Keep in mind!!!
Assuming the top end is off and your rareing to go but havent yet pulled the safety (ambi or otherwise). Get the panels off, both sides, no reason to leave them on.
Half cock.
rotate safety to half. Make sure you have the receiver muzzle end pointing away from you and the hammer end aimed at your chest reason being is when you part the left and right safety pieces there is the spring and detent pin on the left that will launch about half way to dallas texas and with the frame positioned with the hammer end toward your chest the pin and spring should drop dead when it hits you. I usually try to direct it into a bib and let it fall to the bench. When your pulling your safety apart there can be a lot of tugging going on. Try to resist prying with your little screw driver because it will marr, and doesnt make you feel good when you see it afterwards, the two pieces is a slot and tenen (male female) union and your just tugging them outward and apart. When the part its sometimes by surprise and if not eased apart you immediately release the spring and pin. When it happens it can all happens in one motion and keeping track of where the pin land can be a real frustrating event (it will be somewhere in the same room). If you tug very firmly but feeling for separaation you will be able to keep the pin in place then just pull it out after the safty sides are apart and on the bench. The rest is a piece of cake, Mainspring housing out, sear pin, hammer pin, etc. just lay them in the order you remove them and all the pices reasseble in reverse.
You can pull tjhe trigger after rotating the slide release screw and removing it to the left, the trigger and stirrup all slide out the rear.thats if you want to break it all the way down. No reason to other than just doing it for the experience and seeing it happen.
Its all very simple, which is the beauty of the 1911 design.
Let me know how you makae out.
tom
