Smith and Wesson 65 .357 magnum

[Texasred]

Last year, I found a LNIB model 65 at a local pawnshop. My wife noticed how much I oggled it and later went back and bought it for me. Well, I ended up shooting about 150 .38spc reloads that I made up for it and called it good. I took it out one day with .357 magnum and went to fire when I noticed the "hand?" that rotates the cylinder from the back was dragging across the rear of the cases and primers binding it up. So then something struck me odd. Nowhere on the gun is it labeled .357 magnum. Not on the barrel, no where. So that kind of scared me. I'm active duty currently so my wife sent it in to Smith. She said the gun came back (7 months and them "losing" the gun in their shop). I'm going back home in two weeks and then I can take pictures. But unfortunately, I was never able to bring this to the attention of the shop. Now I'm wondering, if this is a factory defect. If it was binding with the .357s because maybe the cylinder was a .38's. The gun is clearly labeled 65-4 and the serial number matches the box. The box says that it is a .357 magnum. What's going on here?

 

[Iggy]

Have you really really cleaned the cylinder since you shot those .38s?

A carbon ring often forms at the end of the 38 cases, which are shorter than .357s thus the magnum rounds bind when you insert them.

Look for a ring in the chambers. You get that cleaned out and you'll be good to go.

 

[Texasred]

Yeah, I did do that and it didn't solve the issue. I remember aggressively scrubbing and to no avail.
I just don't understand why the caliber is not specified. I figure that would be illegal or something. Not that I'm the whiner type. Even old military guns are labeled as such.

 

[rcmodel]

Wouldn't make any difference.

.38 Spl. & .357 Mag rim thickness and headspace are so close to the same they are universally interchangeable.

Also, if the gun was chambered for .38 Spl?
.357 Magnum would be .135" too long (over 1/10") to fit in the chambers at all.

My guess is, you got some unburned powder stuck under the extractor star and it was keeping it from seating all the way in the cylinder.

An old toothbrush would probably have fixed it.

And pointing the gun muzzle-up when ejecting cases will stop it from happening again.
Any unburned powder grains will stay in the cases and fall out on the ground.

rc

 

[Texasred]

Alright then. I'll try to update when I get back home if I have the time. Thanks for the tip on tilting it up.

 

[Kernel]

There's also no chance it's a M64 mismarked as a M65 (the occasional mismarked gun is known to leave Smith & Wesson's factory from time to time). I tried to put a .357 Mag cartridge in my M64 the other day.

1) It wouldn't seat all the way - the chamber is cut for the .38 Spl. and a .357 Mag won't enter all the way.
2) If it did seat, some how, say a gunsmith reamed it out, the end of the bullet would stick out the face of the cylinder - the cylinder is too short.

Bottom line: if your revolver will chamber a .357 Mag - it was made at the factory for the .357 Mag.

 

[sgt127]

Something's weird. The hand should not be anywhere near the case rims. And, the fact that the barrel is not caliber marked is very strange. Can you post some pictures?

 

[sgt127]

Hold up. Send a picture of the primers that are dinged up. I'm thinking you are having a little issue with primers flowing back into the firing pin hole with magnums.

 

[rcmodel]

I think you are right.

The hand is nowhere near the cartridge rims or primers.

I didn't even notice he said that!

rc

 

[Texasred]

Yeah I think the hand had fallen down in the slot that it rides in and would scratch the back of the cartridges. It wasn't the primer's backing out because the rounds would scratch before even being fired.

 

[rcmodel]

The hand is nowhere near the rims either.
It lines up with the right side edge of the ratchet in the center of the extractor star.

rc