Brand New Bodyguard 38 Defective

[Forester]

Bur seriously, it is my understanding the J frame airweights aren't designed for a steady and regular diet of +p loads.

I would not agree. They are rated for such, says so right on the barrel. Will they wear it out sooner? Sure, but you will never know the difference unless you are a glutton for punishment and were are still talking about several thousands of rounds. Besides, today's so-called +P rounds are really no more powerfull than the standard 38 special loads of 40 or 50 years ago. The 38 special has been neutered.

Just MHO.

[Silver_Bullet_00]

Bur seriously, it is my understanding the J frame airweights aren't designed for a steady and regular diet of +p loads.

Who would want to shoot a steady diet of +p in an airweight? I shoot non +p most of the time, and only a few +p every now and then so I don't forget about that recoil and muzzle flip should the time come if I have to use it. A 649 which is rated for 357 should be fine with a steady diet of 38sp +p.

[spfldguns]

Sorry Forester, I meant to say +p+ --I was never that good at math

[spfldguns]

Who would want to shoot a steady diet of +p in an airweight? I shoot non +p most of the time, and only a few +p every now and then so I don't forget about that recoil and muzzle flip should the time come if I have to use it. A 649 which is rated for 357 should be fine with a steady diet of 38sp +p.

That is what I was trying to advise the O.P. to do

[akmatov]

OK, reporting in to all the helpful folks after my trip to the gun store and their gun smith.

Short answer, it was the ammo, not the gun.

Four rounds of not +P ammo had jolted one of the bullets forward in its cartridge case, thus locking up the cylinder. Bought a box of different ammo and put 45 rounds down range successfully. Not having ever shot a 2" barreled revolver I has startled at how inaccurate I was with it. Having fired my previous four rounds from a sand bag rest, I know the weapon itself is astonishingly accurate, so the problem is me shooting it. Darn, guess I need to put in some more range time.

So I'm happy to report S&W was not at fault and I have an interesting new gun to get to know. )

[Forester]

This is good. We should have smoked that. Happens sometimes with hand loads if the crimp is not firm enough. Don't see it often in factory non plus p ammo. Do you remember what the ammo was?

[spfldguns]

So, let me get this straight, initially, you said there was clearly no obstruction such as a bullet moving foreward upon recoil to create the jam, as was suspected by yourself and others in this forum. Now, the gunsmith at your dealer says that is the cause for the jam, and now it is fine. I've been shooting and handloading for a very long time now, and it has been my experience that bullets almost always retreat rearwards into the cartridge upon recoil if not properly crimped at the case mouth due to inertia, particually when fired from a rest as opposed to firing free hand where a 'limp wrist' situation could cause it to go the other way-foreward- very uncommon except in the case of a squib load, but that was ruled out very early in this thread. I still think there is something very strange about this whole situation. Forester, please read the whole thread, and try to make any sense of it, because I can't.

[Injunbro]

Not having ever shot a 2" barreled revolver I has startled at how inaccurate I was with it. Having fired my previous four rounds from a sand bag rest, I know the weapon itself is astonishingly accurate, so the problem is me shooting it. and I have an interesting new gun to get to know. )

Glad it worked out fairly easily. I've had a few rounds of bad factory ammo, always Remington. A different set of grips may help tighten your groups. I've gotten some really good accuracy from snubbies but onlywhen I set them up so they fit my paw properly.

[Silver_Bullet_00]

So, let me get this straight, initially, you said there was clearly no obstruction such as a bullet moving foreward upon recoil to create the jam, as was suspected by yourself and others in this forum. Now, the gunsmith at your dealer says that is the cause for the jam, and now it is fine. I've been shooting and handloading for a very long time now, and it has been my experience that bullets almost always retreat rearwards into the cartridge upon recoil if not properly crimped at the case mouth due to inertia, particually when fired from a rest as opposed to firing free hand where a 'limp wrist' situation could cause it to go the other way-foreward- very uncommon except in the case of a squib load, but that was ruled out very early in this thread. I still think there is something very strange about this whole situation. Forester, please read the whole thread, and try to make any sense of it, because I can't.

Agreed

[Donaldjr1969]

So, let me get this straight, initially, you said there was clearly no obstruction such as a bullet moving foreward upon recoil to create the jam, as was suspected by yourself and others in this forum. Now, the gunsmith at your dealer says that is the cause for the jam, and now it is fine. I've been shooting and handloading for a very long time now, and it has been my experience that bullets almost always retreat rearwards into the cartridge upon recoil if not properly crimped at the case mouth due to inertia, particually when fired from a rest as opposed to firing free hand where a 'limp wrist' situation could cause it to go the other way-foreward- very uncommon except in the case of a squib load, but that was ruled out very early in this thread. I still think there is something very strange about this whole situation. Forester, please read the whole thread, and try to make any sense of it, because I can't.

This is my opinion on what I suspect may be happening, especially since we are referring to a revolver. The inertia of the bullet itself is far greater than the cartridge case and powder charge. So the case under recoil is going to accelerate faster than the bullet if the crimp or neck tension is not sufficient. In that case, the case is actually pulling itself away from the bullet under recoil as it is traveling in the direction of the primer. Now upon the cessation of recoil when the gun returns to its resting position, the case will hit the recoil shield and return to being seated flush in the cylinder. But since the rebound velocity is lower than the recoil velocity, the bullet will not "re-seat" itself when the case bounces off the recoil shield and travels forward again. Now with revolvers, there obviously is no forward wall of a magazine for the forward edge of the bullet to strike. So the bullet remains ever so slightly out of the case. Now if the suspect bullet is in chamber 5 of a Bodyguard 38, then it has not one but 4 recoil cycles for which it can jump crimp.

I guess the best way to illustrate a bullet jumping crimp in a revolver is to take your mouse and line the forward edge of the mouse up with the forward edge of the mouse pad. Now grab the pad and pull the pad backwards (and the mouse along with it) slowly. Notice how the mouse did not move. Return the mouse pad to where you started. The edge of the mouse is still lined up with the edge of the mouse pad. Now repeat this exercise but pull the mouse pad backwards quicker. Notice what happens? The forward edge of the mouse shot forward a bit and is hanging over the edge of the pad. When you push the pad back to where it was, the mouse still overhangs the pad.

While not exactly scientific, that is the best way I can think of right now to possibly explain how a bullet jumps crimp under recoil.