1911Tuner
Moderator Emeritus
I've got over a dozen original/correct USGI pistols here, ranging from 1913-1945 production. None of those have staked pins.
I've only ever seen about 3 or 4 USGI pistols with staked pins, and I cut my teeth on GI pistols in the 60s.
The US military had a little more latitude, knowing that the pistols that went into harm's way probably wouldn't be fired enough to beat the pins loose again, and with those that stayed behind...it didn't matter much if a pin got lost during training because nobody's life was at stake...and the armory was just a short distance away, and they had pretty vast inventories of replacement barrels, pins, and links.
I won't stake a loose pin because I don't consider it a fix. Neither, I suspect, would Springfield or Colt, or any other manufacturer that got one back on a warranty claim.
I fix things. That includes...but isn't limited to...guns. It's pretty much been my life's work. One of my earliest lessons was that I had a choice.
A. Fix it right, or
B. Fix it twice.
And that the "B" option often resulted in more expensive repairs than would have been necessary had I taken the "A" path.
I've only ever seen about 3 or 4 USGI pistols with staked pins, and I cut my teeth on GI pistols in the 60s.
The US military had a little more latitude, knowing that the pistols that went into harm's way probably wouldn't be fired enough to beat the pins loose again, and with those that stayed behind...it didn't matter much if a pin got lost during training because nobody's life was at stake...and the armory was just a short distance away, and they had pretty vast inventories of replacement barrels, pins, and links.
I won't stake a loose pin because I don't consider it a fix. Neither, I suspect, would Springfield or Colt, or any other manufacturer that got one back on a warranty claim.
I fix things. That includes...but isn't limited to...guns. It's pretty much been my life's work. One of my earliest lessons was that I had a choice.
A. Fix it right, or
B. Fix it twice.
And that the "B" option often resulted in more expensive repairs than would have been necessary had I taken the "A" path.