Hammer and mainspring housing problem on Springfield Government Model. [Archive] - Glock Talk

View Full Version : Hammer and mainspring housing problem on Springfield Government Model.


ElevenO
09-02-2005, 22:28
A couple of weeks ago I had to contact springfield armory's customer service department in order to obtain a new mainspring housing retainer pin (for my loaded 5" government model .45 acp) since the original pin (that had come with the gun), for some reason or another, had broken in half. Anyway, I received a brand new pin 2 days ago and I installed it into the gun but now I seem to have 4 brand new problems:

1) The hammer will not lock back into the fully cocked position almost no matter what I do. Sometimes the hammer will manage to lock back but, lately, it's a rare (and, practically, a non-existent) occurance.

2) The frame safety is very difficult (and, at most times, entirely impossible) to engage into the "safe/up" position. I realize that it isn't supposed to engage when the hammer is lowered/uncocked but even on the few times when I actually manage to get the hammer cocked it is still difficult to engage the safety into the "safe/up" position.

3) The trigger (which, formerly---before I had to replace the old m.s. housing retainer pin---was originally pretty good and light) now feels very very rough and, in fact, it is now very difficult to squeeze and dry fire.

4) My 7- and 8-round government model mags are very difficult to place into (and release from) the magazine well once I have the gun back together and fully assembled. It's easy to place them into the gun when the mainspring housing is completly removed from the weapon but, when I reassemble the gun, the mags become very difficult to place into the gun or, if they are in the gun, they are difficult to remove from the mag well.

Personally, I don't think anything's wrong with my loaded model itself and I think the real culprit is that I'm reassembling the weapon incorrectly. However, I want to make sure that is, in fact, the case. Have I done something incorrect or is something else wrong with my government model? Thanks in advance for any help I may receive.

aglocker1911
09-02-2005, 22:51
Exactly how far did you disassenble your pistol? If all of your problems happened after the pin replacement, I would say yes, the problem is probably related to being assembled incorrectly. Letting the sear spring "slip" out of position would explain some of your concerns, but you lose me with the magazine being hard to insert and remove. How about a little more info on exactly what you took apart, replaced, and how you put it back together? Good luck.

ElevenO
09-02-2005, 23:42
Initially, I just took the whole mainspring housing off of the gun which resulted in me having 3 separate parts:

(1)The whole pistol itself minus (2)the mainspring housing and (3)the mainspring housing retainer pin.


After the trouble started, I eventually took apart the whole mainspring housing itself and then I put it back together per the exploded parts diagram that is printed in my springer owners manual and then I put the whole gun back together again. However, the problem remained. I then took the slide off the gun and did a basic field stripping of the gun plus I removed the mainspring housing again. I used this opportunity the clean the weapon since it needed it anyway. After cleaning, I put the weapon back together and placed the mainspring housing back into the gun but the problem, as of right now, still remains and I don't know what to do to fix it.

aglocker1911
09-03-2005, 10:42
This is just my best guess, of course, but I would say the first time you took the mainspring housing in and out, the sear spring slipped out of its proper position and that is causing your trouble. If I'm correct, you will have to strip it further to correct. You'll need to remove the thunmb safety and the grip safety in order to realign the sear spring where it belongs. For future referance, whenever removing just the mainspring housing, if you keep the grip safety depressed, either by hand or even using a rubber band, it will keep everything in place until you reinsert the housing.
BTW, the sear spring has a tab on the bottom that goes into a small cut in the frame, and the upper "legs" of the spring should press against the sear and disconnector. To be honest, if you are at all unsure about this, you may want to take it to a gunsmith or friend who is familiar with detail stripping a 1911 to keep you pistol from being damaged and to be sure it operates properly and safely when done. Good luck.

Homechicken
09-07-2005, 11:31
ElevenO, if you're in north GA anywhere near Gainesville, I can recommend a good gunsmith.

MXRacer101
09-08-2005, 15:45
I think aglocker1911 is correct on this one and it does sound like a sear spring alignment problem. I recommend that you get Shop Manual Volume 1 by Jerry Kuhnhausen and learn to detail strip it yourself. For the cost of a trip to the smith, you can own the manual and learn everything you need to know about the 1911's.

ElevenO
09-11-2005, 18:48
Originally posted by Homechicken
ElevenO, if you're in north GA anywhere near Gainesville, I can recommend a good gunsmith.


I live in south georgia. Just in case I may need his services one day, what is your gunsmiths name? Thanks in advance.


Thanks to everyone who has responded so far. I do appreciate the help.

Homechicken
09-12-2005, 10:56
ElevenO,
Sent you a PM.

Kruzr
09-12-2005, 17:12
I'd say aglocker nailed this one. Make sure the fingers on the sear spring are lined up when you push up on the MSH. They should look like this:
http://www.realguns.com/images/srsprngfnglocationimp.jpg

If it is crooked, it could also be causing the problems of mag insertion (along with your others) since the back of the sear spring is exposed to the inside of the magwell. If the spring is crooked, it may be sticking into the magwell space.

saspic
05-24-2006, 09:14
Well, this thread is now several months old, but I found it in a search because I had some of the exact same problems after replacing the trigger on my Colt Delta Elite:

1) The hammer will not lock back into the fully cocked position almost no matter what I do.
<snip>
3) The trigger (which, formerly---before I had to replace the old m.s. housing retainer pin---was originally pretty good and light) now feels very very rough and, in fact, it is now very difficult to squeeze and dry fire.
I thought I'd post the solution to help anybody else searching for the answer to incorrect assembly.
It turns out the problem was the way I positioned the disconnector. The sear and disconnector were oriented in the correct direction, but the bottom of the disconnector (that thin, horizontal bar) should have been positioned directly behind the trigger. Note that the top of the disconnector should poke out of a hole at the top of the frame. I had it too low or something. There's an excellent picture of what I'm talking about at:
www.freepatriot.com/removeseries80.php

It's the 22nd photograph.

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