[wally]

Mine seems broke as the magazine falls out under recoil.

What's the trick to getting it out?

Looks like the plunger has a flat screw head but it won't budge. I expected it to be like a 1911 where you partially press in the catch and twist the screw but this doesn't seem to rotate at any point of the mag catch travel :(

--wally.

[dfariswheel]

Do you mean a CZ-75 based clone Witness or a 1911 EAA gun?

[wally]

I didn't know EAA made a 1911, It the CZ-like EAA Witness P model.

--wally.

[dfariswheel]

The Witness uses the trigger bar plunger assembly to retain the magazine catch.

Look under the very front of the trigger draw bar and you'll find a flat lever sticking up out of a hole just in front of the magazine well.

To remove the magazine catch, Press down slightly on the plunger and rotate the flat head so it's pointing to the rear.

Wrap some tape around the frame and the magazine catch to prevent lost parts.

Grab the plunger and pull it straight up and out of the gun.

This will release the magazine catch.
Inside the magazine catch is a tiny spring and plunger ...don't lose them.

To reassemble:
Insert the spring and plunger in the magazine catch and put the catch into the frame.

Insert the trigger plunger part way into it's hole.

Use a small screwdriver to press in the tiny plunger in the magazine catch, and at the same time press the trigger plunger into place.

Once it goes in, the plunger will retain the mag catch.

Rotate the flat plunger head forward.

Here's a schematic showing the parts:
http://www.eaacorp.com/diagrams-witnessplg.html

Note the spring and plunger in the magazine catch, parts # 6.7 and 6.8.

[wally]

Many thanks! I knew it had to be different. I had the diagram, I just didn't grok that the trigger plunger was deep enough to go into the notch on the mag catch and was what holds the catch in.

Thanks again!

--wally.

Edit: Very Cool, I see the mag catch is reversible so I can use the other side to keep the gun in service while a replacement arrives. I'm used to using my index finger for the mag release when I shoot left handed, also Beretta Neos and Walther P99 have index finger activated mag releases, so maybe I'll leave it this way as my thumb is too short to reach the release without shifting my grip.

I'd always wondered why the mags had catch cutouts on both sides :)

[wally]

Playing around with the catch in ambi mode after removing it, it seemed that without the retaining pin it'd lock in fine either way, but with the pin in the catch wouldn't protrude far enough inside the frame to really engage the magazine properly. I guess it was just rough enough when new to work for a while but after a few hundred rounds it smoothed out and a magazine just wouldn't stay locked in during shooting.

I removed maybe 0.5mm from the "notch" on the mag catch on the side where the retaining pin prevents further motion towards the inside the frame. Now the mag clicks in solidly.

Tested it this morning shooting 100 rounds thru three different magazines, all stayed locked in place. So no need now to order a replacement. Saved $21 plus S&H.

--wally.

[Jim K]

That is quite a bit different from the CZ-75 system. Both, IMHO, make us realize the beautiful simplicity of the Browning 1911 mag catch.

Jim

[wally]

Both, IMHO, make us realize the beautiful simplicity of the Browning 1911 mag catch.

Big +1 for sure!

I think ambi mag releases are actually pretty useless as when I shoot lefty I find it easier to release the mag with the trigger finger than when righty as my thumb is a bit too short for most guns and I have to shift my grip, so usually I drop the mag with my left hand from a two hand hold.

The EAA Witness guns have some features I like but QA/QC seems very spotty even by todays standards and EAA has very few reports of good after sales support.

--wally.