I screwed up my S&W 686 WITH 38 SPECIAL AMMO, help

[Certaindeaf]

I shot a hundred 38 special rounds in my S&W 686 357 mag and now when I shoot 357 mag in it the empties stick in the cylinder. I have tried to clean it, to no avail ,with solvent and brass brushes. What should I do to get rid of the sticking empties?

You need a stainless steel CHAMBER brush. One push and then one pull with a Hoppes dipped chamber brush will likely do it.

Pro Shot Products .38/.357 Caliber Stainless Steel Chamber Brush, Gold, 5" (38CH) https://a.co/d/5O22UDW

 

[CLT65]

I'm reminded of a conversation I heard in a gun shop a long time ago. One guy was loudly disparaging another (friends or relatives I assumed). Apparently they had been talking about revolvers and 38/357. The one guy was practically yelling, "You know that you're never, ever supposed to shoot the wrong round in a gun, RIGHT?! Only the caliber marked on the gun, NEVER anything else, RIGHT?!"

When he got done ranting, and his buddy was sufficiently beat down, the gun shop guy politely stepped in. "Excuse me, but actually the 357 Magnum was designed to be able to fire 38 Special. It's made that way, and we've been doing it just fine ever since."

The loud guy's face turned bright red and he stormed out without a word.

With the proper ammo and occasional cleaning, it really shouldn't be a problem. I've used my own cast bullets for decades, either lubed or (in recent years) powder coated. I'll typically go a few hundred rounds between cleanings, whenever I feel it needs it. I'm not a real high-volume shooter. Like others have said, if it's causing that kind of problem after just a hundred rounds, it sounds like an ammo issue.

 

[gmerkt]

There are worse screw-ups than this. Believe you me.

I try to avoid shooting .38's in .357's, simply because the idea of coking up the chambers doesn't appeal to me. But I've done it any number of times in several guns and I never had a build-up to the extent that a subsequent .357 wouldn't chamber. Which doesn't mean it won't happen, as OP has found out. Back to my original premise, I avoid it because of potentiality.

 

[atowne2]

You need a stainless steel CHAMBER brush. One push and then one pull with a Hoppes dipped chamber brush will likely do it.

Pro Shot Products .38/.357 Caliber Stainless Steel Chamber Brush, Gold, 5" (38CH) https://a.co/d/5O22UDW

Just ordered it, thanks

 

[DirectDrive]

I shot a hundred 38 special rounds in my S&W 686 357 mag and now when I shoot 357 mag in it the empties stick in the cylinder. I have tried to clean it, to no avail ,with solvent and brass brushes. What should I do to get rid of the sticking empties?

This is the first lesson in .357 revolver ownership.
When at the range, you shoot your .357's first and then the 38's
Law of the Jungle

 

[Flopsweat]

This is the first lesson in .357 revolver ownership.
When at the range, you shoot your .357's first and then the 38's
Law of the Jungle

That's no fun. I usually save the .357 for last. The extra noise and recoil make for a great finale. I've never had a problem with .38 in a .357 and I am not exactly obsessive about cleaning guns.

I'm going to try belling and sharpening a .357 case though; that sounds like a great cleaning tool. I may attach an old broken punch to the primer hole to make it a little handier.

 

[TTSX]

If you reload, just load .357 to .38 power levels and your issues will disappear.

 

[Certaindeaf]

Just ordered it, thanks

Be aware that (some are more difficult than others) great force is required to get oneathem through so be careful.

 

[The Heretic]

Anyone have reamers a tenth or two above and below .380" ?

Asking for a friend

That may actually make it worse

 

[kopcicle]

That may actually make it worse

Agreed.

 

[Ruger Rich]

This thread is why this site is great

 

[PORSCHE928S4]

Me wonder if it is not an ammo issue. Is it happening across the board with various factory loads or just Uncle Cletus' homebrews? I've never had an issue running 357 after 38 AFTER a good cleaning and never had to go crazy with a drill either.

If someone does it long enough it can make quite a ring I picked up a S&W model 17 and the previous owner shot nothing but shorts. The first outing with it was a bit of a shock the longs would not eject without some effort sure enough when I looked you could see a distinct ring. I cleaned it out with a cotton mop and some PB buster and now works as it should the 38/357 and 44mag/44 spc would do the same thing if not taken care of ! The new thing is people using 40 cal in their 10mm so could bring you some issues when picking up a used piece so take a good look and clean well !

 

[Flopsweat]

If you really want to live on the edge, electrical contact cleaner will remove everything, possibly including the finish. I learned this from a Jerry Miculek video. Works great on AR chambers. No scrubbing!

 

[Pete F]

My Dad shot tons of .38 WC out of his Ruger Security Six. You could see the ring at the end of each cylinder bore. I inherited it and the gun was absolutely filthy.

I had to disassemble the gun to get it clean. It was the first revolver that I had to disassemble. Assembly was a little more work

I used a .357 bronze brush wrapped in a patch covered in Mothers after soaking it in Hoppe's No 9 and chucked in a drill. It didn't take much time at all to clean the cylinders back to bright and shiny. There was no apparent damage

My Dad was not into cleaning much. Otherwise he was a solid gun enthusiast, RO and part time gunsmith.

I still have over 2000 .38 wad cutters left from him.

 

[DLS]

Slix scrapers are great. A couple of quick turns and you are done.

Slix-Scraper

Slix-Scraper cleans lead/carbond fouling from revolver cylinders and rifle chambers

uniquetek.com

 

[Certaindeaf]

Just ordered it, thanks

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