Do your lock equipped S&W revolvers rattle when shook?

[SteadyD]

So I have two lock equipped N frames. Both rattle when I shake them. Even if I hold the flag still they rattle when shook. One rattles a little more than the other. I have two j frames and an L frame that do not rattle when shook, but they don’t have the internal lock.

Is there something besides the flag in the lock design that rattles when you shake them? Do your lock equipped S&W revolvers rattle when you shake them. I am used to my Rugers rattling due to the transfer bar, but obviously that’s not what I hear in my Smiths. Thanks as always!

 

[CajunBass]

Never noticed a lock equipped one doing it, but I have had non-lock ones that did.

 

[mcb]

Shoot'em enough and they all rattle.

 

[Riomouse911]

I grabbed a variety of revolvers out of the safe for a "rattle check" just to see...I made sure all weren't loaded and shook them "front to back" and "side to side" as Eazy-E would put it.

S&W with lock:
4" 686+ .357 FTB: Yes STS: No
3" 317 .22 FTB: Yes STS: Yes
1 7/8" 642 .38 FTB: Yes STS: No

S&W no Lock:
6" 17 .22 FTB: No STS: No
4" 63 .38 FTB: No STS: No
1 7/8" 49 .38 FTB: No STS: No
4" M&P .38 FTB: No STS: No
6.5" 629 .44M FTB: No STS: No

Colt:
2" New Cobra .38 FTB: Yes STS: Yes
6" Ofc. Model HB .38 FTB: No STS: Yes (Very faint)

Ruger:
3" GP .44S FTB: Yes STS: Yes
2" SP .38 FTB: Yes STS: Yes
7.5" Redhawk .41 FTB: No STS: No

Ruger SA:
4 5/8" Wrangler .22 FTB Yes STS: Yes
5.5" Blackhawk .44S FTB: No STS: No * Has lock under grips

Taurus:
4" 941 .22 WMR FTB: Yes STS: Yes

Dan Wesson:
8" 15-2 .357 FTB: No STS: No

This certainly isn't an exhaustive sample, nor was it very scientific, but it satisfied my curiosity after reading your post above.

Stay safe.

 

[Obturation]

nor was it very scientific

Where I come from , that's super scientifical

 

[Buckeye63]

Both of my LCR’s .. rattle .. like a Rattle Snake

 

[mcb]

I checked mine for fun. I think possibly what you are hearing is the hammer block rattling around. The cleaner the gun the more this seems to rattle around. My 627 is my only revolver with the Internal Lock and it had no rattle at all despite me buying it used and putting 10k plus rounds through it, but it is also filthy inside and out. On the other hand my M29 is relatively low round count less than 1000 maybe even less than 500 rds through it but it is also pretty clean and that hammer block rattles pretty easily.

 

[Reeferman]

Checked the ones I have and no rattle. My 686 has north of 20,000 rounds through it and it doesn’t rattle. Though I may be considered one of those who oils my guns more than what is considered normal.

 

[jeff-10]

No locks but all my Rugers rattle.

 

[Pat Riot]

I am assuming the rattle is their little teeth chattering from fear while being shaken.
How would you like it if something a hundred times your size snatched you from your rest and shook you around?

Just kidding. I’ll check mine tomorrow so we have more scientific data...

 

[HB]

I think youre hearing the transfer bar

 

[bannockburn]

Only have one S&W with the lock (a very well built Model 638), and there's no rattle.

 

[InTheField]

It is the transfer bar making that sound. Common to most Smiths, lock or not.

 

[Riomouse911]

Most of my no lock Smiths have a hammer mounted firing pin, except the Model 17 6”. I don’t open them up or take them apart like an expert like Driftwood can, do those guns also use a transfer bar like my newer frame-mounted Smiths do?

Stay safe.

 

[edwardware]

Most of my no lock Smiths have a hammer mounted firing pin, except the Model 17 6”. I don’t open them up or take them apart like an expert like Driftwood can, do those guns also use a transfer bar like my newer frame-mounted Smiths do?

