Ever seen a spring painted red? (used Taurus 85)

[corncob]

I just bought a Taurus .22 snubbie out of the used case today. It doesn't have any kind of lock, so I guess it's a few years old. The DA trigger pull seemed kind of light for a .22, but still had the factory grit, so I figured maybe someone hadn't already tried to do a trigger job and traded it after it quit popping primers.

SA it fires every time. DA it light strikes 1-3 times per 9-rounds. So I pop off the grips and side plate to find that:

1. What you read on the internet IS true. Taurus revolvers come from the factory with sand inside them.

2. The mainspring and trigger return spring on mine have a distinctive splash of red paint on them.

Can anyone out there tell me whether or not these are factory springs, or what kind they might be, anything regarding spring weights for a Taurus .22, and possible sources for heavier ones (perhaps I get lucky and they copied the Smith springs-and-all)?

I just don't know anything about revolvers. Also after I remove the sticky crud from the innerds, should I use anything special for lube (oil, CLP, axle grease, Crisco, KY, etc)?

 

[corncob]

Ok, I just got an idea. Can one of you gunsmiths tell me if this is crazy?

I assume that since it pops the primers most of the time, that means it's just barely hitting hard enough. AND, from watching the internals while pulling the trigger (carefully, with the gun unloaded, of course) with the side plate off, I see that the mainspring is not compressed as much when firing DA. Couldn't I just shim the spring to preload it a little?

Up to the point of bottoming it out, of course--except that I had a plan brewing in my mind when I saw the gun in the used case to have the machinist at work knock the spur off for pocket or purse carry (turns out engineers can't leave well enough alone). This would eliminate SA firing altogether, so I wouldn't have to worry about getting it to work (w/ shims) for DA and bottoming out SA. But I would have less hammer mass, thus less kinetic energy, and might need a stiffer spring anyway because of that.

Anyone?

 

[Old Fuff]

On any single action/double action revolver I know of the double action stroke is shorter then the single action and consequently the mainspring is less compressed during a double action cycle.

I am not sure about Taurus, but some well-known aftermarket spring makers mark the tension of the springs with colored dye or paint. I suspect that a former owner bought a spring kit intended to be used in a center-fire version of the gun you have. If so you would get light hits - expecially in double-action. Rim-fire revolvers require a heavier main spring then center-fire counterparts. Shimming the current spring probably won't work well, but replacing it with a correct one will.

Once you have it cleaned out any quality lubricant (not solvent) should work. CLP is fine.

 

[carpettbaggerr]

Springs are pretty cheap. If you are mechanically inclined, they aren't that hard to replace either. You can get them from Brownell's, MidwayUSA, or Wolff

http://www.gunsprings.com/Revolver/1ndex_menu2NOF.html\

And if you didn't know already, removing the spur doesn't remove the single-action mode, it just makes it harder to cock the gun. You have to remove the single-action notch on the hammer to make it a true DAO.

 

[corncob]

I suspect that a former owner bought a spring kit intended to be used in a center-fire version of the gun you have.

I tend to agree. I haven't found anyone selling Taurus factory replacement parts on the net, so I guess I'll try calling them on Monday. Wolf only sells lighter-pull springs for Taurus snubs, and on the page linked above, they say "not recommended for mod. 94 and 941."

I'm hoping someone here posts and says J-frame springs can be substituted, since they are available everywhere and in lots of stiffnesses. I guess I could crack open my wife's J-frame and find out for myself.