Sidearms & Scatterguns Older Taurus revolver frame crack??

[black5.3]

Hey guys,

I spoke with a CS rep from Taurus right when all the covid stuff kicked off about a pistol I inherited from my grandfather when he passed about a possible crack on the frame. They told me to send pics to an email address and they would review it and contact me again. Well thats been 9 months ago now and I have not heard anything back. I have attempted to call back on multiple occasions and after being on hold for 30-45 minutes I just hang up. He never really talked about the gun much and wasn’t a real big “gun guy”. I never saw it much and all he ever said about it was it was “like a cannon” when it went off. Well come to find out, its a .357 that he fired maybe a few cylinders through. I wanted to post a few pics to you guys and see what you thought beforeI potentially take it to a gunsmith to inspect it. I appreciate the help guys and let me know if you need more pics.

 

[black5.3]

The crack in question is in the third pic by the screw right below the rear sight adjustment screw. It looks like the potential crack runs across the bottom of the screw hole. The other pics just show stampings to maybe help identify what model or more specifics of the gun.

 

[Jackalope]

Pretty sure that’s the seam for the side plate.

 

[Mike Casselton]

^^^^
Yup. That's why the screw covers part of it. Take the screw out and you'll see that it's set up like that to hold the upper portion of the side plate in place.

 

[jbuck88]

Yep. I'm no expert, but I think its a seam. Another being about center under the cylinder. I'd try to pull it apart and take a look if I was you.

 

[rhsc]

Don't "pull it apart"!

jbuck88 is probably just using a slang term, but if you've never removed a side plate from a revolver before, you NEVER pry or pull it off.

First remove the grips, then the screws that secure the side plate (using a screwdriver blade that fits the screw slots snugly) then sharply tap the frame around the sideplate with a hard plastic-faced gunsmith's hammer. The vibration of tapping will pop up the side plate until it comes loose.

Actually, I doubt there's anything seriously wrong with your Taurus. That particular seam in the side plate may have been distorted from a previous attempt to remove it - possibly by prying the plate up towards the rear sight. The other seams that I can see in your photo of the side plate appear to be much smoother. While that distorted seam doesn't look great, it's not unsafe. Take it to a competent gunsmith that you trust and get their opinion.

 

[black5.3]

Awesome! Thank you guys! I was hoping it was good to go and I had my suspicions that it was ok because its a pretty clean line. Either way, thanks and I will put some rounds through it and keep an eye on it just in case.

 

[gunsnjeeps]

Link to drawing. Side plate. https://www.gunpartscorp.com/gun-manufacturer/taurus/revolvers-tau/605

 

[308pirate]

@black5.3 well, @Jackalope got it right. What you thought was a crack is just a normal joint and part of the design.

HOWEVER..................................................................

Look at that dark horizontal line under the number 66 in this picture. THAT looks like a crack to me. And if it is, I think your heirloom will be a display piece and nothing more.

Hopefully it turns out to be nothing when looking at the real thing. But I've been an engineer for over 30 years and that feature caught my eye.

 

[black5.3]

Awesome! Thank you guys for chiming in.
@308pirate, i just went and inspected the pistol itself in the area you mentioned. It is not a crack in the area under the stamping 66 but just rough machining and i guess my camera flash intensified it. Thanks guys!