1911 Lost Spring

[Patrick Gookin]

Hey guys, I've got a series 80 1911 with a firing pin safety. I cleaned it last week after a range trip and evidently the firing pin plunger spring fell out when I reinstalled it. My question is, do I really need the plunger?

I know I need the actual firing pin safety parts in the frame because they are required to properly space the seer and hammer. It doesn't really look like I need the plunger though. I don't know if it will affect the extractor. If you guys know something I don't, please let me know.

I realized that the plunger lever will never be returned because there is no plunger to return it and I'm hoping that when fired, the lever won't catch on the plunger hole and mess up my frame or slide. While hand cycling, it feels smooth, so I'm assuming it's OK.

I'd just like to clarify that I'll replace the spring as soon as possible. I just don't want to pay shipping for just a $3 spring. I figured I'd wait until I needed something else and peg the spring onto the order. Until then, I won't shoot it unless I find out it's OK.

Also, my seer is old and weak. A lot of the time, the hammer will drop when the slide is released. The gun has never gone off when this happened. Is this because of the firing pin safety system, or is this a common thing that I shouldn't worry about?

 

[cyclopsshooter]

You can leave it out if you wish, Brownelles has a space filler for the two frame levers.

http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=13121/avs%7CMake_3=1911/prcrange=0%7C14.99/Product/TJ-S-1911-SERIES-80-TO-SERIES-70-CONVERSION-SHIMS

 

[txgunsuscg]

Also, my seer is old and weak. A lot of the time, the hammer will drop when the slide is released. The gun has never gone off when this happened. Is this because of the firing pin safety system, or is this a common thing that I shouldn't worry about?

It hasn't gone off because a Series 80 has two safety mechanisms keeping it from going off:

A half cock that the series 70 and 80 both possess which keeps the hammer from striking the firing pin if the hammer falls without the trigger being pulled,

The firing pin block, so even if the half cock fails, and the hammer strikes the firing pin, the pin won't move without the trigger being pulled due to the block.

I would worry anytime a firearm doesn't perform as it should - especially when the thing that makes it go bang is falling with no input from the operator....

As to your original question, you can put the spacer in the frame, and remove the plunger in the slide, and you now have a Series 70 1911.

In the condition you describe your firearm though, I wouldn't remove any factory safeties until the sear issue was repaired. Some would argue you shouldn't remove factory safeties at all, but that could fill two or three threads with arguments about 80 to 70 conversions....

YMMV

 

[Skylerbone]

I wouldn't recommend the temporary fixture or firing it (spring or not). Save the shipping on the spring and drive it to the gunsmith instead.

 

[1911Tuner]

A simple hammer followdown...even if it follows the slide all the way...won't fire the gun anyway, unless there's a serious problem with the length of the firing pin. In order to slam fire, the hammer has to remain at full cock and be jarred off when the slide goes home and not be caught by the sear...which requires an issue with free sear reset.

The slide eases the hammer down, and only completely releases it about .075 inch from battery. From there, it doesn't have the momentum to light off a primer.

The same mechanical function keeps the gun from firing far enough out of battery to blow up. With the slide .090-.100 inch out, the hammer can't hit the firing pin.