.45 ACP Parts Improperly Made

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Jeff Timm

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Folks,

I have a 1980's vintage Springfield. I have examined parts at several gun shows.

The Recoil Spring Plugs are not made to spec. The recoil spring plug is supposed to have a semi-circular cut, with the resulting tab pushed into the interior of the part. This tab engages the open end of the Helical Recoil Spring, the closed end of the spring is tight and forced onto the Recoil Spring Guide.

The design ensures the ease of disassembly and aviods the trip across the room to find the Recoil Spring Plug if the spring is not engaged by the tab.

Has anyone purchased a recent .45 of any source which lacks the tab?

Geoff
Who has seen Stainless Steel replacments without the tab as well. :banghead:
 
Has anyone purchased a recent .45 of any source which lacks the tab?
Click to expand...

Virtually all of them these days! Last gun I saw come with the "correct" GI plug was Norinco.

Not sure anybody is making the "correct" ones these days. OTOH I can't get excited about this "defect".

--wally.
 
My Colt WWI repro has it.

My '99 Kimber Stainless Gold Match doesn't...he said with disgust shaking the glass out of his hair as he went to get 2 new 4-foot bulbs for the shop light.

John
 
New Colts have them? Mine from the 1990's does not. Oh well.

While it is a nice feature, it's certainly not something I would consider defective if lacking. You can still launch the spring, it'll just have the plug attached when you find it. :)
 
Gunsnrovers said, "While it is a nice feature, it's certainly not something I would consider defective if lacking. You can still launch the spring, it'll just have the plug attached when you find it."

Not if the three parts are done right. I used to teach tankers M1911A1 and M3A1, even a 2nd LT can be taught to engage the tab.

Geoff
Who has taken a trip or two when he didn't control the plug,
 
Geoff, even with the plug attached to the spring via the tab, it will still easily launch off if you don't control plug after you move the bushing out of the way. The big difference is that you wind up only have to find one part and not two.

Not all springs grip the guide rod tightly. If they did, your description would be correct, but I've seen enough springs that don't.
 
Yes, Browning put that tab there for a good reason, and usually when the recoil spring and guide are "made to print" the spring will fit the guide tightly when the spring's closed end is put on the guide (but not the other way around).

But of course making the tab cost a few pennies, and the number crunchers who now run the companies saw a chance to cut some cost.

For those that like the tab (and I am one of them) you best chance is to go through part boxes at gun shows and hope you find an older plug among the "junk."
 
I worry less about the tab in the recoil spring plug and more about the OTHER corners the manufacturers are cutting. There are a lot of them.

I remember an old article when Springfield did their first run of Garand repros and the American Rifleman wrote it up. They said if it had been USGI production it would have been rejected by the Army inspector. For a quarter inch knot in the stock wood.
 
I bought a Colt stainless commander about 2 weeks ago and when I stripped it I was supprised to see it has the tab.
 
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