Ovate Barrel on my S&W N Frame

[Alaskan454]

I have wanted to shave some weight off my USPSA revolver for some time now.  Having always been a huge fan of ovate barrels I decided to give that a try.  Here's some pictures from start to finish:


Barrel freshly removed from frame:


I used the top rib as my reference flat:



1/2" End Mill doing its thing:

Bottom lug fully removed:

Indicator dial to line up the ovate cuts...this was kind of tricky in a manual mill:



After the last mill cuts:



A few hours of hand shaping and polishing later:





Decided to install some ball detents while the barrel was off, this one helps keep the cylinder open while you're reloading on the move:

Also made a new front sight, I took enough length off the muzzle that none of my standard S&W sights would fit properly without hanging over.

And here's the final product:






As shown the 6" revolver weighs 40 oz, the barrel machining took off 4.2 oz alone.  It's about as light as I wanted and feels great in the hand.  Shot my first match with it this morning and couldn't be happier.  Now I just need to practice! 

[Alaskan454]

Here's some video from the match.  Revolver ran great, the shooter not so much:


 

[princeout]

Very impressive! Thanks for taking the time to photograph and share!
Tim

[Alaskan454]

Apr 8, 2018 15:04:06 GMT -5 princeout said:

Very impressive! Thanks for taking the time to photograph and share!
Tim

No problem!

[awp101]

Wow! That's an impressive project!

[foxtrapper]

Very nice!

[jfs]

Apr 8, 2018 15:30:59 GMT -5 awp101 said:

Wow! That's an impressive project!

Good shooting too.....

[bula]

It has an elegance I'd not anticipated. Nice !

[Rimfire69]

Nice job, I like it.

[magnumwheelman]

I like the look of the barrel, but not of the naked ejector rod, as it sits right now... it actually looks easy to bend or damage... I imagine tapering the ovate shape from the full underlug at the ejector rod to the muzzle would be a tough line to find an appealing look... do you shoot off any barricades that might damage the ejector rod???

is it possible to do something more cosmetically appealing ( & possibly thicker ) to help with the looks & possibly reduce the likelihood of damaging the ejector???

BTW... I do like the front sight... nice work all around...

[Alaskan454]

Apr 9, 2018 14:19:35 GMT -5 magnumwheelman said:

I like the look of the barrel, but not of the naked ejector rod, as it sits right now... it actually looks easy to bend or damage... I imagine tapering the ovate shape from the full underlug at the ejector rod to the muzzle would be a tough line to find an appealing look... do you shoot off any barricades that might damage the ejector rod???

is it possible to do something more cosmetically appealing ( & possibly thicker ) to help with the looks & possibly reduce the likelihood of damaging the ejector???

BTW... I do like the front sight... nice work all around...

There are lots of options to cover the ejector rod, though I don't think an ovate barrel would look good with most. I've never run into a scenario where the ejector would get bent so I wasn't too concerned about that. If I'm shooting against a wall or barrier it would be my arm that touches. I've seen lots of competition guns with exposed ejectors. At first they looked odd but I guess it grew on me.

[Alaskan454]

Maybe something like this would be more what you were thinking: 

[eskimo36]

Am I the only one thinking that this would make a fine single action barrel?

Curtis

[sixshot]

Are you seating your primers on a Dillon 650 so that you get a crush fit? I ask because many shooters who "bob" the hammer have ignition problems unless they get a very hard seat on their federal primers. I never bobbed the hammer on any of my guns, just never thought it was necessary but that's just one man's opinion. Great write up & photo's on your project & a well finished gun.

Dick

[magnum314]

Geesh...and to think I struggled with a base pin install!   You guys and your smithing skills make me very jealous...very nicely done! Love those ovate barrels!