Best way to shorten a strain screw?

[matteekay]

52 minutes ago, PatJones said:

I contour the springs to shorten their overall length and then set the screw with Loctite.

 

Wound up replacing the strain crew with a 1/2" long set screw and LocTite. I bought this gun used, and the mainspring had been bent enough that the strain screw was actually a stock-length unit (that I had to shim in the middle of a match due to light strikes). The replacement screw gives me a little more adjustment so it made the most sense.

[RePete]

On 2/1/2022 at 1:52 PM, 10mmdave said:

Nobody's mentioned the setcrew thru the bottom of the grip yet ??

 

There are pic's here on BE, you drill & tap a 6-32 or 8-32 hole perpendicular to the strain screw, drop in a piece of lead shot or a short piece of brass rod

into the hole b4 you add the setcrew then tighten down.

 

This mod allows you to adjust your main spring weight which in this "primer pandemic" is something I'm thinking of doing since for 2022 it looks like I'll be

using Fed primers for big matches and Winchester and possibly CCI's for practice/smaller matches

You mean this?

 

 

[Alleycatdad]

I did that mod on my competition guns; only difference is I use a setscrew in both locations.  That way the same allen works in both, and I have more adjustment available since there's no head on the strain screw.  Plus, setscrews are much harder than the factory strain screws, so they don't mushroom against the spring.

 

SA

[10mmdave]

On 2/10/2022 at 6:08 PM, RePete said:

You mean this?

 

 

Yup,that's it.

 

21 hours ago, Alleycatdad said:

I did that mod on my competition guns; only difference is I use a setscrew in both locations.  That way the same allen works in both, and I have more adjustment available since there's no head on the strain screw.  Plus, setscrews are much harder than the factory strain screws, so they don't mushroom against the spring.

 

SA

Great idea !!  And agree on the setscrew strength, just make sure you get a good fitting hex/allen wrench to go with those screws.

[Toolguy]

The thread is #8-32. The hex size is 5/64 or 2mm. Both sizes work.

[Carmoney]

Here I am, alecmc!  I'm not about to let you down!  

 

The cool thing about the loctite-only guys is that you can identify them by sound.  It goes something like this:  Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! click, Bang! click, Bang!  You can sometimes identify their mating call from a couple bays away.  Then if you're curious which one of the Super Squad Blue Man Group you just heard, just check the closest safe area for the guy with the grips off his gun and a screwdriver in his hand.  

 

Now don't get me wrong--blue loctite is on my strain screws, but they are also bottomed out good and hard.  Generally I contour the mainspring and shorten the strain screw some (by chucking in a drill and using an old file) until I have the right balance.  If you get it adjusted properly, you can go season after season after season without misfires.

 

(This is the part of the discussion where I counsel people not to constantly dick with their guns.  Set 'em up right, keep the external stuff reasonably clean, and unless you have an actual problem and you know what you're doing in there, leave those side plates in place!)