Tap, Rack, Bang Equivalent for Revolvers? Clearing a Revolver Jam Fast?

[HGM22]

Anyone know what the best way to quickly clear a malfunctioning revolver is? Auto guys can tap/rack/bang, what can revolver people do?

I ask because I am not very familiar with revolvers, and I'm not even sure everything that can go wrong, much less how to clear it.

I know a bullet can jump the crimp and I would think pushing the bullet back into the cylinder and continuing to fire would be best, but I'm not sure. Is there a way to manually turn the cylinder should a spring or something break? If the trigger reset breaks can I hold back the trigger and let the hammer go to fire?

 

[AZAndy]

In my experience, anything that makes a revolver not work results in a trip to the gunsmith. An exception: bad load, bullet still in barrel-- can be driven out with a dowel and a hammer.

 

[eldon519]

If a bullet jumps crimp and you are able to push it back into the cylinder, it'll just jump crimp again the next shot. I wouldn't try that unless it is next in line to fire.

 

[oss117]

The "tap, rack, bang" for revolvers is "drop, draw, bang". It requires a NY reload.

 

[StrawHat]

In my experience, anything that makes a revolver not work results in a trip to the gunsmith. An exception: bad load, bullet still in barrel-- can be driven out with a dowel and a hammer.

Best to use a metal dowel not a wood one.

Kevin

 

[wanderinwalker]

My experience mirrors the above posts. Anybody who makes the blanket statement of "revolvers never fail" hasn't either tried hard enough or been around enough shooters using them. Personal experience:

1) S&W 586 - light strikes when I purchased, previous owner had lightened the trigger by backing out the strain screw. Two spins around the cylinder would light 5 of your "6 for sure".

2) S&W 629 - ejector rod screw liked to back out. Made reloads impossible. I had to case it a couple of times with 6 empties in the cylinder. Not something you can fix quickly to get back in a fight.

3) S&W 19 - my specific example is very sensitive to any amount of debris under the extractor star. You get your 6, dump the empties, throw in 6 more and then the cylinder won't close. You can get it cleaned out and running again without tools at least, but you're down and focused solely on clearing it.

Compare this to the reliability of a modern semi-auto "combat pistol". I've never had a Glock or a Walther polymer pistol experience a range-day ending stoppage. Trouble-shooting a stove pipe or failure to eject malfunction takes maybe a second or two.

 

[MrBorland]

Here are a series of articles on revolver malfunctions by Grant Cunningham. They're a good read...

Revolver malfunctions, Part One: ammunition issues

Revolver malfunctions, Part Two: maintenance-induced failures

Revolver malfunctions, Part Three – user induced problems

Revolver malfunctions, Part Four: design and engineering issues

 

[Wishoot]

1- swear
2- throw revolver at target
3- run like a bat out of hell

 

[Zaydok Allen]

1- swear
2- throw revolver at target
3- run like a bat out of hell

I hate to say it but this is close to the truth. A good, well maintained revolver with quality ammo is unlikely to bind up when you need it, but if in fact it does, you're probably out of luck.

 

[Waveski]

Wanderinwalker item 3) ---

I have a pre m15 Combat Masterpiece which is also very sensitive to debris under the ejector star. Sometimes quick reload is impossible. Wonderful shooter , but the "Combat" part is a bit of a misnomer. Yet it was a leo carry.

 

[Tallball]

I have had a few revolvers malfunction because they were no good to begin with. But the ones that I've fired the first few hundred rounds through with no problems have yet to fail me. I've owned dozens. I've never shot one until a part wore out, but I will keep trying until it happens!

The few revolvers that I've owned that were defective were not always impossible to fire. Sometimes firing it SA instead of DA, or vice-versa, worked. IIRC, on one occasion wiggling the cylinder a little bit got it to rotate. But sometimes they were locked up completely and not fixable without tools.

A "New York reload" would be the solution that works every time.

 

[joem1945]

Solution? Carry a backup gun.

 

[rodinal220]

+1 on the back up gun.

Back in the day of revolasauruses the old persuader/de-jammer was popular.

 

[average_shooter]

I am of the opinion that the equivalent would be to open the cylinder, drop any and all rounds out (fired or not), and reload.

In my experience, anything that makes a revolver not work results in a trip to the gunsmith.

Interestingly, years ago I decided to chamber check a box of Federal hydra-Shoks in .357 Mag and found the cylinder would bind. After much pondering, I took my calipers to the case rims. I found a single round with a rim that was over-spec (too thick) and would cause the cylinder to jam as it rotated.

The gun was a Ruger GP-100 in good working order. The ammo was a high quality defense load. One round just slipped through QC. But, I came to realize that that's all it takes to jam up a gun and could result in bad things happening.

