Dan Wesson Specialist 9mm on the way

[venenoindy]

Congrats to the OP on a sweet new gun!



Solvent will mess it up as well. Ask me how I know...

What do you recommend to clean it?.

 

[venenoindy]

Well just came back from the range and I did encounter some issues, I had a failure to return to battery but the slide was really stuck. I couldn't move it, I had to push hard on the slide to get it go into battery. It did it a total of two times. The other issue was the magazines were not locking the slide back, I did test with an empty mag inserted and tha magazine was not putting enough pressure on the slide stop lever. I think the recoil spring may be too light as sometimes the slide struggled to return to battery, I came across this same thing on a YouTube video of the same type of gun.

 

[Hopper]

Oof, sorry to hear this. I hand-cycled my slide (minus barrel/recoil spring) and wiped it down/very liberally re-lubed it every 50 rounds (up to about 300+ hand cycles IIRC) before I took my first shots. I use a combination of Slip 2000 and Permatex Ultra Slick Assembly Lube, which when mixed together end up slicker than snot. Mine cycled perfectly.

I believe the Specialist 5" 9mm ships with a 10# recoil spring. According to Wilson Combat, spring weight for a gov't 9mm is between 10 - 12#. I purchased a couple 12# replacement springs before my first range trip just in case, as I've read occasional reports that people get better results going up to the 12# option for the same reasons you experienced today.

As for cleaning the Duty finish, anything oil based should be fine. Steer clear of anything with solvents in it.

I know it wasn't a dream outing today, but it's time to post some pics!

 

[venenoindy]

IIRC, Metalform Mags are OEM for DW. I've used Metalform with my DWs and haven't had any issues with feeding or the slide locking back when empty.

I just ordered Wilson mags and 12# spring, I did some more research and it looks like the Metalform mags are hit or miss. I did had mag issues in the past with my DW 9mm 1911's. not happy I have to buy mags for a brand new handgun in order to work correctly, I guess is part of the 1911 experience.

 

[wtburnette]

Well just came back from the range and I did encounter some issues, I had a failure to return to battery but the slide was really stuck. I couldn't move it, I had to push hard on the slide to get it go into battery. It did it a total of two times. The other issue was the magazines were not locking the slide back, I did test with an empty mag inserted and tha magazine was not putting enough pressure on the slide stop lever. I think the recoil spring may be too light as sometimes the slide struggled to return to battery, I came across this same thing on a YouTube video of the same type of gun.

Not sure about the slide lockback, but the other issues may just be needing to be shot in. 1911's have very tight tolerances and work much better after being shot in, at least that's been my experience.

 

[venenoindy]

Not sure about the slide lockback, but the other issues may just be needing to be shot in. 1911's have very tight tolerances and work much better after being shot in, at least that's been my experience.

I have had a couple of DW's in the past and you are correct they are very tight tolerances, I wish I had more ammo to break it in. I'm not discouraged just need to buy more ammo and run it with the other mags, this thing is a tank!. It's heavier than I expected (good thing), I'm happy with my purchase just like you suggested I need to shoot it more and it will be fine.

 

[Hopper]

@venenoindy - before your next range trip, try doing what I did. Field strip and then put ONLY the slide back on the frame. Make sure it's really wet with the lube of your choice. Cycle it back-and-forth 50x, take the slide off, wipe it down, re-lube and repeat. Keep. It. Wet. It's rare but there are reports of stainless on stainless (slide on frame) "galling" when not properly lubed during the break-in period.

In my case (and IMHO), doing this essentially replicated much of the break-in process without firing a single round as it gave the slide and frame "cycles" to mate with each other's surfaces.

 

[venenoindy]

@venenoindy - before your next range trip, try doing what I did. Field strip and then put ONLY the slide back on the frame. Make sure it's really wet with the lube of your choice. Cycle it back-and-forth 50x, take the slide off, wipe it down, re-lube and repeat. Keep. It. Wet. It's rare but there are reports of stainless on stainless (slide on frame) "galling" when not properly lubed during the break-in period.

In my case (and IMHO), doing this essentially replicated much of the break-in process without firing a single round as it gave the slide and frame "cycles" to mate with each other's surfaces.

I will try that thanks.

 

[venenoindy]

Doing some hand cycling while watching some tv.

 

[KG1]

Doing some hand cycling while watching some tv.

Looks good anyway. Hopefully you'll be able to get it functioning as good as it looks.

 

[drillsgt]

Doing some hand cycling while watching some tv.

I like the new look of those where they straightened out the front of the frame instead of having the curve out like they used to have.