Hey all,
I have a Smith and Wesson Model 39-2 9mm and the last time time I went up and shot it, I discovered something - If you fire the handgun "quickly", after 3-5 rounds the extractor doesn't have enough force to eject the round - and the fired brass remains chambered while an unfired round is loaded.
Of course, the slide will not close in that position, but the brass is held under tension by the spring, which pushes the unfired brass in further, making the problem worse.

After the brass cools down (5 seconds or so), I can clear the chamber by ejecting the magazine and cycling the slide to eject the unfired round and then the fired brass.

By "quickly" I mean about 3 rounds a second. I can fire about 1 round a second without any trouble.

When it started happening, I field stripped it and checked for any obstructions etc in the barrel, there were none. I also ran a couple cleaning swabs through it. Fired quickly again and had the same problem.

It was a rather hot day, probably about 90, and a couple dozen rounds had already be put forth through the barrel (it was almost too hot to handle when I looked at /cleaned it)
This was reloaded ammo, supposedly 125 grain (not by me, but I bought a case at a gun show, not +p or anything like that), so that may have something to do with it (I could presume that slightly the reloaded weaker cases could expand a bit more under the heat and pressure)

I'm not going to carry this concealed or anything like that, but if the need should arise, I have no idea how I would respond, so I don't trust myself on being a bit quick on the trigger.
Any advice?
Thanks.

Ah, the dreaded double feed. This the most diabolical of all the automatic malfunctions, takes the longest to clear, but with practice can be done fairly quickly, although the manual of arms is relatively complicated, and has several steps.

This model 39 has a certain deal of collector interest, depending on condition, and they point much better than the second and third generation smith's. I know of several old timers that will carry nothing else. If you look at this gun as a collector, I would just learn to live with it. If you want to use this gun as a shooter, than I would have a gunsmith look at the spring for the ejector, and either replace it or give it a good scrubbing.

Nice guns, hope that it works out for you.

Steve

Ioraksus:

Sounds like your extractor is sticking in its slot. You might be able to clean it out with Hopes'#9 without removal, if not it will need removal and the extractor spring checked and the channel it rides in cleaned. Sometimes when a firearm has not been used for a while, the oils thicken, and create a drag on some parts. WD 40 will form varnish after prolonged periods, and is not recommended as a lubricant. My model 52 did the same thing when not fired for a long period of time, and that was the problem I found, so give a good cleaning of the extractor area a try before investing in a gunsmith. If cleaning doesn't work it might need a new extractor spring.

Lee L.