Do you remove side plate for cleaning and lubrication?

dekibg said:
Have Taurus 692 , maybe five hundred rounds fired all together ( 357, 38, 9mm) since I purchased it several years ago. Sadly, most of rounds were probably 9mm instead of 38/357 due to ammo pricing and availability. Anywho, I did remove side plate once several years ago , did some light cleaning and lubrication there , and honestly I was intimidated by the revolvers internals! All those little springs and parts etc…
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Taurus revolvers aren't all that complicated, once you know what you're looking at.

Before you remove the side place, cock the hammer and secure the spring with a paperclip. Then remove the spring and strut.

Once it's open, mind the tiny little spring that drives the cylinder latch. That's apt to wander off, and you'll never find it if it does.
dekibg said:
I didn’t even cock the revolver without side plate bc I was afraid that somehow something may come out of it’s place or fly off. It has been several hundred rounds since the last cleaning and lubing of internals ( excluding a drop of oil in the mechanism from above with hammer cocked ) . Should I just leave it alone, or go ahead and clean and lube complete internals again after several years?
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Outside of monkey curiosity, I normally don't open up revolvers.

I did have to, this year sometime, pull the firing pin on my Taurus 856 and clean the channel. Some solvent or oil or something had gotten in, and was gumming it up so it wouldn't retract.

dekibg said:
If I use one of those highly pressurized gun cleaners for dissolving powder residue and crud, can that remove all those tiny parts from their place or they are firmly held in place by the main spring pressure ? Sorry about so many questions but I am obviously not familiar with revolver’s internals.
P.s. guns sits in the safe and it is not carried so there is no lint , etc.
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I see no need to remove the side plate for cleaning. like others have said, some arousal cleaner sprayed in the trigger slot. Drain out the bottom. Then a good quality synthetic lube. Good to go. I do this about once a year on my most shot revolvers. Less so on revolvers I don't shoot often. Never had a problem.
 
I don't believe they come lubricated from the factory. I've never received a S&W that had lube or oil or anything in it.
 
westernrover said:
I don't believe they come lubricated from the factory. I've never received a S&W that had lube or oil or anything in it.
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Yes indeedy. Revolvers require no or very little lubrication.

A retired S&W armorer advised that if an owner goes inside, just rub a light
oil very vigorously "into" the surfaces until it almost looks dry.

Generally Rem Oil or 3-in-1 lightly applied is sufficient.

Without taking the side plate off,
revolver expert Grant Cunningham advises just an occasional
drop or two of light oil on each side of the hammer, one at the
ejector rod and maybe a drop at the yoke pivot point.

If you soak the insides, a shooter is setting up conditions
to create a sludge pit.
 
I remembered something a little while ago. I bought a S&W 442 in ‘97. The warranty card had a statement that I was entitled to a factory cleaning and lubrication. Years later I called S&W about this and they told me that they were so backed up it would be 60-90 days before I would get my revolver back. The gent I spoke to told me to put a couple of drops of oil in the firing pin hole and the opening for the hand then dry fire it several times to distribute the oil inside. He also recommended removing the grip and lightly oiling the main spring.
I removed the side plate 6 or 7 years ago and I was very surprised that the interior of the gun wasn’t as dirty as I thought it would be.
 
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Pat Riot said:
Mobil 1 synthetic motor oil.
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This. My bride's Audi had an oil consumption problem, so I had wide range viscosity synthetic oil, been using it ever since.

As regards the sideplate, correct removal has already been covered; mine only come off when something new comes home. Time to slick up the innards, change out the rebound slide spring, and call it good. Sometimes the plate has to be pulled repeatedly, until I'm satisfied with the feel.
A shot of the aforementioned oil, down the hammer slot, in the yoke opening, in the hand slot, and after removing the stocks. A needle oiler will save you from getting carried away.
Smith sideplates are amazingly tight fit; guessing the Tauri are as well.
If it ain't broke, don't fu..., er fool with it.
Moon
 
With todays aerosol cleaners, I do not remove the slide plate of a revolver for incidental cleaning. Spritizing the sovent in the various opinings seems to flush out any debris. I then follow up with a spritzing of lubricant.,

On occasions, I've had issues with the lock work that required more in depth review and I have removed the side plate to determine what the problem was.

I'm fairly comfortable around the innards of an S&W revolver, but I prefer not to go there unless absolutely necessary.
 
