FTR
This is less a "how-to" than a "Here is where you find the information you need, so check it out, learn how it works, and then make it happen."
TL;DR
I forgot how easy the 92 was to smith on. Go ahead and buy some Harbor Freight quality punches & driver/bit set and some abrasive stones/papers (320-2000 grit) then get to work.
OBJECTIVE: 92D-ish
What I really wanted was a DAO 92D or newer 92D X. What ended up in my lap was a 92X FS RDO Full Size. What can I say? Folks were asking retail+ for used 92 D & 92DX guns and I found a shiny new 92X FS Full Size for a really good price. Why D(AO)? Short Answer: training tool (work on trigger control) and simplicity of manual of arms. And I am not a fan of traditional DA/SA. I can now say I have entered the era of the Wondernine. Is a plastic fantastic next on my list? Nope.
92X FS RDO FULL SIZE
Typical Beretta quality. I might not be fond of traditional DA/SA, but Beretta makes quality guns, to include the 92s. I had experience with them in the service and they were reliable as the day was long, and accurate. And durable. One comment in particular to the 92X is the grip shape & angle is different from the older 92s. It is somewhat slimmer, lacks the backstrap swell, and the grip angle is closer to 1911 than 92. Whats more, my tiny wife and daughter can reach the DA trigger and operate it just fine. The old 92/96 grip was too big for many with smaller hands. Also, the rear sight was way off in its dovetail from the factory. I placed the slide in a padded vice and gave the rear sight a whack with a light hammer & brass punch. It is ALMOST where it need to be but I am not willing to whack it harder. Not sure if I will file down the rear sight a smidge or take it to a smith. Oh, it is also "ROD Ready" if you care for such things.
ROAD TO D(AO)
It is a short road. Remove sear, sear spring, and sear pin. The End. Enjoy DAO goodness.
There are some further steps one can take, but deleting the sear bits makes the 92 DAO. One thing I would like to do is replace the hammer release lever with a spacer, but that can wait. Others grab a D hammer. and then there is the thumb safety to fiddle with. Others go whole-hog and buy a D slide.
POLISH FOR DOUBLE ACTION
The factory Beretta 92 DA trigger pull is not awful. I have had MUCH worse S&W revolver triggers from the factory. And while not particularly difficult, polishing up a S&W revolver is more complex than smithing on a 92. Same with the 1911. The 92 is easy-peasy in comparison. Still, with little effort, the DA pull can be made better. I read a bunch of forum posts, watched a bunch of videos and I settled on what I wanted to polish up: only those bits which impact the DAO trigger pull. No sense polishing the sear (since its not there anymore). Take a bit of time to learn how the mechanism works and what rubs on what. In the end, the 1911addicts thread and screen caps of what Langdon Tactical polishes up (from one of the videos linked below) were the primary resources I used to polish DAO trigger bits.
IMO, Larry Potterfield from Midway USA is a gunsmithing angel sent from Heaven. I used his videos when building my first AR-15 and his video on polishing the innards of a S&W revolver showed me that I needed a medium india stone, a fine india stone, Dykem, and honing oil/fluid. Oh, and a pricey jig to get the SA S&W K-frame sear just right (no thanks). So I ordered some India stones that went from coarse all the way down to 1000 grit.
Larry was content with two passes, medium & fine. Not I. I now had a bunch of india stones and I was going to use them. So I used them in roughly 200 grit intervals 240/320/400/600/800/1000/2000(paper)/Mother's Mag Polish by hand. Seeing what that 2000 grit paper can do was nifty. The Mother's Mag Polish was just because I already had it. I didn't go to hard, just enough to remove the dykem to know I got the surface. I took care to maintain angles except where it was suggested a radius was a good idea.
This is where I installed the used D hammer I had bought. I polished it up where Wilson & Langdon suggested as well as the side bits that rub up against the frame.
I do not have a trigger scale, but the not-bad trigger ended up perceptibly smoother, if only a smidge lighter.
