The Down Range Forum
Member Section => Handguns => Topic started by: Big Frank on January 16, 2019, 07:32:31 PM
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I finally installed the spare recoil spring assembly that I bought several years ago for my Para-Ordnance P10-45. I took out the original unit and pressed down on it, then compared it to the new one. There was a definite difference, at least on the inner spring. It bit me so bad I got blood blisters on 2 fingers. I didn't really check the outer spring very well, but as a whole it's stiffer.
I sometimes have a hard time getting my gun back together. It has a bushingless barrel and a tiny reverse plug. It helps when I use a very small screwdriver to lift the front end of the guide rod slightly when I push it into the hole in the plug. The hard part is getting everything in place and keeping the barrel link in the proper position long enough to get the slide on the frame.
Today I made a little tool to help. It's a piece of steel about 5/16" wide that I think was once part of a guide for a jigsaw. After I bent it into a U of the right width, I cut it to 1/2" in length and rounded the edges off with a file. Now when I get the barrel, plug, and recoil spring in the slide, I compress the springs far enough to drop the "clip" in place on the end of the rod. It keeps the springs compressed far enough that there's no pressure on the barrel link. The slide then slides on very easily, and when I pull it back a little I take the clip off, put the slide lock in and I'm done. I wish I would have made this little assembly tool years ago.
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More pics.
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The rest of the pics.
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I just remembered that my 12.45 LDA has been changed over from a single recoil spring to the same type of dual-spring system as my P10.45. It's 1/2" longer and has an Officer's Model-type barrel bushing, but the same type of recoil spring assembly. I checked and my little tool fits it too. I haven't had it apart as much but I think it's easier to assemble than the P10. There's a bit less of an angle when putting the guide rod in its hole in the plug, and the springs may not be as stiff.
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Cool idea and neat tool, Jumbo.
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Thank Peg. I think I saw some other kind of pistol before with a flat end on the guide rod like mine but don't know what it was. The same idea would work with any pistol that has a head on the end of the rod. The inside width might need a bit of adjustment that that's easy enough. Mine was just a tad wider than I wanted it at first. A slight turn of the vise handle took care of that. I pried the ends back open a little with a screwdriver and it was perfect.
I have a longer piece of that metal left and it just fits inside the back of my loaded 20 19-round AR mags. If I didn't know better I would think it was made for that. I pressed the follower down the short distance it would go and shook the mag to dump the rounds out. It was faster and easier than pushing them out one at a time, but the follower was tilted by the time I was done. A little poke and it was back to normal. I did the same thing with the other mag, and my Thermold mag charger filled them right back up. It works without clips and with G.I metal clips or Thermold plastic clip/fuel sticks. There's a Thermold clip in this one.
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I got my new American Rifleman magazine 2 days ago and there's a review of the BUL 1911 Ultra pistol. Instead of a 3" or 3.5" barrel they split the difference and made it 3.25". There's picture that shows the pistol field stripped and it has a dual concentric recoil spring setup that looks like it would fit either of my guns except for the 1/4" difference in length. It has a bull barrel and recoil plug with 2 little ears on it like my P10. The plug is backward in the picture BTW if anyone else has the magazine.
It looks like my tool would work on the BUL 1911 Ultra and also on the Kimber Ultra Carry. That's probably what I saw before with a head on the end of the guide rod. I found a picture of the Kimber online where some guy was talking about 10 things he learned from the worst gun he ever had.
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Got my issue yesterday......will have to check it out.
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The BUL is back there in the dope bag. It's not a bad looking pistol. They're imported by International Firearm Corporation.
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Jumbo... sorry if I missed part of your description... back in the day, when guide rods were of sufficient diameter, and the recoil plug was inserted from the rear of the slide (we initially had to remove the rear ledge of the slide), you could lock the slide back, mark a spot on the bottom of the guide rod just in front of where it exits the slide... then drill a small hole large enough for a paper clip diameter "L" shaped bent wire, making sure it clears the dust cover
to use: you would lock the slide back, insert the wire, then slowly release the slide which would trap the plug to the spring and guide rod so it could be removed in one unit... to install, you slide the unit in, hold upright, and lock the slide back.... the wire would fall out
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I've seen guide rods for full-size 1911s that came from the factory with the hole drilled through them. And I believe I saw competition pistols for sale that had pre-drilled guide rods. My tool basically does the same thing on a guide rod too thin to drill through. I suppose you could drill through one but a hole big enough to stick a paperclip in would weaken it.
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I was looking at a Taurus 1911 Officer .45 ACP at Taurus' site after I saw it somewhere else online, then I started looking at other similar size .45s. I can't remember what I was looking for specifically. I almost s**t myself and had a heart attack when I saw an article about one of Springfield Armory's little .45s they used to make. They had a plastic takedown piece, AKA disassembly assist tool, shaped a lot like the tool I made. I couldn't believe my eyes. It's longer, and since it's plastic it snaps onto the guide rod. I've been trying to post a good picture of it for a month but still can't post it. I did find a PDF of Springfield's 1911-A1 operator's manual online. It shows the disassembly method I used on page 42, and an alternate method on page 43.
https://www.springfield-armory.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/1911Manual.pdf