A sad day yesterday.

[Mag357]

It's been a while since I have posted I got in to casting two years ago and finally got a lode going for my 357mag Aster.
And so I was sighting it in for deer season and it jam on me the wheel still goes around like it should, fires like it should, but just won't open.
So I got home and 2 or 3 good wacks with a soft rubber screwdriver ( could not find the soft hammer) got it open and took a good look at it and the throat for the berrle was crack .
I have slug it and all my cambers are .356 and so is my barrel I have size my boolits down to .357.
any exclamation on to why this happened?
And it did not appear to have been out of tune.
264993
264996

[Texas by God]

Cracked on the bottom doesn’t suggest a timing issue. Must have been an ammunition issue. Astra made quality guns; that is sad. I’m glad that you weren’t injured. Looks like you have a “ parts gun” now.

[Dusty Bannister]

https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/astra-357-revolver-what-is-it.319090/

Comments suggest this company is no longer in business. Parts will be difficult to find.

[rintinglen]

Spanish metallurgy was never quite the best, and even Astra, which was one of the better Manufacturers, did not equal the quality of American name makers. That barrel cracked as result of metal fatigue resulting from the stress of repeated impacts on the forcing cone by the 357 magnum bullets. I have seen enough damaged or rather failed Spanish revolvers over the years that your revolver's condition doesn't surprise me.
But I have seen similar cracks on two S&W's, a M-19 and an M-13, and have seen photographs of two more, including a magnificent repair done to a Triple lock 455 that had been damaged by heavy loads.
If a barrel can be found, it can be installed by most any competent gunsmith. However, the cost of repairs might easily be double the value of the gun.

[Silver Jack Hammer]

Interesting process of diagnosing from symptom to cause. When a DA revolver won’t open I assume the ejector rod has backed out. Thanks for posting.

Don’t forget, this may be an opportunity to “need” to buy another gun, don’t pass it up.

[littlejack]

Mag357
Back in 1972. I bought a Smith & Wesson model 57 .41 magnum. In the last 48 years, I have shot literally tens of thousands of rounds through this piece. Here about three months ago, I was cleaning it after a shooting session, and low and behold, I found a crack in the top of the forcing cone (180° from where your crack is). So I took it to my gunsmith and had him remove the barrel and check out the frame to make sure nothing was wrong, and would accept another barrel. A new 6" finally popped up on fleabay. There had been 4" and 8 3/8" barrels, but the six inchers were as scarce as a pair of chicken lips. This one is new old stock. Never mounted on a frame. It is now at the smithy being mounted. That revolver was 212.50 new. The new barrel was 249.00 shipped. Ouch!!!
But, I'm happy, that 57 and I have lots of history.
Regards

[Vdubman27]

Ok so I’m not much of a revolver guy so this may sound like a dumb question but is the forcing cone part of the frame? Barrel or neither? Can it be replaced? I see lots of parts kits on gunbroker

[swheeler]

Vdubman27 the forcing cone is a taper machined in the barrel end closest to the cylinder, you replace the barrel to get rid of a crack as above.

[swheeler]

Even though it may show out of stock online I would call, "just in case" stranger things have happened.https://www.gunpartscorp.com/products/549050

[Baltimoreed]

The forcing cone IS the bbl, the first thing that the bullet hits after leaving the case [second thing if it touches the step in the cylinder and/or get swaged down a hair]. When it hits the thin forcing cone it engages the lands and grooves in the bbl which gives the bullet its spin. There’s a lot of force there, magnums create more than non magnums. You might find a cut up parts gun to rob a good bbl from but you might buy another Astra revolver and then you’ll have some spare parts. But as another poster said retire it and find a good police trade in or spend your stimulus on a new Smith.

[Larry Gibson]

What was the load you "settled" on?

[swheeler]

If you can not find a barrel have the cracked one cut off, re-threaded, new forcing cone cut and installed. If it was a 6 inch now you have a 5 inch :-) John Taylor on here comes to mind.

[littlejack]

He may not be able to have the barrel set back far enough to remove the crack, and still have the ejector rod still function properly. The ejector rod would have to be shortened by the same amount that the barrel was set back. I could be wrong, I dont know what that procedure would entail. Anyone clarify?

[Mag357]

Larry the short answer is 13.5gr of alliant 2400.
Now the long answer.
Cylinders as 1 through 6 slug @.356
The bore slug @.355 (I Know I said .356 earlier but I got my Data book).
Lead wheel weights.
158gr Asanal mode Keith style boolits
Cast at .359 size down in two steps .358 then down to the final.357 and water quench.
And yes I can push the boolits through the cylinders with a light pressure from a small rod or pencil.

Working up the lode with the Lyman cast boolits handbook.
158GR boolits lode Min is 12.2 max 13.5 40,800 cpu
First lode firing
12.5 gr AV velocity 1243 ft#540 SD 30
There was no signs of pressure on the casings.
13GR AV velocity 1253 FT#541 SD 27.
Still no signs of pressure.
13.5GR AV velocity 1255 FT# 548 SD 12.
The pramer was lightly flattened.
For each round of lode test I did I only shot one look at the cassing for signs of pressure before I went on to shoot the next five rounds and after I shot all six I look at all the cassing for any signs of high pressure or blow back.

[onelight]

That issue may have been developing for a while and finely reached the point it can't be overlooked .
I have seen a cracked Smith like that and it was was hard to see with the naked eye.

[jrayborn]

Hard to tell from those two photo's but it looks like the forcing cone is not concentric to the bore, or perhaps the bore is not concentric to the chamber. Looks to be more wear near the crack than away from it. Again, being able to only see the two photo's makes this diagnosis problematic...

[smithnframe]

Check Numrich arms for a replacement barrel for your Astra.

[wv109323]

It looks like a chunk of the forcing cone is missing and not a simple crack. That would indicate a metallurgy problem more than an over stressed area.

[Mag357]

Thank you all for your help and I have heard that Astar could take 357's but not all the time.
But any who it's a paperweight for now or maybe I can make a shadow box for it that would be nice.

[Mag357]

Don’t forget, this may be an opportunity to “need” to buy another gun, don’t pass it up.

My thoughts exactly;-)

[Jtarm]

Mag357
That revolver was 212.50 new. The new barrel was 249.00 shipped. Ouch!!!


I can see you’re in terrible financial distress, so let me take the gun and barrel off your hands and you can recoup that $461.50. I’ll even pay shipping.

[Drm50]

I’ve seen this in two guns. The Hi-Standard Power Mag 357s and Astras in 357. I don’t know maybe Astra made the revolvers for Hi Standard. Their revolvers never were in class with their autoloading pistols. I had a Hi Standard 44mag NIB and never shot it. It didn’t seem like a 44mg class gun. I don’t like to shoot full power magnums in S&Ws let alone 2nd rate stuff.

[swheeler]

They sound like junk, probably best to dispose of it!;-)

[littlejack]

Jtarm
Thank you for the offer. I'll have to pass. As I said, that 57 and I have a lot of history. I guess you could say, He's my "Wilson". Lol
Even though the sticker shock for the barrel was emense, I have only great anticipation, waiting for the piece and heading to the range.