Stuck .22 cal brass case in Colt Frontier scout circa 1960...cylinder rod removed and unable to remove cylinder...

[tkdguy]

All 5 .22 caliber brass cases removed by extractor rod, but one brass case is stuck. I removed the cylinder rod trying to remove the cylinder but the cylinder is stuck. I tried to remove the cylinder with the hammer back as well as down. The cylinder is stuck...ideas on how to remove the cylinder and the remaining brass case? Thanks.

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[VinnieBoomBah]

The cylinder should come out with the base pin removed with the loading gate open and the hammer on the second click

ETA looking at it from the rear of the gun the cylinder should lift up and out to roughly the 2:00 position

 

[tkdguy]

The cylinder should come out with the base pin removed with the loading gate open and the hammer on the second click

kool!

 

[tkdguy]

Loading gate will open, but hammer will not reach any click. Cylinder will not turn at all. Ideas?

 

[VinnieBoomBah]

The cylinder might be twisted enough to jam it. If you have the cylinder base pin out, put it back in (you might need to wiggle the cylinder a bit) and after it's in see if you can cock the hammer. If you can, cycle the action so the jammed case is in the loading gate, put the hammer on the second click and pull the cylinder base pin out. If that doesn't do it I would suggest a gunsmith trip.

There are other things I would do to my gun, but it's not my gun and I can't in good conscious recommend treating guns the way I treat mine

 

[tkdguy]

The cylinder might be twisted enough to jam it. If you have the cylinder base pin out, put it back in (you might need to wiggle the cylinder a bit) and after it's in see if you can cock the hammer. If you can, cycle the action so the jammed case is in the loading gate, put the hammer on the second click and pull the cylinder base pin out. If that doesn't do it I would suggest a gunsmith trip.

There are other things I would do to my gun, but it's not my gun and I can't in good conscious recommend treating guns the way I treat mine

I was thinking the same. Will try.

 

[Certaindeaf]

Unscrew the barrel?

 

[Certaindeaf]

@VinnieBoomBah I've had a few brand new S&W and Colt revolvers with loose and or only hand tight barrels that would unscrew upon firing a few rounds.
If you do unscrew/ re-index/ torque a barrel, be aware that every model is different, often necessitating a frame block etc. as the situation may warrant.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

Is the cylinder hand stuck in the upright position...?
This can cause the cylinder to get locked.
Dirt , grit , old congealed grease on the cylinder hand may be the issue here.....
Andy

 

[thorborg]

Also, the bushing, some call firing pin cup, maybe pressed in, maybe screwed in, depending on the gun can come out a little or unscrew out far enough to reek havoc. a visual inspection with a good light should reveal that. If that is the case also examine the firing pin for damage. If @Andy54Hawken is correct about the hand, and a very likely prospect, or actually in any case for a stuck cylinder, I wouldn't force the hammer (or trigger too on a double) as it will only mess with internal parts. If it is the hand, removing the side plate will allow access. Do not pry off an access plate. to avoid pry damage, remove the grips and snap the plate side of the grip frame with the handle of a screwdriver till it loosens enough to pick it off with your fingers.
A bent or twisted crane also can cause cylinder issues albeit the crane is unlikely unless it has been dropped or abused otherwise. Crane straightening, while not difficult, requires the "feel" of experience so is best left to those in the know.

 

[Member 34319]

I'm confused, was the round stuck in the chamber to the point you could not rotate the cylinder to the point it needed to be to use the ejector rod?

Or was it that the ejector rod wouldn't get the case out and you tried moving the cylinder after attempting to get the round free using the ejector rod?

You may need to whack the case back inward slightly to free up the cylinder.

Are you stuck half cock? Where is the hammer positioned?

 

[tkdguy]

The round is fired and will not align with the ejector rod and stuck somewhere in-between. I will retry to replace the cylinder rod in place and align the cylinder again. I am not forcing anything. thx.

 

[Certaindeaf]

The round is fired and will not align with the ejector rod and stuck somewhere in-between. I will retry to replace the cylinder rod in place and align the cylinder again. I am not forcing anything. thx.

Have you made sure that there's not a bullet bridging the barrel/cylinder gap.

 

[Member 34319]

The round is fired and will not align with the ejector rod and stuck somewhere in-between. I will retry to replace the cylinder rod in place and align the cylinder again. I am not forcing anything. thx.

Definitely don't force anything.

I'm still trying to visualize the issue. Sorry for the additional questioning. I own a single action Colt in 22 and I am familiar with the process so if you can help me help you, combined with others here, we might be able to get you back to plinking.

If I'm reading right, you were able to rotate the cylinder freely to remove all but one of the spent cases? Then an issue arose when the last round was attempted to be removed? Were you able to get the ejector rod to go into that chamber or would the cylinder not rotate to the last chamber of the cylinder?

You mention that the hammer is up and down in the original post. Colts only load/unload at half cock. The cylinder only can be removed at half cock. The screw most be removed to remove the cylinder rod and at half cock the cylinder can be removed through the right of the gun pass the loading gate. Where is the hammer at currently?

