Taurus .357 Tracker Wheel hanging up

[mugsie]

I have a Taurus Tracker .357 in 6" barrel, stainless steel. The gun is relatively new (I'm the original owner) and it has only a few hundred rounds through it so far. It's accurate as anything I've ever shot, but lately the cylinder fails to turn occasionally. It appears to hang up and I've got to wiggle it somewhat to free it up so it'll chamber another round. This happens if I cock it by hand in single action (it'll fail to turn and the hammer will not come all the way back until I use my thumb to jiggle the cylinder) or sometimes it happens when firing double action and the trigger will not move back and spin the cylinder. Any ideas as to what might be causing this and what I can do prior to sending it back to Taurus?
Thanks for the help guys....

 

[Confederate]

It could just need some dry firing to smooth out the action or it might need more serious work. If you're cocking it and it's not moving into battery, it's a timing problem. If it just binds, it could be the barrel/cylinder gap is too small, or that it's catching somewhere else.

Check the B/C gap and see if you can find any areas where it's failing. Cycle it in slow motion and see if you can see.

 

[mnrivrat]

As mentioned, fouling at the front of the cylinder or at the rear of the barrel can cause the gap between these two parts to close and bind up the action in the manner that you discribe. Make sure the front of the cylinder and the back of the barrel at the forcing cone are clean .

 

[wuchak]

It could be that the cylinder gap is too tight and once everything heats up and expands after a few shots it might be binding. Also check that the front of the next cartridge is not extending past the end of the cylinder and catching on the barrel. I had this problem with 180 grain Remingtons in my Tracker due to the cylinder being so much shorter than that on S&W's and Rugers. My Titanium Tracker heads off this week to be fixed for the same problem for the third time. The front of the cylinder is flamecut. The problem started this time on the third round I fired after the last repair. This was not with handloads. It was with a new box of ammo I picked up on the way to the range. To say that I'm disappointed in Taurus would be an understement.

 

[mugsie]

Thanks guys, but it does seem to be a timing problem in that it's not moving into battery. Once I give it a little nudge with my other hand the cylinder rotates into firing position. I guess I'll call Taurus on Monday and see about sending it back to them for repair.:banghead: Any idea how long this is going to take me? If it's going to be 6 weeks or more I might just go visit a gunsmith and have him look at it. Again thanks for the help....

 

[Confederate]

It doesn't make sense if this just started happening. It never hurts to show it to a smith. On the other hand you can call Taurus and ask them what their turn-around time is.

Sometimes, the pawl, or hand, is made from soft steel and it wears quickly; other times, it's the thingy that the hand moves against to advance the chambers to the next one (can't remember what it's called). If gunk forms there it might cause problems, too, so check that out.

 

[Master Blaster]

It does it all the time on one cylinder, or only occaisionaly on random cylinders?

If its once in a while on different cylinders I would clean under the extractor star, and make sure you tip the barrel up when you eject shells, its probably a little unburnt powder getting under the extractor star.

What kind of ammo are you using? because it could also be caused by a high primer.

If it does it repeatedly on the same cylinder/clyinders even when the gun is clean, its a timing issue. The way to tell is to check (with the gun unloaded) after the gun has been cleaned, including cleaning under the extractor star.
Cock the hammer slowly and watch the locking bolt, if it drops before you reach full cock each time, then try it double action pulling the trigger slowly, and see if the bolt drops in the notch on each cylinder before the hammer releases. If it passes these tests I would be suspicious of the ammo. sometimes a high primer can tie the gun up.

Do you shoot .38 spl as well as .357 mag in the gun?

 

[mugsie]

I shoot both 38 special and 357 out of it. It does however appear to be a random thing, however I cannot get it to hang up with dummy rounds in it. I looked at the cylinder gap and it appears to have plenty of room. I also tipped it up when it was hung up and didn't see any interference. Just giving it a little nudge with my other thumb freed everything up. I stripped it down and cleaned it again. Both the star wheel and prawl were clean prior. I did tighten up a screw (guess I'm prone to having a screw loose once in a while) above the trigger which held the wheel in, so tomorrow I'll take it to the range and see if that did anything. BTW - I called Taurus and the average turn around time is 3-4 weeks. Not too bad actually.

 

[Master Blaster]

I shoot both 38 special and 357 out of it. It does however appear to be a random thing, however I cannot get it to hang up with dummy rounds in it.

That makes me think that its either a grain of burned/unburned powder under the extractor star, or out of spec ammo. A single grain of powder can tie the gun up, if it has tight headspace, which taurus revolvers seem to have, also a slightly high primer could be the cause.

If you shoot .38 spl rounds a lot and then load .357 rounds without scrubbing out the chambers with a brush first, it could also cause a problem. The .38spl is 1/8" shorter. Since these rounds headspace on the rim, the crud ring left by the .38spl rounds, will stop the .357 round from seating fully, causing the case head to drag on the recoil sheild and perhaps a failure to lock up fully. You may see a drag mark on the recoil sheild if there is enough carbon build up, and the case head scrapes some of it off.