Smith & Wesson never fails..........to disappoint

[Podmonkey]

@S&W Fan @Xae289

As some of you might know I recently purchased a 586 L-Comp which is a Performance Center model. I took it to the range today and misfires A plenty! I initially loaded 7 rounds of 125gr Magtech FMJ .38 Specials. Could not get a single round to light off despite multiple trips around the cylinder. I then tried some 125gr Remington HTP SJWC .357 Mags and 5 of the 7 went off, eventually, each took multiple stikes and two of en never went off at all. I took it right back to the shop, we jointly called S&W relayed tge details, got an RMA and the shop is shipping it out for me. Here's tge tung that chaps my ass- the 586 L-Comp is cut for moon clips, I was not using moon clips at tge time, you should not need to use tge moon clips and the gun should function normally without them. However tge customer service rep claims that with .38s the moon clips is necessary for function. This is totall bullshit right? The rim dimensions between .38 and .357 are identical are they not? The owners manul makes no claim about the necessity of using moon clips for proper function with .38s, all that it mentions is that for those revolvers chambered in rimless cartridges such as .45, .40 and 9mm need to loaded via a moon clip fro proper headspace and extraction. We all k ow that.
This customer service rep is full of shit right?

This all is made worse by the fact that last fall I purchased a 340PD that had to go straight back to S&W due to the trigger locking up when the barrel was elevated anything above level.
The shop owner said "this is a PC model, there shouldn't be problems, it's not like you bought a Taurus. "
I says
"I bet you if I bought a Taurus we wouldn't be shipping it back!"

Get your shit together Smith & Wesson!

 

[cgrutt]

IDK about the moon clips but my first gun was a Model 60 and it had a timing problem that it took them three times to resolve. Cylinder would not always advance properly resulting in random Misfires (did not fire more precisely). This was back in the late 90s so they seem to be having QC issues for quite some time. Good luck I hope they sort it out quickly damn shame.

 

[JaguarJaguarGolf]

Is there a strain screw you can tighten?

 

[FRANKIE]

I think S&W needs there screws tightened.
This is unacceptable.
Shocked at them especially from the performance center.

 

[S&W Fan]

@S&W Fan @Xae289

As some of you might know I recently purchased a 586 L-Comp which is a Performance Center model. I took it to the range today and misfires A plenty! I initially loaded 7 rounds of 125gr Magtech FMJ .38 Specials. Could not get a single round to light off despite multiple trips around the cylinder. I then tried some 125gr Remington HTP SJWC .357 Mags and 5 of the 7 went off, eventually, each took multiple stikes and two of en never went off at all. I took it right back to the shop, we jointly called S&W relayed tge details, got an RMA and the shop is shipping it out for me. Here's tge tung that chaps my ass- the 586 L-Comp is cut for moon clips, I was not using moon clips at tge time, you should not need to use tge moon clips and the gun should function normally without them. However tge customer service rep claims that with .38s the moon clips is necessary for function. This is totall bullshit right? The rim dimensions between .38 and .357 are identical are they not? The owners manul makes no claim about the necessity of using moon clips for proper function with .38s, all that it mentions is that for those revolvers chambered in rimless cartridges such as .45, .40 and 9mm need to loaded via a moon clip fro proper headspace and extraction. We all k ow that.
This customer service rep is full of shit right?

This all is made worse by the fact that last fall I purchased a 340PD that had to go straight back to S&W due to the trigger locking up when the barrel was elevated anything above level.
The shop owner said "this is a PC model, there shouldn't be problems, it's not like you bought a Taurus. "
I says
"I bet you if I bought a Taurus we wouldn't be shipping it back!"

Get your shit together Smith & Wesson!

Even though the cylinder on the L-Comp guns are cut for moon clips it should operate with or without them using a rimed cartridge. It should still headspace without issue.
Sadly S & W ‘s QC isn’t anything like it used to be. Having said that, I agree with you that it’s highly unacceptable coming out of the performance center with this type of issue.

 

[S&W Fan]

@JaguarJaguarGolf asks a good question. The strain screw may need to be tightened a bit. I have heard of lots of people complain of guns coming from the factory with loose mainspring strain screws.

