K 22 Smith firing pin

[RoninPA]

Have a customer with an old K22 Smith, getting light strikes, no help with a new mainspring, firing pin looks short, probably worn with age. All the normal places do not have any replacements. Any thoughts on where else to look, good substitute? I'll be calling Jack First in the morning.

Thanks for any leads.

 

[Snake45]

Have a customer with an old K22 Smith, getting light strikes, no help with a new mainspring, firing pin looks short, probably worn with age. All the normal places do not have any replacements. Any thoughts on where else to look, good substitute? I'll be calling Jack First in the morning.

Thanks for any leads.

Have you tried S&W? Hard to believe they wouldn't support this part, with all the tens (hundreds?) of thousands of K22s they've sold over the years.

Is the customer getting misfires with all brands of ammo, or just one or two kinds?

Does the cylinder have any end shake?

I'm assuming the strain screw is full length, and turned all the way in.

Could there be some dirt in the firing pin hole preventing full protrusion?

Trying to help, here. I've just never heard of a K22 "wearing out" a firing pin. :?

 

[rugerguy]

yes, I would check the headspace, barrel/cylinder gap ...those old ones wear, and close the gap,may have to stretch the upper crane leg ( we were taught to swage it) set the cylinder back......
NO, do NOT use shims................
also have you checked the firing pin protrusion , how much sticks out into the cylinder area from the recoil shield??? also flush out the firing pin cavity, as well as check for a bent,broken or collapsed spring.........last resort, call parts dept at S&W........we used to make them, but lost our source of 'heat treat'.......

 

[RoninPA]

I will be calling S&W but this has a frame mounted firing pin, not a hammer mounted firing pin.

Cylinder has the recessed chambers and has been completely cleaned.

Misfires on all brands of ammo.

Cylinder does not have any end shake at all.

Strain screw is set properly.

The firing pin is frame mounted, not hammer mounted.

Firing pin area has been thoroughly cleaned with pressurized solvent (brake cleaner)

When looking at the firing pin protrusion (and pushing it as far forward as it will go), it is just barely touching the rear of the ammo. Even with the inertia of the hammer hitting it I do not believe it is going far enough to crush the rim and ignite the primer and you can see that on the rounds that did not fire, you could barely see where it struck. The face of the firing pin also is completely flat and all the pictures I've seen it should have a bit of a nub on the end that will strike the end of the cartridge.

 

[Snake45]

I will be calling S&W but this has a frame mounted firing pin, not a hammer mounted firing pin.

The firing pin is frame mounted, not hammer mounted.

I believe all K22s are this way and always have been. It's one of the ways you can spot them in a profile pic--the pin in that area is visible.

It sounds like you've covered all the bases--good job! Only thing I could suggest is to visually check the area of the firing pin and make sure it's all clean after blowing it out, but you've probably done that too.

S&W should be able to take care of you no problem. Good luck! :wink:

 

[Jimbo357mag]

Any bets that it was damaged by dry firing?

 

[RoninPA]

Talked to S&W this morning and they don't have the firing pin for that gun because of it's age. So I called Jack First and they have what I need so it's on the way.

 

[Snake45]

Amazing that Smith no longer supports the K22. :shock:

Glad to hear you found one.

Maybe I should call him and get a couple. :?

 

[RoninPA]

They do support the Model 17 which is the "Numbered" version of the K-22 Masterpiece but the firing pin (at least 1988 and forward) were hammer mounted.

 

[rugerguy]

Good to know, odd as the Model 17 has been numbered since 1958 as a "Model 17" and had the frame mounted pin...all the rimfire hammers we still have do NOT have a mounted firing pin and we've been using them well into the 70's.....still have a few....but NO pins, as I said the last ones we needed, we made.............but no longer at the plant, so NO heat treat available,,,the plant is EMPTY !!!! :roll:
Now many of the S&W parts are "MIM"......... :wink:

 

[Hondo44]

They do support the Model 17 which is the "Numbered" version of the K-22 Masterpiece but the firing pin (at least 1988 and forward) were hammer mounted.

The only S&W deviation is the two position striker on the Model 53 .22 Jet hammer, and the two actual firing pins are still frame mounted:

Photo by Donald Paul

Photo credit: Donald Paul

 

[RoninPA]

I very well could be incorrect, I am not a S&W expert by any means. It is possible that the statement about the "from 1988 forward" was incorrect in the illustration I saw and it was never caught by proof readers. The guy at S&W did say, once I told him the serial number that they do not support any of the K-22's that were that old and he never said there were any work arounds. He just suggested calling Jack First (they had what I needed and it's on the way as we speak). Once I get it and take the old one out, I'll try to remember to take pictures of them side by side.

 

[Hondo44]

It could be a typo. A S&W Hand Ejector Model did have a rimfire firing pin on the hammer until ~1920. ending with the M frame Ladysmith .22 Hand Ejector 7 shot.

Be sure to measure the old and new pin lengths to compare while both are out.

 

[David Bradshaw]

Any bets that it was damaged by dry firing?

*****

The S&W K-22 has a FLOATING FIRING PIN. Mounted in frame, a floating firing pin protrudes through FIRING PIN BUSHING when pressed flush by hammer. (Unlike an inertia firing pin, which is shorter than its hole in the frame.)

K-22 firing does NOT contact cylinder. Counterbored chambers are standard on all .22 rimfires as a shield against potential for a burst rim. (The counterbore is not a centerfire safety factor.) Only gross mishandling of a K-22, or a gross lockwork problem, can result in the firing striking the cylinder BETWEEN CHAMBERS.

By description, it sounds as though your K-22 has insufficient firing pin protrusion. I was going to suggest a call to Jack Huntington....
David Bradshaw

 

[RoninPA]

THANK YOU David. I got the replacement firing pin from Jack First and it is noticeably longer that what is in there now. In fact the one that is in there now basically sits flush with the frame when the hammer is not touching it, miniscule protrusion. I suppose that it just wore down over the years (unless someone, at some point in time tampered with it). I believe this new firing pin will fix the problems.