Thanks for the video. I recently purchased the same revolver; 400 rounds through it so far with no issues. Just FYI

my 617 had a lot of issues as well (light primer strikes, out of time and canted barrel). those were fixed by the factory. i think not being able to close the cylinder may be due to leadbuild at the gas shield. maybe the cylinders were not 100% aligned with the bore. during the first cylinder or 2 after coming back from the factory i got a dud which i thought was a light primer strike but it truly was just a dud. since being fixed the gun has been working well. the trigger is on the heavier side compared to centerfire smiths and the trigger breaks differently in some chambers compared to others but overall i am now happy with the gun. they repaired the yoke, recut the forcing cone and replaced the extractor

Considering your sample size of 1, most if not a far majority of 617 owners as seen on multiple forums have no issues. If you go to any forum where 617's are discussed they are highly regarded and sought after, the new Colt's are not even a close 2nd in demand. You do not see these for sale used often as most buyers once trying them never give them up. The Ruger fit and finish can't hold a candle to the Smith's. If you go to steel challenges for rimfire revolver......it's all 617's. These reason the prices for these remain so high is berceuse they are in high demand and that speaks volumes.

Wow, I’m really sorry to hear all that , I have the 6” 10 shot and the 8” 10 shot pre lock and both have stupid accurate and perfectly reliable. As are all my S&W centerfire revolvers.

@steelbearacademy8855

Жыл бұрын

This is the first one that hasnt been reliable for me. Unfortunate, but I still love my Smiths =)

Weird, my wife has a 6" barrel 617. Zero issues at all. The rounds always fire. We aren't even that particular about ammo storage. Though at 11:00 he talks about the cylinder not closing well after so many rounds, but we can go more than 20 rounds.

I have a 4 inch 617 and a 627. I love them both! I think the key lock is a great feature if, like me, you live in a country (Australia) where you're not allowed to transport a gun unless its trigger is locked, or it's in a solid locked box - separate from any ammo, and you're on your way to or from a shooting club of which you're a member. As far as the lock being "ugly" goes, I think it's barely noticeable; just part of the scenery. And I hate those trigger locks that you have to attach to the trigger guard. As far as the misfire reliability issue goes, I've had the same problems, but I have the same misfires with my Browning Buck Mark and my Alfa Proj. I've also had cylinder closing issues, but I find that it only happens with certain types of ammo which I have to push in a little harder with my thumb. And value..... OMG! you should see what these things cost here! I think this is a great review. I'm sorry you've had reliability issues, but I do agree with most of what you've said. Thanks.

@steelbearacademy8855

6 ай бұрын

Thanks! It's still a cool gun, but this is a data point.

Much appreciate your thoroughness, objective demeanor and outright candor. Kudos!!

@steelbearacademy8855

Жыл бұрын

Thanks! I appreciate it!

Thank You!

It's hard to say without examining your particular revolver, but part of the issue of closing the cylinder after a few rounds may be the accumulation of unburned powder and othet fouling under the extractor. This area must be kept clean and dry. Clean the area under the extractor and the recess in the cylinder, lube the area with only one drop of oil, then wipe the lube off with a clean dry patch. See if that helps. Also, it's a patridge front sight, not a partridge front sight. The front sight on you M19 is a Baughman Quick-draw. Yeah, I'm being a little picky... Thanks for posting.

@steelbearacademy8855

2 ай бұрын

Yeah, I'd have it immaculately clean, including under the ejector star, and the problems would occur within 20 rounds. Oh ok. I didn't know that was called that! =) Thanks for teaching me something!

@jamesp739

2 ай бұрын

You're welcome! You're certainly not alone. Many, many people call it a partridge sight. On your M19, Google "Baughman front sight history" for some interesting tidbits. Also, if you're not doing it already, try ejecting the empty cartridges with the barrel vertical, muzzle up and snap the extractor, don't pump it. At the end of the stroke, roll your thumb off the extractor rod and let the extractor snap back into place. The quicker, the better. Hope I explained that well enough. If you have an assortment of ammo, Federal, Remington, Winchester, etc. see if you notice any difference in the amount of debris left behind. Some brands burn cleaner than others. High velocity vs standard velocity ammunition may also show a difference. If all else fails, keep an old toothbrush handy and brush the recess the extractor sits in and the underside of the extractor occasionally, even if you don't see any build up. These tips work well on centerfire revolvers as well. Hope this helps. Good luck! @@steelbearacademy8855

I do like the key lock. but I just bought one in August and had to send it back to S&W. It was shaving lead. But, they fixed it. Love the gun. Love it

@steelbearacademy8855

Жыл бұрын

What do you like about the keylock? What did Smith fix on your gun?

