357 Spitting Issues, a Dan Wesson thing?

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Huntolive

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Like llamas it seems certain Dan Wessons
And a few other 357 s I like to spit and grit or powder blast back at your face when fired.
I have noticed this particularly with Dan Wesson interchangeable Barrel revolvers.

Is this an issue specific to Dan Wesson?
I've wondered if it could have something to do with whether the barrel is screwed down to the right level or cylinder Gap???

Any thoughts on this and how to reduce it in general and specifically on Dan Wessons w interchangeable barrels?
 
Are you using the proper gauge when putting the barrel on? There should be a gauge for the cylinder gap that comes with the gun.
 
Barrel gap should be .006” for standard and regular magnum calibers. There’s a feeler gauge you insert in the gap then snug it down.
 
And any .006 feeler gauge will do the trick.
I use an inexpensive set of automotive feeler gauges I got at the auto parts store. A set gives you the option of choosing a smaller bc gap or other uses. DWs are known for needing the bc gap be checked occasionally as it can change over time. I would suspect the your gap could be too wide or timing issue.
 
I have three DW’s, two .357’s and a 22, I’ve never had a spitting issue.

If you don’t have a barrel nut tool to adjust it, EWK arms may still have some. If not, CZ or eBay may be a source.You can also find the owners manuals on line if you don’t have one.

My buddy had a ported DW .44 model that would spit unburned powder bits out the side. He had bought the gun used with the B/C gap too wide and didn’t know enough to to buy a barrel wrench to adjust it. Once he was shown what to get he did and all was OK.

When gauging the B/C gap also check the DW barrel nut to be sure it’s snug and not loose. This may cause the barrel to slowly loosen away from the cylinder (or even tighten up depending on which way it decides to turn.)

B7512F28-8CCC-4701-B63A-D3AD86BC4276.jpeg

There is a lot going on at the B.C gap, even well-timed .006 guns like this 4” S&W model 66 will spit flames and powder bits from the gap with every shot. It’s the nature of the beast, and you’ll learn to not stand directly to the side of a revolver shooter or you will probably get peppered with unburned powder bits.

If you’re getting peppered with lead, that’s probably a timing issue and your gun is shaving bits of lead off as the bullet slams the forcing cone and enters the barrel. This condition requires a qualified person to diagnose the issue and bring the gun back into shape.

Good luck with your gun(s)!

Stay safe.
 

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I did some velocity testing while varying the cylinder gap on a 44 DW. This with Magtech loads which are were decidedly on the lite side. At 0.012 inch the gun started spitting back at me.
Along the way, I discovered that my auto store feeler gauges had some blades badly mismarked. Watch out for that one.
 
Are you using the proper gauge when putting the barrel on? There should be a gauge for the cylinder gap that comes with the gun.
I got a used one recently and fired it for the first time without taking the barrel off and it is extremely accurate but spits back a little.
I have not checked the cylinder Gap with the feeler gauge on this gun but that is on my to-do list
 
Being that this is a Dan Wesson with interchangeable barrels that are made to move frequently I strongly suspect this is an idiosyncrasy with Dan Wesson and will be simply fixed by tightening the barrel nut and getting the feeler gauge Gap straightened out

Thanks
 
Pull the bbl and make sure the threads aren't buggered up. Running several boxes of hot loads thru a dw with a loose bbl tends to do that.

DW says .006" but in reality you can fine tune the accuracy of a load with them by making the gap smaller. The .006" is a "lawyer" #, far too many firearms mfg put out firearms with .006"/.007" gaps. This is for the people that never clean their firearms and let pile of junk build up on the face of the cylinders.

I've done tests in the past using a dw 15-2 looking at velocity changes VS cylinder gap. It's been said you'll loose +/- 10fps per 1/1000th" of cylinder gap. What I found with my testing was that some loads were affected more then others with large VS small cylinder gaps.

