So for a good stainless steel revolver, if shot enough rounds will the frame eventually crack?
I read here where one member had an original Colt Cobra (aluminum frame) and he said he ruined it by stretching it out with +P loads.
Makes me worry a bit about my LCR. (though it's rated for +P, I can't imagine wanting to shoot that much +P through it to stretch it out)
Say I use it for competition, 300k rounds later will it most likely crack the frame?Not for any humanly significant value of "eventually." I guess if you shot it every day and replaced other parts as needed, it could crack. More likely outlast you.
The current crop of S&W K frames are beefed up but for long continued use with heavy loads, the L frame family would be better, or even an N frame. Or a Ruger.
Say I use it for competition, 300k rounds later will it most likely crack the frame?
Say I use it for competition, 300k rounds later will it most likely crack the frame?
So for a good stainless steel revolver, if shot enough rounds will the frame eventually crack?
But that is not frame stretch that is most often forcing cone splitting. Steel K-frame are not likely to stretch.The only references I have read about frame stretch on a revolver have been about S&W M-19s, from firing too many magnum loads in what is basically a 38 Special frame.
Failure of the frame is not likely in a modern revolver. The exception might be very lightweight revolvers that are shot excessively with very hot loads.Say I use it for competition, 300k rounds later will it most likely crack the frame?
Not a metalergist but you have to define "stretch". I think of a rubber band with the word stretch. How much does a frame stretch with each firing and I suspect the frame has some elasticity designed into it but all in all it would take a long time and a very large ammo supply to get measurable results.
My thought is that the forces on the revolver frame should be under the elastic limit for the frame material. So...it really should not "stretch" in the sense that it becomes longer permanently. It should take loads over the cartridge limits to do that kind of damage.
So for a good stainless steel revolver, if shot enough rounds will the frame eventually crack?
Steel will flex and stretch, but unless it is flexed/stretched past its yield point, it will come back to the original shape. Also, as long as it is not flexed/stretched past its fatigue/endurance limit, it can be flexed/stretched as many times as desired (i.e. an indefinite number of times) but will never crack/break/fail.Aluminum stretches, either way. It's the nature of the beast.
I wish I had enough ammo to answer the OP's question. And maybe a few more years left to shoot it all.
Very well stated. And your paragraph about aluminum is the exact reason airplane airframes have a finite life span.Steel will flex and stretch, but unless it is flexed/stretched past its yield point, it will come back to the original shape. Also, as long as it is not flexed/stretched past its fatigue/endurance limit, it can be flexed/stretched as many times as desired (i.e. an indefinite number of times) but will never crack/break/fail.
Aluminum will flex and stretch and will also return to its original shape if it is not flexed/stretched past its yield point. The difference is that aluminum has no fatigue/endurance limit. No matter how small the amplitude of the flex/stretch, aluminum will eventually crack/break/fail if there are enough repetitions. HOWEVER, it will take many, many repetitions before that happens if the amplitude of each flex/stretch is very small.
Correct. What is interesting is that the lifespan can be quite long depending on the original design and use level. For example, the C-135 which went out of production in the early 1960s has been certified (with proper maintenance) past 2040. They were really overbuilt for one thing, and for another, they don't go through nearly as many takeoff/land cycles as a commercial jet....airplane airframes have a finite life span.
Say I use it for competition, 300k rounds later will it most likely crack the frame?
What causes elastic distortion?As long as it doesn't reach plastic distortion it will remain the same. Elastic distortion can cause fatigue failure. How quickly that happens depends on the severity and number of times it happens.