What does the trigger play spring do in 3 generation guns?

How do you know when it ain't doin' it?

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Eccentric old coot

It keeps tension on the trigger in single action mode. Without it you may have slight play in the single action trigger which some notice and some don't.

Doesn't affect double action.

Dave

I notice a "click" when dry firing in single action. Does that have anything to with it?

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Eccentric old coot

Nope, that's just the way cs45's are Iggy.

No really, that's it. you could gently bend it forward a bit, for a quick fix. You might need to replace it eventually if needed.

I got a 4566 that had it removed. I'm pretty sure it was a police trade in, the right side was very scratched, but it has one of the best triggers I have.

Thanks for the replies. Good to know.
I have read about the guns where it had been removed, and wondered about it.
However comma, I'm a firm believer in "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

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Eccentric old coot

What that "click" is. The trigger hooks sometimes sits lower on the drawbar head, so when you touch the trigger, the hooks ride up the angled part of the drawbar head until they meet the beveled contact point.

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viking

Tip: when you start a new thread, please give some hint as to the subject. This helps the forum in many ways AND it helps you also to get the attention of others who may post with an answer.

I have dealt with the dreaded trigger play spring and "click" mostly in a 4566. Here's how I would describe it when it is NOT working properly:

The pistol is cocked for a single action shot but you haven't put your finger on the trigger yet. When you do, your first feel is an almost dead trigger, it "falls" backward just a bit, with basically no resistance whatsoever until it stops and you now feel resistence. At this point, you squeeze the trigger and trip the sear, firing a shot.

If you continue to shoot the magazine in a typical semi-auto fashion, taking aimed shots in continuation, you probably won't notice the faulty trigger play spring again until the next magazine. Typically, you only let out the trigger enough between shots to reset the disconnector and prepare for the next shot.

The trigger play spring, when working properly, places the trigger exactly where it needs to be before a single action shot. When the trigger play spring is faulty, the trigger hangs loose until you willfully take up the "dead" space before meeting the sear.

It's totally annoying, in my opinion, and if I had to make a list of S&W 1-2-3rd Gen things I DON'T like, it's near the top of the list.

What I don't understand is why it seems to be such a rampant issue on the .45cal pistols while it rarely seems to appear on the other guns. The part itself is extremely flimsy. If the .45's were the first S&W's that I ever saw, I would call the trigger play spring a horrible design... yet it seems to have worked almost flawlessly since like 1955 on the other guns, so I can't really say the design is bad.

Sevens,
Thanks for the tip and the description of the function of the spring.

Mine is just as you describe. I don't notice it when firing.. Now I understand..

Thanks again.
Iggy.

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Eccentric old coot