SP101 action lube and dry fire

[GKC]

I just bought a new SP101...2.25" barrel in .357 mag. I knew from reading about it that the trigger was heavy, and I checked it at the shop before I bought it. It is indeed heavy, but not what I'd call difficult to handle. Cocking the hammer so that it can be fired SA is more difficult than on any other revolver I've owned...still not impossible, but it's pretty stout. I read somewhere (but can't find now) that others have smoothed out their triggers a bit by putting some lube down inside the mechanism through the hammer opening (i.e., not disassembling the revolver) and then lots of dry fire. I've seen videos on the complete disassembly of the SP101, and I'm not ready to do that yet. I am ready to do some dry firing, hence my question: if I cock the hammer and then hold it while pulling the trigger, so that I can lower the hammer, rather than let it fall normally, does this accomplish the same thing as just pulling the trigger and letting the hammer fall?

I may someday get up the gumption to disassemble the revolver completely, and undertake some of the sanding and polishing, but usually my best efforts mechanically are akin to pathetic. The gun smith at the shop in the town where we used to live told me he wouldn't charge me for labor for anything I wanted done, just parts only, if I'd let him do the work first. He said it was easier and faster for him to do it right first than it was to fix what I "fixed." More realistically, I may send this gun off somewhere to have a professional action job done on it someday. In the meantime, I just want to fire it some to break it in, and maybe smooth out the action as I described above.

 

[Jimbo357mag]

You can oil the revolver by putting oil in any of the openings. I use a spray oil with a little dispenser straw. (Rem Oil) You can also safely dry fire the gun to break it in and this will help you get comfortable with it. Do your dry-fire slowly and do it both single and double action. I put a reduced power spring kit in mine which brought the trigger pull and cocking weight down some.

 

[98Redline]

You don't need to disassemble the revolver completely to add some lube to the gun. Additionally I think you really need to at least field strip the gun and get it cleaned and lubed properly before taking it out to the range.

Hit up Youtube and look at the myriad of videos on how to field strip the gun. The gun comes apart in several major pieces that are not difficult to deal with or reassemble. Do that, clean it properly and lube accordingly. It will also help you to determine where (if at all) the gun is binding up. It should not be difficult to cock the hammer.

My SP-101 will get very difficult to cock or shoot double action if powder residue gets between the cylinder and the crane. If shooting alot or shooting particularly dirty ammo it can get so bad that you need to manually turn the cylinder while cocking the hammer. I find that I need to use grease on the cylinder/crane bearing surface to mitigate this problem. The grease keeps the blast from the B/C gap from pushing residue between the cylinder and crane.

Here is one video that seems to do a half decent job of showing the field stripping process
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gM5lNV7EEug

 

[GKC]

Thank you for the responses!