@wingersfan

Жыл бұрын

@@steelbearacademy8855 well it is not as good as locking guns up, but in the alternative it does keep kids away from using the gun. It is a safety feature. I am not sure what they did but it is not shaving lead anymore. I think they slightly ground the cone. Maybe it had a sharp edge or something? I don't know.

@steelbearacademy8855

Жыл бұрын

@@wingersfan that's good. I havent seen the big build up of lead since I sent it back, but we'll see next time i clean it.

What's the best way to get a hold of smith and wesson? How long did it take from the time you shipped out the gun to when you got it back? I'm having problems with my gun i bought recently.

@steelbearacademy8855

Жыл бұрын

Just give their customer service phone number a call. Mine came back in about 3-4 weeks. I don't remember exactly how long, but not too bad.

I own a few 22lr revolvers and what I notice what happens is not all the powder from the rounds burn up and the grains of powder rest in the cylinder holes . I just blow out the cylinder with my air compressor each reload and you can shoot all day with out any issues

@steelbearacademy8855

Жыл бұрын

I definitely see little "crumbs"? of carbon under the ejector star. Maybe mine does too

@nfaisnfgay

5 ай бұрын

Bingo. You have to clean the chambers of the cylinder very often. On my Colt King Cobra in .22lr, if you don’t do it every 500 rounds, the ejection is incredibly hard.

I paid $1000 for mine during the pandemic. I thought I would keep it forever. Now that colt has a .22 revolver, I'll probably trade it toward the colt without a lock.

@steelbearacademy8855

8 ай бұрын

The colt looks really nice. I agree. If I had a choice, knowing what I know now, I would have chosen a gp100 or a colt cobra

@kennethsiegenthaler9174

7 ай бұрын

​@@steelbearacademy8855ppl ppl

Can you dry fire a 22LR Revolver with dummy rounds?

@steelbearacademy8855

Жыл бұрын

Yes. Make sure to use dummy rounds in any rimfire firearm unless you manual specifical says you don't need to when you are dry firing them.

Your cylindar is out of alignment. Send it back.

@steelbearacademy8855

Жыл бұрын

I already did prior to this video.

Ehh 22 ammo is finicky… Remington is notorious for making garbage 22 ammo… federal Winchester cci are my go to… stay away from Remington!

.22 LR Ammo of any brand or style during COVID and still after COVID is hit or miss in quality. In revolvers, rifles, semi-auto handguns; the current batch of .22 LR ammo will misfire, misfeed, and not extract reliably.

Stainless steel is havier than carbon. It seemed that the gun is unreliable although You were talking about ammunition.

I bought my 617 just a year after they were released in 1990. Had owned a 686 for several years before and had to own the 617. Yes it's heavy....duh. Yes it cost just as much as the .357 mag. Again kinda a duh as well. Sorry you had problems. My 617 had poorly cut chambers too. After 2 series of 10 rounds you almost couldn't eject the empty cases and reloading was very difficult. Bought my own finish reamer and finished cutting the chambers. I was very careful and removed an insignificant amount of metal from of 10 holes. Gun has been flawless since. Smith had issues with this it would seem for years. Sure you didn't spring the yoke forcing ejection or loading?

@steelbearacademy8855

8 ай бұрын

I didn't do anything that I don't do on my center fire revolvers. Im inclined to think it is a combination of the extremely dirty nature of 22lr ammo, combined with those problems in manufacturing. The problem has been pushed from 20 rounds to 50 rounds, but that might just be normal for this gun.

@gunsnwater2668

2 ай бұрын

​@@steelbearacademy8855is dirt getting under the extractor?

@steelbearacademy8855

2 ай бұрын

@@gunsnwater2668 I'd have the gun immaculately clean before I'd shoot it, and it would get some dirt under the star within 20 rounds.

11 months later, how is it? Should'a ran 100 rounds before making the video.

@steelbearacademy8855

8 ай бұрын

As of this week, it seems the same problem of having a difficult to close cylinder begins at about the 50 round mark after cleaning.

You don't trust the gun. I get it. Shoot it or sell it. I hate a gun I don't trust. I feel the trouble you had has soured you on it and your negative comments about cost and weight wouldn't be negatives otherwise.

I'm betting you used cheap ammo. 99 percent of the problems is ammo.