S&W 357 reloads not fitting in chamber in one gun but ??

Brianma65

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View attachment 45665View attachment 45664Hello , my buddy and I have S&W .357. His is a 6 shot without the key lock and mine is a new 7 shot. The problem is, his reloads won't fit in his cylinder but will fit in mine. Any thoughts as to why? Here's a couple of pics with both guns and the cartridges switched
 
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Hello , my buddy and I have S&W .357. His is a 6 shot without the key lock and mine is a new 7 shot. The problem is, his reloads won't fit in his cylinder but will fit in mine. Any thoughts as to why? Here's a couple of pics with both guns and the cartridges switched

No pictures? Has by chance your friend shot a lot of .38 SPL out of his revolver? Perhaps there is a build-up in the chambers and a good clean and honing is in order.
 
I'd thinking carbon rings from lots of .38Spl as well.

A .40cal bore brush on a short extension rod spun by a drill with some good powder solvent will remove them. Another "tool" if you reload is to slightly over flare the mount of a .357Mag casing and sharpen the outer edges with a counter sink used on the mouth opening. Push this into the chambers with some force and the sharp mouth edge will chip the buildup loose. You want it to be a snug fit to the rear portion that needs firm thumb pressure to force it forward.
 
He's giving a good scrub with a .40 brush. See how it goes.

What model of 357 does your buddy have. If it is an early gun that has recessed cylinders then all it might be is that he has made them to long.

Your gun being newer will not have the recessed cylinders so they will go in. That might be all it is. Check your ammo against his and see if it is longer. I have seen this many times.

Graydog
 
I have a 27-2 that binds on a few chambers after firing. I'm thinking of having them reamed.


As for yours - are you certain that you're full length resizing? Shell plate bumping the die and all that?

Your crimps are clean? No buildup of metal/lead/brass around them?

Then there's no reason for the cases to not drop in unless the gun is dirty, as has been said
 
Yes he's FL right, crimps are clean. As I said, his reloads fit my chamber but not his. Maybe it's really just a bad case of buildup. We,re now pushing a belled case in and there's still black carbon coming out.
 
It's definitely build up. After pushing a belled case through its getting better. Only thing available to us is g96,outers nitro solvent.
 
It's definitely build up. After pushing a belled case through its getting better. Only thing available to us is g96,outers nitro solvent.

I have stopped using .38 SPL cases altogether. I will light load .357 brass versus using .38SPL just to avoid the build-up.
 
What model of 357 does your buddy have. If it is an early gun that has recessed cylinders then all it might be is that he has made them to long.

Your gun being newer will not have the recessed cylinders so they will go in. That might be all it is. Check your ammo against his and see if it is longer. I have seen this many times.

Graydog
Are you sure about this? The only difference between recessed and non-recessed chambers is the counter-sunk section for the rim--the OAL of the rounds is the same.
 
Yes he's FL right, crimps are clean. As I said, his reloads fit my chamber but not his. Maybe it's really just a bad case of buildup. We,re now pushing a belled case in and there's still black carbon coming out.

Have you tried manufactured ammo in both to see the results
 
Have you tried manufactured ammo in both to see the results
Only in mine. He just bought his off the EE and this is the first time he tryed .357. I think it's just carbon buildup from .38 special as the others have said. After pushing a belled case through repeatedly , it's getting better.
 
Are you sure about this? The only difference between recessed and non-recessed chambers is the counter-sunk section for the rim--the OAL of the rounds is the same.

Hi
Yes you are correct but if you happen to using an extra long bullet with the wrong shape on the nose of the projectile you can get this problem.

Or it could be as sgested by others that it is a build up of carbon.

People are often to quick to blame the gun when in fact most times it is the reloads.

The standard is set by factory ammo, there are no exceptions to this rule. Get some factory loads and if they chamber ok then you know for sure it is the ammo, if it doesn't then it is the gun just that easy.

Just my two cents worth.

Graydog
 
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