USFA SAA- hammer spring failure

[Cousin Pat]

I know they are ought of business - maybe there is a reason: I have a .45LC SAA of theirs, manufactured in 2010 -- the hammer spring has now failed for the 4th time -- this with at most 400 cumulative rounds fired. Anybody have any ideas?

 

[Hawg]

Get a Wolff reduced power spring for a Colt and fuggetaboutit. It will also improve the action.

 

[DPris]

They're not out of business, just out of the single-action revolver business.
And that was a series of managerial decisions, never an issue of quality.
Denis

 

[James K]

Hi, Pat,

Just out of curiosity, how did the spring fail? Did it break, or weaken? USFA had a pretty good reputation for their SAA's.

Jim

 

[Cousin Pat]

Spring failure - details

It failed - the cylinder would not lock up tight - this for 1st 3 times - this last time, the hammer froze in cocked position, trigger would not release, hammer could be pushed back to half cock. What is odd is that this is the.... 4th replacement spring (the last from an outfit in Texas would had USFA parts).

 

[James K]

I am not sure what would cause those problems, but they don't sound like hammer spring (mainspring) problems. The failure of the cylinder to lock up could be a broken trigger/cylinder stop spring, but I can't see how the hammer spring could be involved.

Jim

 

[Cousin Pat]

followup to James K

thanks for this -- I'm thinking I'd get my gunsmith to replace everything with Wulff SAA-clone spring set-- does this sound OK to you? thanks!

 

[Aguila Blanca]

The hammer spring pushes the hammer, it has nothing to do with cylinder lock-up.

By all means, try a set of Wolff springs for a Colt. They should work, IF USFA stayed true to Colt dimensions and tolerances.

 

[DPris]

I see no relation between the problems described & a "hammer" spring.
USFA didn't stick to Colt dimensions & tolerances across the board.

I'd definitely get the gun to a KNOWLEDGEABLE gunsmith.
Denis

 

[45 Dragoon]

Sounds to me like the spring is too short and jumped over the barring causing it to bind. It would almost have to be, pressure on the correct side would force the hammer down (the fact that you could push it forward makes me think this). Since you could push it back to half cock, sounds like the trigger half of the combo spring is working. If the cyl. isn't locking up, the bolt side of the combo spring is cracked or broken. Def. sounds like multiple probs.Let us know what you find.


45 Dragoon

 

[Straitshot]

I put Wolff reduced hammer spring and trigger/bolt spring in mine and it is smooth as butter. Best single action I have ever owned. Sure wish they were still making them. I had a hand spring break on one of mine but it was an early one that was made from Uberti parts before they started manufacturing their own parts. I replaced it myself with a USFA spring I ordered from Brownells and it worked better afterward than it did before the break. Also put a little leather washer between the hammer spring and where it screws to the inside of the trigger guard. I understand that aids in cushioning the spring action.

 

[Ibmikey]

I have shot the beans out of USFA 44-40's during cowboy shooting events, hundreds of rounds without a failure. The guns have much nicer fit and finish than my Colt SAA's first, second and third gens. Too bad they are no longer producing firearms....only the imitation stapeler looking zip thing.

 

[Pilot]

I have a USFA Rodeo. The same thing happened to mine, and this is a weakness in the spring designs in the SAA. I sent mine to "Longhunter" to convert the pistol to use coil springs. He also tuned the action, and it came back very smooth. You may want to give him a call.

http://www.longhunt.com/

 

[newfrontier45]

We need to clarify a few things. Firstly, hammer springs very, very, very rarely fail. There is less to go wrong with a Colt hammer spring than any S&W and everything but the J-frame has had leaf hammer springs since their inception. This is NOT a weakness of the Colt design. So if you are having hammer spring failures, there is absolutely something else going on.

One weakness is the bolt/trigger spring which are easily replaced with music wire springs and the problem goes away.

Another is the hand spring. Late model Uberti guns have a coil spring, eliminating this problem. Colt's and USFA's still use leafs. In 30yrs of shooting these guns, I've had exactly one fail. It was on a very high mileage Colt and it took longer to take the sixgun apart than it did to fix it.

The other is the bolt itself. Those two legs can fail if they are not fitted properly and/or wear unevenly. Fitting these is a major part of a Colt action job but I have never had one fail.