Rechambering a Speed Six cylinder

[mike4570]

I have a blued Speed Six in 38 spec. I would like to convert to 357 magnum.
I have always heard the 38 and 357 guns were the same except for the depth of the chamber. Any thoughts? Thanks.

 

[contender]

Due to the lower production of the .38 spl guns,, I'd opt for selling the gun & buying one already in .357.

 

[protoolman]

E bay has tons of replacement cylinders. Usually drop right in. Mine cost $50.

 

[rugerguy]

we've rechambered so many 38 specials over the years as you noted just a "chase" the chamber with a 357 finish reamer, and let it be, no one would ever know it was NOT 'still a 38 special ( which it IS.....) and you can use the 357 mag to your likes, wants , needs....many years ago it was "supposed" to be the the rule, 'security guards' around here or "specials", HAD to carry a duty gun that was "marked" 38 special,BUT.......
...its YOUR gun, you decide what YOU want it to be...........

 

[Watertender]

1/10" difference in length between a .38 Special and a .357 Magnum. As rugerguy said, you can ream the chamber to take a .357 and it won't hurt the revolver one bit. I knew some police officers who had reamed chambers in their revolvers and carried 2 separate types of ammunition for them. The only way they would be found out is if someone higher up examined their revolver and slipped a .357 round into the cylinder. If it's a shooter and not a mint condition NIB unfired with all paperwork it won't hurt the value.
I would ask Ron Lutz... He is the Six Series expert...

 

[RoninPA]

The chamber can be reamed without much problem by a gunsmith with the reamer, heck a person with a little mechanical ability, know how and the equipment can DIY it.

Personally, I wouldn't do it. The Speed Sixes in good condition can be hard to find so I'd want it to stay original. But it's your gun you can do anything you want with it.

That said, a short scenario: You get it reamed to .357 Mag. You have it loaded with .357 Mag. You have to use it in a bad situation and you injure or kill someone. It will be confiscated during the investigation and possibly/probably a trial. The overzealous DA finds out that it had it reamed to .357 Mag. He will twist and hammer that fact to the jury ad nauseum to "prove" you are a dangerous person and were looking for trouble and had it done so that it could be used for nefarious uses. Sounds wacky don't it - but guess what, it happens a lot more than people think, especially in cities with liberal DA's.

 

[rugerguy]

yessir but thats been done from day one with about any good "defense lawyer" and against any lawful/legal use of ANY gun that ever even had a trigger job, or the loads even "jacked up" to be MORE powerful or effective. like turning hollow base wadcutters around backwards....." and so it goes...Wil Terry"...... may he rest in peace

 

[FLgun]

OP mike, hope it's ok to ask this here. Given the reaming to convert.38 to .357, what does that generally cost? I take it given the six series are the exact same durability stand point and parts except for the 1/10 size chamber holes for .357, that having the cylinder reamed vs buying entire an entire separate cylinder is the way to go? Also what is the difference between reaming and chamfering cylinder holes?

 

[RoninPA]

Chamfering a revolver cylinder helps you get your rounds in the cylinder more efficiently by beveling the edges of each chambers opening.

Reaming a cylinder is physically changing the dimensions of the cylinder, either enlarging (for a bigger caliber) or lengthening for a different case length (ie., .38 to .357 Mag - lengthen the chamber by 1/10").

Personally, if I were going to do that, with as easy as it is to disassemble/assemble the Six series revolvers, I would get a .357 cylinder and the crane assembly and build that to swap out, easy-peasy. That way you can reconvert back to the original if you decide to sell and then you could sell the .357 assembly with the gun or by itself. Someone will bring up the timing of the cylinder but so far in my work with the Six series, I haven't run across that problem (yet ).

 

[FLgun]

Thank you for all the info Ron!!

 

[Watertender]

Thank you for all the info Ron!!

Ron is The Man when it comes to the Six Series!

 

[moparclan]

I thought about doing that once but my Six is a Lowback and opted against it. Found a 357 Six and bought it.

 

[Jim W]

I have a GP100 in .38 special. I'm thinking it wouldn't be much of a problem lengthening the chambers. I have never run across another like it as it has fixed sites the same as the service sixes . It is stainless and has a 174- ser number making it 2001 production I believe. Would this revolver have any collectors value that would diminish if the chambers were lengthened?

 

[RoninPA]

Probably not a huge collector value, but some. They made a pretty good number of them in stainless, fixed sight. The collector value would come from being a .38 Spl rather than a .357 Mag. It would not have any collector value if the chambers were lengthened to .357 Mag length.

 

[jn 41]

OP, just listen to Ron. Switching cylinders works