A customer has a trigger issue with his Camp 9. The trigger seems to be stuck, it won’t move. I have not seen the gun, but a good guess would be a magazine disconnector and or trigger block problem. Of course this is a guess, there may be other issues. I mentioned this to the customer and he asked if I would remove them. I told him due to liability issues I would not, but would check to see if there is a burr or some other issue that can be corrected.
My question is, is it ever a wise decision to remove a factory part, even though it seems to be the preferred method for both the Camp 9 and 45. The mag disconnect is an issue in many, many guns but I’ve never heard of gunsmiths removing factory parts, only gun owners.
It depends. Definitely not if the gun is for carry, self-defense, or duty purposes. I would if the gun is solely for target or sports use, and I will state that in the write-up and have the customer sign it. -TL
Answer
I would not remove a safety, and the factories think a mag disconnect is one. DC
Answer
Gunsmiths do this as well, though I’m not sure it is necessarily the wise choice. Many smiths refuse to do this because of potential liabilities, but I’ve seen some where the customer signs a waiver. Not sure I’ve ever heard of any waiver holding up in court, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a court case for removing safeties anyway.
For the gun in question, many “internet experts” recommend removing the magazine disconnect because it can cause problems. I recommend that owners return the gun for factory service to correct the problem. But I’m often the lone voice in the wilderness in these cases. For me, I won’t remove factory safeties and I do a thorough safety test before releasing a gun. I have a friend that won’t let me work on his guns because I put the magazine disconnect back in one, and I don’t mind not doing work for him. The factory will return firearms to the original condition as well, and they can afford more lawyers than I can. 🙂 Jeff
Answer
If a safety or magazine disconnect is removed or altered to where it doesn’t work and someone gets hurt, even if it isn’t a safety issue, you can be in trouble. Remember reality can have little to do with a court case or outcome. If the customer’s gun is picked up by someone other than the customer and the trigger pulled with the magazine out, the gun would fire. The person who pulled the trigger would be responsible as he is the ONE who pulled the trigger, but he would say “I thought it was safe since the magazine was out and that model comes from the factory with a magazine disconnect.”
As I say in my classes do what you want in your shop but I will not deactivate safeties in my shop. Ken
Reply
Thank you all for your valuable input. I feel my decision to not remove the disconnect, but rather attempt to correct the disconnect if that is indeed the problem, has been validated by your responses. Thanks again guys, you have been a big help!
