Let's talk springs

[mattz357]

As I'm looking at spring kits for my S&W 66, they offer reduced or standard power mainsprings. They say that the standard power is for "duty" use, and the reduced is for "target" use. What will the actual difference be between these springs and will the reduced affect reliability (this is NOT a carry weapon)? They also come with reduced power rebound springs, which are supposed to reduce the trigger pull weight if I'm reading correctly, but wouldn't they also have an adverse affect on trigger reset? Thanks in advance for helping out a revolver newbie of sorts.

 

[HSMITH]

Put a couple thousand rounds through it, and dry fire 5 times for every shot. It will get smooth and that is all that matters. Unless in the highest of competitions I would NOT recommend reduced power springs. Learning to shoot a standard sprung revolver is not hard, you just have to commit to it and shoot.

 

[Nick96]

Springs are about the cheapest and easiest modifications you can perform on a revolver. You can probably buy most all weights from most all after market manufacturers for under $50. If the gun is only used as a recreational tool - I'd say buy what you want and experiment. If it's to be used for serious purposes, you should stick with the factory springs and just practice to proficiency with them.

Quality revolvers from quality manufacturers (namely S&W and Ruger) are going to come with servicable springs from the factory. Cycling the action (dry or live fire) will smooth out most actions pretty quickly. And a smooth, predictable action is preferable to a light one in a defensive tool.

 

[JNewell]

I mentioned this in the other forum, but will mention here again that I've used reduced power spring kits in several revolvers and have had both ignition failures and sluggish reset. Both of these could be serious liabilities in a competition setting, much worse in a defensive setting. If the gun must go bang on demand, stick with factory springs.

 

[Jim K]

What they mean about "target" and "duty" is that their light springs might not work when you really need the gun.

Springs are the heart and soul of a gun. Some springs make the gun work, some make it safe to use. All gun makers build extra power into their springs to make sure the gun functions in adverse conditions (cold, dirt, rain, snow, etc.). You may say that you will never allow your gun to get dirty or wet, but that is wishful thinking. Anyone can drop a gun into mud or get caught in a rainstorm, and it is a bit disappointing to find out your gun won't work, especially if the other guy's gun is not as finicky.

In other words, when you "do a trigger job" or use "reduced power" springs, you are taking away the ability of the gun to work when things are not exactly right. That is OK when a misfire only means that you have to raise your hand for an "alibi" round. It is not OK in a situation where you can't raise your hand because there is a bullet in your brain.

Jim

 

[Standing Wolf]

I always replace Smith & Wesson springs with Wolff springs. Sometimes the lightest Wolff springs don't work, in which case, I replace those with slightly heavier springs.

I don't even consider carrying a revolver I haven't put at least two or three hundred rounds through with no failures to fire or any other kind of problem. I enjoy light, crisp, consistent triggers—as long as they're 100% reliable.

 

[endure161]

I bought Jerry Miculek's video of a S&W action job to see him do it and compare with the descriptions in a couple of books that I have. What others have said here is the same as his explanation of it. A person doing an action job is just polishing surfaces so that they are worn about the same as shooting 5000 or so rounds through the gun. If you can have that much patience dry-firing then you can get to the same smoothness that way. Otherwise, a revolver action job by a quality gunsmith is not that expensive and well worth doing.

Anyway, I did my own action job on my 625-3 and the double-action trigger pull is very smooth. I also bought the Miculek spring kit and installed it at the same time that I did the action work. The instructions advise using Federal primers, which are soft, in reloads to assure reliable ignition with the lighter mainspring in the kit. I have had good luck using both Federal and Winchester LP primers. I have not tried CCI primers but have been told that they are the hardest ones and reliability will suffer. The only time I had a misfire with Federal 150 or Winchester WLP was when the tension screw vibrated out and let the mainspring get loose. Re-tightening it and a little Loctite fixed that problem. I've shot about 800 rounds since then and had no misfires.

There may be springs on the market from other sources that are lighter than the ones I have used. If so, ignition reliability might suffer. However, the Miculek springs I used gave me a relatively light double-action trigger pull yet it fires every time I pull the trigger. Guess you can tell that I am very happy with the results I got.

 

[J Miller]

It amuses me when I read threads about action jobs and replacing springs to lighten and smooth things up. Invariably someone will make the comment that you should "just shoot 5 to 6K rounds" through the gun and it will be smooth.

It's been my experiance that most big bore, and magnum S&W's of all frame sizes, will be shoot loose and due for an over haul before the 5K round point. I've had this happen with mine. I've seen it happen with others guns.

Newer S&W N frames may have the "enhanced" features but they are still very old designs with small parts. They only have a limited life time if used a lot.
A magnum S&W will usually be in need of an overhaul in the 3,000 to 4,000 round range.

I'm not a gunsmith, I'm not going to argue with those who disagree with me. I just know what I have experianced in my 30 years of handgun shooting.

All of my S&W's have factory springs. None of them have ever had an "action job".
When I get them I clean them, lube them, and shoot them. Why in the world would I polish life off of the internal parts?

And both of the ones I have now are pretty much wore out. That's what happens when you shoot them a lot. Too bad S&W doesn't make replacements any more.

Joe

 

[mattz357]

Thanks for all the replies! JMiller, what part of Central IL are you in? I'm in Peoria!

 

[Johnny Guest]

Recent revolver spring observations.

I’ve been looking for a decent buy on an S&W M65 3†RB for some time. They are scarce in my area, but a friend finally had one come into his shop and we worked out a halfway reasonable swap. This was a police trade-in - - A bit scratched up, but it was good and tight and had a very light, absolutely glass smooth DA, and a crisp, light SA pull.

Pulled off the stocks and found the mainspring strain screw was backed out about a turn and a half. Cranked it in and the pull stiffened up slightly. It popped primers on three different magnum loads and the several .38 Spls variants I had at hand. Accuracy was excellent with my .38 handloads AND with R-P LSWCHP+P. I was distressed, though, to find that with heavier mag loads, the trigger failed to reset properly about a quarter of the time. Evidently the last issuee had messed with trigger return spring. Never any problem with any of the .38 loads, though . . . .

Oh, well, some tinkering to be done - - Possibly gonna order a Wolff spring kit.

I know some shooters have designated “game guns,†and I have no argument with them. For my use, though, any service-type or concealable handgun I have may be used for home defense, and I sometimes just get the urge to carry something different. The matches I shoot are mostly “tactical†or IDPA types, which amount to training exercises, so my contest guns are most likely my carry pieces.

Best,
Johnny

 

[J Miller]

mattz357,

JMiller, what part of Central IL are you in? I'm in Peoria!

I'm in Springfield.



Joe