Ambidextrous safety removal

[TMan]

%$#@&( I'm trying to removal the ambidextrous safety on the Springfield. On the Taurus you just pulled off the right side, and then removed the left side just like a normal safety. This one doesn't want to budge. I can't remove either the left or right hand side. I'm afraid to just pry on it because I could break it off.

According to the owner's manual, it appears to just be a two piece safety like on the Taurus. I'm really developing a hatred for south-paws.

Anyone have an idea or method for doing this?

[MLB]

Ice the pin side and heat the lever side? Just a thought.

I've been considering taking off the ambi safety on the Hi-Power too.

[TMan]

There isn't a pin like there is in the Hi-Power. The Hi-Power is a piece of cake. Your hot/cold idea might work though. The safety goes through the frame and the grip safety.

It hasn't been a great day. I couldn't get the slide back on the S&W 952. I was talking to my daughter on the phone, which kept me from turning the air blue.

I finally figured out that I needed to release my hold on the grip safety in order for the slide to go on.

[TMan]

I finally got it off. I was able to get a little bit of space between the right lever and the frame to slip in two brass feeler gages. I then clamped the frame into a vice, and drove a screwdriver down between the feeler gages near the post. It came flying off.

It may be interesting trying to get it all back together when I finish with the engagement work.

[MLB]

I was bothered by whacking my Ruger with a rubber mallet. Hammering a screwdriver into it will take me a bit more time ;D

["DoubleAction"]

TMan; I had the same trouble with a Kimber. If the right side of the ambi has the retaining bar running underneath the grip, it can be removed by pulling or prying. There are some ambi thumb safeties, like the one made by Kings, which is different.

Due to the tight tolerances of CNC manufacturing, and production assembly, these pistols are assembled with little thought made toward the smooth ease of detailed disassembly. For most who buy these pistols, they never go beyond field stripping the pistol. I know some who are afraid to remove the slide; never mind my urgent request to assist them, which goes refused.

Be very careful when putting the frame in a vise, it isn't as strong as it looks.

[TMan]

DA, I'm using my rifle whatchacallit. It is padded and I didn't put much pressure on it. I saw in some catalog that there is an insert that takes the place of a magazine for putting the frame in a real vise. For the limited work that I'll be doing on 1911's I don't see the point. If I was into some serious stuff like fitting slides, barrels, etc. I might get one. I do have one for the AR-15.

What I really like that I have for the AR-15 and recently got one for the 1911 is a stop so that you can dry-fire without the slide. That makes it nice for doing trigger work.

["DoubleAction"]

TMan; When changing to a floating tube forend on my AR-15 I chose to purchase an upper receiver block, rather than using the vise on the barrel. It was something I used only once but it saved me the cost of a trip to the smith and prevented the risk of breaking the barrel's detent pin, which aligns the barrel to the frame.

I know you are careful, however, there might be a chance of someone else reading the messages who might decide to put his pistol frame in a vise, who knows no better. Imagine clamping down the frame of a Glock or alloy frame of a Sig Sauer, with the same amount of torque one would apply to scrape steel.

[TMan]

DA, I never hesitate to buy a needed tool, if one exists. Unfortunately, one didn't for the safety. By using the rifle's padded vise, I wasn't worried about the frame. If I cranked down on this plastic vise, it would break.

My use of the brass feeler gages was the best I could come up with. One of them really got messed up in the process. however, since brass is soft, there was no damage to the frame.

Incidentally, this Springfield sure has a lot of MIM parts.

[MLB]

MIM parts invoke the same negative feelings in me that OSB wood sheathing does.

From a purely practical standpoint though, they have thier place. You don't use OSB for flooring, but maybe for wall sheathing. Similarly, MIM sears doesn't sound like a good plan, but a magazine release, well, maybe that's not so bad.

[TMan]

I don't know about that MLB. I think I'd rather have a quality MIM sear than one that was cast and surface hardened. I think everything in this Springfield I'm working on is MIM. After stoning the sear and hammer hooks, we will see how well it holds up. Of course none of my guns get thousands of rounds with the exception of my old Ruger P90, which has retired to being my upstairs loaded defense weapon.