High standard 103 very difficult to pull back.

A High Standard 103 supermatic trophy slide is very hard  to rack.
It takes a cleaning rod to push the slide back after snapping once on a case using an lsp barrel.
Since it worked hard using the lsp barrel and not the hs barrel, I assumed it was a tight chamber. Sent the barrel back and they couldn't get it to repeat the problem using a 107  frame. Nothing wrong with the barrel.

Anybody know what is causing this.
It has new Wolfe springs.
Thanks

They like lots of lube.
Stan

Was the case fired from that barrel? A case fired from another chamber may fit quite a bit tighter in a LSP chamber. Cases fired in the LSP chamber aren't exactly loose either.

I keep a spent case in my barrel so that I can drop the hammer on it to relieve the main spring when the pistol is not being used. It always takes a wood dowel rod to push it back out on the next range trip.

I have an LSP barrel on a HS also and their chambers are tighter than factory, but never had trouble racking the gun. I do keep the slide well lubed. I called LSP up also and they offered to loosen the chamber, but I declined because that's why I bought that barrel in the first place. I make sure that I maintain that barrel more closely and more often.
 Stan

The 103 was next to impossible to pull my slide back, and ditto for my Victor and X-Series.

Call Alan Aronstein, the High Standard distributor, and ask him to sell you the small aluminum "post" that goes into the slide.  He put one on my X-Series, and now it's easy to do.  

You (or he) will drill and tap the slide, and screw in the aluminum post.

You can see it in this photo, wrapped in black tape to make it a little. larger:



Suggestion - send him your slide, and let his tech people mount it for you - or take to your gunsmith.

Depending on your grip strength, familiarity with how hard it is to rack the slide against the mainspring, the possibility that the old MS was worn and your new Wolf MS may be much stronger (or incorrect spring), it may simply be the nature of your gun and the technique you use to rack the slide.  The fact that LSP can’t reproduce the issue with a different lower, tells me it’s your mainspring and possibly technique.  I pretty much need both hands to rack the slide on my HS Victor.

Question, is the problem limited to racking the slide with a spent case?  If there is no cartridge case in the breech, do you have the same problem?

Separate issue. How are you getting the case in the breech? Are you dropping the slide on it such that the extractor hits hit and has to bend to get past the rim?  That’s not healthy for the extractor. Dry fire by slipping a piece of credit card or refrigerator magnet in the left side before lowering the slide.

EDIT - Mike Meyers kind of beat me to it!

Another thought....

Before I sold it, my own 103 had a rail and red dot sight on top.  If I wanted to pull the slide back, and cock the hammer, for me it was impossible

If you've removed the rear sight from the dovetail, and mounted a red dot sight, here's what I did.  I found a part (not sure what) that dropped into the dovetail, but extended to the rear a few inches.  To rack the slide, I dropped this part into the dovetail,, pulled back on this thing I was using, and it made it easy to rack the slide.  I would take a picture, but when I sold that gun, I included my home-made "slide racker".

Anything that allows you to pull on your tool, while it is dropped into the dovetail, will work.  Looked silly, but it worked for me for a few years.  You could even make your own with a piece of wire thin enough to go into the dovetail, tied together behind the gun, as you pull on the wire from behind the gun.

You only need it when the slide is forward, and the hammer is not cocked.

If that dovetail is not accessible, this idea won't work.....

Another thought....

Before I sold it, my own 103 had a rail and red dot sight on top.  If I wanted to pull the slide back, and cock the hammer, for me it was impossible

If you've removed the rear sight from the dovetail, and mounted a red dot sight, here's what I did.  I found a part (not sure what) that dropped into the dovetail, but extended to the rear a few inches.  To rack the slide, I dropped this part into the dovetail,, pulled back on this thing I was using, and it made it easy to rack the slide.  I would take a picture, but when I sold that gun, I included my home-made "slide racker".

Anything that allows you to pull on your tool, while it is dropped into the dovetail, will work.  Looked silly, but it worked for me for a few years.  You could even make your own with a piece of wire thin enough to go into the dovetail, tied together behind the gun, as you pull on the wire from behind the gun.

You only need it when the slide is forward, and the hammer is not cocked.

If that dovetail is not accessible, this idea won't work.....

This has nothing to do with the chamber - it's the force that is needed to pull the slide to the rear, as it cocks the gun, with nothing to grip the slide with.  My fingers weren't enough, as there was nothing for them to "grab" on, and the red dot on top made it difficult to reach the slide.

Rod,
If snapped on empty chamber, it is still hard to pull back but doable.

I put the case in part way and ease the slide forward.

I talked with Wolfe and this is the first time they have heard of this problem.

