Revolver Cyliner not perfectly "balanced"?

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Tired_and_hungry

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Good Morning Y'all,

I bought a S&W Model 686-6 several months ago and made the mistake of storing it in a sheeps fur lined leather gun bag at the bottom of a locked box with a cased glock-17 and S&W Model 67 on top. In any case, I took the 686 out to the range for practice yesterday and after 150rds of .38 training ammo, when I was cleaning my revolver and looking down muzzle to inspect barrel cleanliness, I noticed that, with the cylinder closed, the cylinder was not perfectly balanced.

Basically, what I mean is that when viewed from the muzzle, the cylinder holes come to rest such that both the left and right sides of the revolver DO NOT look identical. From my perspective, the closed cylinder appears to be 1mm out of alignment either to the left or right but since I suffer from shakey hands, I'm not too sure about this.

Essentially, if the close cylinder is mis-alinged by 1mm or less, is this a problem? The revolver shoots fine and can maintain 30 round 7 inch group at 27 yards from a standing unsuppported position using both hands.
 
To ColtPythonElite: The primer strikes look perfectly centered to me. How do I know whether or not its shaving lead?
 
Gunsmiths who specialize in working on revolvers, and at the factories that make them, they use a plug gauge called a "range rod" to check chamber/bore alignment. If the barrel and chamber are seriously out of alignment the plug won't pass from the bore into the chamber.

I suspect that you don't have a problem, but if you're worried return the gun to S&W and they'll check it out. A few minutes with a range rod will tell the story, and while they are at it they'll look for, and correct any other issues they might discover.
 
To Old Fuff and Everyone else,

Did storing my revolver in a padded case under the combined weight of my glock 17 and Model 67 increase the risk of a cylinder mis-alignment?
 
No.
Not in any way imaginable.
Denis
Agreed. Probably just an optical illusion, as long as its shooting fine, I'm sure its just fine, but you can check it yourself as other have mentioned, or have a local gunsmith check it just for peace of mind.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
Hi Tired and hungry, probably the chambers are perfectly aligned to the forcing cone because the cylinder's stop notches are aligned to the chambers and that's the most important thing. Maybe the flutes between the chambers are slightly staggered to the left or to the right, not perfectly centered; so the cylinder looks misaligned. Could you please post a pic of the front of the cylinder?
 
If you're gonna look then look down the barrel while getting some light in through the cylinder gap, you want to see concentricity. And/or get a dowel that is a close fit and run it down the barrel and through the forcing cone and into the cylinder, evaluate by feel. You can check spitting out the side by holding a piece of paper around the cylinder gap, shoot and look at the paper.
 
Before you go through the hassle of returning the gun to S&W on a "maybe", check locally to see if any gunsmiths in your area have a range rod (they should).
Takes about two seconds per chamber to drop one down the bore & confirm if alignment is on or off.

Or, have somebody else look at it, if you can't hold it still.
Denis
 
Yup, if you can find a local gunmith with a range rod, or who even knows what one is, they might be an attractive option to returning the gun to the factory. In my experience though finding such an individual is not too likely - which is the reason I have my own.

While returning the gun to the manufacturer is a hassle, the advantage - at least in the case of S&W - is that they will do an inspection, and if they find anything that's caused by something they should be responsible for it will be fixed under warrantee. Keep in mind that no major manufacturer I know of puts all of they're production through a final inspection, just random selected samples. That means the ultimate buyer is the final inspector.
 
Fuff,
Wasn't knocking your suggestion, just saying it might be much quicker & easier to call around & look for somebody with a range rod.
My guy has 'em.

I wouldn't think they'd be all that rare for an established & competent full-service shop to have on hand. :)

My thoughts come from knowing another maker finds a surprising percentage of service returns arise simply from either operator error or operator ignorance.
Can easily be a waste of time & money all the way round.

Denis
 
Wasn't knocking your suggestion, just saying it might be much quicker & easier to call around & look for somebody with a range rod.
My guy has 'em.
Click to expand...

I know, and I didn't take it that way.

I wouldn't think they'd be all that rare for an established & competent full-service shop to have on hand.
Click to expand...

True, but in some areas - especially rural ones - you won't generally find them very close.

My thoughts come from knowing another maker finds a surprising percentage of service returns arise simply from either operator error or operator ignorance. Can easily be a waste of time & money all the way round.
Click to expand...

Again true, but S&W goes to some lengths to say they want to see (whatever) because of potential liability reasons.

Bottom line: When there is a problem each gun owner has to decide what solution best fits their situation. That's why it's a good idea to present differnt options in a thread of this kind.
 
I agree that there is no way two firearms stored on top of it could damage it. I once set one of my "K" frames on the tire and forgot to put it back in the holster. Yes, I drove over the revolver with a full sized Chev. truck. I had the firearm inspected by a smith, and it was in perfect condition other than a couple minor scratches.

It's manufactured to handle 35,000 psi on a regular basis, so a couple of firearms setting on top of it won't do anything at all.

GS
 
Trigger position either fully to the rear or fully forward makes no difference on a Smith, in this context.
As long as the cylinder's locked, that's all you need.
Denis
 
I just pulled out my S & W 19-2 and looked at it. The only S & W I have. I can see one issue the OP may have. The left side of the crane is thicker. It sticks out into the cylinder further. However the rotational position of the cylinder is the same. Any possibility?
 
Possibly, maybe – but most likely not.

What is more important is to check for a sprung yoke.

Open the cylinder and check to be sure all of the chambers are empty. Then close and latch it.

Next, hold the revolver so you’re looking from the front, toward the face of the cylinder. Place a forefinger on each side of the cylinder, and see if you can wiggle the cylinder so that you can pull or wiggle the yoke (the hinge part the cylinder is attached to when you swing it out) away from the frame, going right and left. Rotational movement doesn’t count in this instance.

If you can move the yoke away from the frame you likely have a sprung (bent) yoke, and that can cause misalignment between the bore and chamber(s).
 
Also, don't forget to make sure your eyeballs are not misaligned. :)
Denis
 
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