SA Range Officer back from Custom Shop

You are going to have to send it back to get the follow fixed. No way around it really.

Not good on the hammer follow, surprised they didn't catch that. On the other hand, that new sight and the dehorn on the rear look nice.

Lowering a trigger pull to under 4# has less to do with parts and more to do with time. Hence the price difference. It takes way more time to lower that trigger weight and still keep problems like hammer follow at bay.

I immediately question the quality of that trigger job now.

You may want to remove the leaf spring and bend it slightly for stronger sear pressure and stronger trigger return pressure.

Usually the spring adjustment shows up more on a trigger scale than on the finger scale. They may have went a bit too aggressive.

If they screwed up the Sear or hammer surfaces, then shame on them. I could teach a third grader how to fit those with an Ed Brown Jig.

That lady sure had the wrong attitude. She should have asked for you S#, Wo#, and called you back with instructions to send it in on their dime. SF gun, plus SF custom shop, should equal better service. Your obviously one of thier better customers. There's no way hammer follow is shooter error.

PS: You have excellent taste in sights, mods etc. What brand rear sight is that?

Hammer follow??

Is that when you rack the slide and let it down and the hammer doesn't stay cocked? Thats mybest guess.

yup...hammer follows the slide...
Bill

One thing ive learned in doing 1911 trigger jobs even if im a bedroom gun tinkerer.
You don't test for hammer follow with an empty gun, Always use snap caps and then lock the slide back and release it with the slide release lever. The round acts as a buffer and slows the slide down and the slide wont slam home making the hammer follow due to the hard slamming action.

If your just releasing the slide with no round or snap cap in the magazine you can damage the sear also. If the gun is unloaded just ease the slide home manually.

If it doesnt hammer follow with the snap caps a range trip would be in order for further testing, And ive found that with a few hundred rounds will work the new parts together for a better fit and even stop the hammer follow with no round chambered like it first did.

Good to hear Peggy straightened it out with you.
Nice mods.

YES, someone goofed. Let them have a chance to make it right.


I've heard this before that releasing the slide on an empty chamber damages stuff, Das says it can damage the sear. Can anyone explain how cycling it on an empty chamber can damage stuff? I'm not picturing it in my head. Not like it's a rimmed cartridge that can absorb impact. It should still be a steel on steel (assuming steel frame) end stop contact. The bullet should be held to the breach face by the extractor, but otherwise it should free float (for a better term) in the barrel. (slip fit, snug but not tight fit)
I'm not trying to be smart, I'm trying to understand it.

The slide closes 10 times faster and more violently when you have no round to shove up the ramp out of the tight magazine into the barrel.

A good 1911 should withstand this a few times, but avoid it whenever possible.

Your not dropping the slide on an empty chamber without slowing it down with your hand or anything are you? Still hammer follow is disappointing even considering empty chamber slamming. (Ouch)

You should perform the hammer follow test (yes, with an empty gun) once or twice after a trigger job, IMO. But don't do it more than that. As has been noted it's hard on the gun. However, the hammer should not drop, snap caps or no.

Springfield screwed up, and the first CS lady should be fired, IMO. You're calling them after dumping a lot of money into their services, and they screwed up and blame you for it? I'd be livid. Glad to hear you eventually got hold of someone with some sense. Hope they take care of you.

The slide closes 10 times faster

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measured with a chronograph? What are the speed numbers? and relative to it slamming open with a full charge of a round?

HIJACK of thread being stopped and sent to a new thread.
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=584625

Very nice RO there. Good luck with the follow on hammer

I'm curious why the test for hammer follow is to drop the slide but it is never mentioned (at least in owner's manuals I have seen) to use snap caps or similar devices to slow the slide)...
http://www.coolgunsite.com/funcheck/function.htm
Bill

Actually I measured it with my cat. She freaks out and jumps 10 times further away when I drop the slide empty vs. snap cap.

I was just guessing. But it's definately alot quicker.

You could have easily changed out the hammer spring for a light weight wolf target spring and got it to 4.25 lbs, for only $10.

What happened to the back of the slide it looks like someone took a hammer to it or is it just the pics ?

So DasFriek, just for clarification, you think it's OK for their custom shop to send me a gun that has hammer follow.......... yes, hammer follow with an empty gun.
I don't even want to shoot the thing......I don't trust the work at this point. Hopefully Mr. Williams will do the job himself when it returns.

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As a matter of fact, NO i don't think its ok for them to send a gun that does that.
"That" being defined as "Dropping the slide correctly on a snap cap for safety or a live round pointed safely away".

You gotta realize Its pretty darn tricky and many times takes many tries to get a 3.5# trigger especially if it uses a firing pin safety block which adds another step in the release of the hammer.

Just shooting the gun can and has for me worked a trigger job "in" to where i could drop the slide and get no hammer follow with a very light pull. After it repeatedly would fail dropping on an slide empty But would pass with a snap cap in the mag. Shooting can settle and seats the parts in place.

In saying that, My anger amount would depend on this.
Does the hammer follow to half cock? or all the way home?
If its slamming all the way home on a snap cap the following will happen.
Depending on your firing pin safety and if it uses one you may have nothing happen if it slams home as the FP safety should stop it from firing. If yours has no FP safety it will go full auto had a live round be in the chamber and that would highly make me mad.

Im not a gunsmith and ive said that before, But i have done a few 1911 trigger jobs on MY OWN GUNS ONLY. And ive learned a few things the hard way. And getting a 3.5lb trigger is no easy task and a little adjustment may be required to get it perfect.
Just the gun being jostled hard during shipping could have affected how your gun was tuned from the Custom shop.

I and a few hundred people here could tell you how to adjust the sear spring to tighten it up a bit and it will eventually lighten up with shooting and then the trigger will have worn in and have no issues.
But unfortunately i think you will have to either test and accept the finickiness of a light trigger job and its need for further adjustments, Or test it like they will and if it passes shoot it like they will and have the same end result which will be a nice trigger.

The main thing is safety, If you don't feel its safe then send it back as you cant put a price on that. And make them pay for it also.

BTW- Dont ever buy a bolt action target gun and ask for a 5oz trigger pull if you think you are having no fun now.

Having the hammer to follow with the gun empty isn't an ideal situation to be sure, and it should have been caught before it left the shop. As long as it doesn't do it with ammunition feeding, it's not really an immediate concern...but it's strong indication that it could start to follow at some later point with ammunition added to the equation. I think I'd try bending the center leaf of the sear spring to add tension to the trigger and disconnect and see if it stops. If not...I'd be on the horn with the smith who did the work.

Actually I measured it with my cat. She freaks out and jumps 10 times further away when I drop the slide empty vs. snap cap.

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Love it!! I have a cat, but I cannot remember if it, a he neutered, jumps when I rack the slide on my 1911. Any way I always use snap caps just to be safe.

Clint