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H&R 922 cylinder question

21K views 37 replies 7 participants last post by  birddogo1e 
#1 ·
Happy Thanksgiving to all,

I purchased what I think is an H&R 922 with a six inch barrel from a dealer more than a month ago. I had never owned or shot a revolver before, but wanted an inexpensive, simple, reliable long barreled .22 for trapping. The dealer promised me that he knew the gun and that it shot fine, etc. I still haven't shot it since I am sure it is unsafe to shoot at this point.

First issue was that the cylinder was loose at full lockup. I traced it to the cylinder stop. I took the gun apart, saw that the stop was badly worn and seemed to have been filed. Checking numrich, I saw that the 922 was supposed to have a one-pin cylinder stop. This one had a mangled 2 pin. I ordered both to be sure, and the one pin fit perfectly.

The barrel and cylinder seem to be new. The cylinder still has burrs at the notches for the cylinder stop. That should have been a tipoff. Also, there is a lot of light (about .050") above and below between the cylinder and the frame, and between the back of the cylinder and the frame. Worst of all, when I tried loading without removing the cylinder, these is no room for the rim of the casing, and therefore the gun cannot be loaded this way. I try to show that in the pics. (I got up early this morning to get to the range, and took the pics with my cellphone when I saw that it was unsafe to fire.)

Because of this, I put a straight stick down the bore, and it stopped when it hit the lip of the cylinder. Since it seems the barrel and cylinder don't line up, it sure looks like the distance from the center of the cylinder to the chambers is too short.

So here is the question: Do I just order a new cylinder for this pistol, or is this not even a 922? It says 922 on the barrel, but it's a new barrel. On the grip portion of the frame below the trigger guard, it is stamped M608XX (XX are two more numbers), so this should be a 1952 revolver in any case.

It took a month just to add this pistol to my carry permit, so I don't want to go through that again. I just want to get this one running right so I can get some trapping in this winter.

Thanks to all for any info on this pistol or dimensions for a correct cylinder for a 922. I have measuring tools and know how to use them. Or perhaps others cannot load their 922's in this manner and everything is OK?
 

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#27 ·
Jamesjo - it's obvious that your .22 cartridges are too big. Get smaller ones.:rolleyes:
I was going to do that, or else get out the bench grinder!:D
But seriously, where does H&R get off saying you can load the revolver through the inspection port?
What nerve, didn't they realize someone would sue them these days over a fraudulent (sp?) statement like that?
Oh yeah, that wasn't these days!
 
#28 ·
sigh - I don't have a pic in the album of the right side of this one. dang it. 2300 pictures and the one I want isn't there. Oh, well - see the pic a couple posts before that one. One other thing - on my 'K', the hammer is the first rebounding type.
 
#29 ·
I was going to do that, or else get out the bench grinder!:D
But seriously, where does H&R get off saying you can load the revolver through the inspection port?
What nerve, didn't they realize someone would sue them these days over a fraudulent (sp?) statement like that?
Oh yeah, that wasn't these days!
From what Bill has found - in many cases H&R didn't update the copy in their catalogues and in some cases - not even the picture, when they made changes - that's why the hardware in my collection was essential to getting the info straight.
 
#30 ·
The reason for that change was probably money. H&R had their frame forging dies set up for that port. But when they went to a different extraction and loading system, the loading port wasn't needed. But it was there, and getting rid of it would have required new dies. So they just didn't finish it up and called it an inspection port.

H&R and IJ were never able to compete with the top makers (Colt and S&W) in innovation. Their designs were basically 19th century and they could never afford to do a complete overhaul. So they had to be content with making minor improvements in areas like the cylinder stop when they should have started with a "blank sheet of paper". They never did work out a good cylinder stop, or a good hand and spring system, and those are areas of failure in their guns today. With more imagination, and the capital to use it, they could probably have been still in business and competitive.

Jim
 
#31 ·
T...They never did work out a good cylinder stop, or a good hand and spring system, and those are areas of failure in their guns today...

Jim
Interesting you should say that. I just got the hammer spring set up correctly so that the hammer returns to rest position after firing, and now I am working to balance the trigger spring with the cylinder stop spring so that the trigger returns after firing and the cylinder stop comes up. After much playing around, I'm just going to order a new trigger spring from Numrich. But I think with the stiff hammer spring together with the stiff trigger spring, the pull might be too much for my wife.

