Broken Dovetail Lock

[Cherokee Mike]

I was shooting my Contender with octagonal .45 Colt/.410 barrel today and noticed the small wooden forend was loose.  As I was tightening the screw the forend fell off and I discovered the dovetail lock had split right down the middle where the internal threads are located. 


(FYI - the dovetail lock is the little metal piece that fits in the dovetail on the bottom of the barrel.  The forend screw attaches to this piece to hold the forend to the barrel.)   


I was shooting low velocity target loads with Trail Boss powder and 255-grain cast bullets, and I was using a padded pistol rest so recoil was very light, probably in the .38 Special category. 


I just sent an e-mail message to T/C requesting a replacement dovetail lock.  In years past T/C has been very good about replacing broken parts and cracked muzzle-loader stocks, but with changes in ownership, I may need to find another source for this part.  Any suggestions?             

[Curtis]

It could be that your dovetail lock had some "history" and was already cracked.  I have never had one break but my open sight 44 mag octagon barrel with the brutal recoil it produces has caused its dovetail lock to fit loosely in the dovetail.  Hope T/C fixes you up.
 
Curtis

[Ladobe]

Sold all the left over extras I had a year or two ago.   I'd imagine a few I probably got from TC over the 40 odd years, but most probably came from Bullberry Barrel Works (I had at least a dozen).   Don't know if Fred will sell them to anybody though (just one wouldn't be worth his time).

[Cherokee Mike]

Eighteen days after sending my original e-mail message I finally received a response from a Smith & Wesson customer care representative.  She wanted me to send her my mailing address and serial number of the gun I wanted repaired so she could send me a shipping label addressed to Smith & Wesson.


This sort of surprised me since I included my mailing address in the original message, and Contender barrels don't have serial numbers.  It's a good thing I went ahead and ordered a couple dovetail locks from another online source.  They arrived and I'm back in business again.


Prior to it's acquisition by Smith & Wesson, T/C would have just sent me a new dovetail lock in the mail within a couple of days of my original message.  Now, it appears you have to send firearms or components back to the S&W factory for repair. 


I'm a long-time T/C supporter and own several of their blackpowder guns, Contenders and Encores.  Since they are now incorporated into the Smith & Wesson family, it looks like more red tape is involved in customer service and product repair.  There are some positives by growing larger, but as far as T/C is concerned, I wish they remained a smaller customer-oriented company selling good products with lifetime warranties.