Malfunction with S&W 638

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Will Learn

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I bought a 638 and today took it to the range to test out. I wasn't very pleased with the results. I fired 10 Gold Dot +p 135 gr no prob. I then switched to the Blazer 158gr, 5 shots no prob. On the 2nd cylinder of Blazer 3 out of the 5 fired. This problem repeated a few times before I gave up. I don't think the firing pin is striking hard enough... damn it to hell!

And to think I picked th S&W over the Kel-Tec due to reliability issues.:banghead:
 
You fired only 20 rounds and you have decided the revolver is bad? All the Speer Gold Dot rounds fired, right? C'mon, Blazer ammo is the cheapest stuff around. They use an Aluminum case and who know what primers. I have a M638 for 2 years now and I have fired A LOT of ammo through it and have never had a failure to fire. I have shot Remington Golden Sabre, Winchester Silvertip, Speer Gold Dot, DoubleTap, Buffalo Bore, Federal Hydra-Shok, the cheap Remington, Winchester and Federal ammo, Hundreds of my own reloads and all have fired fine. I have never fired Blazers in my J frame but I'm guessing it was that ammo that failed, not your revolver.
 
I fired more than 20(more like 50) but your probably right, I'll go out tomorrow and give it another go before I call S&W. My other smith(629) fires anything I put in it, including Blazers. We'll see.
 
Call S&W. They'll take care of it. If you're not happy with their fix, put in a Cylinder&Slide extended firing pin. In order to meet a certain Lotus-eating state's drop test requirements the firing pins on new Smiths tend to be a little short. Usually not a problem, but easily fixed with the C&S version.
 
Depends how mechanical you are. Some people should be in the same room with a screwdriver and a gun, for most a FP is a pretty simple install. I had light strikes with my 325 when new, both of my .45 wheels have the C&S long firing pin. I do think it is ammo, the Blazer having CCI primers in it which are usually about the hardest you run into. Wolff springs never hurt either.
 
Will Learn,
I'm not trying to tell you what to do buy I have never heard of anyone needing to install a longer firing pin in a M638 or any S&W J frame for that matter. Did you take your revolver to the range again before you decided to change parts or are you still upset that your M638 didn't like Blazer ammo?

I have made close to 1000 rounds using CCI primers which are supposed to be the hardest primers to fire and have NEVER had one fail to fire in my M638.
 
I'm not going to buy the extended firing pin yet, but I'm trying to figure out what options i have. I'm taking it out first thing tomorrow, I had to work/school all day today and the malfunction happened yesterday. I have half a box or so of Blazer left and a box of federal american eagle, we'll see how it goes.

And yes I am "upset" my gun or ammo malfunctioned, this is my daily carry rig and I want to be able to count on it. Whether it is the gun or the ammo is yet to be determined but I'm hoping its the latter. I'm doing everything I can to figure this thing out. I did not mean to personally offend anyone who represents S&W but I am frustrated with the situation. I will post a range report tomorrow first thing after i get back from the range.
 
Will Learn:

One of the first things you need to learn is that if the firing pin is too long it may pierce a primer. Then you might have some real fun. :what:

No one in their right mind would replace a firing pin with a longer one without first measuring the revolver's headspace and firing pin protrusion first.

In order to meet a certain Lotus-eating state's drop test requirements the firing pins on new Smiths tend to be a little short.
Click to expand...

Absolute bull. If you question that call Smith & Wesson's customer Service Department and ask to speak with someone in their repair department.

If the hammer rested on the back of the firing pin, with its nose against the primer there might be something to the above claim, but in fact the hammer is rebounded and then blocked, and the firing pin spring retracts the pin back into the frame. If you have doubts swing out the cylinder, hold the cylinder latch thumb piece in its most rearward position, and pull the trigger, as soon as you release the trigger and it moves forward you'll see the firing pin go back into the frame.

