I'm sure this might seem silly to a lot of you but......

waco

Springfield, Oregon
I just learned how to remove the cylinder from my S&W M29
I always just assumed it was a very complicated process.
Oh how wrong I was..........
I feel rather stupid to be quite honest. I need to learn to embrace the internet more.
There really is a lot of good info out there if you look for it.
Like I said, I feel kinda silly posting this but maybe someone else can learn from it as well.
If nothing else, my .44 is cleaner than it has ever been!
Walter
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
That is simple. I can see a good cleaning coming for the 624.
 

Ian

Notorious member
I don't know why, but my brain substituted "barrel" for "cylinder", though the delight and unique feeling of "Wow, I can actually do this!!" is very similar.

Here's another tip: If you have a copy by JP Sauer and Sohn, the base pin threads are right-hand. Also, if you go cranking on the pin to remove the ejector, make sure you have six fired cases from that particular cylinder and insert them all fully in the chambers as a back-up so you don't twist off the two alignment pins when unscrewing the rod.
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
And Waco, this is anything but silly. This is the kind of stuff that makes most of us say "It's really that simple?" I figured it was far more involved to remove the cylinder from an S&W revolver.

I really appreciate the link.
 

Hawk

North Central Texas
I'm a huge Smith & Wesson revolver fan. I own eight of them. (not a big collection by some standards. Mine are all shooters.)
Removal of the cylinder makes them much easier to clean.
 

USSR

Finger Lakes Region of NY
Do yourself a favor and remove the other 2 screws, remove the side plate, and replace the rebound slide spring with a 14# one. A very easy to do trigger job.

Don
 

Pistolero

Well-Known Member
Beware of the rebound spring. Without a (not too hard to make) special tool, it can be
a PITA. With the relatively simple tool, it is simple. Easy to take apart......can be a real
fight to put back.

Ask me how I learned this. :rolleyes:

Bill
 

KeithB

Resident Half Fast Machinist
The sideplate on a S&W is to be removed by inertia, not a screwdriver or pry bar.
 

Pistolero

Well-Known Member
YES, what Kieth said!!!! Key point.
Don - I KNEW there was some trick to that that I was missing. :rolleyes:

If anyone wants to know about the tool, I will check for the dimensions. Sort of a bent
rod with a notch in the end. Makes easy work out of a 3 handed "SPROING, tick, tick" kind of job.

Hey, Don, I'm an NRA metallic cartridge reloading instructor, too. :) My class had
a bunch of folks from Sierra, Hodgdon and Hornady....THAT was a fun class.
 

fiver

Well-Known Member
those smiths sure are super similar to the old Rossi revolvers.
not the Taurus-Rossi's the actual Rossi's.
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
Worked like a charm for me. The 624 cylinder is cleaner than it has been since I got it from Rick.
Remove cylinder, chuck up a nylon bristle brush in drill, add some solvent, and spin away in each chamber. Patch out, and done.
 

Ian

Notorious member
Being able to soak the cylinder in a sealed glass container of your favorite penetrating solvent is priceless.
 

Rick

Moderator
Staff member
Worked like a charm for me. The 624 cylinder is cleaner than it has been since I got it from Rick.
Remove cylinder, chuck up a nylon bristle brush in drill, add some solvent, and spin away in each chamber. Patch out, and done.

Not quite done. It needs to be lubricated everywhere there is metal to metal contact. Never run the cylinder dry. I mostly use Mobil 1 synthetic wheel bearing grease because it doesn't dry out like a lot of greases can/do if the gun is stored for a long time.
..
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
I used a bit of oil and grease on moving parts. I will be shooting again soon so I used some oil I use for guns. I added little grease on the part of the crane the cylinder spins on. I like a light grease or oil so the grunge stays loose and fluid.

The frame opening got a good cleaning too. The bore got a single dry patch just so I could see the forcing cone better to check for leading. There was none.

For a revolver that hasn't had a really good cleaning in over 1500 rounds I was still pretty good.