DoN. Nichols wrote:
But the ratchet teeth need to move the cylinder to the proper
point so the "cylinder bolt" will drop into it. If the notch is not in
line, then the hammer will fall with the cylinder out of line. If it is
a *lot* out of line, the firing pin won't hit the primer, so there will
be no real problem (assuming that your life is not depending on the
thing firing when the trigger is pulled), but if it is just slightly out
of line, then the cartridge will fire, and it will (at best) spit a lot
of lead out one side or the other. With something as small as a .22,
and with as large a sensitive primer area (the whole rim), I could see
it being out of time by 1/2 the diameter of the bullet, which could be
quite nasty.

Most I've seen have the firing pin at 12 O'clock or 6 o'clock. I would
think very little rotation would move the pin off the edge of the case.