[Vladimir Berkov]

I got my S&W military and police in! And it is sweet, but I hear a rattle inside the gun somewhere and apparently this is some sort of hammer block safety which can be silenced with a dab of grease.

What type of screwdriver should I use to take the sideplate off, and are there any instructions on how to do this properly and put it back together again?

This is my first revolver, so I really don't know what I am doing.

[Thirties]

Vlad, you may be hearing the rattle of the firing pin which is normal. With the gun empty, cock the trigger and wiggle the firing pin a bit. It should have a very small ammount of play (the pin itself, not the hammer). That may be what you are hearing.

Others may add more to this...

[mete]

NEVER pry the side plate off !! Remove screws. Hold in one hand side plate down, strike grip frame with mallet , side plate should drop into your palm. Find an exploded view drawing so you know the parts and where they go. Check gunsmithing books for other procedures.

[Mike Irwin]

If it's post 1944ish or so, it will have the new hammer block, which is an L-shaped piece of metal riding in a cut in the sideplate.

It can slop around freely and so makes a noise.

The firing pin normally doesn't have enough play one way or another to make any noise. If it does, I'd be looking at replacing it.

You need a set of gunsmithing screwdrivers.

Use the bit that properly fits each screw, both blade thickness and blade width.

Use a short-handled screwdriver, which will give you greater control and less chance of "skipping" and digging a furrow in the side of the gun.

Remove each screw, and keep them in order so that you can put each one back in the hole where it originally came from!

That's very important, as several of the screws are hole-specific.

To remove the sideplate, hold the gun in your hand, with your thumb lightly over top of the side plate.

With a wooden block, such as the handle of a hammer, smartly and squarely strike the grip frame. This will "bounce" the sideplate out of place, allowing you to gain access to the lock work.

NEVER EVER pry the side plate off! You'll damage it and the gun, and possibly warp the sideplate to the point where it's no longer usable.

[dfariswheel]

A little more help:

Correct, (and VERY high-grade) screwdrivers bits and handles can be bought from Brownell's Gunsmith Supply at:

http://www.brownells.com

They sell expensive complete sets, OR specialty S&W-specific small sets, OR just individual bits. These will be perfect fits for your gun.

All S&W owners own it to themselves to buy a copy of Jerry Kuhnhausen's book "Gunsmithing the S&W Revolvers". This has about everything known about the mechanics, disassembly, adjustment, and repair of the S&W revolvers.

Even if you never plan to disassemble your gun, this book has a tremendous amount of info you can use to keep your gun in good condition.

Copies are fairly cheap, and available from Brownell's, Midway, and others.

[VictorLouis]

I never hold the frame with the sideplate down. When it comes free, it can pivot under it's own weight enough to mimic the effect of you prying it off.:o This can raise the tell-tale burr indicating sloppy disassembly.:mad: When you rap on the frame, it will raise the plate from about 1/16"-1/8", or so. Carefully lift if up just enough to clear the back edge of the frame and pull it back toward you. Go too far up, and it's risking the same edge damage.

[Vladimir Berkov]

I saw that part that moves when the hammer was back. I gave it a drop of oil, let it settle in a bit, and that seems to have fixed the noise problem!

Which is good, because I really didn't want to have to take this thing apart.

[Bren]

Well Revolvers aren't that difficult to take apart and understand but if it ain't broke,,, don't fix it. :p

Here is the part you hear (long piece in the middle) the "hammer block" rides loose in the gun and is activated by the "rebound slide" which contains the trigger return spring.

[Mike Irwin]

One of these days I'm going to do a photo essay on detail stripping and reassembling an S&W revolver.

[Bren]

Mike, I have done this with also how to do the trigger jobs but I don't know alot of people here and wouldn't feel comfortable.

I guess take down wouldn't be a problem. :uhoh:

[Vladimir Berkov]

That would be great! It would really help all the people who are just getting into revolvers and have no idea what they are doing. (me.)