cylinder cut for moonclips?

[jonyork]

I was eyeballing a SW 629 the other day and I was dreaming.

I though, I wonder what moonclips work with it, and to my surprise, you need to send the 629 cylinder away to get cut to allow moonclips.

Knowing nothing about this, is that a standard practice with moonclips, or do some revolvers work "out the box" with moonclips.

Also, after being cut to allow moonclips, does that mean you always need to use a moon clip afterwards?

Lastly, do you really need the moonclip loading/unloading tool?

Thanks!

 

[Sharps '74]

We had several "moon clipped" revolvers out at our weekly IPSC practice yesterday.

While it is true that they make reloading somewhat easier (but not necessarily fool proof) compared to speed loaders, they occasionally result in misfires, and it's not the fault of the ammo. More likely the super tuned actions with light hammer falls.

The loading/unloading tool definitely makes life easier just as a mag loader does for semi-auto mags. Why would you not want to have one for a "moon clipped" revolver?

 

[Still alive]

The 629 is chambered for .44 Mag/SPL. These are straight walled rimmed cartridges. They work with speedloaders normally. The extractor star catches the rim so the round doesn’t slide right through the cylinder. It also allows the star to hold the rim and eject the case after.

Rimless cartridges, like most common semi-auto ones eg. 9mm, .40S&W, .45ACP require moonclips as they don’t have the rim to grab on the extractor star. So most handguns that are chambered for traditional semi auto loadings use moonclips. They work well in competition since you just grab the entire moonclip to load vs trying to line up 6-8 rds from a speedloader. Clean up is also easier since you just pick up the entire used moonclip vs. loose cases off the ground.

Competition shooters who use rimmed cartridges like .38/.357 have been known to work their cylinders to use moonclips effectively. I’m not sure if the cylinder gap between the extractor and frame will accommodate moonclips in modern guns or the cylinder has to be machined to accept moonclips.

I believe once you relieve the extractor star to fit moonclips, it will be too wide/loose to feed individual rounds. I could be wrong here though. I’ve shot moonclip equipped S&W .357s but was not interested enough to see how it really worked.

It would be wise to use moonclip loading and unloading tools especially if you have a lot of moonclips to load and unload unless you have really hard and strong fingers!

 

[4n2t0]

I was eyeballing a SW 629 the other day and I was dreaming.

I though, I wonder what moonclips work with it, and to my surprise, you need to send the 629 cylinder away to get cut to allow moonclips.

Knowing nothing about this, is that a standard practice with moonclips, or do some revolvers work "out the box" with moonclips.

Also, after being cut to allow moonclips, does that mean you always need to use a moon clip afterwards?

Lastly, do you really need the moonclip loading/unloading tool?

Thanks!

Some revolver cylinders must be cut for moon clips because they do not have a recessed area where the moon clip can sit.

[youtube]rHinii-8fdQ&t=334s[/youtube]

Some competition models, like the SW 627, are cut for moon clips from the factory. If you decide to cut the cylinder you can choose to make the gun moon clip only or have it cut to work with moon clips and loose ammo. You don't need a tool but it sure make lifes a whole lot easier. Moon clips are by far the fastest way of reloading a revolver but it takes practice.

[youtube]0FbUMqoyjDw[/youtube]

 

[hatman1793]

There is little value & little to be gained by modifying a S&W 29/629 cylinder for moon clips. Not only would it void the warranty, ruin the re-sale value, it has no real practical competition application vs other superior firearms.

HKS makes entirely suitable gravity speedloaders that provide fast reload times with a bit of practice.

 

[jonyork]

thanks for all the info guys!

It was one of those "wtf, really" moments I had while drinking my morning coffee and dreaming about guns.

 

[beltfed]

If you want a drop dead gorgeous moon-clip equipped wheel gun, I suggest you may want to turn your attention to the S&W 625.
All stainless, 45 ACP love and will accept 45 Auto Rim as well.