cylinder rotation clock or counter clock

[bassdogs]

Have several revolvers and [guess I haven't paid enough attention] some rotate the cylinder clockwise and others counter clockwise. Noticed when I was indexing the cylinder in my new Judge so that the first shot was a 410 buck followed by 2 45LCHP's. The Judge rotates counterclockwise. My Colt trooper MkIII in comparison rotates clockwise. Is this a manufacturer thing??

 

[rcmodel]

Yes, it's a design thing.

S&W revolvers have long always rotated to the left.

Colt to the right.

It all depends on which side of the frame the hand is placed in the lockwork design.
Which also depends on which side of the frame the sideplate is on.

But I imagine it all started way back in the day when revolvers were invented.

Colt & S&W would do things different just to be different!
Colt advertised their method was better, and of course S&W said it wasn't.

rc

 

[bassdogs]

Like I said, I noticed because of the multi shot selection for the Judge. It could also be critical because I'm heading to Alaska tomorrow am for a motor home road trip and taking revolvers for SD in Bear country. In the [hopefully not] unfortunate circumstance where a quick reload of 2 or 3 rounds is necessary, it will be important to index the correct empty chamber so the the partial load fires with the first trigger pull.

 

[AlexanderA]

I hope you're not planning to drive your motor home overland to Alaska through Canada, with firearms inside. Two families recently tried that, and learned the hard way that the Canadian authorities are quite unforgiving.

 

[Guillermo]

Some have said (Dan Wesson and Colt along with their proponents) that turning that cylinder towards the frame forces the crane in to its tightest tolerance.

I seem to remember that Smith had a particular model that was a clockwise action. Bodyguard 38?

 

[rcmodel]

I hope you're not planning to drive your motor home overland to Alaska through Canada

That right there is a real good point I hadn't thought of!!

Only way to get a handgun from mainland USA to Alaska I know of is to ship them there.
You sure can't drive through Canada with them unless you want it to lead to a Series of Unfortunate Events at the border!
They will take your motorhome apart, but they won't put it back together!

See this about that!
http://panda.com/canadaguns/#prohibited

rc

 

[Ala Dan]

A Reminder

COLT has always maintained that their lock work was built stronger
than that of Smith & Wesson, cuz their cylinder rotates into the frame;
rather than away from it~!

I don't know whether of not it is stronger; but the two companies love to
have you believe their theory~!

 

[savit260]

The old S&W "Lemon Squeezer" Safety hammerless rotates clockwise.

I believe some of the early 20th century Colts rotated counter clockwise as well.

There are exceptions to the Colt goes clockwise, S&W counter clockwise rule.

 

[bassdogs]

The other way to get handguns to Alaska is to fly them with you to Anchorage were we pick up the rental. Pretty easy to pack them in you checked baggage. Just unload and lock in hardsided case. Must declare them at check in. I've read about the canada thing [which I have never understood], and have a shotgun ready for the overland run in a couple of years.

 

[Walkalong]

Colts rotate the proper way, and Smiths rotate the wrong way.

I like em both though.

 

[9mmepiphany]

It isn't hard to separate the chicken from the egg in this one...Colt being the first to produce a production revolver. All black powder revolvers, and later SA revolvers had cylinders that rotated clockwise.

 

[Jim K]

It is purely a matter of the designer's choice. The supposed "reasons" are usually nothing but advertising hype. While most Colt DA revolvers rotated clockwise, some older ones rotated the other way. And while most S&W's rotate counter clockwise, the new Bodyguard .38 cylinder rotates clockwise. Again, the designer's choice, nothing else.

Jim

 

[Guillermo]

some marketing hype concerning clockwise rotation from the Dan Wesson site.

" The unique clockwise rotating cylinder turns into the frame reducing stress on the crane. Keeping the alignment tight extends the service life of the revolver and as a bonus preserves accuracy longer than other designs as well."

 

[Jim K]

If the only thing keeping the cylinder alignment tight in a DW is the hand bearing on the ratchet, the company is in trouble. Actually, as most of us know, the DW cylinder has a very effective lock mechanism at the crane.

Jim

 

[FoghornLeghorn]

Not only is it a bad idea to drive that gun to Alaska, but I question your choice of gun and ammo where grizs are concerned.

 

[bassdogs]

Made it to Seattle and next leg to Anchorage. No problem at checkin. Signed a disclosure statement and didn't have to open the box.

Understand that neither of these are optimal, but like discussed on another thread, they are what I have and I otherwise have no need for a 44mag. Also spending most of the time near highways [as in not packing back into the bush] and just not ready to carry the ol 12g on the way to see the glacier or whatever. The ammo sellection was recommended by local Alaskan's as best for these revolvers and would as one put it, give me a fighting chance.

Anyway just not wanting to have no option other than roll up in a ball.

 

[Guillermo]

If the only thing keeping the cylinder alignment tight in a DW is the hand bearing on the ratchet, the company is in trouble

The way I understand it is that by pushing clockwise the alignment is perfect, where going the other direction it is "within tolerances".

I don't think the marketing weenie that wrote it was trying to say that it is the only thing keeping it aligned.

 

[jasonbterry]

when you say you're taking revolvers for SD in bear country, i hope you're referring to your S&W 500

 

[MachIVshooter]

some marketing hype concerning clockwise rotation from the Dan Wesson site.

" The unique clockwise rotating cylinder turns into the frame reducing stress on the crane. Keeping the alignment tight extends the service life of the revolver and as a bonus preserves accuracy longer than other designs as well."

"Unique", huh? LOL.

My S&W Model 1 indexes Clockwise.

Colts usually index clockwise.

Charter arms index clockwise

Iver Johnsons index clockwise

Meridens index clockwise

Etc, etc.

S&W, Ruger and Taurus Revolvers are almost all CCW.

It's just the different designs, none is superior because of the direction the cylinder rotates. And no one in their right mind buys or doesn't buy a revolver based on this feature.

 

[Fishslayer]

Smiths rotate the proper way, and Colts rotate the wrong way.

I like em both though.

Fixed it for ya. I figured it was a typo...

 

[oldfool]

CW vs CCW, right vs wrong...

mostly depends on whether you are looking at the sight picture or looking at the muzzle end

 

[tpelle]

JMHO, but I've always preferred the "Colt-pattern" clockwise rotation. My reasoning is that, for S&W to keep the cylinder aligned and closed, they've always had to incorporate two, and sometimes three, lock mechanisms - one at the rear of the cylinder, one at the front of the ejector rod, and sometimes one at the crane. That's why you always see S&W DA revolvers with a barrel lug for the ejector rod to lock in to.

Colts, on the other hand, have always gotten by with just one lock on their DA revolvers. That's why you might see an old Colt DA revolver with the no lug on the barrel and the end of the ejector rod just hanging out there in the air. To my mind it's just a more elegant design.

 

[CraigC]

Colt being the first to produce a production revolver.

Well, not exactly. Colt made the revolver practical but he certainly did not invent the concept. Which, I might add, was completely reliant on the invention of percussion caps.

 

[9mmepiphany]

That's true...just like Ford didn't invent the automobile