Beretta 92 Questions

coltshooter · Aug 22, 2023

Hello everyone. I recently acquired a 1983 Beretta 92SB Compact. Really liking this gun a lot. But it has developed a rather odd issue. The safety decocker, with a magazine removed, works perfectly every time for the most part. It puts the safety on and drops the hammer. Insert magazine, whether it's loaded or not, and now the safety will come on, but the hammer won't drop unless lots of force is applied to the safety the safety lever after it's already down. Now with the safety on and the hammer cocked I can squeeze the trigger and it drops the hammer. I've also noticed that which side of the gun I flip the safety down on sometimes makes a difference. I have checked the hammer release lever. It looks just fine. The underside of the safety that rotates looks okay too. Is my gun just tired? I'd rather keep it as original as possible, but if I need to replace parts, I will. Are there any experts on the M9/92 on here that could help? Thanks.

drstrangelove · Aug 22, 2023

"with the safety on and the hammer cocked I can squeeze the trigger and it drops the hammer… "

this is where you need the pencil test… drop a pencil down the barrel with eraser on firing pin hole, aiming straight up... Pull the trigger… if the pencil flies, you have a problem.

coltshooter · Aug 22, 2023

I just tried the pencil test. Repeating what I described the pencil goes nowhere. Out of curiosity I tried it with gun clear and no magazine safety off and I couldn't even get the pencil to come out of the barrel all the way holding it level with the ground. Strange. I did this with my 1911 and it sends the pencil flying across the room.

drstrangelove · Aug 22, 2023

I wonder if the firing pin block is malfunctioning or the firing pin is broken… Does it fire live ammo properly? Horizontal does the pencil move at all?

coltshooter · Aug 22, 2023

I have not had a chance to put any live rounds through it yet. Horizontally the pencil moves a little bit. It does not eject out of the barrel at all though. I do see an imprint of the firing pin on the eraser though.