9mm cyclinder swap

I have an ruger flatop convertible 357/38/9mm in stainless. I also have a New Vaquero 357in stainless. Ive swapped the 9mm cylinder from the BH to the NV. It seems to index prefectly. I haven't fired it, what other mearsures are needed to fire safely? Or don't try it.

Check the barrel cylinder gap, .006 is ideal imo also for end shake. ps

One thing I have heard and tried myself is to make sure the chambers line up with the barrel. You can use a range rod inserted down the barrel or in a pinch, shine a bright light from the side and look down the barrel, unloaded of course, and see how the cylinder holes line up. Wiggle the cylinder a little and you should see a bright corona spaced equally around the opening of the barrel.

A 9mm cylinder in a Vaquero, seriously?

Generally speaking,,, the cylinder align just fine. As noted,,, the cylinder gap is the normal issue we deal with. And use a range rod if you choose to check it.
MAKE SURE the gun is unloaded.
Use a properly sized brass or wooden rod for a range rod.
Cock the handgun.
Stick the rod in the bbl,,, and check to see of the rod sticks any when it starts to transition from the barrel to the cylinder. (You can mark the rod with the barrel length to watch it more closely.)
Check all 6 chambers.
Now,,, if a properly sized rod isn't available,,, use the largest sized rod you can get that will still fit in the bore. Mark for length. As it gets near the mark,, make sure the rod is sitting flat along the barrel and gently push it towards the chamber to check it. I do this with a gun in a vise. Next,,, rotate the gun 90 degrees,, and repeat. I do it on all 4 90 degree points. By allowing the rod to sit flat in the bottom of the barrel every time,, I get it flat & can see if it bumps the chamber.
A light improperly used,,, can give you a false shadow & make you THINK it's not aligning properly.


And WHY NOT use a 9mm in a Vaquero?

contender said:

And WHY NOT use a 9mm in a Vaquero?

Click to expand...

Where do you insert the magazine? :mrgreen:

Thank you for the info.

I like traditional revolver cartridges in my Vaqueros too. But you can't beat the price of 9mm.

TreeDoc, as long as you don't have a lot of fore and aft movement, you're good to go.

Swapping cyls is not rocket science. Since it times properly and if you have a cyl to barrel gap between about .004" & .008" there's no safety issue to shoot and try it.

If after firing a couple of cyls full you can't cock it because it's rubbing on the end of the barrel, just stone a .001" off the end of the barrel. That won't affect use of the original cyl.

You can use a cleaning rod w/o a tip screwed in for a range rod. I check with hammer cocked to lock the cyl in firing position.