Toolguy

You might look at the top of the cylinder bolt right behind the part that engages the notch. There is a step running the width of the bolt that is higher than the rest of the top surface. That part determines how far up the bolt can go into the notch. You can file some off of the step to allow the bolt to sit up higher. If you do that, you have to make sure that it doesn't go up too high or the front part of the trigger can't reset for the next pull. Also, make sure to have a full length bolt spring (not cut off). Check the top crown on the bolt to see that it hasn't got a flat worn on it by the cylinder. It's very unlikely that you would need a new cylinder, maybe a new bolt or spring.

Cylinder and Slide has them.

Your best friend may not want to sue you, but, his insurance carrier will. Lawsuits are pretty much name everybody and let (somebody) sort them out Too many damn bottom feeding revolver shooting Lawyers Lawyers shoot bottomfeeders (birds of a feather thing) and sue revolver shooters.

I made a tool out of 5/16 dia. x 8 in. long brass rod and 3/4 dia. x 4 in. long brass rod. Drilled a 5/16 hole 1/2 inch deep 2 in. from one end of the 3/4 rod and pressed the 5/16 rod in the hole. Keep in range bag. This tool will knock out a stuck bullet in seconds, slide hammer style, and never damage the hand or the bore. This one has a groove and number every inch on the 5/16 part to show where the end is in different length barrels. It is cheap enough to make and one will last forever.

You could keep your Garand and change out the barrel on the 686 to a 6".

That is more truth than fiction!

They don't do anything to counteract it. However, the barrel does spring back to normal when removed from the frame. They did a few guns Dan Wesson-style with a sleeve barrel and nut on the front as a corrective measure. The best way for the average person (can't say "guy" anymore) to deal with this is power lapping. Done properly, it can help a lot on a gun with this problem.

Thanks Mike. That's a very fine compliment coming from someone of your skill and expertise. I suspect we will see some comments about that last part, though. I saw the Carmonkey thread from your "buddies". It was hilarious! I don't know all the players here, but it appears that you were imp-licated in some small way...

The pinned barrel isn't what everyone thinks. They just made a groove across the threads ahead of time, screwed the barrel on and stuck the pin in. The barrel could still turn 5 or 10 degrees with the pin in if it were not for the crush fit where the barrel is hand tight at about 1 o'clock (looking from the rear). Speaking of crush fit, that actually squeezes the bore down where it goes thru the frame from .0005 to as much as .002 depending on how many degrees the front sight was off vertical to begin with. You can check this with guage pins by sliding them down the barrel until you find one small enough to come out of the forcing cone area. This constriction degrades accuracy and contributes to leading. When I fit a barrel, I make it to turn up vertical by firmly hand tightening. Red loctite keeps it in place. I have never had one come undone of it's own accord even on the hottest day or with the hottest magnum. This way the barrel is the same diameter all the way through. It takes 350 degrees of heat to overcome the loctite. Properly done, this will not damage the blueing or the heat treat of the metal. You can tell when you are at the right heat when you start to smell the loctite and/or there is a wisp of smoke coming off that area. Do not keep heating after this point. My 2 cents.

Sights are a personal preference thing, but I would always advise a shooter to avoid anything on the rear sight (fiber optics, colored paint, white outlines, etc.) that might draw one's visual focus away from the front blade where it belongs. I have always had a hard time with black target sights on a black target or going between targets (plates, pins, etc.) the sights disappear into the background and it is very difficult to sort them out again after each shot. Now that I'm getting older and the eyes are changing, it's worse. For years the orange front and white outline rear was the only way I could keep up with the pack. I shoot with several people who have no problem at all with all black sights, which I think are the best choice for accurate shooting if you can see what you're doing. I had to drop out of shooting matches altogether for a couple of years until I got these fiber optic sights. Now I am upgrading my skill level again and am almost back where I was a few years ago. Also, I have found (for me) that focusing on the rear instead of the front makes both sights more in focus and well defined and I can shoot higher scores that way. Plus it helps keep me from looking downrange at the target, and concentrate on the alignment of front to rear sights. The target is a little out of focus, but not too much. With the fiber optics front and rear, I know where the sights are every second and there is no more hunting for them after every shot. With all due respect - All the Best- Toolguy

Cylinder and Slide has new front AND rear fiber optic sights for S&W revolvers. They are good square notch and post target sights with fiber optic front and rear. I have tried all the color combinations. For my vision the green rear and orange front work the best.

I ream out the ledges in mine with a .45 Long Colt reamer. Loads great, shoots accurate.

There are new fiber optic sights for S&W revolver at Cylinder and Slide. They have front f/o pin-on and Classic in .250 and .300 tall, patridge or improved ramp and f/o rear .160 tall that goes in place of the original blade. I have them on 5 guns and really like them. This is the 625 with a .300 front. You can see in the pic there is about 1/2 of the adjustment left to go up or down. One more option. Best Regards - Toolguy Edited to remove quoted post.

Grant and Helen Jeavons have a couple of prototype shrouds that seem to be working out fairly well. One of the main features of these is the ease of disassembly for cleaning. Everything comes out the front very easily without disturbing the shroud itself. Grant shot his in the last Bianchi Cup, Helen took hers to the World Cup. Rumor has it that there may be a similar setup in the future for full length dust cover frames if there is enough interest.