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Thread: Function of the Disconnector

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  1. #1
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    Function of the Disconnector

    "How does the disconnector work?" I get that question a lot, so I thought that it might be a good topic for those seeking understanding of the gun.

    Its technical name is "The Disconnect"...but it's actually more of a connector. I've often said that it's a connector AND a disconnector,
    since a true disconnector only arrests the hammer until the trigger is released, and allows it to fall back to the sear so that another trigger pull
    can fire the weapon. Among the simplest of true disconnectors is the one in the AR-15 rifle and its clones.

    When the pistol is in battery and ready to fire, the disconnect is positioned
    between the trigger stirrup and the backside of the sear legs. When the trigger is pulled, the disconnect is pushed into the sear, causing it to rotate
    off the hammer hooks, and the hammer falls. If the disconnect is removed, the hammer will cock, but pulling the trigger won't drop the hammer, bcause there's nothing there to bridge the gap between trigger and sear.

    When the slide moves rearward in recoil, the disconnect is pushed down into the frame by the center rail in the slide. When the disconnect is pushed downward, it drops below the sear legs, and the sear is now able to rotate back into position to catch the hammer hooks, and hold the hammer at full cock position. Since the disconnect is designed to allow a two axis movement...up/down and fore/aft...it continues to move rearward a little further, and is captured by the bottoms of the sear legs until the trigger is released...and then rotates forward enough to allow it to also be pushed upward so that the top of the disconnect sits in the half-moon shaped slot in the slide, and connects the trigger and sear, making the gun ready to fire again.

    This two-axis movement is provided by the center leg of the sear spring,
    located in the grip frame. This spring is a three-pronged leaf spring that also resets the sear and grip safety. The spring imposes tension on the
    disconnect in two directions at once by means of a 48 degree angle on the backside of the disconnect body, just above the paddle. The leaf
    pushes the disconnect forward to free it from the sear legs, and works with the angle to also move it upward.

    If the disconnect is worn, or out of spec...and can't move downward far enough to break the connection between the trigger and sear, the sear can't reset. (Unless you're quick enough to release the trigger before the slide starts to move forward after it recoils.) The hammer can't cock, and it will follow the slide. For this reason, the top of the disconnect should never be filed or stoned, other than to dress a sharp edge or burr at the corners. The tip shouldn't be touched, other than to polish it lightly on a non-aggressive material.

    I like denim with a little J&B Bore Cleaner imbedded into the cloth,
    and denim alone will often produce a nice burnish if the part is buffed
    briskly on the material.

    If the disconnector is too long, and can't move far enough upward into the
    slot, it can't make connection between trigger and sear. The hammer will cock, but the gun won't fire. This is where many people get into trouble with the disconnect. They figure out why the hammer won't fall, and shorten the top of the disconnect, only to discover that the hammer follows the slide...or in some cases, the gun goes into full-auto mode. I'll repeat the warning: The top of the disconnector should never be filed or stoned. If it doesn't move into firing pisition, the half-moon slot should be made deeper. There is a scraper available from Brownells that is designed specifically for this purpose.

    In case anyone gets the idea that they'd like to play with the disconnector length in order to purposely cause the pistol to fire in the full-auto mode...
    be warned...The gun can fire out of battery, and do serious damage to the slide, frame, magazine, your hand, your eyes...or all of the above. It's also illegal. Purposely modifying any firearm with the intent of creating a machinegun can land you in deep trouble unless you live in a Class 3 state, and you have done all the required paperwork. I strongly advise one and all to forget this little trick.

    El Comandante'! Feel free to add this to your tech forum if you wish.

    Cheers!

    Tuner
    Last edited by 1911Tuner; 27th September 2004 at 14:40.


  2. #2
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    Did so already, and made this thread sticky.

    Tnx Tuner!
    John Caradimas SV1CEC
    The M1911 Pistols Organization
    http://www.m1911.org

  3. #3
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    re: Sticky

    John...I just noticed that I typo-ed "Brownells"... Ya might wanna fix that. Sorry.

    Cheers all!

    Tuner

  4. #4
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    Not disconnected

    Tuner, been working on my Springfield and have a problem. When I manually dissengage the slide and pull the trigger the hammer falls. Does my new disconnect need the slot scraped to allow for more movement?

  5. #5
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    Scrape it?

    Howdy liltoad...

    I'm a little corn-fused. When the slide is in battery and you pull the trigger...
    does the hammer fall to half-cock? When you hit the slide release with the trigger held back...does the hammer fall without releasing the trigger and pulling it again?

    Standin' by...

  6. #6
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    here we go

    With the hammer cocked and safety off. I pull the slide back an eighth of an inch and puul the trigger and the hammer goes. I believe this means the diconnect isn't working properly. If I bring the slide back 3/4 of an inch and pull the trigger the hammer falls. The disconnect I installed isn'e working properly I believe. All else is working fine. The safety, beavertail, and so on. The gun simply can fire unlocked.

  7. #7
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    Disconnect Burp

    That's a bad thing, lil toad. Either somethin' is bad out of spec or the disconnect is worn. Check your PMs.

  8. #8
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    Hammer dropping

    Hey old timer, it's me. The bending of the sear spring did nothing, so I figured hammer and sear, like you said. Ordered a matched set from McCormick but found out too late that they required a beaver tail grip safety. .250 radius which my Springfield does not have. I told them I was not into filing and milling a perfectly good gun. Then asked if the sear would work with the original hammer and was told yep. So I sent back the hammer and with friend installed the new sear. BTW hammer hooks are 020 and at 90 degrees to hammer. Had to back out the Videki trigger set screw 3/4 turn. All seemed ok with no hammer dropping, Took it shooting and found a longer slack, a very definite "click" and them the hammer would fall. Little harder trigger pull also.
    Decided that my buddy and I are not gunsmiths and that life is too short to keep on fooling around, since I certainly don't have your knowledge ( your disconnect discussion was impressive)
    Talked to Debbie at Springfield and the gun goes to them on Monday. I'd rather shoot then fiddle.
    Thanks old man.
    Arc
    Last edited by acropolis; 21st August 2005 at 16:14.


  9. #9
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    Click

    Try backing the set screw out another half-turn. The click, may be due to the trigger needing a little more travel. There's also a built-in trigger overtravel stop in the gun that may require a slight adjustment. Rare, but it happens. It's the shoulder underneath the grip safety lug that blocks the trigger. If the stirrup hits that abutment a little too early, that can cause a problem too.

  10. #10
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    Good grief! I read my last message and sure wish I had editied it. Late night writing equals many mistakes.
    I appreciate the guidence and maybe should have backed out the screw some more, but then the other problem may have surfaced. There I would be playing gunsmith again.
    Since you don't live near Huntsville, I'm going ahead with my plan and mail the sucker back to Springfield for their experts to fix.
    I have had the gun since 1992 and fired a bunch of rounds through it. There may be other items needing a look see.
    This is too nice a gun to piddle with and one that is a jewel to shoot.
    "Keep cool in the motor pool"
    Arc

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