3gunyotehtr Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Today while running some drills the Apex firing pin broke on my 627. This is the third firing pin broken in a little over a year (one C&S and two Apexs). I went to replace the firing pin and now I cant get the retaining pin out. I can pull it a little bit but then it feels like there is suction on it and I lose the grip and it goes back in. The only thing that I can figure is a little bit of oil got in there and is somehow creating a vaccum. This happened the last time I replaced the firing pin but not nearly so bad. Any idea on why I am breaking so many pins (maybe the light apex spring isnt retracting the firing pin quick enough?). Any ideas on how to get the retaining pin out? Maybe some people just arent meant to work on guns! Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MWP Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Can't say I've ever broken an Apex pin, and I've beat mine to death. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snertley Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Is the spring in with the firing pin? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bountyhunter Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 (edited) Today while running some drills the Apex firing pin broke on my 627. This is the third firing pin broken in a little over a year (one C&S and two Apexs). I went to replace the firing pin and now I cant get the retaining pin out. I can pull it a little bit but then it feels like there is suction on it and I lose the grip and it goes back in. The only thing that I can figure is a little bit of oil got in there and is somehow creating a vaccum. This happened the last time I replaced the firing pin but not nearly so bad. Any idea on why I am breaking so many pins (maybe the light apex spring isnt retracting the firing pin quick enough?). Any ideas on how to get the retaining pin out? Maybe some people just arent meant to work on guns! Thanks! I have some tiny vise grips that I put masking tape on the jaws for delicate grabbing. I don't know why so many broken firing pins in your 627 but allow me a stupid question: What happens if you use a stock .495" SW firing pin? I would check the FP channel to make sure there's nothing in it that drags on the FP that could keep it from retracting quickly. Clean it thoroughly with Q tip and acetone. On the three C+S pins I bought, I had to polish the sides to get rid of the casting flash so they would move smoothly. And as somebody else noted, make sure your FP spring is good (I would replace it anyway). FYI: I broke two of the three C+S pins I bought pretty quickly, threw the third one in the garbage and went back to SW firing pins and never had another problem. Edited February 26, 2015 by bountyhunter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mover480 Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Try putting some heat on the frame where the pin is. I use a hair dryer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3gunyotehtr Posted February 26, 2015 Author Share Posted February 26, 2015 Thanks for the suggestions. Finally got the pin out. Sprayed it with carb cleaner and for some reason that seemed to work. I was using the Apex spring. I think I might go back to a factory pin and see if they hold up better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
revoman Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Could be the oil getting up in the firing pin. Which would collect grime or grunge and not letting the firing pin float freely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pskys2 Posted February 28, 2015 Share Posted February 28, 2015 Can't say I've ever broken an Apex pin, and I've beat mine to death. Unfortunately I have. But they made good on it, even though I'd lost the pieces. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3gunyotehtr Posted February 28, 2015 Author Share Posted February 28, 2015 They are sending me some new ones also. Great customer service! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom E Posted February 28, 2015 Share Posted February 28, 2015 I think the best pins are the titanium S&W pins. The ones I've gotten lately (last couple yrs) have measured between .492 and .495 and that length seems to work just fine. S&W pins got a bad rep because they were sending guns out with "short" pins. Pins that were mid .480s and those were a problem. If I was going to pick a "best " set-up it would be Apexs' light firing pin spring (from the competition kit) and a S&W pin. Of course YMMV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bountyhunter Posted February 28, 2015 Share Posted February 28, 2015 (edited) I think the best pins are the titanium S&W pins. The ones I've gotten lately (last couple yrs) have measured between .492 and .495 and that length seems to work just fine. S&W pins got a bad rep because they were sending guns out with "short" pins. Pins that were mid .480s and those were a problem. If I was going to pick a "best " set-up it would be Apexs' light firing pin spring (from the competition kit) and a S&W pin. Of course YMMV. You are 100% correct, but nobody believes it when I post it. For some reason the myth that a longer FP must work better than stock just won't die.... titanium does work better than steel because of less mass gives more velocity and the lighter spring eats up less strike energy too. I side-by-side tested the longer pins (same model 66 guns) against the SW pins and there was no difference in the amount of mainspring force needed to ignite. I suspect that if the longer pins "fix something" the gun probably has a different problem like excessive end shake or too much gap between the cylinder and breech face. Edited February 28, 2015 by bountyhunter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom E Posted February 28, 2015 Share Posted February 28, 2015 (edited) ...but nobody believes it when I post it... Understandable... Edited February 28, 2015 by Tom E Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bountyhunter Posted March 1, 2015 Share Posted March 1, 2015 (edited) delete why bother Edited March 1, 2015 by bountyhunter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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