chrisjohn Posted December 4, 2007 Share Posted December 4, 2007 I just wanted to pass this along, it doesn’t have much relevance to IPSC competition but hopefully someone on the forum can benefit from my teachable moment. A few weeks ago, I decided that I wanted a relatively inexpensive .45, <600 USD, to accompany me on dual sport motorcycle rides and also to keep out of the safe at home for rapid defense. After handling nearly all the polymer .45’s and the low end 1911’s with the exception of the STI Spartan, which I would have gotten but I needed a trade. Ended up with a Springfield Tactical 45 ACP. Threw on some Dawson fixed sights, springs, sear, and trigger bar from Springer Precision. The trigger pull dropped to 2.3 lbs and I was mighty happy. Well finally got a chance to test fire it at the range today, and well, it was misfire after misfire. Light strikes! Apparently the lighter striker spring from Springer Precision is TOO LIGHT, as only one out of 7 to ten rounds would ignite! Granted I do all my reloading on a SDB and it’s priming mechanism, isn’t the best and I’ve been known to not exactly have the deepest seated primers, but never had an issue with any other 45 ACP pistol I own. It made for great trigger practice as my seizure sized flinches were easier to see. Please, if you have any intention to use a weapon to defend your family, run a few rounds down range, especially if you’ve swapped out any parts. Switched the OEM striker spring back in and I’ll post the results, but I expect that will be the end of light strikes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
00bullitt Posted December 4, 2007 Share Posted December 4, 2007 You may want to check that the FP safety is fully disengaging. You may have to modify the plunger to disengage earlier after changing the sear. I had to modify mine on the 45 but not on the 9mm. Oh yeah........shame on you for not testing your blaster sooner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Hostetter Posted December 4, 2007 Share Posted December 4, 2007 Your problem is probably the striker rubbing against the striker block as it goes forward. Because of the way the sear and trigger bar are designed the striker block get's push out of the way a little later in the trigger pull. If you look at the striker block there are 3 little flat spots. You need to remove .005-.010" from the center flat. Be sure to leave a smooth radis on the edge closest to the striker lug. This should cure all of your light hits problems. If you have any additional problems you should either contact Springer Precision directly or you can call me at 909-717-5995 ( I am the manufacturer of these parts). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oddjob Posted December 4, 2007 Share Posted December 4, 2007 My old PD partner used a Beretta 92 and he decide to put on rubber grips. He had them on for a couple of months then it was range qualification time. He had tightned the grips down to the point where the trigger bar wouldn't move and he couldn't fire the gun. He crapped in his pants over that one. I also learned from that one and now test fire if I replace anything on a defense/competition gun. I also test fire after I clean my guns to make sure I put it together correctly & teach that concept as well (LEO here). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Micah Posted December 4, 2007 Share Posted December 4, 2007 It never fails that someone at EVERY match, be it club or major, that has made some sort of modification to their pistol right before and has not tested it yet. Thanks for the reminder chrisjohn...hopefully you spared a few people from making the same error. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisjohn Posted December 4, 2007 Author Share Posted December 4, 2007 (edited) Your problem is probably the striker rubbing against the striker block as it goes forward. Because of the way the sear and trigger bar are designed the striker block get's push out of the way a little later in the trigger pull. If you look at the striker block there are 3 little flat spots. You need to remove .005-.010" from the center flat. Be sure to leave a smooth radis on the edge closest to the striker lug. This should cure all of your light hits problems. If you have any additional problems you should either contact Springer Precision directly or you can call me at 909-717-5995 ( I am the manufacturer of these parts). It passes the pencil test, albeit not a lot, but it will clear the barrel. Edited December 4, 2007 by chrisjohn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madcap Magician Posted December 4, 2007 Share Posted December 4, 2007 It is scary to sometimes see what people do to guns and think they work but they really don't... especially for something they call a carry gun. For something defensive/lay your life on, at least put a few hundred rounds through when new and after any modifications. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokshwn Posted December 4, 2007 Share Posted December 4, 2007 (edited) There is a reason not every engine in your commuter sedan isn't a dual turboed, alcohol burning, tire shredding monster, RELIABILITY. Not to say a little performance tweak doesn't net gains just the poin that the farther you push the performance envelope the closer to crashing you are. Edited December 4, 2007 by smokshwn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisjohn Posted December 4, 2007 Author Share Posted December 4, 2007 It is scary to sometimes see what people do to guns and think they work but they really don't... especially for something they call a carry gun. For something defensive/lay your life on, at least put a few hundred rounds through when new and after any modifications. My gun doctor ripped off seven rounds and had one light strike which he and I attributed to a high primer. Turns out that after having set plus a few hundred dry fires, the particular striker spring I got from Springer Precision just wasn't strong enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madcap Magician Posted December 5, 2007 Share Posted December 5, 2007 I didn't want to imply what you did was scary, but several other yahoos I've come across. The point with all this is to test your equipment before putting any trust in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coolduckboy Posted December 5, 2007 Share Posted December 5, 2007 Isn't it kinda of a bad deal reloading ammo for home defense? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beretta Lover Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 I just wanted to pass this along, it doesn’t have much relevance to IPSC competition but hopefully someone on the forum can benefit from my teachable moment. A few weeks ago, I decided that I wanted a relatively inexpensive .45, <600 USD, to accompany me on dual sport motorcycle rides and also to keep out of the safe at home for rapid defense. After handling nearly all the polymer .45’s and the low end 1911’s with the exception of the STI Spartan, which I would have gotten but I needed a trade. Ended up with a Springfield Tactical 45 ACP. Threw on some Dawson fixed sights, springs, sear, and trigger bar from Springer Precision. The trigger pull dropped to 2.3 lbs and I was mighty happy. Well finally got a chance to test fire it at the range today, and well, it was misfire after misfire. Light strikes! Apparently the lighter striker spring from Springer Precision is TOO LIGHT, as only one out of 7 to ten rounds would ignite! Granted I do all my reloading on a SDB and it’s priming mechanism, isn’t the best and I’ve been known to not exactly have the deepest seated primers, but never had an issue with any other 45 ACP pistol I own. It made for great trigger practice as my seizure sized flinches were easier to see. Please, if you have any intention to use a weapon to defend your family, run a few rounds down range, especially if you’ve swapped out any parts. Switched the OEM striker spring back in and I’ll post the results, but I expect that will be the end of light strikes What type of primers are you using? did you call Scott back? He has done a bunch of work for me and i have been very satisfied. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loves2Shoot Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 The reduced power strike spring is not going to hit as hard as the OEM one. It works fine with Federal's, not as good with Winchester or CCI. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisjohn Posted December 6, 2007 Author Share Posted December 6, 2007 Yep, Winchester primers... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrisjohn Posted December 6, 2007 Author Share Posted December 6, 2007 Isn't it kinda of a bad deal reloading ammo for home defense? Didn't plan on using my home rolled rounds for defense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coolduckboy Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 ok good just clarifying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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