 

[Podmonkey]

@JaguarJaguarGolf asks a good question. The strain screw may need to be tightened a bit. I have heard of lots of people complain of guns coming from the factory with loose mainspring strain screws.

Not being at all familiar with revolvers could you point out the location of this screw for me?

 

[JaguarJaguarGolf]

Not being at all familiar with revolvers could you point out the location of this screw for me?

Front of grip. will probably need to remove grip.

 

[That_FNG]

Idk man my Ruger SP101, GP100, Blackhawk and super Blackhawk all just seem to work no matter what I put in them. Maybe S&W could take some notes from Ruger. Granted my M350 works flawlessly as well so maybe S&W is learning?

 

[S&W Fan]

The mainspring strain screw should be located on the face of the grip frame , about half way down . Do not tighten it down. First just put a screwdriver in the slot and see if it feels loose at all. If you are going to adjust it at all turn it only a small amount at at a time , then try it out.

 

[Far king]

The mainspring strain screw should be located on the face of the grip frame , about half way down . Do not tighten it down. First just put a screwdriver in the slot and see if it feels loose at all. If you are going to adjust it at all turn it only a small amount at at a time , then try it out.

I have found the strain screw being too loose to be the cause of light hammer strikes on several of my S&W revolvers. I have also had to replace main springs when tightening the screw all the way failed.
You shouldn’t have to deal with this on a brand new gun and there is no excuse for this . Chances are the culprit is the strain screw being too loose,
If the gun were mine I would tighten the screw all the way, then fire ammo loaded with a hard primer such as cci . It’s important that you fire the gun double action because the single action strike is harder.
Stay away from Federal ammo because they have the softest primers of all .
If you are a hand loader or know someone who is, load up a bunch of empty cases with cci primers run them through the gun at home inside your house and you don’t even have to run to the range.
Your neighbors shouldn’t hear a thing and you won’t have to burn through precious ammunition.
I recently did this with a really nice model 19-4 l acquired a few weeks ago but tightening the strain screw was not enough so I installed a new mainspring and the problem was fixed.
I want my revolvers to go bang no matter what I feed them and l will put up with a heavy D A trigger pull rather than compromise reliability.
I would try increasing the spring tension before sending it back to the factory.
Good luck to you .

 

[Xae289]

Send it back to them. Make them pay shipping both ways, the half-dozen hours of employee time it takes to receive, fix, and ship your gun, the parts it takes to fix it, and the ammo it takes to test it. The only way these companies will learn is by hitting their wallet. And make your .44 a Colt or Ruger.

You bought two high-ticket revolvers and both have them are lemons? That's trash on S&W's part and disappointing.

 

[Far king]

The mainspring strain screw should be located on the face of the grip frame , about half way down . Do not tighten it down. First just put a screwdriver in the slot and see if it feels loose at all. If you are going to adjust it at all turn it only a small amount at at a time , then try it out.

Sorry S&W fan , l mistakenly replied to you instead of Podmonkey

 

[Depick]

Damn that must have been so disappointing.

 

[Podmonkey]

Oh, I went directly from the range to the shop where we immediately started the proceedings to have the gun sent back for inspection and repair. I imagine it on it's way at this very moment. However the information about the strain screw will come in handy. I think the thing that has me concerned is that is the nonsense about .38 Specials needing to use the moon clip. This makes me worried S&W will not fix the problem as they ascribe the issue to a farsical notion. I can only hope the actual repair people are less ignorant than the CSRs are. To ve fair in my experience Customer Service Reps are the dumbest people in an organization. They certainly are in my company.

 

[Xae289]

Oh, I went directly from the range to the shop where we immediately started the proceedings to have the gun sent back for inspection and repair. I imagine it is it's way at this very moment. However tge information about the strain screw will come in handy. I think the thing that has me concerned is that is the nonsense about .38 Specials needing to use the moon clip. This makes me worried S&W will not fix the problem as they ascribe the issue to a farsical notion. I can only hope the actual repair people are less ignorant than the CSRs are. To ve fair in my experience Customer Service Reps are the dumbest people in an organization. They certainly are in my company.

Customer service reps for gun companies usually know just as much as you can learn from that company's promo materials.

