Trusting a pistol after having work done to it?

[BlackJack]

Trusting a pistol after having work done to it?

After having work (trigger job, replaced thumb safety, etc.) done to a pistol that has already been “broken in”, do you still consider it “good to go” or do you run it thru another couple of hundred rounds before trusting it again?

Would you send it off to have this work done in the same trip as having a “lifetime” finish applied or would you make that two different trips just to be safe (after all, we want the pistol to be in its final configuration before having a finish like Melonite, Black-T or NP3 applied)?

Thanks.

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[AZ Husker]

By all means, contract with ONE individual to do it all, or subcontract out the rest. That way you have ONE individual to warranty the work.

[QKShooter]

Absolutely find a qualified trusted gunsmith to do your desired modifications and have that same smith handle your specified final finish.

Any qualified gunsmith "worth his salt" will function check and test fire your firearm before it gets sent off for finishing.

If you also get a "street reliability job" done on your pistol it should handle any ammunition type/brand that you'll want to carry in it.

If your pistol already handles everything that you feed it then don't bother requesting a reliability job.

[Ram Rod]

Any time you have work done, or changes made to your pistols, you should provide ample range time to make sure everything works like it should. That's the only place trust should come from.

[QKShooter]

I think he meant should he have the modification work done and then have the pistol sent BACK to him...for test shooting...and then remail it back out again to have it refinished.
That would be just plain silly.

Any qualified custom smith will make certain that the finished pistol is fully functional before it is returned to the customer.

If the pistol that you send to the smith needs extra work that you've not initially specified in order to get it working 100% then the smith will call you and say: "Hey you need a new extractor and a new sear or a new barrel bushing."...or whatever. Then you can discuss any additional work that may be needed before he either sends it out for refinishing or refinishes it himself.

After you've had the work done and the pistol refinished at the same time...it's completely done...it get returned to you and that is the time to test fire it. BECAUSE if it has function problems...it goes back o the smith that didn't his job right and he eats the cost of any refinishing if it needs to be done again.

Good Communication is the key. Tell him to call you with any suggestions that will improve the functional reliability of your handgun.
All good gunsmiths with good longstanding reputations will not cheat you.

[AZ Husker]

I misunderstood then. If it was me, I would contract with ONE individual to do the work AND have the refinishing done. He could send it wherever was mutually agreeable, but the ONE gunsmith is my contractor. In the event there was a finish issue, it would be up to him (unless I chose different) to make sure things were brought into spec.

[Ram Rod]

I think he meant should he have the modification work done and then have the pistol sent BACK to him...for test shooting...and then remail it back out again to have it refinished.
That would be just plain silly.

True.

[ccw9mm]

Trusting a pistol after having work done to it?

Not blindly, no. Not ever.

... or do you run it thru another couple of hundred rounds before trusting it again?

Yes.

[Supertac45]

Never trusted until it's proven itself at the range through hundreds of rounds that I use for carry.

[archer51]

Have any work done you want done at the same time if possible, then get to the range and make sure it is reliable. Gumsmith will probably fire it to check function, but how many rounds will he send down range? I'll bet it is not much more than a box, if that many. I usually run 200-250 rounds through a gun before making it my carry weapon.

[Rob72]

Only if I did the work. Even then, I want 200 rounds down range...