I am wondering what your opinions are on how important it is to be able to detail strip and do complex maintenance on a handgun. I broke the firing pin retaining pins on my CZ P-01 and it was a complete nightmare trying to replace them. It seems like compared to a Glock, most pistols are orders of magnitude more complex to detail strip and replace parts on. For example, I find it quite irritating how hard it is to replace a firing pin on a Ruger LCP. Sometimes I wonder if I should just switch over to all Glocks to simplify maintenance and provide peace of mind.
Vote for switching to Glocks. I went further and switched all to same cal Glocks (9mm), might get 45 down the road but not any time soon… You probably can tell I’m bias.
If time and money were no object, I’d be a factory certified armorer for any system I owned. For most, that’s not reasonable. However, knowing how to do more than a simple field strip for cleaning is definitely valuable.
I’d still want to be able to swap out trigger assemblies and extractors for most any handgun I own, and replace barrels for any long gun I own or frequently use. YouTube can help with some of that. Switching to a single platform with widely available armorers training and resources does help, though.
Break out of the “one gun” mode. Get at least a couple of all the types you might want and work on them. If you need to send them out, we’ll you have another… JMO
I buy them to shoot, not to repair. The amount of time I spend worrying about disassembly is negligible compared to the amount I shoot it. Of course, there are some people that actually like the way Glocks handle and shoot. They’re the lucky ones, I guess.
I wouldn’t think you’d have parts breaking at a frequency to justify switching makers. Sounds like you have the skills to repair common issues. Investing the time to learn how to work on what you have would get my vote.
Not to specifically call anyone who does assembly work an idiot, but for the discussion at hand, consider this: Some idiot on the assembly line put the pistol together.
Can you better?
And I don’t mean an actual idiot, as most firarms assembly requires four elements. Parts, training, tools, and modest manual dexterity. Lacking any one of those, you have no reason to attempt to disassemble or reassemble anything, particularly something that could potentially get you killed if you fail.
What was hard about replacing the P-01’s FP retainer pin? You just get a 1/8" punch and knock it out and then tap the new one in while slightly depressing the firing pin.
Oh, and to save yourself trouble in the future Cajun Gun Works has tool steel FP retainer pins that are a lot tougher than the factory pieces.
Part of the reason I essentially went all-Glock in 2008 was the maintenance/logistics aspect. A gun that I could work on myself seemed to be a very good thing. I was, and am, concerned about future access to skilled gunsmiths.
I think its becoming more important every day to be able to maintain at least one carry pistol with no help. I have set aside a couple of Glocks with all the spare parts to keep them running, including lots of magazines. I imagine it will be more difficult or impossible to ship a gun anywhere in ten years, at least in many states.
