I Just Cracked A Forcing Cone On A .32 Police Positive

[MikeJackmin]

Recently bought this gun on auction, the seller's photos are still up so you can see it here:

http://www.gunauction.com/buy/11317078

I inspected the gun in the shop before bringing it home and the forcing cone was fine; the cone is also visible in one of the photos, and no problems are evident. The seller, in my opinion, is blameless here.

The chambers were wiped dry and loaded with new Prvi Partizan 32 S&W Long ammunition, and it shot very nicely for about 30 rounds until I noticed that the cylinder would drag a little when opened. Upon inspection it was obvious that the forcing cone is split wide open, cracked through at 8 o'clock.

I'm going to guess it's cost prohibitive to find a replacement barrel and have someone swap them out?

It it works, it's worth about $250 to me as a shooter. At the moment, it's worth nothing, and since there was no sign of forcing cone damage when it arrived from the seller, it's on me to eat the loss. So, I suppose that a barrel swap at $250 after shipping would be about the upper limit. Any recommendations?

On a related note, I've had good luck with Prvi ammo in the past, it's a bit dirty but it's always worked well. Any reason to think it might be too strong for old guns like this? I also have an old HE S&W .32 I've been shooting with the same ammunition, with no trouble so far.

 

[evan price]

Talk to member Clark on here. He routinely welds up the notoriously weak forcing cones on thes...Well, and he loads them to +P+++ pressure so he HAS to...

IMHO not worth fixing, it's a parts gun if you can't do the work yourself.

Too bad, I like these old Colts and own a couple Police 32's myself. That one wasn't in bad shape and the grips still look good. Last one I bought was in similar condition for $200 otd at a pawn shop last year.

 

[Slamfire]

Very sorry to read that the cone broke. These old guns were made from inferior steels compared with today’s and the S&W's of that period were not even heat treated. Maybe that was the same for Colts.

I really don’t know what you could do that the fix would not exceed the purchase price of the pistol.

 

[R.W.Dale]

Check out this item I found on eBay: http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=290706725582

That's just the first one I found. Out of a handful of 32 Cal police positive barrels



posted via that mobile app with the sig lines everyone complaints about

 

[MikeJackmin]

Thanks.

Here's my dumb question of the day... why not just continue to use it despite the crack? The .32 is a pretty low-pressure round. If the accuracy remains acceptable and it's not spitting lead out the side, what's the worst that would happen?

R.W.Dale, can you repost that link? Wasn't able to make it work, thanks.

 

[Old Fuff]

The problem may have been caused by what's called a "sprung crane," which will allow the cylinder to wiggle away from the frame and the bullet to hit the barrel when the chamber is not concentric with the bore, and out of line toward 8:00. A used, replacement barrel may not be too expensive, but having it changed by someone who doesn't ruin the frame is another issue. In any case, after removing the old barrel (and it may be necessary to cut away the forcing cone area before it can be uncrewed) check for a sprung crane before going to the expense of buying a replacement. Fixing the crane is not difficult, but it needs to be done by someone who knows what they are doing.

Also go to www.proofhouse.com and use the serial number to determine when it was made.

 

[Old Fuff]

why not just continue to use it despite the crack? The .32 is a pretty low-pressure round. If the accuracy remains acceptable and it's not spitting lead out the side, what's the worst that would happen?

See post #6.

 

[dfariswheel]

The worst that could happen is a piece of the cracked cone can beak off and turn into a piece of flying shrapnel, seriously injuring someone.

 

[R.W.Dale]

Thanks.

Here's my dumb question of the day... why not just continue to use it despite the crack? The .32 is a pretty low-pressure round. If the accuracy remains acceptable and it's not spitting lead out the side, what's the worst that would happen?

R.W.Dale, can you repost that link? Wasn't able to make it work, thanks.

Just search "police positive barrel"

I couldn't get a direct link as I'm on mobile




posted via that mobile app with the sig lines everyone complaints about

 

[MMCSRET]

Check with "coltparts.com" for a used barrel. I have never bought a barrel from him but I have purchased and installed other parts from him, good service and good prices.