Bodeo Revolver Problems

[Rhpd201]

Good evening all. I picked up a Bodeo revolver at a gun show that appeared to my inspection to be fully functional. I bought some 10.4 Italian Ordnance and went out to the range only to find the cylinder will not rotate when loaded. The rims protrude slightly above the cylinder and cause it to bind against the frame when it rotates. The ammo is from a reputable online company that does these oddball items and I've used them for 9mm Japanese, 7.65 French long, etc with no issues. My first thought was that the cyclinder needed a thorough cleaning but afterwards there was no improvement. My second thought was an ammo issue. Has anyone experienced anything similar? The cyclinder is not matched to the gun so I wonder if there is a fit issue but a'll be danged if I can figure out where.

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[WarPig1976]

Perhaps check the thickness of the case head vs original issue ammo. What case are they building this ammo out of, might be a tad too thick?

[browningautorifle]

This is hard without any visuals at all...there's lots of things it could be.

[Peter Laidler]

I'd be looking to see whether the cylinder was assembled to the pistol correctly. Is something holding it rearwards? Is the gap between the cylinder and the barrel excessive. If all is well there, then the fact that it operates correctly when there is no ammo on board tells you that it is an ammo problem!

[Patrick Chadwick]

Without photos it is indeed dificult to work it out.

However, there is one simple principle of judgement that applies to all pieces of machinery.
Moving components wear. When they wear, they become looser - never tighter, unless caused by damage, corrosion or hard deposits. Most old revolvers clapper like castanets, and I have on occasion had to apply advanced jiggery-pokery, like filing up very thin washers to take up slack to achieve acceptable clearances.

I am assuming that the revolver is spotlessly clean. In particular: no hard deposits on the cylinder end faces, the recoil plate, or the back face of the barrel. So the observed tightness can, IMHO, only be caused by a mismatch.

The first item to check is the clearance between the back face of the barrel and the front face of the cylinder. For a revolver designed in the blackpowder era this clearance can be in the range 0.006" to 0.010". Trying to get it closer can lead to jamming from powder residues, and letting it be too loose will lead to a fall-off in muzzle velocity, plus possible timing problems.

If this clearance is within the above limits, then measure the clearance between the back of the cylinder and the recoil plate. If this is less than the rim thickness of the ammo, then you have a real mismatch problem. Although it would be possible to shave the cylinder, this is an irreversible alteration of what is now an antique. It would be better to thin down the rims of the case, but this is a lathe operation as you need to turn off the front edge of the rim. Turning down the back face of the rim simply means that the primer pocket is not not deep enough. So if you turn off the back face, then it is necessary to recut the primer pocket.

[RCS]

I have made cartridges for the 10.35mm Italian revolver by using 44 mag or 44 Special brass cut back to .890 inch and then use a 303 die for a slight taper. Also have used the 45 auto rim case too. All have had problems with the rim thickness and cylinder rotation.

The original 10.35mm cartridge has an outside bevel on the head while the center part which supports the primer is thicker.

You would need to thin the rim just the correct amount for proper cylinder rotation.

If you bought the custom 10.35mm cartridges from a guy in Wisconsin - you may have problems with the brassAttachment 84544Attachment 84545

[WarPig1976]

[QUOTE=RCS;402757]I have made cartridges for the 10.35mm Italian revolver by using 44 mag or 44 Special brass cut back to .890 inch and then use a 303 die for a slight taper. Also have used the 45 auto rim case too. All have had problems with the rim thickness and cylinder rotation.

The original 10.35mm cartridge has an outside bevel on the head while the center part which supports the primer is thicker.

You would need to thin the rim just the correct amount for proper cylinder rotation.

If you bought the custom 10.35mm cartridges from a guy in Wisconsin - you may have problems with the brass

Makes sense to me. I was taught to trouble shoot starting at the weakest link in the chain.

[Rhpd201]

Great comments all sorry I was away. The cartridges were made from 44 special brass. I took the cylinder out and put the cartridges in rim first and to check the fit depth and everything is fine with the rims. They just won't seat all the way in when loaded. The cyclinder clearance is within the range Patrick mentioned. However, after reading RCS comment about using a 303 die for a slight taper that made me wonder if the cylinder has a taper. My cartridges do not and that would explain why they don't quite seat correctly. Does anyone have a source or could point me in the right direction with regard to the cylinder specs to see if that is the case?

[RCS]

Here are the dimensions for the 10.35mm revolver cartridge from "Cartridges of the World"

Bullet dia. .422 inch

neck dia. .444 inch

base dia. .451 inch

rim dia. .505 inch

case length .890 inch

[browningautorifle]

Quite a taper at the wall actually.