OutlawDon
23rd September 2006, 23:02
I ordered some parts from EGW (http://egw-guns.com/catalog/) on Thursday and got them in the mail this morning! Talk about fast service and delivery! George was responsive in his e-mail advising me on what specs to get. Anyway, I got a stainless barrel bushing in .580 ID/.7015 OD size with thick flange and square corner bevel face. Also got a spring plug for the thick flange bushing and an oversized firing pin stop. Very good quality on all the pieces. A Kimber Stainless II will be the lucky recipient of these mods. :cool:
The bushing required some light 600 grit sanding on the inside to slide over the barrel, while the outside needed much more aggressive sanding with 180 grit paper initially, and then to 400 grit and finally 600 grit. Even then, the bushing is TIGHT going into the slide. It definitely requires the bushing wrench to turn once inside the slide, but that's exactly how I wanted it. The stock Kimber bushing was completely loose and spun around easily...I measured the slack to be about .008" , unacceptable for me. The stock bushing's OD was around .691" and the slide's ID was around .699". The ID of the bushing was around .581" while the barrel's OD was .579". As you can see, it's about as loose as a street corner whore's _______. Doh! :p
The firing pin stop was available only in a blued version, but I sanded the entire piece completely with 600 grit paper to a nice shiny finish. It came oversized and required narrowing the perimeter, and also decreasing the thickness of the edges slightly to fit into the slot. Again, I simply started with 180 grit sandpaper to 600 grit paper, and lots of elbow/finger grease. I used the stock FPS as a template throughout entire the process and checked the fitment periodically as not to remove too much material. I also rounded off the bottom edge that contacts the hammer with 600 grit paper. I layed a flat sandpaper on a table and ran the FPS over it, lifting up on the angle as I dragged it across. The edge came out smooth with a good looking and small rounded edge. Some people have suggested using a file, but this method worked fine for me. Stick with finer grits so you don't sand off to much at once...this is where it takes some patience.
The spring plug fit nicely and didn't require any material to be removed, but I sanded the outside anyway with 600 grit paper for a nicer finish and to smooth things out. It's slightly larger than the stock plug and sits in the slide perfectly.
In the end after it's all put back together, the fit of the barrel, bushing, spring plug, slide, and the guide rod is incredibly tight! There is absolutely no play or slack, yet cycles smoothly while I rack it by hand. With the flat-bottomed FPS, it does take more effort initially to rack the slide, and hopefully, this will translate to less felt recoil as more energy will be used to push the hammer. I'll probably head to the range tomorrow and see how much better it groups, and if the recoil will be a little softer and straighter up. (FYI...running a variable 17.5# recoil spring, and installed a Wilson buffer last week.)
All in all, for $50, these mods are a great bang for the buck! EGW rocks and makes great parts at very fair prices, guys! :) -Don
Look at those sexy parts after some sanding!
http://healthbydon.com/EGWparts.jpg
The thicker flange looks nice and stout!
http://healthbydon.com/KimberFront.jpg
And here's an old pic from awhile ago so you can see who's the lucky recipient.
http://healthbydon.com/rose.jpg
The bushing required some light 600 grit sanding on the inside to slide over the barrel, while the outside needed much more aggressive sanding with 180 grit paper initially, and then to 400 grit and finally 600 grit. Even then, the bushing is TIGHT going into the slide. It definitely requires the bushing wrench to turn once inside the slide, but that's exactly how I wanted it. The stock Kimber bushing was completely loose and spun around easily...I measured the slack to be about .008" , unacceptable for me. The stock bushing's OD was around .691" and the slide's ID was around .699". The ID of the bushing was around .581" while the barrel's OD was .579". As you can see, it's about as loose as a street corner whore's _______. Doh! :p
The firing pin stop was available only in a blued version, but I sanded the entire piece completely with 600 grit paper to a nice shiny finish. It came oversized and required narrowing the perimeter, and also decreasing the thickness of the edges slightly to fit into the slot. Again, I simply started with 180 grit sandpaper to 600 grit paper, and lots of elbow/finger grease. I used the stock FPS as a template throughout entire the process and checked the fitment periodically as not to remove too much material. I also rounded off the bottom edge that contacts the hammer with 600 grit paper. I layed a flat sandpaper on a table and ran the FPS over it, lifting up on the angle as I dragged it across. The edge came out smooth with a good looking and small rounded edge. Some people have suggested using a file, but this method worked fine for me. Stick with finer grits so you don't sand off to much at once...this is where it takes some patience.
The spring plug fit nicely and didn't require any material to be removed, but I sanded the outside anyway with 600 grit paper for a nicer finish and to smooth things out. It's slightly larger than the stock plug and sits in the slide perfectly.
In the end after it's all put back together, the fit of the barrel, bushing, spring plug, slide, and the guide rod is incredibly tight! There is absolutely no play or slack, yet cycles smoothly while I rack it by hand. With the flat-bottomed FPS, it does take more effort initially to rack the slide, and hopefully, this will translate to less felt recoil as more energy will be used to push the hammer. I'll probably head to the range tomorrow and see how much better it groups, and if the recoil will be a little softer and straighter up. (FYI...running a variable 17.5# recoil spring, and installed a Wilson buffer last week.)
All in all, for $50, these mods are a great bang for the buck! EGW rocks and makes great parts at very fair prices, guys! :) -Don
Look at those sexy parts after some sanding!
http://healthbydon.com/EGWparts.jpg
The thicker flange looks nice and stout!
http://healthbydon.com/KimberFront.jpg
And here's an old pic from awhile ago so you can see who's the lucky recipient.
http://healthbydon.com/rose.jpg