 

[Podmonkey]

Customer service reps for gun companies usually know just as much as you can learn from that company's promo materials.

I think there must be a government program to round up people suffering from Fetal Alcohol Syndrome to give them CSR jobs

 

[Podmonkey]

Damn that must have been so disappointing.

You have no idea. It is such a shame as I find S&W's products so appealing and there are numerous other S&W guns I owould like to have but I am not so sure anymore. I suppose it depends on how the L-Comp performs when it gets back.

 

[FP1201]

@S&W Fan @Xae289

As some of you might know I recently purchased a 586 L-Comp which is a Performance Center model. I took it to the range today and misfires A plenty! I initially loaded 7 rounds of 125gr Magtech FMJ .38 Specials. Could not get a single round to light off despite multiple trips around the cylinder. I then tried some 125gr Remington HTP SJWC .357 Mags and 5 of the 7 went off, eventually, each took multiple stikes and two of en never went off at all. I took it right back to the shop, we jointly called S&W relayed tge details, got an RMA and the shop is shipping it out for me. Here's tge tung that chaps my ass- the 586 L-Comp is cut for moon clips, I was not using moon clips at tge time, you should not need to use tge moon clips and the gun should function normally without them. However tge customer service rep claims that with .38s the moon clips is necessary for function. This is totall bullshit right? The rim dimensions between .38 and .357 are identical are they not? The owners manul makes no claim about the necessity of using moon clips for proper function with .38s, all that it mentions is that for those revolvers chambered in rimless cartridges such as .45, .40 and 9mm need to loaded via a moon clip fro proper headspace and extraction. We all k ow that.
This customer service rep is full of shit right?

This all is made worse by the fact that last fall I purchased a 340PD that had to go straight back to S&W due to the trigger locking up when the barrel was elevated anything above level.
The shop owner said "this is a PC model, there shouldn't be problems, it's not like you bought a Taurus. "
I says
"I bet you if I bought a Taurus we wouldn't be shipping it back!"

Get your shit together Smith & Wesson!

Just a SWAG, but...With S&W moving production from Masshole to Tennessee, "Pistols" outnumbering "Revolver" Production, and a mostly if not totally new work force, there just might not be the craftsmanship that years of experience fitting Revolvers together brought in the Golden Days...If it we ME, I would pop the Grips and increase main spring pressure via the tension screw at the bottom of the grip frame and try it from there...there IS a trade off for those utra-light/quick pulls; the trick is finding the balance. "Performance Center" just means it's got a racier package treatment and not necessarily a custom built/tuned gun...A F250 King Ranch is still a F250 but with a better interior and more chrome.

 

[Depick]

You have no idea. It is such a shame as I find S&W's products so appealing and there are numerous other S&W guns I owould like to have but I am not so sure anymore. I suppose it depends on how the L-Comp performs when it gets back.

Well hopefully they get it straightened out quick for you.

 

[Parzival]

Like I said in your other thread, no new S&W, especially revolvers or 10mm’s

 

[S&W Fan]

You have no idea. It is such a shame as I find S&W's products so appealing and there are numerous other S&W guns I owould like to have but I am not so sure anymore. I suppose it depends on how the L-Comp performs when it gets back.

If you do your do diligence there is absolutely no reason to not purchase a S& W revolver in the future from the secondary market . Unless of course you absolutely Have to have brand new.
I have Never purchased a brand new S&W revolver. For a couple of reasons. 1 - I can’t stand the hillery hole and 2- I prefer the older model S&W revolvers. ( late 70’s & 80’s )
If you want to learn a ton of shit about All things S&W I highly recommend you visit smith-wessonforum.com of the few dedicated S&W sites out there I find this one to be the best of them.

 

[FP1201]

If you do your do diligence there is absolutely no reason to not purchase a S& W revolver in the future from the secondary market . Unless of course you absolutely Have to have brand new.
I have Never purchased a brand new S&W revolver. For a couple of reasons. 1 - I can’t stand the hillery hole and 2- I prefer the older model S&W revolvers. ( late 70’s & 80’s )
If you want to learn a ton of shit about All things S&W I highly recommend you visit smith-wessonforum.com of the few dedicated S&W sites out there I find this one to be the best of them.

