FN 1922 Questions

[aaaaa]

I bought a 1922 last week and have some questions.

1. Slide will not lock back manually (I realize it does not lock back on the last round). This is what I cannot do:

(Photo courtesy of Walkalong)
When I try this with mine, the safety pops out of that second slot and the slide jumps back into battery.

2. When I disassembled mine, Parts 21 and 22 (signal pin and spring) shown below were not in my gun:
(oops, this image must be a 1910. Dave DeLaurant provides the correct image in the next post)

The gun fires fine as I ran 80 rounds through it. All cases eject too. My only problem was a lot of misfeeds, which the guy at the GS attributed to needing a hotter ammo and in LRN. I did not lose the signal pin and spring in the disassembly as I had dry fired the gun (with a snap cap in it) so it was not cocked and had my hand in place to catch it if it were to pop out, which it did not.

So it seems the gun runs fine without the signal pin and signal pin spring, so why bother obtaining one?

3. I am told that one should not dry fire this gun as it can damage the firing pin. Is that true?
Consider that the firing pin is extra long and is used to eject empty cases as the slide slams to the back. If that isn't harder on the pin than dry firing, what would be? So it seems to me that dry firing should not be an issue because if the pin is going to break, it will break regardless of dry fire because of the ejection feature of the pin, no? But to purchase a spare firing pin just in case is not a bad idea either.


Any thoughts or advice?

 

[Dave DeLaurant]

I'm more familiar with the 1910, but I give this a shot.

The slide lock on this and some other early Browning autopistols (Colt 1903, pre-woodsman .22) is a dual feature of the safety lever. The notch in the slide is shallow and can easily wear past the point where the slide will stay locked. Another possibility is wear on the safety where it engages the slide. Or a replacement safety that doesn't quite fit.

You don't really need to lock the slide, now do you?

If the gun worked fine without those missing 'parts' mentioned, then yeah I suppose they are optional. They serve as guides for the striker spring and help keep the striker and spring together when removing the slide during disassembly. The channel inside the slide is a reasonably close fit to the spring, so if you don't mind the bother of the spring trying to escape during field stripping I suppose they aren't essential. I'd replace and then decide if you think they're really needed.

BTW, I think you'll find the 1922 has just a single part here -- your diagram is for a different pistol.




And yeah, you should either use snap caps or refrain from excessive dry firing with older automatics like this. The Colt 1903 is worse in this regard, as the rear part of the two-piece firing pin is notched for a retaining crosspin and can break -- ask me how I know! The 1910/22 striker is more robust and more expensive to replace.

 

[Jim Watson]

The store/range here had a shabby looking 1922 on consignment. Something looked odd about it so some of us enthusiasts - including an employee - dug into it. The whole striker column was in backwards. We put it together right so the buyer would have a chance of it shooting.

That whole batch of consignment guns was in rough shape. A S&W that looked good but had a rough tooth on the ratchet and uneven DA; a H&R 999 with the blade lost out of the rear sight that I recall.

 

[aaaaa]

Yep, don't really need to lock slide back, though can be handy when clearing a jam. It does hold in that slot on field stripping, after the slide bushing is removed, so not spring pressure on it.

I'll avoid the dry fire, though the snap cap always surprises me at the range when I go to rack the first round. Have to remember to remove the snap cap before heading to the range. Yes, I tend to like to store it uncocked to save the spring, which is probably not worth the bother. The spring does not wear out from being compressed for a long time but from cycling to compressed and uncompressed a lot, so I am told.

 

[aaaaa]

I saw online that the FN 1922 has a magazine safety but mine fires without the magazine in it so perhaps was modified. All good, I like this gun a lot and am very happy to have purchased it. I am not a striker-fired fan but this gun is an exception for sure.

Hey did anyone know that FN also made motorcycles from 1900 to 1967.

As for the FN 1922 pistol, there is nowhere near the info on it online as one can find for the trusty old 1911s.

 

[Dave DeLaurant]

As for the FN 1922 pistol, there is nowhere near the info on it online as one can find for the trusty old 1911s.

Let me throw in a plug for Anthony Vanderlinden's excellent FN Browning Pistols. It's actually a readable story as well as a reference.

I bought a copy of the 2nd edition right before he released his expanded 2-volume 3rd.

book FN Browning Pistols 3rd Edition | wet-dog-publications

www.fnbrowning.com

 

[aaaaa]

Let me throw in a plug for Anthony Vanderlinden's excellent FN Browning Pistols. It's actually a readable story as well as a reference.

I bought a copy of the 2nd edition right before he released his expanded 2-volume 3rd.

book FN Browning Pistols 3rd Edition | wet-dog-publications

www.fnbrowning.com

That is an expensive book set, but well worth it. Just the few pages displayed in the link are very interesting.

 

[Mizar]

I would also highly recommend Vanderlinden's book to anyone interested in the history of FN - when I first got it, I've read it cover to cover in one opening.

