Questioning Personally Recommended Gun Modifications

[Maximum1]

I’d like to throw this question out to the forum....

What are your opinions regarding conceal carry gun modifications which are suggested by someone on a forum? I’m speaking about modifications that are not recognized by the gun industry or after-market parts manufacturers (you have to fab your own parts for the mod to work)?

Would you stake your live on it?

 

[Ed Ames]

Not because it was recommended. However, if I think an idea is good, I'll stake my life on my judgment no matter where the idea came from. Of course, I can't think of any examples of amateur gunsmithing ideas I thought were good so that's purely hypothetical at this point.

 

[mnrivrat]

Realy not enough information to give you a good answer .

From a general standpoint any modifications should be looked at through very discriminating eyes. If you are unsure in any way of what you are doing ,or the results of changing something, than I would not recommend doing any modification on a firearm.

 

[hexidismal]

Could you give an example ? I ask because I can't remember the last time, if ever, that Ive seen anyone suggest something 'not recognized by the industry', as you put it. Regardless though, I would think that obviously something of that nature would have to be viewed with the same scrutiny as anything you read on the internet, and can only be validated through a combination of research and common sense.

 

[Maximum1]

Mod example....

Here's one example: Adjustable Hammer Spring. Modification adds a phillips screw to the trigger spring so one can adjust the trigger pull stronger or weaker...

To remind folks I'm specifically talking about mods to your primary conceal carry gun.

 

[mustanger98]

A mod like the adjustable spring in the photos... I don't think that's bad in and of itself, but it can be misapplied.

 

[Archie]

Just as a point of perspective...

All modifications were at one time suggested or thought up by someone other than the manufacturer. That's why they are modifications.

Trigger jobs, better sights (whichever better you ascribe), pinned safeties, extended safeties, ambidextrous safeties, 'bobbed' hammers, fuller grips...

All that stuff was dreamed up and first accomplished by non-factory shooters and users.

As mentioned, all modifications need to be evaluated for one's own needs and style. What works for one does not work for all.

 

[Keith Wheeler]

Mods to my primary carry gun. (A 1985 early model CZ75):

1) Polished the feed ramp. Probably didn't need it, but it won't hurt.

2) Cleaned up and polished the mag well. The original maching was a bit "sharp" and sometimes a mag would snag a little.

3) Replaced tired original recoil spring with a high quality aftermarket (Wolff).

Other than something like that? No way. Unless it is a common mod or uses widely accepted parts (like the Wolff spring) I'm not doing it.

Other than "should I risk my life on it?" a better question is "will it really make the gun any better?"

I've never quite understood why so many are enamoured with trigger jobs, but then maybe I've fired enough open bolt subguns to figure most any pistol has a pretty good trigger, compared to a MAC.

 

[shield20]

I worried about swapping out to a slightly lighter fp spring on my carry P2000 'cause it made the trigger pull lighter by a couple #s, and that spring was from HK - because it was a carry gun. I worried 'cause of legal ramifications. I could not imagine how creative an opposing lawyer would treat and attack a major modification like the one you displayed. NOT to a carry gun!...Especially not to a stock safety system or trigger system - who needs the possible extra aggravation, manslaughter charges or whatever?

 

[mustanger98]

I'm reminded that on Colt's and S&W DA revolvers, there's a screw on the front of the grip that holds tension on the spring. Some people, in order to lighten the trigger pull, will back that screw out. This will make the gun cycle and fire less dependably, many times skipping chambers. This mod may not get more charges levelled at you, but it could very well get you killed.

 

[mpmarty]

Many years ago

I carried a colt detective special 2" .38 revolver. I had the front of the trigger guard cut off back to where it was just even with the tip of the trigger when the gun was "at rest". As I recall Kings Gun Works did the job for me and it was my backup gun. I liked the mod at the time.

 

[DoubleTapDrew]

Things to increase reliability I'll consider or do on a carry gun (like smoothing or polishing feed ramps, etc), then test fire the bejeezus out of it to make sure it's 100% reliable. I don't mess with trigger pull weight because 1. I don't know how and 2. I consider it something to be left to target guns for accuracy purposes. A nice clean trigger break is great, but I don't feel any need to reduce pull weight on a carry gun.
One mod I may do soon to the glocks, esp. the 26, is the rubber inner-tube around the grip, but I think Hogue is making them now also. Mo sticky for pulling it out in a hurry from concealment.

 

[bogie]

Depends on where the recommendation comes from... If Mas sez that I may be better off bobbing the hammer on a J-frame, I listen. If a gamer suggests welding together two AR-16 rifles, I pretty much sorta ignore it...

Personally, for defense, I want a nice LOOSE 1911... Loose = reliable at combat distances. Tight = finicky but accurate.

 

[Standing Wolf]

My gun. My choice. My life. Anybody who doesn't like it doesn't have to pull a knife or a gun on me.

 

[Hemicuda]

My Smith & Wesson carry guns (mainly the 410 and he 4506, but also those I don't carry) have:

1. - polished feed ramps

2 - custom grops (or grip-sleeves)

3. - aftermarket sights (Novak, or adjustable 3-dot night sights)

4. - the magazine disconnects are all disabled...