Maybe a store bought dry fire insert would be better.

After doing some research. It appears to be a common problem. There is a handle that can be put on the slide, if desired. Apparently the first part of the hammer travel is hard to overcome.

I keep envisioning fabricating a charging handle ring , like tandemcross makes for Ruger mk ii slides, to grab and pull on.

https://www.tandemkross.com/halo-charging-ring-rugermkiii-mkiv-2245

Maybe something like this could be made, perhaps by 3Dprinting?



It looks like it fits the serrations and then claps top and bottom. Dunno???

Bob Chow built Ruby Fox’s HS she used to use. He drilled and drilled/tapped each side of the slide at the rear and installed socket head screws. The pistol was high luster blued to include the screw heads. Made it very easy to cycle the slide. It looked pretty good. I rebuilt the pistol about 4 yrs ago.
Jon

My wife shot a 106 with the bridged rear sight for a number of years. Being of slight statue, cocking the pistol was impossible for her, so my solution in the 80s was to add a 6/32 threaded  shoulder bolt to the front of the bolt such as Mike showed in his photos..I did put a small piece of steel tubing around the shoulder to make it a bit larger for.her..  happy wife

Ashley, that’s exactly what I was imagining.

Grip over the top of the slide with fingers and hook thumb behind the beavertail so you can rack the slide with grip strength of one hand. #1 it's easier and #2 I don't cut my hand up on the rear sight bridge.

Rear sight bridge is just plain and simple a “BASTARD” on the HS. I’ve never chewed my hands up on any pistol more than the HS with a bridge mount. Full length rib is first thing going on after removing the bridge. I’ve been given many boxes over the years from older BE shooters who have passed away. There is almost always a HS bridge mount in the box. Good riddance lol.
Jon

Back when I was young and studly 50 years ago, my left thumb was shredded by the safety, not the bridge sight when cocking my 106 Trophy.  I figured it was just the cost of doing business.  I was tougher in those days.

Jon, wait till you try to put it back on.  

I had the same problem yesterday with my Victor.  I will probably have Alan Aronstein add the "post" to the slide on my Victor.  I didn't want to change the looks of that gun, but I bought it for shooting, not collecting.  It takes two hands to gradually get the slide moving to the rear, after which it has to cock the hammer.  With the post, it's still a little difficult, but I can do it reliably.

That, and the "sensitive" magazine lips, are my only issues with the High Standards - but they make up for it by shooting so well, not to forget they are also beautiful guns.

Try removing the magazine before you pull back the slide.

With my Victor, similar to the 103, with or without the magazine I don't have enough grip to pull the slide back.  What I've been doing is to grip the serrations on the rear of the slide with my right hand, and pull, while I am griping the serrations in the front of the slide with my left hand, and push.  Eventually it moves, and once it moves a little, I can pull it the rest of the way.  After I've done that, the gun remains cocked, and I can push and pull the slide normally.  The problem is I'm not very strong, and I have nothing to push or pull on that gives me a good grip.

Alan's post resolves that problem.  I've decided to send him the slide from my Victor, so he can install the pin.  End of problem!

jglenn21 wrote:Jon, wait till you try to put it back on.  

I have taken bridge sights off and put them back on.  If you do it right and the roll pin holes are clear through the frame, it's easy.  The big pins often take a bit of pounding.  Luckily I have several NOS replacements

I had a similar problem with my HS Trophy. I had a full size Ultradot Matchdot 2 on it that worked great but left very little room to grab the slide. Dropping the magazine helped a little but, the best thing I did was get a much smaller red dot sight and moved it more forward on the rail. That left a lot more room to grab the front serations on the slide. I couldn't bring myself to drill into a Hamden High Standard. Try an Aimpoint clone or an open red dot. Try it before you modify the gun it may be enough.

Nopro wrote:I had a similar problem with my HS Trophy. I had a full size Ultradot Matchdot 2 on it that worked great but left very little room to grab the slide. ......the best thing I did was get a much smaller red dot sight and moved it more forward on the rail. That left a lot more room to grab the front serations on the slide. I couldn't bring myself to drill into a Hamden High Standard......

That's sort of what I did - I removed my Matchdot II, and mounted a Vortex Venom, all the way to the rear.
My right hand can grasp the serrations on the rear of the side, and pull.
My left hand can grab the serrations on the front of the slide, and push.
Once the slide moves, just a short distance, the rest is easy.

Roddy Toyota, who sold me the gun, said it was a "shooter", not a "collector" gun.  
I haven't yet got up the will power to mount the "pin" in the slide, but if I want to enjoy shooting this gun, I should.

(For me, and my eyes, the dot looks "rounder" the further back the sight is.)