I also suspect the ammunition is the problem, rather then the gun. If not, S&W will fix it for free, and also (unlike some others) pay the shipping costs both ways. They also won't speculate about what’s wrong. The revolver will be completely disassembled, and each suspect part will be measured and/or gauged. Some advisers on the Internet wouldn't know a gauge if they tripped over it. :uhoh:
 
Will Learn,
I don't think anything you said would offend anyone here. Don't bother with the Blazer ammo but I'm sure the Federal cheap stuff will fire fine.

Stop worrying about the revolver for right now until you go shoot it again. Like "Old Fuff" said, even if it is the revolver S&W will fix it correctly and on their dime. Don't give up on revolvers just because of some bad ammo.
 
I've seen one new Mod 36 come from the S&W factory that was out of time. Firing pin would hit the rim of the case just missing the primer on 3 of the chambers. A quick trip back to S&W fixed the problem. Figured whoever assembled and tested that one must have done it first thing on a Monday morning and was still hung over from the weekend.
Are your primers being hit hard enough?
Are the hits centered?
Like Old Fluff, don't mess with replacing the firing pin. Highly unlikely that's the problem of being too short.
 
Me too. If the primers are getting good solid hits then a longer firing pin won't fix it.
At our recent qualification shoot one of the guys who is also a gun dealer had several rds of Remington .380 FMJ not fire. A bit over a year ago he bought 3 cases of the ammo to sell. He just recently broke open one of those cases and he's been firing some of it. He said he's gone thru 5 or 6 boxes and he's been getting 5 to 10 no fires in every box. He was going to call Remington the day of our shoot so I don't know what he found out.
 
I had better results today with the American Eagle ammo, no misfires. I did finish off the Blazer as well, with probably 10 misfires. After inspecting some of the Blazer cases it looks like the primers where set too deep in the pocket and the firing pin wasn't able to reach it well enough to ignite. No more Blazer crap for me.
 
Will Learn, were the Blazer rounds the so-called "clean fire" Al Gore eco-freak rounds? I had a problem w/ the Speer Lawman "clean fire" 9mm 147 tmj that were New Zealand police training ammo. My USP9 just wouldn't set off the primers. I dunno...maybe the compunds Speer was using in the so-called Clean fire" primers were faulty.....all I know is that i have abstained from buying any company's eco-ammo since then.
otherwise, i've always been pleased w/ CCI-Blazers & Speer Lawman for training for over 20 yrs.....
 
things to do

A reminder to me:

Sit down in good light somewhere, and examine the physical condition of your self defense ammo; regardless of the manufacturer!
 
Will, you got a very important, and relatively inexpensive lesson:

Blazer isn't worth the energy it takes to carry it home.

We used to use it, because it was cheap, but over time we had problems with every platform we own...and every time, it was Blazer. Didn't matter if it was the aluminum cases or the brass, it stunk up the place.

You have a good revolver there. Every gun "likes" some ammo better than others (my 66-3 does really well with Corbon JHP's, as I found out this morning :)) but I've yet to have a gun that will reliably shoot Blazer EXCEPT my old XD-40, which almost never had issues with it (note the "almost).

Buy some good ammunition and go enjoy your revolver!

Springmom
 
"Whether it is the gun or the ammo is yet to be determined but I'm hoping its the latter. I'm doing everything I can to figure this thing out."

"I had better results today with the American Eagle ammo, no misfires. I did finish off the Blazer as well, with probably 10 misfires. After inspecting some of the Blazer cases it looks like the primers where set too deep in the pocket and the firing pin wasn't able to reach it well enough to ignite. No more Blazer crap for me."

I identified the culprit and dealt with them accordingly.
 
Dont be too sure ... it's too early in the game. Before you draw any firm conclusions, experiment with several more brands of ammunition. Also when you buy any "serious" cartridges, make a note of the lot number on the box. You'll usually find it on one of the inside end flaps, or on the outside/bottom of the box. Always fire at least 50 rounds of any ammunition that's new to you, and if you buy more try to get it with the same lot number - if it proved to be satisfactory. ;)
 
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