S&W 639 Nosedive

[bexan]

I recently picked up a S&W 639 on the EE and got it out to the range for the first time last weekend. The gun does not look like it has had a hard life and runs perfectly with 5 out of the 7 mags that came with it. It has 2 mags that look like the 8 round originals and 5 more that are 9 round. The two 8 round mags are the ones that are giving me trouble. When releasing the slide on both of these mags the first round will nosedive and fail to chamber. Sometimes things improve if I remove a couple of rounds from the full mag. I think I need to adjust the feed lips on these mags but am not sure where to start. Do I bend them out? In? For ammo I am using 124gr Berry's RN copper plated seated to 1.090. These will run perfectly in the other five 9 round mags, so I know I have a mag issue. I have disassembled both mags and found them clean inside. Just looking for ideas and input from anyone who may have more experience with these fine pistols.

 

[enefgee]

First make sure the spring is in the right way around, second compare the spring strength to a working mag, you might just need to get a couple of mag springs.

 

[bexan]

The spring position looked good, but they may be getting a little "tired" after almost 30 years. I will try stretching one to see if it makes a difference. If so, I will start looking for mag springs. Any good sources in Canada?

 

[enefgee]

Not in Canada, but Wolff ships here with no issues at all, excellent to deal with.

 

[BCRider]

It may be that the trouble mag's lips are tweaked a little. With the slide and barrel field strigged seat the bad and good mags with round in them. Carefully observe and measure the height and angle of the round's exposure. Likely you'll quickly see a difference in the bad mag.