Wolff reduced power mainspring/rebound spring reliable?

[Shrinkmd]

I just put in a Wolff reduced power rib mainspring and the 15 pound rebound spring in my Model 10. It feels nice, but I'm concerned about the reliability. I've seen lots of posts about this but no polls. So let's add up the results.

 

[Shienhausser]

I have fired unknown primer reloads, my CCI small pistol magnum reloads, Buffalo Bore, Federal Hydrashok and American Eagle, Speer Gold Dot and Blaser/Blaser Brass, Fiocchi, Hornady Critical Defense and Winchester White Box, all with no problems. All in .357 Magnum.

This is with 50-100 rounds at least of each.

I brought the original springs and a tool so that I could test ammo and change out accordingly if needed.

I have the reduced main and 13# rebound in my S&W M66-0. It shoots like a dream.

You just have to test it yourself.

 

[PONTIACDM]

I changed out my GP100 springs. Wolf springs are awesome! My brother loved mine so much he had me change his.

 

[sidheshooter]

I've taken both a GP and an SP from Ruger's 14lb hammer down to Wolff's 12, and so far no problems. I admit that this is a fairly conservative mod, however; the packs each came with numerous even lighter springs that are still in a desk drawer.

 

[rcmodel]

I have used them in K & J-Frames for about forever.

They are totally reliable as long as you pick the right rebound slide spring for the individual gun.

The thing is though, you have to maintain your guns & keep them cleaned and lubed.

The stock springs from S&W are heavy by design, so they will still work no matter how much crap gets in the action and binds things up enough to slow things down.

rc

 

[Shrinkmd]

They are totally reliable as long as you pick the right rebound slide spring for the individual gun.

The shooter pack comes with 13, 14, and 15 lb rebound springs. I started off with the 15, but would I likely be ok with the 13? I guess I need to bring my tools to the range and work my way up (or down) and see if reliability can be maintained. I have a can full of 38 special reloads with CCI primers, so if they fire those I should be ok, eh?

 

[Drail]

The mainsprings rarely cause a reliability problem but going with a very light rebound spring can get you in trouble. It will slow the reset of the trigger which causes a lot of people to short stroke the trigger (especially under stress). Having to wait for the trigger to fully reset limits your speed on follow up shots. If any Wolff mainspring fails to set off a primer then the primers are much harder than they need to be. With CCI/Speer primed ammo you need at least a factory power mainspring to get 100% reliability. I never understood why CCI/Speer believes they need to make the primer cup so thick.

 

[BCRider]

My two main use S&W revolvers both use Wolff kits. I went with the lightest rebound spring and I've MAYBE two or three FTF's out of about 3000 reloads done by me. With factory or commercial reloads I've never had a failure to fire.

 

[rcmodel]

With CCI/Speer primed ammo you need at least a factory power mainspring to get 100% reliability

That has not been my experiance.

CCI primers is about all I have used over the last 40 years with several Wolff sprung guns.

rc

 

[TonyT]

I on;ly use Federal primers in my revolver loads.

 

[evan price]

I tried a Wolff power-rib mainspring and 13 lb rebound in my 10-6. Had random FTFs with light strikes. I polished the rebound block and put all the original springs back in and it runs a treat. The trigger pull improvement wasn't as awesome as I had hoped with the Wolff kit. Just slicking up the rebound block and lightly deburring everything inside and a couple weeks of dry-firing in front of the TV and it's as good as I want. I'd rather be 100% reliable than have a trigger that's so good the gun won't work.

 

[iyn]

I just changed the rebound spring to 15 lbs on my stock m-67. Reliable and it helped with the trigger pull.

 

[Shrinkmd]

Well, at the range the reduced power rib and the 15 lb rebound spring went bang bang click click. So I switched back to the originals. But I did follow a bit of advice and wiped all the excess oil off of the hammer and rebound slide. I then added a thin layer of the RIG+ grease. I sealed her back up (definitely getting more confident opening and closing the sideplate, really not a big deal with the right Brownells screwdriver) and the trigger is definitely smoother.

Next time I put a midway order in, I might try out a standard power rib mainspring and see if I can get away with tinkering a little bit. But I think the RIG+ grease helped a great deal. Trigger feels smooth.

I was also thinking about going the Federal primer method, but part of me doesn't like the idea of having a gun that isn't 100% reliable with any standard load)

 

[Drail]

If this is going to be a "carry" gun then do not try to reduce the springs very much. I have range guns with amazing trigger pulls that will only fire 100% with Federal primers. But for carry guns I want more reliability than that. On S&W revos for carry use I actually use the stock springs and polish the internals and call it good. In a defensive shooting situation you will not even notice the heavier factory trigger pull weight.

 

[robctwo]

I like the 14 pound rebound spring. The light mainspring has been great on my 45 Classic. I've tried them on other S&Ws, 19s, and went back to the full power.

 

[788Ham]

I've got my SP 101 at the smithy's right now, getting some burrs on the hammer and frame stoned and smoothed, also having the #14 hammer spring lightened to #11 or #12. Smith said just having the parts stoned will help relieve 1/2 of the stiffness in the trigger/hammer. Hope to have it back this next week

 

[Shrinkmd]

Midway doesn't sell a Type 1 main spring by itself, so off to the Wolff site I go.

If I have the full power main spring does changing the rebound spring affect reliability? Now that I have the midway rebound spring tool, changing it out is pretty much a snap.

 

[Old Fuff]

Factory main and rebound springs are balanced against each other, so changing just one or the other may, or may not cause problems.

At Smith & Wesson they cannot individually tune each revolver they make. Therefore the springs are designed to insure reliability, no matter what. They have no way to know what particular ammunition or brand of primers you may use, or if your revolver will develop cylinder end-shake or some other condition that may affect primer ignition, or if the internals ever see a drop of lubricant.

Both the manufacturer's and professional action jobs have far more to do with the fitting of various lockwork parts and the cylinder assembly (yes! the cylinder assembly is important) then simply switching out springs.

No matter how you cut it, switching springs will reduce absolute reliability. How important that reliability is depends on what you plan to use the revolver for. But if the intended use includes personal defense I suggest that you return the gun to Smith & Wesson, or send it to a professonal gunsmith with a reputation, and have them do a complete street action tune-up.

Incidentally, while they won't come out and say so, the company is delighted when individuals "polish" parts or change springs. Should the revolver fail at a critical time it is unlikely they can be sucessfully sued.