My recommendation is to put the cylinder rod back in, if possible depending on if you tried to cock the thing without it in and got it all jammed up. You might need to wiggle the cylinder around a bit to get to half cock so you can put the rod back in. From there get the cylinder over to the correct chamber and tap it out with the ejector rod. Unless it is glued in place or worse, the ejector rod will get it to come out.

 

[VinnieBoomBah]

@VinnieBoomBah I've had a few brand new S&W and Colt revolvers with loose and or only hand tight barrels that would unscrew upon firing a few rounds.
If you do unscrew/ re-index/ torque a barrel, be aware that every model is different, often necessitating a frame block etc. as the situation may warrant.

In general or with my guns I would agree with you, however in this case it seems like OP is unfamiliar with this particular pistol so I hesitate to recommend anything beyond basic troubleshooting. I've known people that could detail strip and reassemble an M1 blindfolded or tune a bolt action rifle to ring out every last bit that gun had to give, but if you swap the guns they would be lost.
Bsides, it's not a Glock or something, the Colt Frontier Scout is fairly rare, so extra caution would be warranted

 

[tkdguy]

Definitely don't force anything.

I'm still trying to visualize the issue. Sorry for the additional questioning. I own a single action Colt in 22 and I am familiar with the process so if you can help me help you, combined with others here, we might be able to get you back to plinking.

If I'm reading right, you were able to rotate the cylinder freely to remove all but one of the spent cases? Then an issue arose when the last round was attempted to be removed? Were you able to get the ejector rod to go into that chamber or would the cylinder not rotate to the last chamber of the cylinder?

You mention that the hammer is up and down in the original post. Colts only load/unload at half cock. The cylinder only can be removed at half cock. The screw most be removed to remove the cylinder rod and at half cock the cylinder can be removed through the right of the gun pass the loading gate. Where is the hammer at currently?

My recommendation is to put the cylinder rod back in, if possible depending on if you tried to cock the thing without it in and got it all jammed up. You might need to wiggle the cylinder around a bit to get to half cock so you can put the rod back in. From there get the cylinder over to the correct chamber and tap it out with the ejector rod. Unless it is glued in place or worse, the ejector rod will get it to come out.

1. Cylinder will not rotate; cylinder rod removed.
2. Hammer will not reach 1/2 cock position
3. Hammer near closed position....and will not enter half cock position.
4. I am gentile with this and not forcing anything.
5. Only one spent round remaining at about 12:20-1 o'clock position.

Ideas?

 

[41mag]

Yes. I've had a few similar 'stuck cylinders ' over the years. There's tight clearance in the fit in several places, easily magnified by removing the cylinder pin. Loss of exact axial rotation produces a bind. Replace cylinder pin can be tricky. GENTLE taptaptap with leather soft smith hammer in-between easing in of pin while alternately sweating, using Words of Power and tiny beads of lube helps. DO NOT FORCE either direction. Alternate you efforts in opposite directions if no progress is noted. Plus it is difficult to keep the cross-pin pushed in while doing all this.

Between in/out of pin plus 4 directions the cylinder can jam, it's a demanding voyage of discovery. After fighting. Struggling sweating swearing then giving up, it will all suddenly fall together. And unless this is a rare model SA, there is no side plate or swinging crane to worry about.

 

[Member 34319]

1. Cylinder will not rotate; cylinder rod removed.
2. Hammer will not reach 1/2 cock position
3. Hammer near closed position....and will not enter half cock position.
4. I am gentile with this and not forcing anything.
5. Only one spent round remaining at about 12:20-1 o'clock position.

Ideas?

If it were me, I'd be gently wiggling the cylinder at the same time as attempting to gently cock the hammer to half cock. That is unless the case is preventing this from happening. If so, try tapping the spend case back into the chamber so it is not the main cause the cylinder is jammed up. It isn't the concern until you can get the action free. Once you wiggle it into half cock, leave it there until you can wiggle the cylinder free from the pistol. Then use a hard towel or anything small enough to whack out the case.

Soaking the whole thing in hops or coating a rag well and letting it sit on the pistol for a while couldn't loosen any carbon fouling out gunk that is making disassembly harder.

In the future don't be afraid to use a little extra force on the ejection rod to get spent cases out and watch a few videos on disassembly so to be more aware of the pistols assembly and to possibly be better at how not to bind up the action.

 

[VinnieBoomBah]

If it were me, I'd be gently wiggling the cylinder at the same time as attempting to gently cock the hammer to half cock. That is unless the case is preventing this from happening. If so, try tapping the spend case back into the chamber so it is not the main cause the cylinder is jammed up. It isn't the concern until you can get the action free. Once you wiggle it into half cock, leave it there until you can wiggle the cylinder free from the pistol. Then use a hard towel or anything small enough to whack out the case.

Soaking the whole thing in hops or coating a rag well and letting it sit on the pistol for a while couldn't loosen any carbon fouling out gunk that is making disassembly harder.

In the future don't be afraid to use a little extra force on the ejection rod to get spent cases out and watch a few videos on disassembly so to be more aware of the pistols assembly and to possibly be better at how not to bind up the action.

I'm not sure what you're doing to get your towels hard enough to knock a stuck case free and I'm pretty sure I don't want to find out.

 

[41mag]

I'm not sure what you're doing to get your towels hard enough

selective wiggling has many appllications