 

[ZeSpectre]

I consider myself a "shade tree" gunsmith. I know how to do a bunch of things, but also know when I'm hitting my limits. Any mods I'd do to an SD weapon would be extremely limited and then require somewhere around 250 rounds with ZERO problems before I'd even start to trust it.

 

[Neo-Luddite]

Like the man said.. (Bogie)

"Personally, for defense, I want a nice LOOSE 1911... Loose = reliable at combat distances. Tight = finicky but accurate."

Thank you for standing up for slabsides. I can hit a beer can at 25 yards with it, same as I can with a daisy BB gun.

Let the comp guys get those crazy-titght bushings and spring guides.

2 comps for .45 I endorse: 1) comander hammer 2) (MUST have polished feed ramp unless you're only gonna feed it 230 ball).

 

[Echo Tango]

Mods....mods, I know I might catch a bit of flak for this, but I am going to say it anyway. Making modifications to your carry weapon ala shadetree style could be asking for trouble.

Atleast from a legal standpoint if you ever had to use the weapon in defense of yourself or another. I can garuntee you the attorney sitting at the other table will certainly pick a home modified weapon apart citing 20+ different cases and reasons that this makes you a mad dog killer, and should be locked away for the rest of your life. Remember attorneys are real good about being twisty and embellishing a story.

 

[razorburn]

Thing like the replaced spring and polished feed ramps? They won't know.

 

[stevelyn]

Factory spec Glock with night sights.

No further modification needed or recommended.

 

[Keith Wheeler]

Atleast from a legal standpoint if you ever had to use the weapon in defense of yourself or another. I can garuntee you the attorney sitting at the other table will certainly pick a home modified weapon apart citing 20+ different cases and reasons that this makes you a mad dog killer, and should be locked away for the rest of your life. Remember attorneys are real good about being twisty and embellishing a story.

I don't think I'd make such a claim without being able to back it up with some specific cases. There's a lot of this sort of legal pondering on this board, but again, any precedence out there in the real court rooms?

I mean if a lawyer is having to claim that my polishing a feed ramp meant that I was predisposed to "murdering" an armed intruder, I figure he's got a pretty weak case.

 

[mustanger98]

Well, right now, my bedside weapon is a N-frame S&W .357... much as I like my 1911A1. The revolvers have mostly had a reputation as the more reliable piece. If an attorney may pick on autoloader apart because of the aforementioned "weak case", they might also say somebody was a mad dog killer for picking a weapon that needs no mods.

That said, I too would like to see some real world precedence based in case law.

 

[Keith Wheeler]

If an attorney may pick on autoloader apart because of the aforementioned "weak case", they might also say somebody was a mad dog killer for picking a weapon that needs no mods.

Exactly.

Modified gun: "the accused has blood lust, look he specially modified his gun to make it more deadly"

Stock gun: "the accused has blood lust, look he bought the same kind of deadly gun that is so reliable and accurate even the police use it"

 

[lee n. field]

What are your opinions regarding conceal carry gun modifications which are suggested by someone on a forum? I’m speaking about modifications that are not recognized by the gun industry or after-market parts manufacturers (you have to fab your own parts for the mod to work)?

Would you stake your live on it?

The world is full of fools. Many of them post on the Internet.

Here's one example: Adjustable Hammer Spring. Modification adds a phillips screw to the trigger spring so one can adjust the trigger pull stronger or weaker...

Add parts and complexity (and consequently increases the opportunity for breakage) to a device that must be absolutely reliable.

 

[XavierBreath]

Maximum1, I'm going to concentrate on the mod you presented. It looks to me to be a sheetrock screw installed into a mainspring to compress the mainspring. Correct me if I'm wrong.

I modify/build my guns, and I carry the guns I build/modify. I build/modify them to gain a more accurate, reliable and safe weapon. Each modification is geared towards these ends, although some are more specific than others. Because one of these weapons may someday be held up in front of a jury of my "peers", I want the modifications to be defensible in court. I want them to be professional looking, and to be accepted as safe among my peers. I do not think a sheetrock screw in a firearm meets that criteria. Thus, I would be opposed to the modification you have presented.

When I was younger, I was a much more tactical kind of guy. As I grew older, the black tactical stuff on my home defense shotguns was sold off and replaced with wood. I did retain the sidesaddles on them, however. My carry guns became more stock, or at least more pedestrian appearing. Black tacticality was traded in for old slabsides and revolvers. Recently, I purchased a SW1911PD for carry, and the only mods I plan to make are black rubber grips, and a Wilson magazine. I will polish the lockwork and feedramp with rounds downrange instead of with stones.

It is true that no court case can be cited where modifications directly resulted in a conviction from an otherwise justifiable shooting. Still, having been in a couple of courtrooms, (medical malpractice) I know that jurors are influenced by many things other than the facts. They are influenced by emotions, gut feelings, and how things look. These jurors may hold your future in their hands. There is a fair chance that they will be gun ignorant. All it takes is one "expert" on the stand who takes issue with your sheetrock screw, and suddenly that jury may stop seeing you as the model citizen who was forced to defend your life. They will never cite that as a reason, but the influence is there. It shouldn't be that way, but it is. The political climate and the gun climate of the area you live in will have a lot to do with how far a jury is swayed, but even in the best arena, modifications that are not widely accepted can make you look negligent or reckless. In a civil or even a criminal case, that could cost you dearly.

Just my two pesos.