Stumphenhammer Posted January 14, 2020 Share Posted January 14, 2020 (edited) So I've been going down the rabbit hole polishing parts to see what matters (and/or because I'm OCD and have too much time on my hands at the moment). I noticed on one of Johnny Glock's vids that he uses a pin vise to hold the striker for shaping/polishing...so I pulled out the dial calipers and measured my Gen 3 9mm striker at 0.173 at the widest point and now I know which size pin vise to get. The safety plunger however, measures at 0.237 where I want to grip it and I have not been able to find a reliable pin vise that opens that far, and if possible, I hope to find one with a range that allows it to hold either part (striker or plunger). My question(s): (1) Can anyone recommend a pin vise that will fit the safety plunger's base, (2) if not, what do you use (besides your Mk 1 Mod 1 banana peelers), and (3) please share any other tools/devices you've discovered to be useful for trigger jobs/improving perfection. Thanks in advance. P.S. If you are tired of hand polishing but hesitant to get a Dremel due to cost or the fact that they seem to not be as well made as they used to be, I've had good luck using Dremel bits in a 12V Dewalt drill. It's not as controllable as a Dremel, but for polishing it's good enough and much faster than hand work (I'd only do metal removal/shaping by hand though). Disclaimer: I don't do metal removal/shaping on carry guns (just polishing) but I'm using my range guns to test the waters with more extensive modifications. Edited January 14, 2020 by Stumphenhammer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davsco Posted January 14, 2020 Share Posted January 14, 2020 i'd just put two pieces of wood on each side, maybe paint stirring sticks, and throw it in a vise (or maybe vice grips). then rotate it as necessary to get the various sides/ends. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shooting for M Posted January 14, 2020 Share Posted January 14, 2020 For the striker, I just hold it and use a felt wheel and some Jewelers rouge. For the firing pin safety, Chuck it in a drill then us a 3M wheel on a Dremel. Dremel about 500rpm, drill moving maybe half that speed. Rounds it nicely and uniformly. Sent from my moto g(7) using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
open17 Posted January 14, 2020 Share Posted January 14, 2020 I grab it in my cordless drill. Hit it a touch on the belt sander to round the corner, then to a soft polishing wheel while spinning it with the drill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stumphenhammer Posted January 17, 2020 Author Share Posted January 17, 2020 Thanks guys, good input. I'm going to take a rectangular piece of wood a couple inches long, drill a hole in it just smaller than the diameter of the plunger , saw it in half across the hole, then use it to clamp the plunger in a vise to see if I can get a bit more control on the operation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigtimelarry Posted January 19, 2020 Share Posted January 19, 2020 I wrap the base with masking tape, put it in a cordless drill and put Flitz on a Scothbrite Green pad and just spin it.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MemphisMechanic Posted January 19, 2020 Share Posted January 19, 2020 (edited) You want the plunger spinning to make it a very quick and very high quality job. Chuck it in a drill and shape it with static sandpaper/ file / etc. Edited January 19, 2020 by MemphisMechanic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sam_b Posted January 23, 2020 Share Posted January 23, 2020 Usually 2 pieces of wood between the vise jaws and the part if it can be crushed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davsco Posted January 24, 2020 Share Posted January 24, 2020 in your fingers, bonus of getting a manicure at same time... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tampa-XD45 Posted January 29, 2020 Share Posted January 29, 2020 Put it the chuck of my drill press. IIRC, the steel was pretty hard so I had to use files before the fine emery cloth & Fitz felt wheel stages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Jacket Posted January 30, 2020 Share Posted January 30, 2020 On 1/14/2020 at 5:08 PM, davsco said: i'd just put two pieces of wood on each side, maybe paint stirring sticks, and throw it in a vise (or maybe vice grips). then rotate it as necessary to get the various sides/ends. ditto here I do the same Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ima45dv8 Posted February 4, 2020 Share Posted February 4, 2020 I've used a small allen wrench that fit in the spring hole. It allows the plunger to spin as Memphis said. Just use the wrench as a handle and hold it to the polishing wheel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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