I own a hand fitted Model 41 and after about 30 years this is the first time I'm having trouble reassembling it.... The trigger guard will not pull back up into place to complete the reassembly.

Any help is appreciated.

Will it lock back in place with the barrel removed ?
I had a Clark barrel on mine and it was pretty tight.

Clarence

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B.E.Master in&outdoor
D.R.#99

It sounds like a problem with the locking pawl that holds the barrel on. It could just be old dried out grease or powder residue. I would take the grips off and give the locking pawl area a good shot of spray cleaner, blow it out with compressed air, relube and reassemble.

Will the trigger guard close without the barrel in place?

My 30 yo M41 exhibits about 30 mils of fore and aft "play" with the barrel in place but the trigger guard not engaged. Can't remember which, but the trigger guard will not engage if the barrel is either all the way aft or all the way forward. If the guard wont lock, simply taking up the play in the opposite direction solves the problem. Hopes that makes sense.

I tried moving the barrel fore and aft without success.
It doesn't want to close without the barrel in place.
I'll hose it off with some blast cleaner tomorrow night and report back.
Thanks!

Can we assume the slide is in the lock open position?

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TOMBECK

Success! After having no luck hosing it down with a half can of Break Free and blowing it out with 90PSI air. I tired some Liquid Wrench and let it sit for 15 minutes, then tapped it slightly, maybe a touch more, with a rubber mallet and it broke free. There must have been some serious gunk in there.
Thanks again for quick responses and all the suggestions!