# New S&W Model 629 malfunction first time at range



## desmocorse

Hello,

I recently purchased a S&W Model 629 and fired it at the range over the week-end. I put 12 rounds of .44 special though it with no issues, and noted that it was pleasant to shoot. Then I ran 12 rounds of American Eagle .44 magnum 240 grain through it. At the 12th round, the hammer would not lock in single action or with the double action trigger pull. However the cylinder will rotate.

Has anyone ever heard of a similar failure and what caused it? I will be contacting S&W Warranty department this week. I am very disappointed as I have wanted this pistol for 30 years and finally bought it.

Thanks


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## paratrooper

I have two 629's and they will eat anything and spit it out. I'm not all that familiar with the new genre of S&W's though.

Neither of mine have the lock on them. It's been my experience that S&W will do right by you. I've only had to contact them once in regards to a model 60. I sent the gun to them and they replaced a cylinder crane and gave the whole gun a good going over.

They even reimbursed me for the cost of shipping to them.


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## desmocorse

Mine has the lock on it. I am going to keep my hopes up that S&W warranty dept. takes care of me. I am looking forward to shooting this gun again as it was a lot of fun to shoot.


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## paratrooper

Do you have a local gunsmith that might be able to take a quick look at it before you go to the time and trouble to return it to S&W? 

If he (gunsmith) was able to properly diagnosis the problem and correct it, S&W might pay for the repair with proper documentation. Not saying 100% that they would, I'm just kind of thinking out loud.


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## desmocorse

I do, however since it is a brand new gun I will try the warranty first. If this had been a gun that I had for awhile, I would send it to a local gunsmith. I appreciate your suggestion though.


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## paratrooper

desmocorse said:


> I do, however since it is a brand new gun I will try the warranty first. If this had been a gun that I had for awhile, I would send it to a local gunsmith. I appreciate your suggestion though.


Understood!


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## Pistol Pete

S&W quality ain't what it used to be but they'll repair it for you on warranty. I have a new 617 that spits a bit, I'm gonna have to return it but I keep putting it off. It ain't just S&W, I've bought very few new handguns that were right in recent years. Some I sent back on warranty, some I repaired myself, at least 1 I just live with it. Most recently an new Glock----Perfection-------?


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## wirenut

S&W needs two price ranges.
One price for firearms that might work and a little more for firearms that have been tested.
Customers should not be their QC. Department.


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## denner12

Have you made sure the lock didn't inadvertently move to the locked position under recoil. I'm not a fan of the lock, especially with high recoiling models like the .44 magnum. I had a Model 29 cylinder lock up on me once, took it to a gunsmith and he fixed it in 2 minutes, never had the issue again. The model I had was older and didn't have a lock on it. I think it a good idea to let S&W handle it. Let us know about the outcome.


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## desmocorse

Yes, I checked the lock first thing with the supplied key and it was disengaged.

I took the gun to the dealer today where I bought it and the gunsmith pulled the side cover to take a look before sending it back to S&W. I watched him work the action and he found a piece of debris stuck in the action that was preventing the hammer from moving fully to the rear. While working the action, it fell out. Now the action works fine. He believes that it was left over debris from the manufacturing process. He closed it up and now I am going to try to run about 50 .44 special & 24 .44 magnum rounds through it the next time I go shooting to prove to myself the gun is reliable.

Thanks for the suggestions.


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## desmocorse

wirenut said:


> S&W needs two price ranges.
> One price for firearms that might work and a little more for firearms that have been tested.
> Customers should not be their QC. Department.


I think you are absolutely right on this.


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## pic

Were you able to see or keep the piece of debris. 
If it were me, I woulda kept the debris. 

Was the debris made out of the same gun metal? Was it metal? 
Maybe it was just to small to examine. I have a big magnifying glass, lol


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## paratrooper

desmocorse said:


> Yes, I checked the lock first thing with the supplied key and it was disengaged.
> 
> I took the gun to the dealer today where I bought it and the gunsmith pulled the side cover to take a look before sending it back to S&W. I watched him work the action and he found a piece of debris stuck in the action that was preventing the hammer from moving fully to the rear. While working the action, it fell out. Now the action works fine. He believes that it was left over debris from the manufacturing process. He closed it up and now I am going to try to run about 50 .44 special & 24 .44 magnum rounds through it the next time I go shooting to prove to myself the gun is reliable.
> 
> Thanks for the suggestions.


Great, good to hear. I was hoping that it would be something as simple as that.


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## desmocorse

pic said:


> Were you able to see or keep the piece of debris.
> If it were me, I woulda kept the debris.
> 
> Was the debris made out of the same gun metal? Was it metal?
> Maybe it was just to small to examine. I have a big magnifying glass, lol


I was not able to keep it as it fell out and then I could not find it. However, I assume it was metal as it was blocking the hammer from going back. The debris looked very black to me.

Wish I could have found it after it fell out!


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## paratrooper

If you were to compose a letter, detailing your experience and how it was resolved, and send it to S&W, you never know how they might respond. 

I've heard that they will often compensate you for your troubles in some way. If you do send a letter, address it to the CEO of S&W. Not just the service department. 

Once the CEO gets the letter, he will see that it gets all the attention that it rightfully deserves. 

It's just a suggestion. Nothing ventured.........nothing gained.