HAMMER SPRING
I bought 12, 13, and 14# hammer springs from Wilson. I was not impressed with the 14#, but the 13# was the star performer. Noticeably lighter DA trigger pull and it lights off everything I feed it. Mostly WWB 115gr FMJ at first, then my grab bag of old retired carry ammo which consisted of four or five different "premium hollow-point" carry loads. Not a bobble.
WHAT I DID NOT TOUCH OR DO
I kept the trigger return spring factory. I like a firm & quick return and will sacrifice a few pounds to keep the trigger return snappy so I can fire quickly.
I did not purchase any new parts form Wilson or Langdon tactical other than hammer springs. The hammer was replaced with a used D hammer and I ran with a reduced power 13# hammer spring.
PATH AHEAD
I really no longer need the safety, but I can't just remove it and leave a hole gaping. I thought about turning the levers down and making like a 3rd Gen S&W DAO semi-auto, but the safety may still rotate due to some freak circumstance. And I suspect RSOs would have issues. I think I will end up installing the G decocker kit. It will keep the safety levers out of the way and keep RSOs happy, I bet, even if it doesn't decock anything.
I have a holster on the way, already have mag carriers and will shoot some of the gun games. Not too particular, they all have their upside. I am a 1911 man WRT semi-autos, but I want to re-familiarize myself with the 92 and work my DA trigger finger with cheaper 9mm fodder I don;t feel the need to handload. Eventually, I will have a OWB and IWB holsters for carry. I suspect that in the end, I will buy a smaller Streamlight weapon light and a Lasermax guide rod laser (for low light) and it will then be a HD pistol that everyone in the family can operate.
RESOURCES
https://Berettaforum.net/vb/showthread.php?t=98238
https://Berettaforum.net/vb/showpost...8&postcount=41
https://berettaforum.net/vb/showthread.php?t=132528
https://rumble.com/v1wbe36-Beretta-9...d-version.html
WHAT WILSON COMBAT POLISHES WITH IMAGES: https://www.1911addicts.com/threads/...6/#post-368018
India Stones: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0796SW8LV...roduct_details
1000 & 2000 grit wet/dry sand paper
Dykem or such: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000HBM86Q...roduct_details
This is less a "how-to" than a "Here is where you find the information you need, so check it out, learn how it works, and then make it happen."
TL;DR
I forgot how easy the 92 was to smith on. Go ahead and buy some Harbor Freight quality punches & driver/bit set and some abrasive stones/papers (320-2000 grit) then get to work.
OBJECTIVE: 92D-ish
What I really wanted was a DAO 92D or newer 92D X. What ended up in my lap was a 92X FS RDO Full Size. What can I say? Folks were asking retail+ for used 92 D & 92DX guns and I found a shiny new 92X FS Full Size for a really good price. Why D(AO)? Short Answer: training tool (work on trigger control) and simplicity of manual of arms. And I am not a fan of traditional DA/SA. I can now say I have entered the era of the Wondernine. Is a plastic fantastic next on my list? Nope.
92X FS RDO FULL SIZE
Typical Beretta quality. I might not be fond of traditional DA/SA, but Beretta makes quality guns, to include the 92s. I had experience with them in the service and they were reliable as the day was long, and accurate. And durable. One comment in particular to the 92X is the grip shape & angle is different from the older 92s. It is somewhat slimmer, lacks the backstrap swell, and the grip angle is closer to 1911 than 92. Whats more, my tiny wife and daughter can reach the DA trigger and operate it just fine. The old 92/96 grip was too big for many with smaller hands. Also, the rear sight was way off in its dovetail from the factory. I placed the slide in a padded vice and gave the rear sight a whack with a light hammer & brass punch. It is ALMOST where it need to be but I am not willing to whack it harder. Not sure if I will file down the rear sight a smidge or take it to a smith. Oh, it is also "ROD Ready" if you care for such things.
ROAD TO D(AO)
It is a short road. Remove sear, sear spring, and sear pin. The End. Enjoy DAO goodness.
There are some further steps one can take, but deleting the sear bits makes the 92 DAO. One thing I would like to do is replace the hammer release lever with a spacer, but that can wait. Others grab a D hammer. and then there is the thumb safety to fiddle with. Others go whole-hog and buy a D slide.