 

[aaaaa]

So, as I mentioned, my slide will not hold open with the slide locking lever (safety in second notch). However, if I pull the slide back to that point and rotate the barrel about 1/4 turn counter clockwise (looking down the muzzle) it will hold open, not on the slide lock but by the turned barrel. Should the barrel be able to be twisted like this when the gun is assembled? It is the same twist as in field stripping but then the bushing has been removed. In this case the twist prevents the slide from moving forward, opposite of the field strip.

 

[halfmoonclip]

I have the most recent iteration of this pistol, with adjustable sights and the damnable thumbrest grip on the left side.
Is anyone aware of a source for flat grips for this pistol?
It's beautifully made, even with the big sights. For a blowback .380, it is even pleasant to shoot.
But I would like to replace the thumbrest left grip.
Thanks,
Moon

 

[aaaaa]

I have the most recent iteration of this pistol, with adjustable sights and the damnable thumbrest grip on the left side.
Is anyone aware of a source for flat grips for this pistol?
It's beautifully made, even with the big sights. For a blowback .380, it is even pleasant to shoot.
But I would like to replace the thumbrest left grip.
Thanks,
Moon

fn 1922 grips for sale | eBay

Get the best deals for fn 1922 grips at eBay.com. We have a great online selection at the lowest prices with Fast & Free shipping on many items!

www.ebay.com

 

[aaaaa]

I have the most recent iteration of this pistol, with adjustable sights and the damnable thumbrest grip on the left side.
Is anyone aware of a source for flat grips for this pistol?
It's beautifully made, even with the big sights. For a blowback .380, it is even pleasant to shoot.
But I would like to replace the thumbrest left grip.
Thanks,
Moon

Also,

Browning FN 1922 Wood Grips (Checkered With Logo)

These fine wood grips fit the Browning FN Model 1922. Made from English walnut and oil finished. Checkered with the FN logo. Two escutcheons installed. Screw is included.

triplek.com

 

[halfmoonclip]

Also,

Browning FN 1922 Wood Grips (Checkered With Logo)

These fine wood grips fit the Browning FN Model 1922. Made from English walnut and oil finished. Checkered with the FN logo. Two escutcheons installed. Screw is included.

triplek.com

Thank you; I'll need to pursue the second link especially. There is some confusion about exactly what grips fit the pistol; I have tried before.
Moon

 

[lysanderxiii]

That notch was never intended to be a slide lock. It is there only to position the slide to unlock the barrel.

 

[aaaaa]

That notch was never intended to be a slide lock. It is there only to position the slide to unlock the barrel.

I saw that somewhere but then saw that Walkalong's does as shown in the first post above. No matter, the gun is a great shooter. I have a new magazine on order that might solve my feeding problem. Also turned the lips in a little on the stock magazine to see if that helps. So will have two magazines to try next time I hit the range.

 

[aaaaa]

Aftermarket magazine arrived and would not fit in the gun. It slid in fine but the heel latch would not go over the base plate unless I pulled the slide back, then it went in, but would not pull out when the slide is closed, though I could rack snap caps through fine. I noticed the total length was a hair longer than the stock magazine from the top of the feed lips to the bottom of the base plate, so I filed the base plate some until it would clear and lock into the gun. All functions are good now.

The other thing is the aftermarket magazine's feed lips are closer together. The stock used magazine had a bigger gap and you could turn rounds up between the feed lips, so I figure the misfeeds were this excess clearance. I bent the feed lips in to where the rounds do not turn up anymore. Only a trip to the range will tell, but I have high hopes anyway.

 

[halfmoonclip]

Aftermarket magazine arrived and would not fit in the gun. It slid in fine but the heel latch would not go over the base plate unless I pulled the slide back, then it went in, but would not pull out when the slide is closed, though I could rack snap caps through fine. I noticed the total length was a hair longer than the stock magazine from the top of the feed lips to the bottom of the base plate, so I filed the base plate some until it would clear and lock into the gun. All functions are good now.

The other thing is the aftermarket magazine's feed lips are closer together. The stock used magazine had a bigger gap and you could turn rounds up between the feed lips, so I figure the misfeeds were this excess clearance. I bent the feed lips in to where the rounds do not turn up anymore. Only a trip to the range will tell, but I have high hopes anyway.

Mine has always run just fine, but the oversize grips are simply absurd. The workmanship is superb on this pistol, and I've wanted one for years. Mine is a gunshow find. I traded texts with Triple K, and hope those grips work. They look beautiful.
Moon

 

[aaaaa]

Just ran the FN 1922 and it worked flawlessly with the stock magazine after I bent the feed lips in. The after market magazine has trouble racking the first round and the 9th round was a bear to get in the magazine, so I think it will be fine after the spring wears in. But It fired 9 in a row twice with each magazine and zero feeding problems. I ran one mag of LRN each and one of FMJ each.