sledge Posted June 18, 2009 Share Posted June 18, 2009 How should a bent extractor be straightened when I don't have access to a drill press, lathe, or dial indicator? My 625-3 when assembled shows runout at the ejector rod that is about the thickness of a business card. The cylinder binds in for about 30% of a full rotaton. The rest of the rotation is fine. The ejector rod and center rod have been replaced with factory new parts, but the binding did not disappear. The extractor, center rod, collar, and ejector rod (but not the cylinder nor the yoke) have been placed in the frame. The runout is visible in the middle of this assembly. I'm pretty sure I can figure out which direction it needs to bent to make it straight again. The question is how to straighten it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Round_Gun_Shooter Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 You really need a fixture to hold it in place while you straighten it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toolguy Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 See if you can find a metal tube with a hole a little bigger than than the ejector rod, so it slips over easily. Swing out the cylinder and lay the gun flat on a table. Rotate till the high spot is on top, slide the tube over the ejector rod, and bend down with slow, even pressure. Start out light and add more pressure each time until it moves to where you want it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carmoney Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 Over the years I got pretty good at straightening extractor rods by eyeballing them and smacking them with a babbitt or hammer handle. But that method is always going to be inconsistent, and awhile back I quit dicking around trying to straighten them. Brownells is only an hour down the road, the parts are cheap, and it's so much easier just to replace bent rods and center pins with nice, new, straight, perfect parts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Griffin Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 Ha! Thanks Mike, I was too embarrassed to admit I did the same thing at Area 6. Give it a spin, line up on the high side, and Whack! Works like a charm, although I had to shim it to .004 instead of the .002 previously. H. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
20nickels Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 If you go the replacement route they come a bit long. Once installed in the cylinder, with the center pin depressed you will have to cut them flush with the end of the ejector rod. As with anything, leave it longish, you can always go shorter but not longer. You can then smooth off the cut, if it is rough you can feel it in yer trigger pull when it rubs on the "latch thingy that keeps it in place under the barrel". Where's Jmax when you need him? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmax Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 The factory technique is to use your factory issued babbit bar and smack the ejector rod to bend it. We had a special fixture to hold the cylinder assembly while performing this function. I got rid of that fixture years ago when I got a Ron Powers alignment jig with a dial indicator. Now ejector rod runout can be adjusted to less than+/- 1 thou. As a side note, when you make an adjustment be sure to tighten the ejector rod otherwise id can back out at the wrong time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carmoney Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 Together, an extractor rod and center pin cost about $15. Usually the center pin isn't bent, so normally it's only $8 to simply replace the extractor rod with a brand new part that hasn't been smacked on. Life's too short to straighten extractor rods, although it's good to know how in case you need to fix one in the field. One other point to make--they don't need fixed if you don't bend them in the first place. I can never quite figure out how some people manage to bend these--unless they are handled really abusively, they stay straight pretty much indefinitely. I suppose it's the same kind of folks who can't close a cylinder without briskly slapping it shut. I can think of one particular friend that makes me cringe every time he looks at one of my wheelguns because he invariably snaps it open and slams it shut several times, much harder than necessary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
20nickels Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 (edited) I like to bend mine out of shape by taking them out of the frame and putting too much packing inside the shipping box to the gunsmith. Edited June 19, 2009 by 20nickels Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toolguy Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 Most of the time they are not actually bent. They are screwed on to the extractor. The threaded joint is where the problem originates. Due to the clearances required for threads to fit together, there must be a certain amount of play between the male and female thread. When they are tightened together, they will seat randomly anywhere from being concentric to the maximum amount of play available. Every time an ejector rod is loosened and tightened it will have a runout according to how it seats that particular time. Some will tend to seat straighter than others. Some will vary from straight to crooked each time they are unscrewed and retightened. I use the Ron Power jig with indicator that is mentioned above. The original post was looking for a way to do a one time thing. It wouldn't be worth buying the special tool for a single use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom E Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 Together, an extractor rod and center pin cost about $15. Usually the center pin isn't bent, so normally it's only $8 to simply replace the extractor rod with a brand new part that hasn't been smacked on. Life's too short to straighten extractor rods, although it's good to know how in case you need to fix one in the field. One other point to make--they don't need fixed if you don't bend them in the first place. I can never quite figure out how some people manage to bend these--unless they are handled really abusively, they stay straight pretty much indefinitely. I suppose it's the same kind of folks who can't close a cylinder without briskly slapping it shut. I can think of one particular friend that makes me cringe every time he looks at one of my wheelguns because he invariably snaps it open and slams it shut several times, much harder than necessary. I'm with Mike on this. I keep spares. I hate the dog chasing it's tail routine of trying to straighten them. I've never bent one on one of my own guns, but it's not uncommon to take a new revolver out of the box and find a pre-bent ejector rod. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carmoney Posted June 20, 2009 Share Posted June 20, 2009 Most of the time they are not actually bent. They are screwed on to the extractor. The threaded joint is where the problem originates. I've seen plenty that were obviously bent. But Warren's post should be a reminder that it is not necessary to take the extractor assembly apart, unless it's time to install an endshake bearing, and that only happens a couple times during the gun's competition lifetime. You do not need to take them apart for routine cleaning--just blast them with brake cleaner and lightly relubricate. Every time I see somebody posting about the Wessinger extractor rod removal tool (total waste of money, by the way--a simple drill chuck is faster and easier, and everybody already has one), I cringe once again. Carelessly cranking them apart and back together is undoubtedly one of the primary reasons for so many rods being bent in the first place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atlscrog Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 What causes causes extractor run-out? About a year ago I purchased a lightly used 625-3 with a 5" barrel, the extractor rod had no visible run-out. Approximately 4k rounds later, it has noticeable run-out. When shooting a stage I'm not concerned about gently closing the cylinder; I'm just focused on completing the reload. Am I applying too much force? Thanks, Scott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carmoney Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 It's funny.....some people are inherently more gentle on their revos, and some treat their guns pretty roughly. I can specifically think of one of my friends (who is a very experienced competitive revolver guy), who always slaps the cylinder closed really hard with his open palm. Much harder than I ever do, even when I'm running through a stage. It's just the way he does it, and it works fine for him. (But it sort of makes me cringe when he does it to my gun!) Still, I wouldn't think slapping a revolver closed would really do anything to the extractor, unless the front lock has a really stiff engagement. I do think slamming the revolver closed will accelerate the peening to the cylinder stop notches that we have seen on stainless S&Ws. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atlscrog Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 Thanks for the feedback... I'm going to start focusing on how I close the cylinder during a stage... more finesse couldn't hurt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
20nickels Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 Thanks for the feedback... I'm going to start focusing on how I close the cylinder during a stage... more finesse couldn't hurt. Finesse is a good word for it. You can be a little rough with them but not abusive, to quote JM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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