Firing Pin

[Sliver Shooter]

Hey guys, question reguarding the Trapdoor firing pin. Is there supposed to be a spring on them? Mine has none and the firing pin looks ground on. Maybe not the right one?

[Rick B]

I have no firing pin in my 1884 and mine fires perfectly. Rick B

[Major Tom]

I believe some early trapdoors had a spring for the firing pin. The correct firing for a spring would have a 'stop' to hold spring in place. If your firing pin has grind marks, it could have been the old style pin for use with a spring. What model trapdoor do you have including full serial number?

[glindes]

I have no firing pin in my 1884 and mine fires perfectly. Rick B

...omitted a word there? e.g. "spring" (I'm just trying to keep up with the class...) Geoff

[5MadFarmers]

Early on they had springs. Those would break and then jam the firing pin in the forward position - with it firing when the block was closed.

Later they didn't have a spring. Resulting in the pin freezing in the forward position during Winter in the Northern reaches. This resulted in the gun firing when the block was closed.

Later they went to a special metals pin to avoid the freezing issue....

[Dick Hosmer]

The .50 caliber, and early .45 cal TDs had pins with a sharp shoulder and spring, to minimize or eliminate possibility of a slam fire, but, it was found that the springs would rust and break, causing the pin to jam forward and possibly cause that which it was designed to prevent. Fix #1: eliminate the spring, but the pin could still rust to the block. Fix #2: Change pin to a non-ferrous alloy, which would not become stuck. This latter was the only feature from the positive cam trial of 1888 to be adopted.

[5MadFarmers]

Freeze too....

[Dick Hosmer]

Perhaps the only consequence was that noted by the washerwoman!

[carbineone1964]

Mine has no spring... But I have one of those custom two piece pins though..

[Sliver Shooter]

The letter is very interesting as I live in Southern MN. I had wondered about the early models maybe having them. My TD is an 1873 model. I have no idea what could have been changed through out its life. When I took the pin out it just looked like someone had crudely ground the area behing the pointed end. It shoots just fine.