Revolver experience needed

[nun2kute]

I, love my 1911's, but I must admit I'm drifting a bit. I have two S&W 629's in 44 mag that are a blast to shoot. And I have not had any problems with them at all, questions but no problems. Now I recently acquired a Model 25 in 45 Colt. Luckily I had brass on hand and some Hornady 250g XTP's so I put 8.6g of Power Pistol over a CCi LP primer. Have not Crono'd anything yet, but they seem to get there pretty quick. My pup loves chasing them. This morning while playing on the hillside, I had three light strikes. No BOOM ! First one by itself then one normal Launch then two in a row. I need to do some investigation with my trigger pull gauge still, but the trigger seems real light to me. All three lit after the second pounce. Now I can trouble shoot a 1911, tare it down to little pieces and clean it and make a good guess about what it needs, but I'm not entirely sure where to go with a wheel gun. Can I tighten some spring to make the hammer hit harder, or should I just change primers ? Other than pulling a trigger and changing grips, I have no experience with revolvers. Can anybody point me in the right direction ?

[Ozark mike]

I have personally never held that model in my hands but my opinion is the main spring could be to light either set up from age or some one replaced it in the past to lighten hammer and trigger pull. I would make sure you have the factory main spring in the gun first it's the spring between the grips. Then I would make sure all moving parts have a little oil so they move freely

[johniv]

Were the light strikes in DA or SA?

[onelight]

Is the main spring tension screw the screw on the front bottom of the grip frame tight.
Particularly if the gun was used it may have been loosened to lighten the trigger.
Something else to check is how much end play you have in the cylinder.

[Bazoo]

Three ways folks lighten smith revolvers trigger pull.

They turn out the strain screw at the bottom of the front strap. Old timers used to do this. Or they swap mainsprings for a lighter one, or mod the one they have. This requires a replacement. These two gives light strikes unless tuned specifically to the primers used. The third does not affect striking power but will result in poor reset, that is replacing the a triton block spring with a lighter one. 15 pounds is stock on all models I think, you can go down to 11.

[ShooterAZ]

Check the strain screw first. FYI, I have had some light strike FTF issues with CCI pistol primers before. Seems like they are harder than some others. Switching to Federal primers solved that problem for me.

[rfd]

use federal primers, lots of folks have had issues with light strikes on cci primers, including me and an S&W.

[bedbugbilly]

Never handled your model but do own a number of Smiths. I have a Combat Masterpice - DOB of about 1956 and I had the same issue with it as you are having. I removed the grips - checked the tension screw and it was of course screwed in all of the way - pulled it out and the end looked like a normal one you'd find - but - it was considerably shorter than what it should have been. As noted . . . a lot of folks played with the tension screw - and yes - the one on the inside of the grip at the bottom. I ordered a new tension screw - put it in and walla! No more misfires/light strikes.

[Greg S]

Check these items...

1. Fully seated primers
2. Debris in hammer slot not allowing hammer to fully drop
3. Loose strain screw. Two ways to adjust, blue loc-tite if not fully tightening the strain screw (non-permanent) or file the strain screw to the proper length for desired tension of mainspring and fully tighten. (U tube vid by Jerry Mc.. of changing S&W mainsprings)
4. Weak mainspring

[Winger Ed.]

I'd take the grips & cover plate off and clean it real well first.

Sometimes old oil & grease turns hard over time and will slow down the hammer's travel.

[nun2kute]

Haven't taken anything apart yet. Light strikes where in SA. My non-digital trigger guage broke consistently at 2.25 Lbs. I did look in the trigger slot and found nothing visible that I thought would deter hammer strikes.

[Plate plinker]

Thats awfully light. Other post are telling you what to look for. The factory mainspring has a significant arch, but the aftermarket lighter spring are nearly straight even when under tension from the strain screw the aftermarket spring has little arch.

[Budzilla 19]

Had a couple of Smith’s came into the shop with light strikes and FTF in SA mode. Strain screw was backed off on both, quick easy fix! May not be your problem but a definite place to start!!! Just my .02

[TNsailorman]

I use Federal primers on all my handguns, revolver or automatic. They have a reputation of going bang every time as long as the gun is set up right. The only time I have had problems with light strikes was when I first started competition many years ago and sent a really nice S&W N frame to a high dollar well known "pistol smith ". I ended up having to put factory springs back in it to get it to shoot reliable. Double action pull was measured by a friend at 5lbs and single action would not register reliable enough to get a good read. You just touch it and it was gone. Lesson learned. A 2 1/2 lb. trigger pull is pretty light even in single action mode. I consider a 3 1/2 lb. pull to be about as low as I want to go in single action as I do not want to hear click and no bang. I have had several N frame S&W's over the years and I have never had a Federal primer fail me. I am a bit of a nut when it comes to my reloads. When I first get a batch of brass I do the following before I load them the first time: I de-prime (if they have been fired), I uniform the primer pocket(to correct the depth and make sure it is flat), I de-burr the flash hole, I tumble the cases to clean them good, I re-size the cases, I trim the cases to a uniform length, I chamfer the mouth both inside and outside. Then I proceed to primer the case and load it. One thing your don't want in competition is a light strike or a hang fire, either of which can cost you a match. It could be even worse in a life and death situation. As mentioned in earlier posts, a light strike can be caused by a strain screw being incorrectly adjusted, old hardened oil and fuzz or grit, or someone doing a "trigger job" incorrectly. On a revolver, my experience has been that it is better to smooth an action a little than to lighten the trigger pull. Most S&W's that I have had (nearly all of them really) are just fine as they came from the factory. Colts are good also, just a little different feel to them. By the way, I shoot double action mostly. I seem to shoot double better than single action. my experience anyway, james

