It would have been classy of them, and would have generated much positive press here and elsewhere if they'd fixed it for free.

That's the kind of thing Ruger does. For example, I bought a used Ruger Number One rifle years ago. Very quickly, the extractor failed. Sent it back to Ruger, pointed out that it was 25+ years old, that I wasn't the original owner, and that I'd been shooting my handloads.

They fixed it for free and had it back to me in two weeks.... I've never forgotten that and have posted about it before.

Guy

 

Personally I would reach out to senior management and request more elaboration as to why it wouldn't be covered. May be it is a byproduct of reloads, either way it's worth a try IMO.

 

I have had mixed experiences w SW customer service. I had a model 19 that had a mis-timed barrel I bought used they repaired with no issue or charge. I had another model 27 that I bought used with the same issue they charged me to correct the issue, they did waive the $50 diagnostic fee after I expressed concern over a manufacturing defect. SW also replaced a bulged cylinder for $150 (that was more than fair). 3 / 4 customer service interactions were very positive.

It never hurts to ask for clarification and loyal customer consideration, they may not perform the repair for free but may meet you halfway on repair cost.

 

Well, I'm with Guy that it would have benefited S&W to repair it free. That said, I've never heard of a firing pin bushing failing before. So I can't offer any insight other than Brownell's sells the fire pin bushing for $5.99.

Jack

 

I think on the newer revolvers the bushing is a press in fit then staked. I never liked this new style. All of mine are old school where the pin was on the nose of the hammer. S&W should have repaired that for free for you. I sent back a 686 3inch because you couldn't hit the side of a barn with it. They rebarreled it to a 6inch barrel and only charged me 160 bucks for the cost of the barrel.

 

Yeah, you'd think Smith &Wesson would replace a Hammer Nose Bushing for free. How chintzy of them. Numrich sells the bushing for $12.00. I've replaced that bushing on an 1873 Uberti single action, working through the barrel. It was pretty easy, I applied some JB weld to the bushing and staked it in place with a homemade circular stake, wrapped the stake in fuel line so as not to ding up the rifling. Sending off a firearm is so iffy these days, they come up lost or stolen often enough. Here's the S&W 686 bushing in the online Numrich catalog.

 

IIRC, back in the day when S&W first brought out the 686, they recalled one hell of a lot of them for problems with that bushing. Seems they would edge out enough to tie up a gun. I had one of the early ones and by good fortune one of the bigger LGS here in town was an S&W repair facility. Still took over two month to get my gun back. Dunno if they did it locally or sent it out to S&W. Still kicking myself for ever selling that gun.
Paul B.

 

The biggest issue with the repair here was the the mechanism was bound up. The cylinder advance was gritty and the cylinder release was almost immovable. I didn't feel comfortable taking the revolver apart and attempting repairs. Didn't want to have to send or take it in for repairs in a box.

I really thought that there was a good chance this would be covered under warranty, as either the previous or next series had known issues with the firing pin bushing.

S&W said that as part of the repair they were also recutting the forcing cone and adjusting the cylinder gap. We'll see.

 

I have a Smith 686 357 magnum bought new back in '88 or so. This has seen very light use since then, probably less than 1000 rounds through it.

A few months ago I took it out for a session. My son shot it first. I saw him wince, and he wasn't able to fire it again double action. It was very tough to open the cylinder release, but with just my fingers and moving the cylinder back and forth, I finally got it open.

The primer was gone! Just a black smudge over the base of the casing. Yes, they were my reloads. I thought about a double charge, but I don't load any powders that won't overflow the case on a double charge.

Fool that I am, I fired it again, myself. I felt multiple stinging sensations over my face, but there was no blood.

Same drill. Again very difficult to push the cylinder release. Again, the primer was gone. This time, though, I noticed that the firing pin bushing was gone. My thought was the the loss of the bushing left the primer unsupported, and when the firing pin hit the primer, it blew out.

i sent the 686 back to S&W. I didn't think that replacing and staking in that bushing was something I wanted to tackle. Besides, it was still very difficult to release the cylinder crane, and I didn't want to be messing around inside the frame.

S&W got back to me this week. They will repair it, but not under warranty. I will need to cough up 215.00 for the repair.

Question though, is the loss of the firing pin bushing a manufacturing defect? I've not heard of one being lost before this happened to me. And if it is a defect, shouldn't the rest of the repairs also be covered as they are the result of the loss of the bushing?

I've already authorized payment, and it is a 32 you revolver. I don't intend to contest the repair charge, but what do you all say?

I had this happen to my S&W Model 28-2 several years ago. At that time S&W did cover the bushing replacement for me. Mine is an older pinned barrel model (late 60's or early 70's mfg. I forget now) and I bought it used! Not sure why they wouldn't cover that anymore. Sad to hear.

 

Let us know how the repair turns out as well as the turnaround time.
I have a 'low mileage' 629Classic from the 90's that has an issue opening the cylinder and I need to fix it or have them fix it. That has been put on the back-burner for too long.

Looking forward to a range report when you get it all resolved.

 

You brought it in 1988, 32 years ago. There are people alive today who are younger than that. Pay for the repair and be done with it.

 

I got my revolver back last week, They changed out the detent on the underlug that fits into the front of the cylinder rod. And also one additional part that must go inside somewhere. I don't recognize it. Opens and closes like a new one now. Trigger action is excellent as well. Haven't shot it yet. No reason to think there would be any problem.

I paid the charges, about 200.00 plus a few bucks. They sent it back overnight delivery, so that I could make a travel date. FedEx just handed it to me at the door and left. Said that since Covid they no longer take signatures.

I think it took about 8 weeks from the time I sent it in. S&W said that if was under warranty they would likely fix it in 3-4 weeks.

So, it's paid for, fixed, and returned. Somehow I would think that a firing pin bushing should not just fall out, absent abuse, which is not the case here.

S&W and I remain on good terms. After all, as was pointed out, it is a 32 year old revolver.... whether it's been shot a lot of not. (Not)