[Bob605]

I just got a new 605 revolver and it worked perfectly the first time I took it to the range and shot .38 special. Today I shot .38 special and ten .357 cartridges. After a while the revolver would jam and I couldn't pull the hammer back or pull the trigger. If I rotated the cylinder, it would work fine until it got back to the same chamber and it would lock up again. It happens with or without ammo in the revolver. Occasionally it will work fine on this chamber, then it will lock up again. Is this a common issue with this revolver and how do I go about resolving it?

I was very happy with this firearm and was hoping to make it my EDC, but now I'm not so sure.

Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[olfarhors]

The old dreaded contact taurus customer service would be my advice to you.
IS Taurus still only doing the old 90 day free shipping back?

 

[Harry]

A loose ejector rod can cause those symptoms. See if it needs snuggling up - reverse threads.

 

[Bob605]

Figured I'd post an update about my 605.

I got it back from Taurus after three weeks. They said they adjusted the timing and did something to the hand. (The note I got just had "Hand" listed as one of the things they did. Took it to the range today and it went perfectly for about 50 rounds of 38 special and five rounds of .357 magnum. Then the fun started again. As I pulled the trigger back for single action, it was a little hard to pull a few times. Then a few times I'd pull the hammer back and the cylinder wouldn't spin so the hammer fell on an empty piece of brass then rotated to the next chamber. One time I loaded it and the cylinder spun around three times before it locked in place. I kept trying and eventually it locked up just like it did when I sent it in. After Taurus repaired it, it actually was much worse than when I sent it in.

I emailed Taurus and will send it again for them to try again. Is this the usual way it goes? I'm starting to believe the "Taurus is junk" rhetoric that seems to be the mindset of most gun owners. I was hoping to use the 605 as my EDC but my confidence in it is gone.

 

[Smokozuna]

What ammo exactly are you using?

Was this the same ammo used in your first encounter?

 

[GhostHorse]

I'm with Harry; this could be a loose ejector rod. Put some loc-tite on it, snug it up, and see if that fixes it. Your experience reminds me of some issues I had with a Ruger revolver that was caused by the ejector rod.

Also, have you opened the sideplate and given it a good cleaning? If not, I'd do that - even knowing it's been back to the mother ship.

 

[loudviking]

^^^Bingo^^^

 

[Aggie]

I stick with mostly S&W and Ruger Revolvers.

However my Public Defender has been reliable.

 

[maloy]

You have one of two things going on, or both. Either you have too tight of a barrel/cylinder gap, or a lack of clearance between the cartridge/cylinder/recoil shield.

If you have a set of feeler gages, check the barrel/cylinder gap, where it locks up the tightest, and see if .002" moves freely between the barrel and cylinder, use fired casings in the chambers when you do this. Then take the same .002" and slide it between the casing that is over the firing pin. That should be the tightest fit on the recoil shield.

If you can't get .002" through either point, they made the gun too tight. Any good revolver smith can fix that within an hour.

Ideal for barrel/cylinder gap is .003" to .004" up to .006" isn't the end of the world. You should have .002" to .005" between the casing and firing pin hole. However, I've seen as much as .010" with no ill affects.

Feeler gages can be bought at most automotive stores, and most clerks can give you a simple rundown on their use. Also you can buy them on Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/Hotop-Blades...jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

I feel they are an important tool for anyone interested in revolvers or CETME rifles. Last, get some oil down into the spindle on the crane where the cylinder rides.

Maloy

 

[Desperado]

Harry, GhostHorse, and maloy have given you the same information I would have given you about this. I would also check the operation of the cylinder by "dry firing" on all cylinders while watching how the cylinder rotates, and watching clearances between the firing cone and cylinder, as well as the recoil shield and cylinder. I have seen some "major brand name" revolvers (not Taurus, BTW) that would rub on one or both of these areas as the cylinder rotated, causing the same symptoms you posted.

 

[Czechbikr]

Not saying this ever happened to your revolver, but it's worth noting here that one should never let their revolver be handled in the way where the cylinder if "flicked" open or shut like in the gangster movies. It is one way to cause issues with a bent crane.

https://www.taurusarmed.net/forums/...-does-flipping-wheel-closed-really-cause.html

 

[taurustoter]

Sorry to hear about your trouble OP. I have two of those 605's, and so far no issues. Keep us posted!

 

[Trapshooter1107]

Hi Bob605 and TA Friends,

I've had similar jamming problems with my stainless 605. Recently I was shooting bullseyes, single action at 25 yards, 38 special 148 grain cast wad cutters with a stout charge of red dot, near but below 38+P velocities when mine jammed. The hammer and trigger would not move. I unjammed it by rocking the cylinder slightly, clockwise and counter-clockwise. I shot some more rounds, and a few of them jammed the same way. When I got home I cleaned the gun.

