[blkbrd666]

The sear spring housing on my 1911 is straight and very sharp at the bottom, enough so it makes your palm sore after 50-100 rounds. It's the only thing I don't like about the gun. I picked up a new spring housing with finer serrations(checkering) that is rounded at the bottom(it's a Wilson Combat). I doesn't work with my pistol. Once installed, everything functions but you cannot re-install the slide due to the disconnector protruding up too far on top of the frame...it will NOT lay flush to allow slide to slide on. It "appears" that it keeps the grip safety pushed in just far enough to start raising the disconnector ever so slightly and the slide catches on it. I swapped back and forth between it and the factory housing several times trying to figure out why...you cannot see any differences in dimensions between the two housings...it's almost like a 2000th difference in the housing has a multiplier effect on the disconnector, raising it 1/32" above the top of the frame. I don't want to make any modifications to the gun...would prefer any mods to be to the addon part so that the stock part still works with the gun. Frustrating because the replacement is supposed to be a "drop in". Is anyone familiar with this sort of thing? I REALLY don't want the fix for my problem to be wrapping a set of Pachmayers around the grip because it's the right size as it is...just uncomfortable. HELP!!!

[rcmodel]

Sure you didn't get the sear spring in wrong?

*Make sure the bend on the bottom is hooked in the frame slot?
*Make sure the center spring isn't under the disconnecter instead of on top of it.
*Make sure the beveled side of the disconnecter is facing back so the spring can act on it and let it slide up & down.

Then try this:
Take the grip safety off and reassemble the gun without it.

Now, look in the back and see what's going on.

About the only thing a mainspring housing could have any effect on would be how hard it pushes in on the flat sear/disconnecter spring.

rcmodel

[blkbrd666]

I did check the sear spring carefully because I let it slip out when I first removed the stock housing and it's always a pain to get them back in without sunlight. After replacing the stock housing, I went back and forth between the two while keeping the spring in place and the new housing just doesn't work. I know it sounds crazy, but with the stock housing it goes back together just perfect...back and forth, back and forth...can't get it to work. The new one does seem to exert more pressure on the sear spring than the stock one...it is tighter sliding it in the frame but still not so tight it doesn't go in easily with bare fingers.

I guess I'm going to have to remove the safety and see if it works. With the new housing and even though it's already protruding slightly, the slightest pressure on the safety "immediately" moves the disconnector. It's like when the safety is tucked under the housing, it is already exerting pressure and there is no play in it. I know it's not wear anywhere causing the problem...the pistol is almost new about 3-400 rounds ago. I started this project at 8 this morning and 3 hours later, after missing breakfast, I put the stock housing back in and quit...the hungrier I got, the angrier I got. $42 for a tiny piece of metal that's not working...GGGGRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

[blkbrd666]

I'm seriously considering driving out to a friends house and installing the new housing in his Norinco and see if it works...my luck it probably will, but I really WANTED to be shooting my pistol today.

[Onmilo]

When you say sear spring housing, do you mean the mainspring housing?
If the replacement mainspring housing is too tall it is an easy fix to relieve the top of the housing a little bit to allow the grip safety enough clearance so it is not forcing the firing pin safety disconnector to extend above the frame until the grip safety is fully depressed.

As you are learning, there is no such thing as "drop in" parts for the 1911 series pistols.
There is too much tolerence variation in the myraid of different guns on the market to allow that.

[RogersPrecision]

I suspect you have confused the firing pin safety plunger lever with the disconnector.
Your new mainspring housing is not allowing the grip safety to move far enough out. Remove some material from the forward face of the two ears on top of the ms/hsg.
This will let the grip safety move further out and allow the lever to drop below the top of the frame.
:)

[rcmodel]

I suspect you have confused the firing pin safety plunger lever with the disconnector. +1
Sounding more like it all the time!

rcmodel

[blkbrd666]

Yep, you're all right...mainspring housing(what creates the backstrap of the grip) and whatever that thing is called that raises up above the frame when you push the grip safety...my girlfriend says it's a "thingy". I'm not a gunsmith by any stretch of the word, but I was really wanting to shave off a bit from the front of those two prongs on top of the housing...just couldn't bring myself to experiment this morning with $42. Now that I hear you guys talking about making the same and similar adjustments, I feel better. Sorry, I guess I should have taken pictures of the ordeal but I didn't want to stop long enough to wash up to handle the camera. I had a hunch the S&W tolerances were tighter than the Norinco, which was why I was thinking of trying the install there.

Anyway, THANKS everyone!!! I believe I'm going to break out the micro-files and Presto-blue pen and modify the top of the housing. If I screw it up...oh well, I'll just consider it 2 boxes of ammo I don't get to shoot.

[rcmodel]

Just so you know, the disconnector is the thing that the sear sets straddle of with the angled end on it.
http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=176611

Middle finger of the flat spring rides against the angled end and pushes it up.
The slide cut pushes it down to disconnect the sear when it moves out of battery.

rcmodel

[blkbrd666]

Well, took an afternoon nap, a sinus pill for the headache, had a cold Corona with lime, and tackled it again...one more beer and voila, I have a grip that doesn't eat a hole in the palm of my hand!!! Thanks guys!!!

Pardon the crappy 1 megapixel phone camera...but the rounded mainspring housing was exactly what I was after.

[Jim K]

Putting the MSP in the Norinco wouldn't have proved anything since the Norinco doesn't have the firing pin safety.

Jim

[Onmilo]

Ahh, he may have bound up the grip safety on the Norinco, with 1911 parts one never knows until one tries.
I am as bad with nomenclature as most everybody else, safety plunger depressor,,,,,,,,,,
The thingy that makes the dingus go doofus,,,,,LOL

[Sunray]

A fine file, applied carefully, can be used to take off sharp edges.
"...my girlfriend says it's a "thingy"..." She a computer tech? "Thingy" is a high end techie's term for anything we forget the actual name of. Just nosy.

[blkbrd666]

Yeah, I grew up working on motorcycles and sports cars with my dad...did a lot of fabrication and machining on things that go varoom...not on things that go boom. Now I'm a computer specialist(cleaner fingernails)...so I understand exactly what a thingy is...every gun's got one.