This whole gun seems to be a balancing act.
 
#32 ·
From what Bill has found - in many cases H&R didn't update the copy in their catalogues and in some cases - not even the picture, when they made changes - that's why the hardware in my collection was essential to getting the info straight.
Yeah, sounds the same as H&R never wasting anything.
Use all parts up, enen if the are different than other models within the same year of manufacture.
Probably the same with paperwork, pictures, and advertisements.
Money is money.
 
#33 ·
I finally got all the timing down perfectly, and zero rotational play in the cylinder at complete lockup. So I made up a cheap laser sight to practice instinctive shooting, and maybe leave it on for trapping.

I hope to treat it with aluminum black within the next few weeks. The only problem now of course is that it no longer fits in the holster.

But making a holster was on my project list anyway...
 

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#35 · (Edited)
The reason for that change was probably money. H&R had their frame forging dies set up for that port. But when they went to a different extraction and loading system, the loading port wasn't needed. But it was there, and getting rid of it would have required new dies. So they just didn't finish it up and called it an inspection port.

H&R and IJ were never able to compete with the top makers (Colt and S&W) in innovation. Their designs were basically 19th century and they could never afford to do a complete overhaul. So they had to be content with making minor improvements in areas like the cylinder stop when they should have started with a "blank sheet of paper". They never did work out a good cylinder stop, or a good hand and spring system, and those are areas of failure in their guns today. With more imagination, and the capital to use it, they could probably have been still in business and competitive.

Jim
Jim,
Your observations, in general, are correct - However - at the time this change occured (1952-53), H&R revamped and improved the design of all of their hand gun models, which required a complete retooling. They changed over from the 1930s era "Rice" type "bird's head shaped grip frame" with one piece grip to the NEW design square butt with two grip panels. Revamping included not only internal changes, but also external changes to the cylinder frame area and the introduction of over a dozen new models of various design criteria - some fairly modern. H&R was also tooling up to produce their first batch of Gov't contracted M1 Garands - production began in April of '53 and extended through 3 batches with total production ending in 1956 of 438,600 rifles. They were producing firearms at three locations at the time and didn't seem to be experiencing financial difficulties. In fact they went on to produce a couple hundred thousand M14s and a bunch of M16A1s. As you stated, I agree that H&R never brought their utility grade handguns up to the standards of Colt and S&W with respect to innovative designs and modern cartridge chamberings. Their one attempt at "real" modernization, the introduction of the "500" series chambered for the Federal H&R 32 Magnum, seems to have been a success for other manufacturers, but not a boomer for H&R.
Firearm Gun Rifle Trigger Air gun
Gun Rifle Firearm Trigger Air gun
 
#36 ·
Was surfing the net for info on an H&R 922 I picked up yesterday at the Ohio Gun Collecter's Association (OGCA) meet. I've been able to determine that it was made in 1952 (M prefix on SN) and that it has a coil vs flat sprint (??variant??) It has the same one-piece grips as in above "old man's" picture with some very minor wear on both sides of muzzle (holster rash?). The cylinder locks up tight on cocking and the trigger action is like silk. Everything just snicks upon cocking. Hammer rebound works and I can't find anything wrong outside of minor cosmetic blems. No rust either. In response to previous comments on loading thru observation port, I can load mine this way and the trick is to pull hammer back just a little and then the cylinder will turn freely and allow chambers to allign with slot. Course if slot is too narrow for cartridge rim to pass thru this info is useless. Anyway, I'm real happy with what I got and am looking forward to putting some/many rounds thru it. Not good at posting pictures and it looks just like previous photos in posts above anyway. Paid $150 but I feel I got a great 22 pistol for a reasonable price compared with what a new 22 revolver goes for today.
 
#37 ·
Great to hear. I like mine. I also think that if it works, $150 is a great price for such a revolver.

Let us know how it shoots. That's the real test. You can't really tell if the trigger rebound is working correctly until you put a bunch of rounds through it. If it rebounds too hard, you'll get misfires. Too weak, and failure to shoot quickly in double action, IIRC.
 
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