Wanted to put this here for any other members who are thinking of polishing internals/adding CGW parts. If you don't feel like reading the post, all I have to say is that yes, it's definitely worth it. Even if you don't quite feel like spending on parts just yet, detail stripping the pistol and doing the polishing job will not only give you a better action, but you'll gain invaluable knowledge of how components and parts work, and how to service them.
My pistol is 2 years old. Mainly used at an indoor range, and sits at home for HD the rest of the time. About 1k rounds fired, and maybe 1-2k dry fire pulls (I have a laser training cartridge/target at home that accounts for most of those) I started this project to clean up the trigger pull, and get a better understanding of how everything works. It's not too difficult, just takes some patience and common sense. There's a lot of great resources in this forum and across the internet. I wasn't planning on adding CGW parts, but when taking apart the slide I came across a good gouge/crack in my firing pin retaining pin. I didn't do a full Cajunize because I'm not really sure what route I want to go with the pistol yet, and the trigger pull weight was perfectly fine to me in SA.
There's plenty of knowledge out there on how to do each individual part of the different tasks I'm referring to, but I'd like to share some things I wish I knew before I started.
First off, you'll need a set of punches (be super careful) at the minimum. As for other tools that came in handy:
- I used a roll of blue masking tape as a bench block, and it worked well for me.
- A small jewelers screwdriver comes in handy for lifting the sear spring.
- Tweezers are nice for the hammer pin retaining pin, and the safety detent.
- I had a magnetic bowl to keep all of the small parts in one place, and to keep them from walking away.
As for the polishing process itself, here's some tips I wish I knew:
- I used 1500 grit. Go slow, and take your time. You can't put metal back on, so just smooth everything. I went conservative on the polishing and I felt a noticeable difference in trigger pull (smoothness/weight)
- Places that I had to revisit that made a difference: the face of the trigger bar that meets the sear/disconnector, the grooves under the trigger bar that the trigger return spring sits in, the firing pin block, and the sear cage assembly. While the assembly is out of the frame but still together, push on the sear and FPB lifter, you'll feel the grit where they catch. Polish those spots.
- Be careful of the trigger return spring, the FPB spring, and the two springs in the sear cage assembly. They can have a tendency to walk or fly away, so be careful. I bet they'd be difficult to find on carpet.
- Putting together the search cage assembly is probably the hardest part.
I hope you're patient... Take breaks if you need to. With all of the practice, I can get it back together without much swearing now. I'd avoid doing this repeatedly to save stress, just do it right the first time and be done. - While you have the gun completely apart, clean everything. I thought my pistol was clean, but I had only done field strip cleaning in the two years I've owned it. I got a satisfying amount of stuff off that I wouldn't normally be able to get to. Don't go super crazy on that initial clean though, you're going to have to clean off all of the polishing residue before your final assembly.
- When assembling, make sure the lifter spring arm is sitting in the grooves in the lifter arm (it's difficult to see.) Also be sure the trigger return spring arms are in the little grooves underneath the trigger bar, mine wasn't all the way in the first time, you'll feel it in the trigger if you do the same.
As for parts to replace there's some that are a must (and really inexpensive):
- Firing pin retaining pin. Mine was cracked/gouged, and I don't run my pistol that often or very hard. I did dry fire a lot, but the majority of them were either with the laser trainer, or with an O ring covering the firing pin. I have a cheaper $40 laser cartridge from Amazon, maybe all of the fires with that led to the pin cracking?
- CGW's floating trigger pin. Way better than the OEM, lifetime guarantee,
and makes assembly/disassembly easier. Comes with a slave pin too. - Trigger return spring. OEM ones are known to break. If you get the reduced power version, you lighten the trigger pull a little bit for a small investment.
I was originally just going to replace the FP retaining pin, but came across the srs-1 (short reset system). It had the retaining pin I needed, and also had a reduced power FPB spring. Since I wanted to keep DA for now, I thought I'd lighten it with the kit, until I decide if I want to change the hammer/disco later on. I'd recommend getting extra springs also, you'll never know when you'll lose one. I probably should have gotten an extra recoil spring.
All in all, my break is way more crisp, both pulls are lighter, and my reset is shorter. Since I was used to the factory DA, the new one feels great! All for less than 100 bucks and some time/elbow grease. Definitely worth it if you're considering it. I actually enjoyed the process too.
