mrcabinet
Member
I ran across this old girl (1971) at a somewhat local show last weekend. On the outside, it has the typical "patina" of a gun that sat in an underwear drawer in a house with no AC. I asked to take a closer look, and that's when the seller informed me that it "had some issues". It would only operate in DA about half the time, and zero times in SA. There was no way that hammer was coming back when you pulled on it. I couldn't help but laugh when I saw the $825 price on it. I had a hunch what the issue might be, and the smooth targets grips were calling me, so I told him the best I could do was a straight trade for an ATI 9mm Commander that I had brought, which I was only into for less that $300. He jumped on the trade and I brought her home.
First thing I did was pull the side plate and yup, it was full of gunk inside. All the internals had a nice varnish of dried oil on them too. After an overnight soak in Kroil, multiple blasts with brake cleaner and brushing, I generously oiled it and put it all back together. Well gee, it runs like a champ now, which I confirmed at the range Wednesday. She's now resting 30 minutes away, at a gunsmith that does hand polishing and hot bluing. This gives me plenty of time to restore those purdy grips.
First thing I did was pull the side plate and yup, it was full of gunk inside. All the internals had a nice varnish of dried oil on them too. After an overnight soak in Kroil, multiple blasts with brake cleaner and brushing, I generously oiled it and put it all back together. Well gee, it runs like a champ now, which I confirmed at the range Wednesday. She's now resting 30 minutes away, at a gunsmith that does hand polishing and hot bluing. This gives me plenty of time to restore those purdy grips.