end shake?

[boomer92266]

about how many rounds before end shake starts showing up and how to fix it? i have a service six, i bought it from a guy who's uncle used it as a duty weapon. he said that he would estimate about 5000 rds have been through it. it is tight on lockup with no problems, just thought i would ask in case it happen's to me. i'm not putting much through it, i shoot every few weeks mabe 20rds or so. thanks

 

[Chuck 100 yd]

You most likely will never see excess end shake. Maybe your grand kids will.
Keep the crane,cylinder lightly lubed and enjoy it.

 

[RoninPA]

In my opinion, there are way too many people concerned with end shake that has not happened, nor will it probably happen in your lifetime. The vast majority of handguns are not fired continously with heavy loads, which is what takes a toll on a revolver. I really think that many people way overthink their guns and find things wrong that in reality just aren't there.

To check for endshake, get a set of feeler gauges and force the cylinder forward as far as it can go and measure the gap between the cylinder and the end of the barrel (forcing cone). Then pull the cylinder back as far as you can and measure at the same place. Subtract the first measurement from the second and that will be your endshake. I am willing to bet that that figure will be miniscule.

Most guns are just not abused to the point that they are that loose and other problems will probably crop up before end shake becomes a problem.

If you do have a gun with end shake problems there are shims that can be inserted to tighten it up, or in a very worse case scenerio, the frame would have to be repaired (however, if it got this bad, the best thing to do would be to just part out the gun).

If your gun is shot as much as you say, and you take care of it (and your heirs take care of it) it should last maybe, ahh, a 100 years or so.

 

[boomer92266]

my lockup is nearly unmovable and back and forth play is unmovable, it won't budge back and forth. the cylinder even at rest is real tight. but if i release it, it spins straight and true. i guess i like planning ahead but on some things it's not necessary. thanks everyone.

 

[Precision32]

Generally you stretch the gas ring of the cylinder if the end shake gets excessive.

 

[RoninPA]

Generally you stretch the gas ring of the cylinder if the end shake gets excessive.

HUH? Explanation please.

 

[LaneP]

You would have shoot alot of extremely heavy loads over a very long period of time to reach the point end shake would begin affecting headspace and ignition reliability. A competative metallic sillouette shooter will probably experience this level of wear, the average Joe most likely will not.

 

[jsh]

Just what is a gas ring. I have seen this term used pretty loosely in the past few years.
Jeff

 

[k22fan]

jsh,

With one exception all S&W revolvers have a gas ring protruding from the front of their cylinders. It's a short tube that extends below the flash gap to deflect fouling away from the inside of the cylinder. The exception was a year and half of late 1970s K frame production during which S&W claimed a gas ring was machined as part of the yoke. (S&W calls their cranes yokes) The cylinders of those K frames had to be removed occasionally to clean leading out of the front of the cylinder and off the yoke. S&W admitted their cost saving "gas ring on the yoke" was a failure and returned traditional gas rings increasing the K frame dash numbers.

The Six series do not have a gas rings protruding from the fronts of their cylinders. Like the absence of wide hammer spurs that helped Ruger price their Six series lower than K frames.

Since this thread is about end shake I'll add S&W's traditional gas ring had no effect on end shake.

 

[k22fan]

Generally you stretch the gas ring of the cylinder if the end shake gets excessive.

HUH? Explanation please.

There are two ways to reduce end shake: stretching the yoke or crane and adding washers between the end of the yoke barrel and cylinder. Both methods hold the cylinder to the rear. Brownells sells a yoke stretching tool for $25. It is just a tubing cutter with the blade replaced with a roller. It fits S&Ws and the Six series. I don't know if it fits other Rugers.

Although some claim the hardened washers are more resistant to future wear, so far as I know all factories and the vast majority of gunsmiths stretch the yoke. 38 years ago I didn't know what the end shake washers were when I found them on the table beside my just purchased old K frame's cylinder and yoke. After I threw them out it's cylinder rubbed on the back of the barrel. I'll bet I'm not the only one who lost their end shake washers. For that reason I prefer stretching yokes.

 

[boomer92266]

i took my service six apart when i got it to clean it, the cylinder snaps onto those 2 bearings on the crane and once on them won't move back and forth. i wonder how end shake could happen with this type of setup.

 

[RoninPA]

k22fan,
I know how to fix end shake, by stretching or washers (or both) I just never heard the term gas ring associated with a Ruger revolver and I wanted Preceision 32 to explain it to me (us).

You did the job though and I thank you.

 

[cadillo]

jsh,

With one exception all S&W revolvers have a gas ring protruding from the front of their cylinders. It's a short tube that extends below the flash gap to deflect fouling away from the inside of the cylinder. The exception was a year and half of late 1970s K frame production during which S&W claimed a gas ring was machined as part of the yoke. (S&W calls their cranes yokes) The cylinders of those K frames had to be removed occasionally to clean leading out of the front of the cylinder and off the yoke. S&W admitted their cost saving "gas ring on the yoke" was a failure and returned traditional gas rings increasing the K frame dash numbers.

The Six series do not have a gas rings protruding from the fronts of their cylinders. Like the absence of wide hammer spurs that helped Ruger price their Six series lower than K frames.

Since this thread is about end shake I'll add S&W's traditional gas ring had no effect on end shake.

He didn't say it, but he was speaking of a single action gas ring being stretched. On Smiths you stretch the crane barrel to remove end shake, either that or use shims.