Adventures in upgrades

[susan]

I've never done any upgrades to the guns I own. They were either left stock or someone else did the work.

I recently picked up a TX22 and wanted to add a Tandemkross fiber optic front sight and trigger spring.

The sight swap was easy and not at all intimidating. Then came the trigger spring change.

Thanks to the videosTandemkross makes, I felt pretty comfortable going in. Getting the gun back together was a little tricky. I was concentrating on not losing the slide lock spring and then I hear a ping and something small bouncing around my office. The take down spring had gone bouncing away, causing a 20 min delay while I tore my office apart to find it.

I found the spring and got the gun back together with no more mishaps.

This is probably pretty simple stuff for most of you, but as an newbie to doing this kind of work, I was pretty proud of myself.

I have some parts for my 10/22 so that's next.

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[solv3nt]

You can't claim to be a gunsmith until you've launched a few springs into the stratosphere.

 

[ilikegunspdx]

I've never done any upgrades to the guns I own. They were either left stock or someone else did the work.

I recently picked up a TX22 and wanted to add a Tandemkross fiber optic front sight and trigger spring.

The sight swap was easy and not at all intimidating. Then came the trigger spring change.

Thanks to the videosTandemkross makes, I felt pretty comfortable going in. Getting the gun back together was a little tricky. I was concentrating on not losing the slide lock spring and then I hear a ping and something small bouncing around my office. The take down spring had gone bouncing away, causing a 20 min delay while I tore my office apart to find it.

I found the spring and got the gun back together with no more mishaps.

This is probably pretty simple stuff for most of you, but as an newbie to doing this kind of work, I was pretty proud of myself.

I have some parts for my 10/22 so that's next.

View attachment 1851493

Awesome! Perfect guns to experiment on. Easily reversible if it doesn't work and not every day carry so no risk of screwing up guns your life depends on.

 

[ilikegunspdx]

Anybody interested in listing trigger spring improvements (ie stock trigger but different springs) you've done with zero loss in reliability?

For me the $8-$11 hb industries spring kit lightened up and shortened reset on my Stribog. I swear by that one.

Hk .22 clones from hk parts for about $17. Did on colt m4 .22, hk 416 .22, and hk mp5 x22. All were well worth it imo but a bit tricky the first time as far as reassembly.

Sig p938 lightened hammer spring. Definitely helped a lot but not a night and day difference. Trigger spring plus hammer spring was a gigantic improvement for me on this gun.

I'm not listing actual trigger uogeades or trigger jobs cuz would be too confusing. Cheers!

 

[RVTECH]

I was concentrating on not losing the slide lock spring and then I hear a ping and something small bouncing around my office.

Been there, done this!

Hint? get a gallon or so size ziplock bag and disassemble gun components INSIDE the bag. This way any small parts you are unsure of that might go flying will be contained.

I was once disassembling a Taurus 605 and the mini crane detent spring went 'ping' - across my shop.

4 hours of careful sweeping and crawling on my hands and knees I finally found it!

 

[Mark W.]

That is near genius RVTECH I'll add that to my way of doing things. Know where I can get a Baggie big enough to slip a 48 Willys into? I just spent 20 min looking for a 8-32 screw 1/4" long that may never be found and I didn't even drop it in the engine compartment.

 

[RVTECH]

a 8-32 screw 1/4" long that may never be found

Well, at LEAST 8-32 screws ain't rare and you most likely have many in your screw cans!

That is near genius RVTECH

Well, maybe - I actually KNEW of this long before the Taurus incident but didn't do it at the time - but now ALWAYS do it with gun parts (or anything else) I am unsure of!

 

[susan]

Been there, done this!

Hint? get a gallon or so size ziplock bag and disassemble gun components INSIDE the bag. This way any small parts you are unsure of that might go flying will be contained.

I was once disassembling a Taurus 605 and the mini crane detent spring went 'ping' - across my shop.

4 hours of careful sweeping and crawling on my hands and knees I finally found it!

That is a great idea and I will definitely do that in the future. I'll also work in our spare bedroom since there isn't as much stuff to sort thing if I screw it up again.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

Always good to do things with a firearm...that makes it your very own.
Andy

 

[johnny bob]

I often use a very bright flashlight to scan the area when I search for a lost small part. I've also used a flashlight to check on a shelf or in a drawer. I think the bright flashlight makes the small lost part stand out. Maybe it casts a shadow. No I am not a sheet head.

 

[hongkong2]

I often use a very bright flashlight to scan the area when I search for a lost small part. I've also used a flashlight to check on a shelf or in a drawer.

Putting a sheet over your head will capture any launched springs, always works for me.

 

[Flopsweat]

Been there, done this!

Hint? get a gallon or so size ziplock bag and disassemble gun components INSIDE the bag. This way any small parts you are unsure of that might go flying will be contained.

I was once disassembling a Taurus 605 and the mini crane detent spring went 'ping' - across my shop.

4 hours of careful sweeping and crawling on my hands and knees I finally found it!

It's called a sproing bag. For when the spring goes sproing!

 

[po18guy]

Invest in magnetic walls. Will save weeks of searching.

 

[quneur]

The take down spring had gone bouncing away, causing a 20 min delay while I tore my office apart to find it.

Been there, done this!

Creepy

 

[oremike]

I lay a shop towel over anything spring loaded when disassembling.

 

[solv3nt]

Putting a sheet over your head will capture any launched springs, always works for me.

How are you supposed to see the gun with a sheet on your head? You probably shouldn't do that outside, your neighbors may complain

 

[hongkong2]

How are you supposed to see the gun with a sheet on your head? You probably shouldn't do that outside, your neighbors may complain

I cut eye holes and now my neighbors think I'm in a cult!

 

[Flopsweat]

 

[johnny bob]

A friend brought some car tires to me so I could help him change them on my old manual tire machine. I used my short motorcycle tire levers to finish installing the tires. After he had departed I put my tools away in their respective places. A week or so later I looked for my short motorcycle tire levers and they were no where to be found. I looked in the tool box drawer where they normally rest and did not see them.

I searched the garage and carport to no avail. I remember George Carlin searching for a lost item where he would search and then go to the drawer where it belonged and look and exclaim "Nope not back yet".

I did this many times during the next few months or so. One night at 2 am I awoke and went to my tool box with my very bright flashlight and shined it in the drawer. The short motorcycle tire levers were standing upright against the very back of the drawer. I waited until about noon to call Ron and let him know the tire tools were back in the drawer.

 

[solv3nt]

A friend brought some car tires to me so I could help him change them on my old manual tire machine. I used my short motorcycle tire levers to finish installing the tires. After he had departed I put my tools away in their respective places. A week or so later I looked for my short motorcycle tire levers and they were no where to be found. I looked in the tool box drawer where they normally rest and did not see them.

I searched the garage and carport to no avail. I remember George Carlin searching for a lost item where he would search and then go to the drawer where it belonged and look and exclaim "Nope not back yet".

I did this many times during the next few months or so. One night at 2 am I awoke and went to my tool box with my very bright flashlight and shined it in the drawer. The short motorcycle tire levers were standing upright against the very back of the drawer. I waited until about noon to call Ron and let him know the tire tools were back in the drawer.

That's nice of you to wait until midnight.