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cfullgraf said:
I'm fairly comfortable around the innards of an S&W revolver, but I prefer not to go there unless absolutely necessary
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+1. When I was shooting a lot and in competition, I’d shot about 12k rounds a year through my match gun. After each range session (approx 250 rounds), I’d give the chambers a cleaning, the barrel a pass or 2, and wipe the gun down. Every month or so, I’d add a dab of lube where needed, and every year or so, I’d pop the side plate, completely strip the innards, and clean everything thoroughly & lube before re-assembling.

On a brand new revolver, I would absolutely strip it bare and thoroughly clean it (and every part) and lube it before I so much as dry fired it. When I did this to a new revolver, I was surprised at how much fine particulate (and likely abrasive) pookie is left in the gun from the factory.
 
I think I have removed a side plate only a couple times in my life. I only take the side plate off if there is something that need fixed. My S&W 610 has never had its side plate removed and I have over 20,000rds fired through it in USPSA competition. I bought the revolver used so who know how many rounds before I got it. I am very much of the mind set of just keep adding lubrication as needed. A well lubricated dirty revolver runs better than under lubricated clean revolver in my experience.
 
mcb said:
I am very much of the mind set of just keep adding lubrication as needed. A well lubricated dirty revolver runs better than under lubricated clean revolver in my experience
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heh...I recall about 10-12 years ago hanging out with Cliff Walsh at a match. At the time, Cliff was the USPSA Revolver National Champ. I checked out his revolver and noticed lube was literally dripping from his gun. He was a fan of well-lubed guns, and his stuff obviously ran well ;)
 
MrBorland said:
heh...I recall about 10-12 years ago hanging out with Cliff Walsh at a match. At the time, Cliff was the USPSA Revolver National Champ. I checked out his revolver and noticed lube was literally dripping from his gun. ;)
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If this was also his daily carry firearm(s) I have an image of a guy with oil
stained shirts, shorts, pants and a definite petroleum odor about him. 😀
 
UncleEd said:
Yes indeedy. Revolvers require no or very little lubrication.

A retired S&W armorer advised that if an owner goes inside, just rub a light
oil very vigorously "into" the surfaces until it almost looks dry.

Generally Rem Oil or 3-in-1 lightly applied is sufficient.

Without taking the side plate off,
revolver expert Grant Cunningham advises just an occasional
drop or two of light oil on each side of the hammer, one at the
ejector rod and maybe a drop at the yoke pivot point.

If you soak the insides, a shooter is setting up conditions
to create a sludge pit.
Click to expand...

Grant has suggested the light oil like you wrote, and a very small amount of grease on the sear surfaces. He's pitched Lubri-plate.

I like a polymer-type dry lube like Hornady One Shot because it reduces friction and protects against corrosion without capturing dust and contamination -- no sludge. It does a fine job of lubricating low pressure contact surfaces like the cylinder stop, the hand, the hammer pivots, ejector rod, the crane pivot, the rebound slide etc. Then I use a tiny speck of grease on the sear surfaces. I use TW25B. There's other stuff that works, but my tube of TW25B is probably several lifetimes' supply.

When I have used an oil (like M-Pro7 for example), I'll use a drop and then wipe most of it up with a q-tip so there is just a thin film of it. Maybe if I had a needle-oiler, it wouldn't dispense the big drops that dripping it does.

Running with too much lube isn't a problem at first -- I'm pretty sure the AR guys have demonstrated that to quiet the internet about over-lubing. Running too much lube will just require more frequent cleaning.

I've just acquired some WD-40 Dry Lube to try it as an alternative for One Shot. It's looking good so far.
 
My maternal grandfather maintained steam engines, where oiliness was next to Godliness, and more was better.
I inherited that gene, and even my Glocks get more lube than called for (I think the Glock manual specifies that simply having an oil can in the same room with the pistol will give it enough lube...)
Actually, a needle oiler saves me from my own worst impulses.
The other thing that has always amazed me is how relatively clean revolvers remain inside; there really isn't much room for carbon or crud to get in there. Enclosed hammer Centennials have even less chance for pocket lint to enter.
Moon
 
Was thinking about this thread, when pulling the sideplate on a minty nickel S&W M36 that followed me home lately. I generally slick things up inside, and replace the rebound slide spring.
This one dates from 1970, and it was clean as a whistle inside. The (most recent) owner had given it a good cleaning, and, apparently, a shot of oil down in the works. By the looks of the screws, the plate has never been off; the gun appears to have been fired, if not a lot.
What is worth cleaning is the yoke barrel, inside the cylinder. The gas ring is the best answer, but it doesn't keep all the carbon/crud out. There was some hard carbon there.
I remember the first time I removed the screw, and yoke, from a Smith, fifty years ago. Wasn't the least bit sure what would happen when I did it!
Moon
 
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