I checked the cylinder bolt operation - OK,
checked the extractor plunger - OK tight.
checked the cylinder notches with a 10X loupe for burrs - None,
checked the cylinder notches with the loupe for burrs - None,
checked the tip of the hand with the loupe - nothing exceptional, except the tip is slightly rounded,
checked the extractor star with the loupe and saw some gouges across the back of the star.

Looking at the hand, it is obvious that it is pretty hard stuff, strong alloy, well hardened. The star appears to be stainless steel. Looking at the part of the star that rides on the top edge of the hand, from the machining marks, and those probably from the hand, I think maybe the star is slightly softer material than the hand, and may have been damaged by the hand.


Why??
First guesses:

I suspect that some how the hand jumped or bounced back off the ejector star and got stuck on top of the flats, which binds up the hand and the hammer, which binds up the trigger which jambs the gun.

Since the 605 chambers 357s, perhaps the metalurgy for the extractor star was re-used from the 38 special revolvers, and isn't up to the recoil from heavier loaded cartridges. Maybe there is a "geometry" or a random production machining problem that allows the hand to get trapped behind the star on some guns.

The other thing that concerned me was the radius on the tip of the hand. On other DA revolvers I own, the tip of the hand is a fairly sharp point. Was my 605 hand damaged causing it to jump over the star, or was that how it was designed or just how this sample was machined?

Past experiences and prejudices:
I have a few other Taurus revolvers and had similar problems only with one, a much older 9 shot stainless 22LR snub nose. I traced that problem to a burr in the channel the cylinder bolt spring rides in. The spring would snag on a burr, and keep the cylinder bolt up and engaged with the cylinder, jaming the gun. It was an early stainless gun, and the machining inside was pretty rough. I assumed the problem was caused by the "learning curve" for machining stainless. I spent most of a weeks worth of evenings with arkansas stones and 600 wet-or-dry deburring the inside of the revolver. That cleared up the problem with the cylinder bolt, and made the gun a whole lot smoother. Machining finish inside my other stainless Taurus revolvers is good, no burrs, nice surface finish, so Taurus has successfully solved that problem a long time ago.

What Next:
Taurus has historically got a bad rap for revolvers going out of time with no explanations, and sometimes requiring multiple repairs. I've seen posts here with that complaint, but I haven't heard of or seen any postmortems. Either the owner junks the gun and swears off buying any more from Taurus, or the gun is sent bacck for repair and either repaired or replaced or destroyed and no reason for the failure is given.

I'm tempted to go down to the local emporium and look over another example or two to see if the hand is pointed, and if there are marks on the back of the ejector star but I'll probably resist, because it always costs me money when I go there and the good wife has been in a good mood lately

.

I'm reluctant to send my 605 south without understanding the problem and knowing Taurus service understands the root cause and has a reliable fix. I don't plan on junking it, and if I buy another handgun, it is likely to be a Taurus.

I'll probably fool with mine for a while this fall, and see what I can find. I hope you get yours fixed quickly and to your long term satisfaction.

Trapshooter1107


The difference between and engineer and a terrorist is that you can negotiate with a terrorist....

 

[Trapshooter1107]

Hi Again,
I have a couple additional thoughts about my previous post about 605s jamming. I based the post on observations from outside features of the gun, and should have taken off the side plate, studied the mechanism for other causes and made some measurements before posting.


Also, my "editorial comments" about service, and repair documentation are out of order, given that Taurus supplies good products at a very competitive price. For about $300 +/-, which includes dealer markup, import duties, shipping costs on top of manufacturing costs and expected warranty costs, it is unreasonable to expect any more than a couple words in a repair report.


At is point, I still suspect something about the hand is the problem, either the shape of the tip, or a production machining problem. Another question I have is whether there is a connection between the jamming and single action vs double action. I don't shoot enough DA to say that it does or doesn't happen in DA.


Considering that most 605's don't have this jamming problem, it is unlikely to be a metalurgy or design issue, or very few would work right. Cross those two off the list.

Looking at the internal parts diagram in the manual, there is a small spring and pin (#29 and #30) which provide forward pressure on the hand. The spring could be weak, or friction between the hand and its channel through frame may allow the hand to misbehave. I'll test this comparing the force at the hand tip on my other Taurus revolvers to see if they are similar. I don't have any other 357's to compare, but I have a 32mag, a 45ACP, and a couple 44mags, and would expect to see some similarities.
Trapshooter1107

 

[Qwiks draw]

This is another end of the road thread. It has run its course.