4506 Trigger Return Spring

Gun Smoke · #1 07-12-2011, 04:08 PM

Hello all...I have a mod 4506 and the sheet metal spring in the slide finally broke and the single action trigger now has about 1/2 inch of free play...Can the gun be fired safely like this and does S&W still have repair parts to fix it under warranty?...Also what causes the click sound during single action trigger pull which I find annoying and can it be eliminated or corrected by a trigger job by a good gunsmith?...Thank you all very much

Ranger98 · #2 07-12-2011, 04:11 PM

Contact S&W 1-800-331-0852. They should be able to help you out

Shadow1006 · #3 07-12-2011, 04:25 PM

Trigger play spring cracked or broken can make the clicking sound and as you observed the excess free travel. See what S&W advises!

Swabby · #4 07-12-2011, 05:16 PM

Yep, the "click" is the hooks (for lack of a better word) on the top of your trigger sliding up and out of the groove on the head of your drawbar. They are aloud to do that because your trigger play spring is no longer putting tension on the rear of those "hooks". If you have the spring replaced, the play and the click should go away. When you have the hammer cocked for a single action pull, and you pull the trigger about an 1/8", would should be able to feel and/or hear the tips of the hooks fall back into the groove before the hammer falls (the way the gun is now).

If you know how to detail strip your frame, the trigger play spring is not that difficult to change. You punch out the old rivet which holds the spring to the drawbar (bottom to top), the old spring falls off, replace it with a new spring, then peen it all back together with a new rivet (top to bottom). Once you have the drawbar in your hands, you'll see what I mean. I think S&W customer service would probably do that repair for free or very little cost.

Gun Smoke · #5 07-12-2011, 05:33 PM

Thanks Swabby, I think I'll let S&W take care of it if the part is still available....I am not a gunsmith by any means and do not know how to detail strip the frame and would probably break something else trying to do it....Does a trigger job help the gen 3 guns like my 4506 very much?...My pistol has always had a heavy double action and kind of a mushy single action pull....I have a S&W 1911 at Novaks right now getting night sights and I noticed on their web site they do action jobs on gen 3 guns, do you think it would improve the pull enough to merit the cost...Thanks again for the reply...

Forsmithers · #6 07-12-2011, 08:48 PM

Gun Smoke, a trigger job by a qualified gunsmith (like Wayne Novak's shop) can help smooth out a trigger pull on a 3rd generation Smith. The other thing that will improve it is a lot of dry and live firing as the pistol breaks in. That takes thousands of pulls so paying someone to speed it up is often worth the extra money.

Just remember, the long and heavy double action pull on a Smith and Wesson pistol is there for a reason and the lighter, shorter single action pull will be much shorter and lighter. And a lot of times it's the smoothness that counts on an action or trigger job versus a lighter trigger pull.

Post a follow up after your 4506 is fixed to let us know how it is working and who did a trigger job if you move forward on it.

Swabby · #7 07-13-2011, 02:58 AM

I also have a 4506, which I did some minor trigger work on, by stoning and polishing the sides of the drawbar, stirrup, drawbar plunger and other moving parts. This smooths the action, but does not make a necessarily lighter pull. For a lighter trigger pull, you must mess with the rear of the drawbar/sear/bottom of the hammer area. They are very strict dimensions and should only been done by someone that really understands the 3rd Gen auto. As stated before, the 3rd Gen auto is a different beast from a single action 1911 style pistol. You will never get the exact same feel out of both actions, but a trigger job will help. I think S&W still offers an action tune for 3rd Gen autos. If you are sending her in for the trigger play spring, it may be a good idea to look into the action tune as well.

BruceB · #8 07-14-2011, 11:30 PM

I had the 3rd gen action job done on my 5906, with noticeable improvement in the DA pull.

While the pistol was at S&W, Vito called me to ask if he could replace the (non-S&W) grips with OEM grips, since the grips were screwing up the work he had done. He was in a hurry, so
I just said "Sure", and got the pistol back with brand new straight-back grips.

Since I didn't get a chance to ask, I can only assume that somehow the non-OEM grips were causing some sort of drag on the mainspring during the DA trigger pull. Just something to tuck away for future reference if you're not using original grips.

As soon as I get back from vacation, my 4566 will be on it's way to S&W for a new trigger play spring. It works with one leg broken, but it's not pleasant to shoot!