Modern Rugers use a transfer bar: it rises to connect hammer to pin.

Modern Smiths use a hammer block: it falls out of the way to let the hammer move all the way forward.

And all of mine rattle. . . I'd guess mostly due to the block in it's groove in the sideplate.

 

[Jonesy814]

It's the hammer block rattling

 

[Jonesy814]

It is the transfer bar making that sound. Common to most Smiths, lock or not.

S&W doesn't have a transfer bar. They either have a hammer mounted firing pin ( hammer nose) or a frame mounted firing pin. The hammer either directly hits the cartridge or directly hits the firing pin.....no transfer bar. There is a hammer block that slides out of the way, allowing the hammer to strike

 

[9mmepiphany]

Every pre-lock S&Wrevolver I've ever owned rattled...it is just the hammer block as it isn't under tension

 

[SteadyD]

Every pre-lock S&Wrevolver I've ever owned rattled...it is just the hammer block as it isn't under tension

So this isn’t a lock or no lock issue? Plainly put, the hammer block is prone to rattle in both pre-lock and lock models?

 

[Pat Riot]

Okay. My test. A day late but...they all make a slight noise if shaken hard enough but with light shaking only 3 had a “rattle”.

327 Night Guard (lock) - yes
63-5 (lock) - yes
10-7 (no lock) - yes

442-1 - no
36-1 - no
19-4 - no
17-3 - no

I held my thumb against the lock on my 2 lock guns. The “rattle” is internal.

 

[alfsauve]

oops. I seemed to have lost the hammer blocks in my guns. Dang. Shame. And the "enhancement package" locking bar seems to be missing in one of my N frames.

 

[mcb]

oops. I seemed to have lost the hammer blocks in my guns. Dang. Shame. And the "enhancement package" locking bar seems to be missing in one of my N frames.

Why would you remove the hammer block? That is what makes the gun drop safe.

 

[dbluefish]

That's why I love my new Colt Cobra: no shake, none, zilch, even when held upside down, lol. Now if I point it at something, whatever it is, shakes, big time, and then they run!

 

[labnoti]

It's the second hammer block, the stamped metal part that rattles. This is a common feature on all late model S&W revolvers that have an external hammer. It is omitted by the factory on concealed hammer guns (like some jframes) because the hammer cannot be struck when the gun is dropped. Note that it is only one of two hammer blocks. If it is removed, there is still another hammer block on the rebound slide. Regardless, it seems ill-advised to remove it unless you also bob the hammer thoroughly.

The rattle has nothing to do with the internal lock. However, the internal lock and the second hammer block are both present on external hammer models, and they are both omitted on some internal hammer models, hence the correlation.


This video shows both hammer blocks in detail. Skip to 6:55 to see the S&W hammer blocks explained.



This video unfairly disparages transfer bars, but may show the two hammer blocks in operation better because the demonstrator cocks the gun with the side plate off. Skip to 3:00.



Note that you should always loosen the strain screw to relieve tension on the mainspring before you remove the side plate. Also, never pry the side plate off. Strike the side of the grip frame with a plastic mallet or a plastic junk screwdriver handle (don't use a good screwdriver and ruin the handle which will make it very unpleasant to use). Once you remove the side plate, the pin the hammer pivots on that is forged into the frame will be in single shear. You don't want the force of the main spring, especially when cocked, to break that pin off as it will ruin the frame and require welding or frame replacement to fix. If you loosen the strain screw until it just holds the mainspring in place, you can safely cycle the action with the side plate off. If you go too loose, the parts will disassemble.

 

[alfsauve]

Labnoti: Great catch on loosening the strain screw before removing side plate. Had never thought about the unsupported hammer pin.

The hammer is bound by the Rebound Slide. The force necessary to overcome that has got to be extremely significant. If I had to set up a thesis to test, it would be that the terminal velocity of the gun would never be high enough to overcome the rebound slide when it hit the ground. And it it were that high, then the inertia would drive the rebound slide and trigger back to their fired positions, negating the hammer block.


For those who still are concerned, it's only my bobbed hammer guns that are missing the hammer block.