 

[Grunt]

Yup, revolvers are less prone to malfunctions in that if it can be stuffed in the chamber, it will likely go bang when you pull the trigger. A light load .38 Special or snakeshot will work just fine in a .357 Magnum for example but automatics are restricted to a certain power level to operate the slide. However, where as an auto can malfunction more often and cleared rather quickly, a revolver tends to jam more often and in many cases will require tools to get it working again. I've had the cylinder bind up 2 times on my S&W 586 and it required a mallet to tap it open. Nope, the best cure for a jammed revolver is a second gun because your jammed revolver is going to be out of the fight with little to zero chance of getting it back into the fight before the bad guy shoots you while you're helpless.

 

[Desertrat357]

Bug. Like most everyone here is saying. It's hard to compare the tap rack bang method to a revolver issue. Simply because they are different problems.

 

[4thPointOfContact]

I've seen AR, H&K, AK and more rifles tossed in mud, I've seen the same with many manufacturer's auto pistols and then they're shaken off and worked. I haven't seen anyone do the same with a revolver.

Who's going to be the first to show how reliable they are under the same conditions?

 

[MrBorland]

Despite the "tap-rack-bang" reference, this thread's about revolvers and dealing with revolver malfunctions. Let's not turn this into another revolver vs semi-auto debate. We've got plenty of those already.

 

[jimbo555]

I'm not going to throw my revolvers in the mud, but I bet plenty of revolvers fell in the mud and worked fine. They were used for many decades during a lot of wars.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

In my experience, anything that makes a revolver not work results in a trip to the gunsmith.

That's generally been my experience, too. Some tie ups like a bullet jumping crimp can sometimes be cleared without tools -- but not fast enough to save your life in a self-defense situation.

An exception: bad load, bullet still in barrel-- can be driven out with a dowel and a hammer.

But NOT with another bullet -- I've seen that tried!!!

 

[pblanc]

Grant Cunningham, in his book "Gun Digest Book of the Revolver" does present a revolver malfunction drill algorithm. Here it is for what it is worth:

First symptom: the gun fails to fire:

Stroke the trigger again.
If the gun still fails to fire, reload.
If the gun fails to fire after the reload, drop it and implement your backup plan.

Second symptom: the trigger is locked, forward or backward:

Tap-stroke.
If that doesn't clear the jam, reload.
If the cylinder won't open, kick it open and finish the reload.
If the cylinder is still stuck, implement your backup plan.
If the cylinder won't close after the reload, implement your backup plan.

Explanation:

First symptom:

If the gun fails to fire due to a bad primer or light strike, a second trigger pull will likely correct the problem unless the gun is empty or all rounds are bad.

If the gun is empty or all rounds are bad a reload will correct the situation.

If the gun fails to fire after a reload there is either a malfunction such as a firing pin or transfer bar problem or all your ammo is bad, in which case the revolver is out of the fight.

Second symptom:

Tap-stroke is a sharp whack to the left side of the cylinder with the heel of your weak hand followed by a trigger press. If the problem was an unlatched cylinder this should fix it.

According to Cunningham, if the problem is a self-engaged lock on a newer Smith and Wesson there is a 15% chance the tap will correct it.

If the action is bound by debris in the channel that the hand moves up and down in, a tap may jar it loose.

If the tap-stroke does not work, the cylinder may be jammed due to a high primer or dirt trapped below the ejector star. In this case a reload will usually fix the problem.

If on attempting to reload the cylinder will not open, in a critical situation Cunningham recommends kicking it open by rotating it right side up, depressing the cylinder release with your shooting hand, and whacking the right side of the cylinder with the heel of your weak hand. If the cylinder opens and can be reloaded and then closed, function will usually be restored.

Note that if the cylinder is jammed due to a bullet caught between the cylinder and the forcing cone, attempting to kick open the cylinder will likely result in expensive damage. So this is a drill you use in a fight, not for a malfunction at the range.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

That's an awful long trouble-shooting list. And as a wise man pointed out, you don't usually run out of ammo in a gun fight, you run out of time.

 

[Ozarkian]

a firearm is a tool - nothing more

I have been shooting revolvers since 1969 and 1911's since before that. I must admit, I have been reloading my own ammo since before Ms. Clinton was appointed to the White House the first time. In all that time, I have had more fail to feeds / fail to fires / fail to eject in my 1911's than I have ever had in all of my revolvers combined. Firearms are nothing more than a tool - take good care of them and have a high confidence in what you feed your firearms and the chances of them letting you down when you need them are slimmer than the chances of a politician not stretching the truth.

 

[StrawHat]

...My experience mirrors the above posts. Anybody who makes the blanket statement of "revolvers never fail" hasn't either tried hard enough or been around enough shooters using them. Personal experience: ... 3) S&W 19 - my specific example is very sensitive to any amount of debris under the extractor star. You get your 6, dump the empties, throw in 6 more and then the cylinder won't close. You can get it cleaned out and running again without tools at least, but you're down and focused solely on clearing it...

There should be zero debris under the star. If you are getting debris or powder under the star, you are not clearing the empties properly. The muzzle goes vertical and the empties fall clear of the cylinder.

Kevin

 

[Plan2Live]

The original question is flawed. The mindset behind a malfunction drill should be Tap-Rack-Ready not Tap-Rack-Bang. The threat can change while you are tapping and racking.