[bmortell]

both a new and used smith ive had light strike cci primers with stock spring and strain screw tight. I did the empty primer cup on the strain screw trick and they worked. didn't get federal primers cause, well I already had a lot of cci and my store don't sell them and don't want to pay shipping on em. the new one didn't light strike at first but it turns out that's only because the stock grips smash against the spring making it slightly stronger, which im assuming was a happy accident.

[edp2k]

Trick:
if someone did shorten the string screw too much, instead of buying a new one,
take a spent small pistol primer, remove the internal anvil, back he screw off,
put the primer cup over the end of the screw, and tighten.

Instant and cheap fix.

[Petrol & Powder]

I've seen a lot a Bubba "gunsmiths" back off the strain screw in their lame attempt to "adjust" the trigger pull. That's the first place I would look. That screw should be bottomed out and snug. As others have stated, some people shorten that screw, if that's the case the quick fix is to place a spent primer sans the anvil over the tip of the screw to add a little bit of length back.

[nun2kute]

I put the trigger gauge to use on one of the 629's and came up with 3.5 lbs. That is about rite to me. The strain screw is tight but I have no idea how long its supposed to be, and the main spring on the mod. 25 doesn't look ... well, asymmetrical ? Correct ? It doesn't have a smooth arch to it, looks bent in one spot. So I will be ordering a new one along with a strain screw just to make sure it is proper length.

[Froogal]

Those CCI primers are suspect. I had a large bunch of those that were duds. I started out using Winchester primers, went to CCI, and now I'm back to Winchester. Out of many thousands of rounds, I've experienced only one Winchester dud.

[slughammer]

I put the trigger gauge to use on one of the 629's and came up with 3.5 lbs. That is about rite to me. The strain screw is tight but I have no idea how long its supposed to be, and the main spring on the mod. 25 doesn't look ... well, asymmetrical ? Correct ? It doesn't have a smooth arch to it, looks bent in one spot. So I will be ordering a new one along with a strain screw just to make sure it is proper length.

Try measuring the strain screws on your 629's, they should all be the same.

A crook or a curve is the way people bend them to make them lighter. Along with this, folks sometimes clip coils off of the trigger return spring; so that's something else you should check for.
Curved vs Straight
https://i.imgur.com/Wlm7Mn9.jpg

Can your trigger pull gage check the double action pull weight? I've tuned many of these S&Ws for competition, range, hunting and defense.
I would measure 2 things related to the DA pull and I could tell a lot.
1. Measure the total DA pull weight. (8lb, 10lb, 12lb, ++++)
2. Remove the hammer spring and measure the force of the trigger return spring (at the trigger, with the spring still in the gun) (4lb, 5lb, 6lb)

[Shuz]

I put the trigger gauge to use on one of the 629's and came up with 3.5 lbs. That is about rite to me. The strain screw is tight but I have no idea how long its supposed to be, and the main spring on the mod. 25 doesn't look ... well, asymmetrical ? Correct ? It doesn't have a smooth arch to it, looks bent in one spot. So I will be ordering a new one along with a strain screw just to make sure it is proper length.

You are on the right track. Please let us know how the main spring and strain screw swap out worked.

[Bent Ramrod]

I have a 25-5 with a .45 Colt and a .45 ACP/Auto-Rim cylinder. No problems with the latter, but there were frequent light strikes/failures to fire with the former.

The strain screw was already pretty tight, but I found that if I held the trigger back, I could turn the screw in another quarter turn. That seems to have fixed the problem; the gun fires fine with both cylinders now.

The trigger pull doesn’t seem to be any heavier, and the spring doesn’t seem to be on the verge of breaking, so I guess it’s good.

[MostlyLeverGuns]

Had a model 25 in 45 Colt, a few other Smith's. Strain screw and mainspring fix/return to factory sounds good. CCI primers should never be a problem UNLESS you are set up for 'GAMING' and accept reliability issues. Smoothing/polishing the rebound slide and maybe a lighter rebound spring helps a great deal without compromising reliability in almost all S&W revolvers.

[Rich/WIS]

I use CCI almost exclusively and in many S&W revolvers with no problems. Check the screw as suggested and be sure your primers are bottoming out in the case. I shoot CCI in my 1911 45 with lighter springs to function with very light SWC loads and using a 19# vs 23# hammer spring the primer has only a light hit but have yet to have one not fire in at least 20K rounds. You might also check firing pin protrusion on the revolver, as well as headspace on the 45 Colt cylinder. Neither is likely an issue but at least you have eliminated some variables.