A link to ballistics by the inch (excel spread sheet) showing the difference between a .006" VS .001" cylinder gap with several different 38spl & 357mag ammos they tested.
http://www.ballisticsbytheinch.com/docs/GapCompare.xls

When setting the cylinder gap on your dw it's a good thing to check every hole in the cylinders with a feeler gauge. Doing this will tell you if you have high/low spots along with if anything is bent/out of square.
 
Pull the bbl and make sure the threads aren't buggered up. Running several boxes of hot loads thru a dw with a loose bbl tends to do that.

DW says .006" but in reality you can fine tune the accuracy of a load with them by making the gap smaller. The .006" is a "lawyer" #, far too many firearms mfg put out firearms with .006"/.007" gaps. This is for the people that never clean their firearms and let pile of junk build up on the face of the cylinders.

I've done tests in the past using a dw 15-2 looking at velocity changes VS cylinder gap. It's been said you'll loose +/- 10fps per 1/1000th" of cylinder gap. What I found with my testing was that some loads were affected more then others with large VS small cylinder gaps.

A link to ballistics by the inch (excel spread sheet) showing the difference between a .006" VS .001" cylinder gap with several different 38spl & 357mag ammos they tested.
http://www.ballisticsbytheinch.com/docs/GapCompare.xls

When setting the cylinder gap on your dw it's a good thing to check every hole in the cylinders with a feeler gauge. Doing this will tell you if you have high/low spots along with if anything is bent/out of square.
Indeed, I usually run .0045 on my .357 guns. The .22 stays at .006 as it seems to gunk up a bit faster and starts to bind a bit with the rimfire rounds if I go with a smaller gap.

Stay safe.
 
I have 4 Dan Wessons, 2 357 mags, a 357 max , and a 44 mag. I never had this problem with any of them. A friend of mine had this problem with his Colt Python. The problem was that it would get out of time after a few thousand rounds (like 2-3 thousand). He would send it back to the factory and they would fix it. Then the problem would come back.
 
I've had at least a dozen 15-2's and 715's and never ever had any spitting issues. S&W, Taurus, Astra, yes, but never a DW gun. I've had a couple of 15-2's that people "got rid of because they had problems", but the weird thing is, once I got them and cleaned, lubed, and set the barrel gap, they never had any problems for me.
 
Is this an issue specific to Dan Wesson?
In my experience (I repeat - "in MY experience") yes, and that issue led up to me swearing off Dan Wesson firearms forever. Back in the '80s, I bought a Dan Wesson .357 for IHMSA shooting. It only came with one barrel (an 8") but I could have bought other barrels of different lengths if I would have wanted them.
Anyway, that revolver spit burning powder back at me so badly that shooting it without a full-face shield and elbow length, leather gauntlet gloves was nothing short of painful. Two, 3-month long trips back to the factory, and countless attempts to adjust the barrel/cylinder gap didn't change a thing. So I traded the revolver to a local gunsmith (who also owned and ran a gunshop) who said he could fix it by changing the angle of the forcing cone. I never looked back, so I don't know if the gunsmith fixed the revolver or not, but I suspect he did.
It doesn't matter to me - I won't ever own another Dan Wesson anything. And it's not like I don't know that I could have just gotten a lemon - which could have happened no matter what brand of gun it was. It's just that the Dan Wesson company took 3 months to get the gun back to me - twice.:thumbdown:
 
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Just my little experience.
I have a very fine Manurhin MR73 and as some may know, there's no finer Revolver on this planet.

But one day it spat on my hands and in my face, it was really bad.

After some trial and error it was clear: it's the ammo.
I think it was some GECO 158gn FMJ HP and this also happened with other weapons with this ammo.
I never used this type of ammo again and the problem never reappeared.
 
I would check the forcing cones. I bought a Dan Wesson Pistol Pac that none of the barrels had their forcing cones cut. I ended up cutting them myself and now it’s a peach.
 
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