How has everyone's experience w/ S & W been lately?

[Skgreen]

Brought my very first S & W home today.
Purchased online. "New in box" 67-5 in 38 special.
Went straight home from my FFL -
Was feeling pretty good about it,,, up until I checked it with my borescope.

The copper wasn't much of a surprise as I assumed it was test fired, but something else appears a little 'off' here;



I have 'a few odd dozen or so' firearms. Shotguns / rifles / pistol (semi and revolver)
I've 'scope'd' them all, but I certainly wasn't expecting to see anything like this.

I emailed some pics to S & W and asked 'what to do next',,,

Anyone else ever been in a similar situation?

If so, how did S & W react?

Thanks,

 

[shoebox1.1]

Sorry to see that if there is an issue ( I’m no expert) I just had to send in a brand new colt king cobra in for warranty work with a 150 rounds through it. Misfires. They changed the hammer spring and did whatever else they did ( they don’t tell you). Anyway it came back better than it left! I would hope s&w would do the same. I think they will. Keep us posted

 

[Driftwood Johnson]

I'm having a real hard time understanding what I am seeing. Could you be a little bit more explicit? The photos don't make much sense to me.

 

[Fiv3r]

I don't see it either, but I'm pretty ignorant to such things.

I will say that my new 686+ feels like a warm handshake with the 686 I foolishly traded away a decade ago. Fit, finish, lock up, accuracy, all top notch.

Never thought I would pocket carry an L frame, but my 2.5" 686+ has displaced others from rotating in.

 

[Skgreen]

Pics are from the barrel throat, where the lands/groove start to form.

Circle in center is a mirror mounted at a 45 degree angle to the cameral lens , Image inside circle is the barrels internal surface, (Grooves/lands, etc) viewed at 90 degrees to the bore.

Area outside the circle is the bore as viewed from the camera, which is inside a long skinny tube.

For comparison, here are 3 pics of the same area in some of my other revolvers:

GP100 in 357. Land in center, grooves on either side of land



GP100 in 22. Land in center / grooves on either side





$99 Heritage in 22. Land in center / grooves on either side



The same area of my new S & W:



Chunks missing from all the lands, distance from the start of the groove to the forcing cone wanders all over.

Plumb pitiful.

 

[Jonesy814]

Does it shoot OK?

 

[243winxb]

Looks like the transition from forcing cone to rifling . The pilot made some marks. I dont think they are an issue for shooting lead bullets.

Comparing barrels that are broken in to new may not be a fair comparison.

 

[Skgreen]

Does it shoot OK?

Don't know. I brought it straight home from the FFL and ran my scope though it.

 

[Skgreen]

Looks like the transition from forcing cone to rifling . The pilot made some marks. I dont think they are an issue for shooting lead bullets.

As fate would have it, I don't shoot lead.

 

[243winxb]

Not a problem for jacketed bullets. Jacketed will iron out the rough spots.

See what S&W has to say. I think you will be getting a shipping label from them for return.

 

[.38 Special]

I am about the biggest S&W fan boy out there, but all of the S&W purchases I have made in the last 15 years have been disappointing. The same, though, is true of almost all of the handgun purchases I have made in the last 15 years.

It appears to me that outside of a few small "boutique" gunmakers, the quality control departments have been outsourced to the consumer. Buy it, then ship it back to have it fixed.

 

[Viper1357]

The same, though, is true of almost all of the handgun purchases I have made in the last 15 years.

It appears to me that outside of a few small "boutique" gunmakers, the quality control departments have been outsourced to the consumer. Buy it, then ship it back to have it fixed.

Yep, I totally hear that. But if it shoots acceptably then maybe don't sweat it. Many tolerances once held tightly by several manufacturers have been loosened over the years to help mass production and sales up, and rejects and quality issues/stats favorable for them, not the consumer.

 

[.38 Special]

With direct regard to the OP, I will say that S&W hates you. They are not interested in making guns "right" for the enthusiast, but rather prefer to make guns for the guy who neither knows nor cares. Very few consumers will scope the throat. Most will simply shoot the gun and see whether it works or not - and probably cannot tell the difference either way. So shooting the thing would be my first course. It is not unlikely that, with jacketed bullets, the gun will work.

