Uberti Firing Pin Safety

[Cypress Sam, SASS #10915]

If you just want to disable the safety, you don’t have to replace anything. Here is how to do it:



After disassembling the gun, remove all of the parts comprising the safety, including the firing pin. You will see that the firing pin is held in place by a pin in the hammer through a long slot in the firing pin that allows it to move forward to engage the primer and back for the “safe” position. To make the gun fire without the “push rod” in place, cut apiece of 0.215” diameter steel rod for a spacer and insert into the same hole where the firing pin goes. Cut that rod to a length that will make the firing pin protrude fully when it’s retaining pin is in place. Note that the firing pin is a little loose in the hammer to permit it to self align with the hole in the frame, so don’t make the spacer too tight.



To reverse the procedure, take out the spacer and reinstall all of the safety parts. 

[Nickel City Dude]

Would it also work to just remove the firing pin, put the spacer in place, re-instal the firing pin and not remove any of the safety linkage?

[Redleg Reilly, SASS #46372]

Don't think so since the trigger will still be attempting to push up the safety bar and if you have installed the spacer as talked about above, it won't be able to push up the safety - so it may jam or not fire.

[Nickel City Dude]

Redleg

If the spacer is installed the firing pin would be pushed forward and there would be empty space behind the pin.  The linkage would rise up and fill the empty space and do nothing.  I have a couple of Uberti Gunfighters with the safety pin and I have not had any trouble with the guns.  It is also good for reenacting and hunting as this way with the safety hammer it is possible to load all six chambers and not worry about the pin resting on a live round.

NCD

[Redleg Reilly, SASS #46372]

I'll take your word for it.  Now where does one find .215 steel for the spacer?

[Cheyenne Ranger, 48747L]

.215 is about 5.4 mm

 

here is where you can buy 5.5 mm rod and you could put it in a drill and use a piece of wet/dry sandpaper to reduce the diameter

[Sedalia Dave]

A number 3 drill bit is 0.213 inches or 5.4991 mm in diameter and should work just fine.

 

Possibly easier to find is a 7/32 drill bit which is 0.2188 inches or 5.5550 mm in diameter. If it is too big just chuck it in a drill and sand to the desired size.

[The Original Lumpy Gritz]

CRS, is not my friend-

OLG

[Sedalia Dave]

5 minutes ago, The Original Lumpy Gritz said:

Try the un-threaded shaft of a 5/16" dia bolt.

Much easier to turn down that HSS drill shaft. 

OLG

 

Hardness of the drill bit shaft will keep it from deforming due to repetitive impacts.

 

BTW a 5/16 bolt shaft is about 0.312 and would be way too big. Unthreaded shaft of a #12 bolt is a lot closer at 0.216. 

 

Or you for a softer metal you could use a 30d common nail with a diameter of 0.207

 

[The Original Lumpy Gritz]

OK-My bad, have now cleaned my glasses and see the OP said .215. 

OLG

[Cactus Jack Calder]

Is there some reason that a spacer made of softer metal (bolt shaft or common nail) is an advantage? It seems to me that the harder material of a drill bit would be a better choice. Perhaps the firing pins are softer and would be damaged by the harder spacer?

[Warden Callaway]

I'd think with all the custom race gun part makers turning out one-piece firing pins, straight triggers, magazine followers,  on and on,  they would see a market for replacement firing pins that would defeat the retractable firing pin. 

[Cypress Sam, SASS #10915]

The spacer doesn’t have to be exactly .215”.  I used a piece of old military cleaning rod and that’s what size it was.  The firing pin hole is about .250”.  The spacer should be fairly snug in the hole and the length should be adjusted to hold the FP fully extended.  The harder the spacer is, the more resistance to deformation it will have.  

 

Or or if you have a lathe, you could just make a new FP that is long enough to fit completely in the hammer without any in-out movement.  That will work too.

 

One friend just epoxied the push rod in place so that the FP stayed in the “out” position.  That worked as well but isn’t easily reversible.

[Cactus Jack Calder]

Thank you for the information. I had read about the epoxy solution earlier.

I was reluctant to make that conversion.

The spacer seams like a better option for me.