Is my gun dangerous?

[james357]

I have a Smith 610-3 10 mm.
The barrel is 3 7/8. The factory ammo sits 1/4 from the ammo tip to the chamber. I asked the internet and it said No, your gun's ballistics are not 4 1/8 inches. The issue you are describing is called bullet setback, and it is dangerous. You should not fire this ammunition.
Does anyone else have a 610 10mm and is this normal.

 

[DanKATL]

I have a Smith 610-3 10 mm.
The barrel is 3 7/8. The factory ammo sits 1/4 from the ammo tip to the chamber. I asked the internet and it said No, your gun's ballistics are not 4 1/8 inches. The issue you are describing is called bullet setback, and it is dangerous. You should not fire this ammunition.
Does anyone else have a 610 10mm and is this normal.

How about a picture of the ammo? Is it factory ammo? Have you ever loaded it in a semi-auto?

 

[james357]

How about a picture of the ammo? Is it factory ammo? Have you ever loaded it in a semi-auto?

Yes I shoot it in my Autos. It's underwood, federal, winchester, Magtech.

 

[DanKATL]

Yes I shoot it in my Autos. It's underwood, federal, winchester, Magtech.

Setback is usually from chambering ammo in a semi-auto. For instance, someone who unloads their weapon every day; if they don't rotate that first round in the mag the bullet gets set back in the brass after repeatedly hitting the feed ramp. That's not really a thing with a revolver. What you're describing is the cylinder being a bit longer than that particular ammo.

 

[BHPSteel]

Take a round fresh from the box and compare it with the round you're worried about. If they're the same, you don't have bullet setback.

That said, measure the OAL too. It should be close to - but below 1.26 in.

If you think about it the idea of a round in a wheelgun being less than the length of the bore in the cylinder shouldn't necessarily be worrying. People shoot 38 special from 357 magnums all the time.

 

[basstracker89]

What you describe is either due to recoil or improper loading. If it's factory length, don't sweat it. When I load, I crimp it as reasonably tight as possible.

 

[BHPSteel]

Also, if those are 180gr FMJ or JHP, they're *meant* to look like this:

If you look, any bullet setback would be really obvious, since the ogive of the bullet starts (almost) immediately after the case rim already.

 

[BHPSteel]

Oh, and the 610-3 was offered in a 3 7/8in and a 6 1/2in barrel. Some marketing materials called the first one a "4-inch barrel" - S&W do this all the time.

There are a number of ways that barrel length in revolvers is defined - from my experience - USUALLY from the muzzle to the front face of the cylinder - so, the barrel itself, plus the forcing cone, plus the little airgap between the forcing cone and the cylinder. I suspect that's the reason for the 'marketing revision' to 4".

Note that this is different from other types of firearm where the barrel length is usually measured right back to the breech face.

 

[jeepnuts]

Are you saying there is a 1/4” gap between the tip of the bullet and where the cylinder ends / forcing cone begins?

That’s normal. Here are two different caliber smiths and the rounds don’t “fill” the cylinder