Cylinder & Slide Smith & Wesson Revolver School

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Purpose


To provide a hands-on school which teaches professional pistolsmithing theory and techniques needed to service, maintain, and tune a Smith & Wesson Revolver.


Scope


Information in this course will cover subjects from the basic operating functions of the Smith & Wesson revolver through the function and purpose of each individual part and their relationships during the firing cycle of the revolver. Instruction will cover the subjects of proper maintenance, returning a worn revolver to proper service specifications, performing an action job correctly to
reduce the single and double action trigger pulls, and improving the accuracy of the revolver.


Please bring the following with you when you arrive for the course:
 
NO BATTERY POWERED DREMEL TOOLS
Cleaning rod and patches for 357 Auto and bore brush
Roll of 1" wide masking tape
Safety glasses with side shields
Mini Mag flashlight
4 _ Shop towels
Variable speed Dremel tool with 1/8" & 1/16" collets
3/8" High speed variable speed drill (must have a lock on button)
3/8" x 7" Mild Steel Rod with 1 ˝" slot cut in one end _ centered
1/8" x 3" Mild Steel Rod with 3/8" slot cut in one end _ centered
1/8" x 3" Mild Steel Rod with ˝" slot cut in one end _ centered
3/16" x 3" Mild Steel Rod with 3/4" slot cut in one end _ centered


The Mild Steel Rods you can get at any hardware store. You will need to
cut the slots yourself before you come to class. These are used for
polishing.


Dial Caliper _ must be made of steel, not plastic, electronic okay but not recommended (DO NOT PURCHASE inexpensive steel calipers designed for reloading use. We have found that they are not accurate for our use and tend to come apart. We recommend you purchase 6" Starrett dial caliper approximately $125.00 or 6" Mitutoyo caliper approximately $100.00. If you are unable to find
these let us know and we will purchase them for you.)
Thin cotton gloves
Black magic marker
4" or 6" Crescent wrench
Paper type dust mask
Sharp pointed scissors (not your wife’s good sewing scissors)
Small needle nose pliers

Subjects to Be Covered

1. Safety
     A. No live ammunition permitted in the classroom
     B. No personal of duty firearms permitted in the classroom
     C. Classroom work safety rules
          1. No smoking in the classroom
          2. Safety glasses with side shields must be worn at all times
          3. Point springs away from yourself and others while
              disassembling or reassembling
          4. No cell phones allowed on in the classroom
     D. Check for clear and muzzle control
           1. Check any completely assembled firearm to be sure that it
               is unloaded every time you handle it.
           2. Never point the muzzle of any completely assembled 
               firearm at anyone.
     E. Inventory of all tools and parts

2. Introduction to the Smith & Wesson Revolver
     A. Exploded view of the Smith & Wesson Revolver
     B. Nomenclature of parts

3. Initial inspection of the revolver
     A. Open cylinder and check that all charge holes are empty
     B. Check cylinder assembly
     C. Check for the presence of the hammer block
     D. Trigger pull and recovery
     E. Mainspring force
     F. Push-off Check
     G. Loose Extractor Rod
     H. Live Fire Test
     I. Extraction
     J. Bolt Check
     K. Safety Features

4. Mechanical Tolerance Inspection
     A Check Cylinder Timing
     B. Check Bore to Charge Hole Alignment
     C. Check Cylinder End-shake
     D. Check for cylinder face run-out
     E. Check Barrel/Cylinder Gap
     F. Check Cartridge Head Space
     G. Check Barrel Throat
     H. Check Muzzle Crown
     I. Check Firing Pin Protrusion
     J. Action weights
     K. Check Ejector Rod Run-Out
     L. Check Yoke Alignment
     M. Check rear cylinder side play
     N. Check extractor Rod Locking Bolt

5. Disassembly of Revolver to begin repair and action tuning
     A. Remove Stocks
     B. Remove Cylinder Assembly
     C. Disassemble Extractor Rod Assembly
     D. Remove Side Plate
     E. Remove Hammer Block
     F. Remove Mainspring
     G. Remove Hammer
     H. Remove Rebound
     I. Remove Trigger
     J. Remove Cylinder Stop
     K. Remove Bolt
     L. Remove Locking Bolt
     M. Remove Trigger Stop in K Frame Revolvers

6. Repair All Problems Found During Mechanical Tolerance Inspection
     A Refer to Item #4 A-M

7. Single and Double Action Trigger Tuning

8. Radius and Polishing Trigger

9. Chamfering Charge Hole Mouths

10. Yoke Detent Ball Installation

11. Removing Hammer Spur

12. Removing and Replacing Rear Sight Leaf

13. Removing and Replacing Pinned on Front Sight Blade