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## desmocorse

paratrooper said:


> If you were to compose a letter, detailing your experience and how it was resolved, and send it to S&W, you never know how they might respond.
> 
> I've heard that they will often compensate you for your troubles in some way. If you do send a letter, address it to the CEO of S&W. Not just the service department.
> 
> Once the CEO gets the letter, he will see that it gets all the attention that it rightfully deserves.
> 
> It's just a suggestion. Nothing ventured.........nothing gained.


Hello,

I took your advice. I am now looking forward to running 50-75 rounds through the gun soon to prove reliability and hopefully regain my confidence in it that it will work when I really need it.


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## paratrooper

desmocorse said:


> Hello,
> 
> I took your advice. I am now looking forward to running 50-75 rounds through the gun soon to prove reliability and hopefully regain my confidence in it that it will work when I really need it.


Glad to see that you are going to do that. Let us know, one way or the other, how it all ends up.

I got $0.50 that says your 629 is going to make you very happy, now that the problem has been resolved.


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## desmocorse

paratrooper said:


> Glad to see that you are going to do that. Let us know, one way or the other, how it all ends up.
> 
> I got $0.50 that says your 629 is going to make you very happy, now that the problem has been resolved.


I ran about 75 rounds through it today without any issues (50 .44 special and 25 .44 magnum). So far, so good!


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## desmocorse

One more thing, this pistol is very controllable and pleasant to shoot with .44 special. The .44 magnum is uncomfortable, but manageable for me. I think I need a good pair of shooting gloves, currently wearing a light pair of Ansell cut resistant gloves which does not help much (but good for preventing cuts when loading semi-auto pistol mags!). 

I am very pleased with this gun so far. I little hiccup, but it is a fun shooter.

Any recommendations for a good shooting glove?


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## win231

desmocorse said:


> One more thing, this pistol is very controllable and pleasant to shoot with .44 special. The .44 magnum is uncomfortable, but manageable for me. I think I need a good pair of shooting gloves, currently wearing a light pair of Ansell cut resistant gloves which does not help much (but good for preventing cuts when loading semi-auto pistol mags!).
> 
> I am very pleased with this gun so far. I little hiccup, but it is a fun shooter.
> 
> Any recommendations for a good shooting glove?


Yes. Ruger makes one. The model is called "Super Redhawk." 

S&W's 44 Mag is made on their "N" frame & it is the same frame as their Model 27 & 28 - which are 357 Magnum. When the 44 Magnum was developed, instead of going to a bigger frame, they saved money by drilling out the cylinder for 44 caliber. That's one of the reasons why their 44 Magnum is a rather light gun - & won't hold up under frequent max loads.

I experienced the same thing with the S&W 500. After 150 rounds, the gun was out of time & not safe to shoot. After S&W repaired it under warranty, I sold it.

Rugers are designed around the caliber, which makes for a more durable and heavier gun.


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## desmocorse

win231 said:


> Yes. Ruger makes one. The model is called "Super Redhawk."
> 
> S&W's 44 Mag is made on their "N" frame & it is the same frame as their Model 27 & 28 - which are 357 Magnum. When the 44 Magnum was developed, instead of going to a bigger frame, they saved money by drilling out the cylinder for 44 caliber. That's one of the reasons why their 44 Magnum is a rather light gun - & won't hold up under frequent max loads.
> 
> I experienced the same thing with the S&W 500. After 150 rounds, the gun was out of time & not safe to shoot. After S&W repaired it under warranty, I sold it.
> 
> Rugers are designed around the caliber, which makes for a more durable and heavier gun.


I share your love of Ruger's too. The first pistol I bought after high school was a SS black powder Ruger New Model Old Army in .44. I was heavily in to the black powder revolvers at the time because I could not buy cartridge ammo being under 21 in my state. I remember it being built like a tank!

I now have one Ruger .357 Security Six in 4" barrel, which shoots very sweet. I also like that I can run .38 special through it for fun target practice at much lower cost. As far as a "big" Ruger, I have my eye on a Redhawk Alaskan in .45 long/.454 Casul. It will most likely be my next revolver!


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## denner12

desmocorse said:


> I have my eye on a Redhawk Alaskan in .45 long/.454 Casul. It will most likely be my next revolver!


Indeed, a nice revolver. If you feel a need for shooting gloves for the S&W .44 mag wait until you tap off some .454 Casull rounds.  lol


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## desmocorse

paratrooper said:


> If you were to compose a letter, detailing your experience and how it was resolved, and send it to S&W, you never know how they might respond.
> 
> I've heard that they will often compensate you for your troubles in some way. If you do send a letter, address it to the CEO of S&W. Not just the service department.
> 
> Once the CEO gets the letter, he will see that it gets all the attention that it rightfully deserves.
> 
> It's just a suggestion. Nothing ventured.........nothing gained.


I did as you recommended and received a letter from the customer service department. I received a thank you for my constructive criticism.

I did get two cool S&W round stickers which I have not seen for sale anywhere.


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## paratrooper

desmocorse said:


> I did as you recommended and received a letter from the customer service department. I received a thank you for my constructive criticism.
> 
> I did get two cool S&W round stickers which I have not seen for sale anywhere.


Two stickers are better than nothing. I would have hoped though, that they would have sent you something more substantial.


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## Mowgli Terry

In my Experience: I had a K-38 that was an old gun in excellent condition. The revolver had an 8 3/8" barrel. The gun would shoot around corners. Gun was sent to Smith. In the note was enclosed a visit to a local gunsmith. Smith refused to work on the gun and it was returned. I'd suggest returning the handgun to the Mother Ship to avoid potential grief.


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