroyed that 625 but, "ouch!"
That looks like a factory cut away training model that was obtained the hard way. That does look like a double or maybe even triple charge of a fast powder. You can still see the moon clip intact in the rims of the cartridges. Note that the expended cartridge casing to the right (as viewed in the photograph) is crushed and deformed but the next live cartridge to the left is separated but not crushed. The fact that the cylinder had already failed when that cartridge was ignited probably helped to reduce the containment (and therefore pressure) of that additional powder. That was a very bad day for someone, Hope they came out of that intact.
Outside of that very unfortunate example, I believe the 45 ACP revolver is a cool concept, particularly with full moon clips.

[Thumbcocker]

FWIW hollow point moulds offers the Lee 230 TC as a two cavity hp. Also a .45 colt Dillon shell plate will load AR brass if you turn the shell plate upside down.

[MtGun44]

Ah, it appears to be another victim of the dreaded .45 ACP double charge
disease. Having done ONE double charge, and worked for the next
34 years to ensure that I do not repeat it, I can sympathize with the
relatively easy to do error. Ya'll be careful out there, with many
powders, a TRIPLE charge will fit in the .45 ACP case!

Fortunately, my error was done with a Gold Cup and except for
the grips, the magazine and my ego, no damage was done.

VERY sad to see such a fine gun destroyed that way.

Bill

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

It's time for an update after a month and about 1000 rounds.

First, almost every screw on the gun backed out, during one shooting session the screw that holds the cylinder crane in place backed out to the point that when I opened the cylinder with the gun tipped forward the crane and cylinder slid out onto my shooting bench. That was the end of the that, I cleaned the gun, took out all the screws and applied generous amounts of blue loctite. (note, my computer insists on correcting loctite to lactate. Quite frustrating.)

It is extremely accurate and has one of the cleanest barrels I've seen come out of any factory in a while, minimal tooling or machining marks, many of which have already been polished out through normally firing.

With the lyman 452460 over either 4.3 grains of Bullseye or 4.4 of 700X I can obliterate a 10 ring at 25 yards.

I did have to increase my taper crimp from .472 (setting for my 1911) to .469 to prevent the last round in the chamber from jumping the crimp a millimeter or two.

Last weekend i started having one FTF every other moon clip or so - light primer strikes. After 250 rounds I was getting 3 or 4 FTFs per moon clip. I did some reading around on the forums, took the grip off, and alas, I missed the mainspring strain screw when I was applying loctite, and like every other screw on the gun, it too had backed out. Cleaned, loctite, tightened, problem solved.

[DR Owl Creek]

141580



Very nice! Congrats!

Dave

[stubbicatt]

Couple weeks ago I retrieved my 22-4 from the gunsmith. It needed a lot of TLC. Seems all the chambers/charging holes were too small, and 2 were out of round. This prevented me from shooting any cast bullets. He reamed them all and chamfered the charging holes, did an action job, and recut the forcing cone. It is a sweet shooter!

[EDK]

The 625-2 models that were the first ones out of the factory back in 1988? had a problem with the charge holes. The factory rep at the Masters in Barry IL told me that they had to have new chambering reamers made up for 45 ACP revolver tooling. The old gentleman who hand ground them was long retired, so one of the next generation made them. He neglected to put a slight chamfer on the cutting edge. Fire a cylinder or three of lead boolit reloads and you couldn't chamber any more until you cleaned the chambers. After numerous complaints, they went to see the retiree. He took one look at the reamer, laughed at the young guys, and told them what was wrong. Factory warranty stations were sent reamers to correct the problem and it was a quick fix.
I don't know how much of the story was true, but my 5 inch gun was a PITA until they ran the reamer through it.

[imashooter2]

My -8 has had many thousands of boolits through it with nary a problem and a large portion of those shots were at USPSA matches with reloads on the clock.