[Groo]

Groo here
Some primer seaters get loose or out of adj...
First thing, seat primer then rotate 180 degrees and seat again.
I have had this problem with 2 different hand primer tools .
They get loose and seat at an angle

[gwpercle]

First strike = no fire and second strike = fire is the classic primer not completely seated in the pocket sign. As soon as I started priming off the press with a hand held priming tool and making sure the primers were all the way down into the pocket....that stuff stopped. Doesn't cost anything ... just try it .
Gary

[funnyjim014]

I had to shim the main spring on my 64, I used a strip of brass(came from a name plate from a bowling trophy)it has a bobed hammer and is DAO, suspect the lighter hammer needed more spring. Been in there for 5yrs and never had a problem. My 929 screw backed off by itself. Loctight

[nun2kute]

My Misadventure in Revolverland ... I finally got time to mess with my mess. I ordered and received a new main spring and strain screw. But being the tinker-butt that I am decided to try the primer shim trick just to say I did, also because the strain screw is definitely NOT original length. Someone has definitely altered original parts. Got'r all back together and the Trigger wont reset without assistance. When the trigger is released, it kinda hangs up and doesn't return all the way. So I thought maybe some dirt or carbon had got inside and was causing havoc, tore it down again and couldn't find anything out of place, so I abandoned that idea and tried to install the new main spring, and couldn't figure out how to do that without bending it. So I hammered the other one as flat as I could (still has a slight curve to it) and reinstalled it with the new strain screw. And trigger will not reset without assistance. So I am assuming the trigger reset spring has been altered too. (?) On the bright side, that was the first side plate I've ever taken off. Little scary at first, but I got through it. So, can I get a spring kit, or do I need to order them individually ? Or is there something else I'm not seeing and need to look at ?

[slughammer]

Lots of folks buy a spring kit that comes with a new mainspring and 3 different return springs. But you can buy return springs separately also.

FYI I suspected that the return spring may have been cut. On a tuned gun I typically aim for half of the DA pull to come from the return spring to ensure proper reset. (DA = 8lb competition federal primers only, 10lb CCI/winchester, 12lb defense)

[Drm50]

(1) strain screw
(2) if main spring isn't a smooth arc it's a problem. You can usually feel a funny over the hump when shooting DA. Once deformed they will snap at any time.
(3) CCI primers have been known to have hard runs. Usually won't affect SAs but DAs set up light can have problems from misfires to ragged groups from un uniform ignition. I have only seen this in magnum pistol primers.

[RJM52]

Your gun is somewhere around 30-40 years old...and shot how much...

May need a new mainspring
May need a new mainspring tension screw
May need a new hammer if the firing pin is too worn
May have a headspace issue

The pull weight for a S&W on SA is usually very light and crisp. SA I have never had a problem with ANY make of primer or ammo in any Smith I have ever fired even with the strain screw was backed out...DA is another matter.

If you don't know Smith smithing well then I would see if there is a Smith in your area who can service it... If you are handy then I would suggest getting this book...

https://www.amazon.com/Revolvers-Shop-Manual-New-Expanded/dp/B00QVPEAE0/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=smith+and+wesson+manual&qid=1556151276&s=gateway&sr=8-1

Bob

[nun2kute]

First off, I'd like to thank ya'll for your help. I received a new rebound slide spring replacing the one that came with the gun which was about a quarter inch short. I have a new main spring but have not installed it yet. Reinstalled the original one (to me) after hammering the kinks in it out as best I could. The two mainsprings I have appear to be the same length, but the new one is straight and my fingers wouldn't fight it into place so I just put the other one back in. SA trigger pull is now 3.25 Lbs. I fired one cylinder goofing off at work today with no problems. Really like the trigger pull much better now. And the dents in those six primers look deeper to me than the previous ones.

@ RJM52 I like books, thanks for the link

[Ozark mike]

Isn't it nice when you can carry a gun to work and use it.

[RJM52]

The big test is when you try DA...if you look the hammer releases before it is all the way back giving less momentum to the firing pin strike...

I have settled on a 13# trigger return spring... It has nothing to do with hammer velocity and is the minimum I've found that one has reliable trigger return and smoother DA... You can get a test pack of springs from Brownells.. For a main spring I prefer the reliability of the standard factory spring....

Bob

[rfd]

with my relatively new 642 centennial, the trigger pull was about 14# but was not a real issue and staged well, and shot well. wanting a bit smoother trigger, i installed a wilson combat kit and now enjoy a 10# trigger that's much smoother than before, no problem setting off even cci primers, but still stages well for that pseudo single action feel.

[nun2kute]

I went up the canyon with my pup today and finished unloading that first 100 rounds I made, no issues. That was all SA. I'll have to play with the DA later after I get something cast or bought to continue my adventure. Seems pretty close to my 629's now. What I'm accustomed to.