Some time ago I asked if anyone could help me get the backstrap off my Megastar .45. I found some instructions on the Internet, but it turned out that these were incomplete and confusing, at least to me. Thanks to information from Steven Hoober, whom I contacted privately, I have now mastered this little procedure.
On the Megastar the backstrap and the trigger assembly are removable as one piece. Remove the slide. Inside the mag well there is a plunger. Push that down with a suitable tool and push up on the lanyard loop at the butt. You can also pull upwards on the uncocked trigger. This should push or pull the backstrap free. Then push the backstrap and trigger assembly all the way out the top of the frame. To replace the backstrap, hold the frame at an angle so that the little black pin on the trigger assembly will fit over the black pieces on the frame (I don't know the names). Then push the backstrap down so that the lanyard ring goes back in its hole. The plunger should snap back into place, securing the backstrap in place.
I wanted to remove the backstrap in order to tighten up the grip panels. These panels slide onto the frame and then are held in place by the backstrap. I placed some shims between the panels and the grip in order to eliminate some movement in the grip panels. All that has worked well. No more loose grip panels.
Apparently the Megastar was a huge bust. Very few people seem to have bought this large pistol in either the .45 or 10 MM versions, although the latter got attention from the 10 MM crowd. But I like my Megastar because of its 12 round mag, recoil resistance, operating features (lever which puts the pistol on safety and decocks in different positions), and handsome appearance. Thus far it has been totally reliable. I don't know whether I will need to remove the mag safety. The supposedly rare and expensive hi-cap mags have not been a problem for me. Two chrome ones came with the pistol and two blued ones are in the mail.
But this pistol is a novelty, in part because it is no longer produced and its manufacturer, Echeverria of Eibar, Spain, has gone out of business. But for .45 fans, it may be worth a look.
Drakejake
On the Megastar the backstrap and the trigger assembly are removable as one piece. Remove the slide. Inside the mag well there is a plunger. Push that down with a suitable tool and push up on the lanyard loop at the butt. You can also pull upwards on the uncocked trigger. This should push or pull the backstrap free. Then push the backstrap and trigger assembly all the way out the top of the frame. To replace the backstrap, hold the frame at an angle so that the little black pin on the trigger assembly will fit over the black pieces on the frame (I don't know the names). Then push the backstrap down so that the lanyard ring goes back in its hole. The plunger should snap back into place, securing the backstrap in place.
I wanted to remove the backstrap in order to tighten up the grip panels. These panels slide onto the frame and then are held in place by the backstrap. I placed some shims between the panels and the grip in order to eliminate some movement in the grip panels. All that has worked well. No more loose grip panels.
Apparently the Megastar was a huge bust. Very few people seem to have bought this large pistol in either the .45 or 10 MM versions, although the latter got attention from the 10 MM crowd. But I like my Megastar because of its 12 round mag, recoil resistance, operating features (lever which puts the pistol on safety and decocks in different positions), and handsome appearance. Thus far it has been totally reliable. I don't know whether I will need to remove the mag safety. The supposedly rare and expensive hi-cap mags have not been a problem for me. Two chrome ones came with the pistol and two blued ones are in the mail.
But this pistol is a novelty, in part because it is no longer produced and its manufacturer, Echeverria of Eibar, Spain, has gone out of business. But for .45 fans, it may be worth a look.
Drakejake