POLISH FOR DOUBLE ACTION
The factory Beretta 92 DA trigger pull is not awful. I have had MUCH worse S&W revolver triggers from the factory. And while not particularly difficult, polishing up a S&W revolver is more complex than smithing on a 92. Same with the 1911. The 92 is easy-peasy in comparison. Still, with little effort, the DA pull can be made better. I read a bunch of forum posts, watched a bunch of videos and I settled on what I wanted to polish up: only those bits which impact the DAO trigger pull. No sense polishing the sear (since its not there anymore). Take a bit of time to learn how the mechanism works and what rubs on what. In the end, the 1911addicts thread and screen caps of what Langdon Tactical polishes up (from one of the videos linked below) were the primary resources I used to polish DAO trigger bits.
IMO, Larry Potterfield from Midway USA is a gunsmithing angel sent from Heaven. I used his videos when building my first AR-15 and his video on polishing the innards of a S&W revolver showed me that I needed a medium india stone, a fine india stone, Dykem, and honing oil/fluid. Oh, and a pricey jig to get the SA S&W K-frame sear just right (no thanks). So I ordered some India stones that went from coarse all the way down to 1000 grit.
Larry was content with two passes, medium & fine. Not I. I now had a bunch of india stones and I was going to use them. So I used them in roughly 200 grit intervals 240/320/400/600/800/1000/2000(paper)/Mother's Mag Polish by hand. Seeing what that 2000 grit paper can do was nifty. The Mother's Mag Polish was just because I already had it. I didn't go to hard, just enough to remove the dykem to know I got the surface. I took care to maintain angles except where it was suggested a radius was a good idea.
This is where I installed the used D hammer I had bought. I polished it up where Wilson & Langdon suggested as well as the side bits that rub up against the frame.
I do not have a trigger scale, but the not-bad trigger ended up perceptibly smoother, if only a smidge lighter.
HAMMER SPRING
I bought 12, 13, and 14# hammer springs from Wilson. I was not impressed with the 14#, but the 13# was the star performer. Noticeably lighter DA trigger pull and it lights off everything I feed it. Mostly WWB 115gr FMJ at first, then my grab bag of old retired carry ammo which consisted of four or five different "premium hollow-point" carry loads. Not a bobble.
WHAT I DID NOT TOUCH OR DO
I kept the trigger return spring factory. I like a firm & quick return and will sacrifice a few pounds to keep the trigger return snappy so I can fire quickly.
I did not purchase any new parts form Wilson or Langdon tactical other than hammer springs. The hammer was replaced with a used D hammer and I ran with a reduced power 13# hammer spring.
PATH AHEAD
I really no longer need the safety, but I can't just remove it and leave a hole gaping. I thought about turning the levers down and making like a 3rd Gen S&W DAO semi-auto, but the safety may still rotate due to some freak circumstance. And I suspect RSOs would have issues. I think I will end up installing the G decocker kit. It will keep the safety levers out of the way and keep RSOs happy, I bet, even if it doesn't decock anything.
I have a holster on the way, already have mag carriers and will shoot some of the gun games. Not too particular, they all have their upside. I am a 1911 man WRT semi-autos, but I want to re-familiarize myself with the 92 and work my DA trigger finger with cheaper 9mm fodder I don;t feel the need to handload. Eventually, I will have a OWB and IWB holsters for carry. I suspect that in the end, I will buy a smaller Streamlight weapon light and a Lasermax guide rod laser (for low light) and it will then be a HD pistol that everyone in the family can operate.
RESOURCES
https://Berettaforum.net/vb/showthread.php?t=98238
https://Berettaforum.net/vb/showpost...8&postcount=41
https://berettaforum.net/vb/showthread.php?t=132528
https://rumble.com/v1wbe36-Beretta-9...d-version.html
WHAT WILSON COMBAT POLISHES WITH IMAGES: https://www.1911addicts.com/threads/...6/#post-368018
India Stones: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0796SW8LV...roduct_details
1000 & 2000 grit wet/dry sand paper
Dykem or such: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000HBM86Q...roduct_details