THIS is "the book" on S&W Repair: https://www.amazon.com/Revolver-Shop-Manual-Covers-Actions/dp/B000MRFUWY
plenty of other places to get the Book or in CD.

 

[kev74]

There is a real benefit to buying used S&W revolvers. They're usually much smoother than new. And you can't touch the quality of the older guns. For me, 70's and early 80's revolvers are the sweet spot between quality and value.

It requires knowing what to look for in terms of mechanical function when you do your pre purchase inspection.

 

[Criticalt]

If it helps, I have a bunch of S&W and haven't had any issues.

 

[Xae289]

Just a SWAG, but...With S&W moving production from Masshole to Tennessee, "Pistols" outnumbering "Revolver" Production, and a mostly if not totally new work force, there just might not be the craftsmanship that years of experience fitting Revolvers together brought in the Golden Days...If it we ME, I would pop the Grips and increase main spring pressure via the tension screw at the bottom of the grip frame and try it from there...there IS a trade off for those utra-light/quick pulls; the trick is finding the balance. "Performance Center" just means it's got a racier package treatment and not necessarily a custom built/tuned gun...A F250 King Ranch is still a F250 but with a better interior and more chrome.

I didn't realize they were moving to Tennessee. That explains a lot. Same with Kimber moving down to Alabama. They made the biggest portion of the move out of Yonkers from 2019-2021. I tell people to be cautious buying Kimbers from the past few years and generally advise against buying any sight-unseen.

 

[kev74]

Smith moved the plastic gun manufacture to TN.

Revolvers are still made in Springfield, MA by the same staff (allegedly). Supposedly, the forges cost too much to move, and the staff isn't easily replaceable.

 

[Podmonkey]

Question about this Strain Screw: is this an adjustable setting? Is there a specific tension I should be looking for or is it something that elis either just loose or tight?

 

[FP1201]

Question about this Strain Screw: is this an adjustable setting? Is there a specific tension I should be looking for or is it something that elis either just loose or tight?

Unless they've changed the design; remove the grip panels and you'll see a leaf spring that's anchored at the base of the Grip and a screw going through the front of the grip frame and touches that leaf: turning the screw in puts more tension on it, backing it out reduces, and you can feel it when you cock the hammer...doesn't take much, and if you're getting light strikes, I'd try a 1/4 turn in and see if it cures the problem. (assuming there isn't dried oil/debris/damage/shavings/etc. gumming up the works.

 

[Podmonkey]

Unless they've changed the design; remove the grip panels and you'll see a leaf spring that's anchored at the base of the Grip and a screw going through the front of the grip frame and touches that leaf: turning the screw in puts more tension on it, backing it out reduces, and you can feel it when you cock the hammer...doesn't take much, and if you're getting light strikes, I'd try a 1/4 turn in and see if it cures the problem. (assuming there isn't dried oil/debris/damage/shavings/etc. gumming up the works.

When I swapped the boot grips that came installed for the Houge grip I didn't observe any grease or debris. The fun was coated with thick oil as one would expect. As is my custom with new guns I hit tge whole piece with Hoppes and wiped every thing down then re-applied a thin coat of CLP, ballistol in this case.
I didn't notice tge strain screw not being very familiar with revolvers however I will check it once I get it back from S&W.
I did notice that the double action pull was pretty light and I remember thinking that tge hammer went forward without a ton of force behind it when I dry fired it. I dry fire guns, especially new ones, A LOT!
The thing that I don't quite understand is that with the .38s tge primer had only tge shallowest little nicks in the primer but the 357s had a pronounced divot to the point that I would have thought they should have went off. Well 5 of the 7 eventually did.
The .38s were MagTech, I assume that Brazilian primers are as hard as European ones. The 357s were Remington HTP SJHPs. I know domestic ammo typically has softer primers.
I told the shop that if this gun doses bot reliably fire ALL ammo WITHOUT moon clips I will want a full refund on it, I will then purchase a Python instead.
I sincerely hope that the L-Comp gets properly sorted however as that model rather tickles my fancy. I really wish S&W would get their act together, I find so many of their products appealing but I have lost confidence in the company.