S&W Model of 1955 Issues

[gunprofit]

I have a beautiful Smith & Wesson Model of 1955, 45 Auto Rim/45 ACP. When I shoot 45 ACP, I can not use full moon clips because my star ratchet is round. The center of the moon clips are 6 sided and don't fit. The military half moon clips are so thick that they hit the cylinder stop on the side of the frame and won't eject. So I am left with inserting 45 ACP manually and punching them out with a pencil or whatever is handy. When I reload my 45 Auto Rim, the headspace is extremely tight. And, with any load, target or full power, the primers seem to back out slightly and jam the cylinder. The recoil shield seems to be flush, so I'm not sure why the primers back out slightly. I'm using Winchester primers. I don't have this problem with any other of my 45 ACP revolvers using Auto Rim or ACP. So here is my question. I am thinking about trying some thicker primers to keep them from flowing backward and jamming the gun. First, I intend to try CCI pistol primers because of their known hardness. If that doesn't work, them I'm thinking about rifle primers. Lastly, if that doesn't work, I'm thinking about trying the CCI military rifle primers. which have super thick cups to prevent slam fire. Of course, I will use a very light load and watch for pressure signs. Don't panic on me and say stuff like never use a rifle primer in a handgun. There are exceptions and certain calibers that do use them.

Not sure what else to try. I did take a few of my Auto Rim cases, they are made by Remington, and shaved off some of the thickness. Then they worked fine. It gave the gun enough headspace so it didn't lock up. I have not bought other brands of Auto Rim brass and compared the rim thickness. That is something I need to do. I might find a different brand that is not as thick in the rim.

I do not want to send the gun back to Smith & Wesson. The last gun I sent back took 14 months. Especially since it may not be the gun.

Has anyone else out there had similar problems with their Smiths? If so, what did you do about it, other than just shooting ACP, which works fine. But, I don't have moon clips that fit.

The other question, is there someone out there that makes moon clips that have a round center? I have looked and looked with no luck.

Suggestions?

Gary

[gunprofit]

Here is something interesting. According to my older reloading manuals, the 45 Auto Rim, rim thickness is supposed to be .0827". However, when I measure my Remington cases they mike out at .0891".

I know that the 45 Auto Rim case is slightly larger than the 45 ACP for internal capacity. Also it is much stronger, allowing for heavier loads vs. the ACP case. Maybe Remington took it a step further for more strength? Not realizing the potential problem of headspace issues. Or, it was just poor quality control on their part.