HELP! I Blew up my barrel!

J

James54765

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Southern Saskatchewan
I have an old Smith and Wesson pre model 10 38 spl and after a request from the factory, I learned that it was shipped out of the factory in 1929. Its a very old pistol, but it has some sentimental value to me. I had purchased it on the EE last spring for apparently too much money judging by the price I have seen for other ones. I have no idea what it has been through before I got it, but I put 150 rounds of American Eagle 158gr LRN though it without issue.

I took my first batch of reloads for it out to the range today, and after 10 rounds it was toast. I loaded them with 158gr Hornady FP/XTP's and 4.0gr of Universal with Winchester Small Pistol Primers.

The first few rounds went well, then I noticed that there were no holes showing up on the target and realized that a bad reload lodged in the barrel as I could see it sticking out. I then noticed that there was a really ugly split up the side and the barrel was toast. Luckily no one was injured but now my gun is a paper weight.

Any idea where I go for the replacement barrel and replacement work? I live in Alberta and I have already put an ad on the Parts and Accessories EE for a new 5 inch barrel with a blue finish. I really hope I am not SOL here. Any help or suggestions are appreciated. I will be pulling all of the reloads after that. I think that heavy jacketed bullets and a weak charge are to blame here.
 
James54765 said:
I think that heavy jacketed bullets and a weak charge are to blame here.
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You could be right but i suspect a squib . Maybe call Ellwood Epps . They have a barn filled with old parts and do very good gun smithing . A used barrel and the gun smithing will likely set you back two hundred .
 
Thanks, Ill try them on monday.

I am positive it wasn't a squib. I have a Single Stage Press and I am uber careful when I load. I Always check each casing before seating. My load data lists 4.0 gr as the starting load and it may have been a bit light, maybe I ended up with 3.8 or so.
 
I'm calling it a squib as well. I've put together ammo without any printed data, so I used the SWAG method and was too low on the powder charge. I've had bullets exit in the 400 fps range, even one going 365 fps......
 
James54765 said:
Thanks, Ill try them on monday.

I am positive it wasn't a squib. I have a Single Stage Press and I am uber careful when I load. I Always check each casing before seating. My load data lists 4.0 gr as the starting load and it may have been a bit light, maybe I ended up with 3.8 or so.
Click to expand...

Squibs happen to everyone that reloads even factory ammo have squibs. it could of been a bore brush that was left in after a cleaning thats happend to people. It could of been a over charged load but they tend to burst the cylinder. you should have the gun looked over well as other things might be wrong with it
 
James54765 said:
Thanks, Ill try them on monday.

I am positive it wasn't a squib. I have a Single Stage Press and I am uber careful when I load. I Always check each casing before seating. My load data lists 4.0 gr as the starting load and it may have been a bit light, maybe I ended up with 3.8 or so.
Click to expand...

.38 spl cases are so long and the powder volume is so low, its very easy to miss a powder charge. Its also nearly impossible to tell if you double charge or have a light charge.

99% sure you had a squib situation.
 
Another vote for squib.

Blackpowder guys use a small pin through the flash hole to push a few grains of powder behind a ball when they accidentally ram a ball without powder. It doesn't take much to push the ball out the end of the barrel. Even a very light load should have the bullet exiting the barrel.
 
Sad to say but I'd say it was a squib as well.

As mentioned the amount of powder that is needed looks like a dusting at the base of the casing. It requires a small flashlight and a keen eye to check down at the bottoms of those long tubes. It's also not enough to check only for the presence of powder but to also check for the height of the charge in the case. Assuming that you're using a reloading block that holds 50 or so casings at a time to run through your press using the flashlight and comparing the levels in the casings can soon spot a double charge or empty.

Fitting the new barrel is a gunsmith's job. It needs to be timed to the frame so it becomes correctly tight just at the right moment when the underlug lines up and also the length of the forcing cone then needs to be set to establish the correct cylinder to forcing cone gap. They've also got the special holding fixtures to secure the barrel and frame for snapping loose the present barrel and installing the new one to the proper torque without risk of warping the frame.
 
Try Wortner's in Ontario, and/or Murray Charlton Enterprises in Brentwood Bay - both Smith factory service centres.

PS - squibs are actually easier to do on a single stage, or turret press than they are on a progressive.
 
Lots of the old Model 10's were converted to PPC specialty guns by replacing the barrels. So some patience and inquiries should be able to turn up an older stock barrel. It may take a while though. So be patient and keep trying and keep updating your WTB ads here in the EE and on some other Canadian firearms websites.

And yeah, while a 5 inch would be nice I'd suggest you simply ask for a restricted length barrel and take the length that you get and be happy. If a 5 inch surfaces later on then you could have the option of buying that and installing it instead.
 
Another question that should be considered: given the condition of the revolver at present time, the cost of shipping to the gunsmith, plus parts and labour; is it worth spending the money on? Like the OP, in hindsight I too have paid way too much for what I thought was a good deal at the time. Sometimes, things goes that way.

I enjoy shooting revolvers, and have a small and sentimental collection. On occasion, I enjoy the challenge of shooting a revolver in the semi auto arena. I simply want to point out the availability of used revolvers out there, and I wonder if it would be a more prudent use of hard earned wages if the OP were to acquire a good, used K frame Model 14, 19 or 66? Maybe a Model 10-5 if Lady Luck sends one his way.
 
Thanks to all for their help and advice. I put an ad on the part EE and found a barrel and the seller offered to install it as well. I sent my gun to him and had it back in less than two weeks. He even tried to match the bluing. I am very impressed with the support that you can find on this site. And a very big thanks to sstoller for helping me out. I would reccomend him to anyone.
 
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