If it does not, you certainly can send it back. My personal experience, though, is that the gun will, often as not, come back "unfixed". This has happened to me enough that I actually budget for it. In your shoes I would either hire a gunsmith or rent/buy a throat reamer. These are easy to use (the reamers, not the gunsmiths!) and will create a better throat than anything the current batch of S&W folks are willing to send back to you.

<edit> Viper, above, got his post in before mine, but I exactly agree with him.

 

[wagonburner]

I’m too scared to look at my later model S&Ws now ... they’re probably all like that.

 

[Obturation]

I've owned 2 S&W revolvers, both made after 2005. I now own none, not going to rant but poor CS & the same issues inherent to design frustrated me to the point of saying goodbye .i know older models are better but if you want new ,you roll the dice. Most users have no issues though and love them.

 

[MaxP]

I would shoot it first before poking around in the horse’s mouth, but that’s just me.

 

[shoebox1.1]

Would it be true that “ after” the booger area the bullet would then “ have a straight and normal path” down the barrel and out the muzzle? In other words can the forcing cone area affect accuracy?

 

[Obturation]

can the forcing cone area affect accuracy

Certainly .

 

[.38 Special]

I've owned 2 S&W revolvers, both made after 2005. I now own none, not going to rant but poor CS & the same issues inherent to design frustrated me to the point of saying goodbye .i know older models are better but if you want new ,you roll the dice. Most users have no issues though and love them.

My final lesson came around 2010, with an S&W "classic" that actually did not function, as in you could not make it chamber and fire factory ammunition. S&W kept it for a month and sent it back in the same condition. I can still scarcely believe it even as I type it. Eventually a competent gunsmith got it sorted out, but I have very little inclination to buy new S&W revolvers these days. I assume that some day I will find one that I cannot live without, but again, I automatically add 20% to the price tag on the assumption that I will be shipping it to my gunsmith right out of the gate.

 

[bdickens]

I agree it looks horrible.

Buuuuut....

Speaking from having the better part of 30 years as an automobile technician:

I have seen and experienced a lot of things that look horribly wrong to the untrained eye and are actually perfectly fine and things that don't look so bad to the untrained eye but are actually a disaster waiting to happen.

I suspect that since this is right at the beginning of the rifling that as long as the rest of the bore is in good shape and there are no burrs getting in the way that what you see will not be a problem and will get polished out eventually.

Probably the only way to be completely certain is to shoot it.

 

[Skgreen]

I think you will be getting a shipping label from them for return.

My shipping label was emailed to me this afternoon.

We'll see what they say.

Thanks everyone!

 

[Obturation]

My final lesson came around 2010, with an S&W "classic" that actually did not function, as in you could not make it chamber and fire factory ammunition. S&W kept it for a month and sent it back in the same condition. I can still scarcely believe it even as I type it. Eventually a competent gunsmith got it sorted out, but I have very little inclination to buy new S&W revolvers these days. I assume that some day I will find one that I cannot live without, but again, I automatically add 20% to the price tag on the assumption that I will be shipping it to my gunsmith right out of the gate.

I had a 686 with dreaded canted barrel they deemed normal. Best I could tell the barrel was somehow off center in the frame so it had to be canted or the rear sight would have to be hanging off the side. That was frustrating but it shot fine and I kept it a while but when my 629 started having trouble I had it fixed , within a year or so the same problem returned to the 629 I was just done. I've thought about a couple other S&Ws recently but I'm gun shy on them. I'd love to get a nice older model but just never have found one I couldn't live without.

 

[Waveski]

It is quite possible that , if it were not for such high tech camera gear, you would have taken your new gun to the range then gone on to THR to post a thread about how great it shoots.

 

[Riomouse911]

I've sent two back to the Springfield mother ship in the past couple of years; one a Model 686+ that would bind up after 30-40 rapid shots were fired. It came back about four weeks later with a straightened yoke and a new ejector rod (I have no idea what was the cause of the issue, I don't snap guns closed nor do I wail on ejector rods.)

The second was a new-to-me Model 66-1 that upon buying and bringing home last year didn't "feel" right when the cylinder release was pushed. This took 4 months to get back from the performance center. Upon return it had some new springs installed and an internal part or two replaced. Now it shoots like the day it was made.



Stay safe.

 

[shoebox1.1]

I would think that shooting it would “ fire lap” those niggles out. Metal on metal with high pressure and heat!