Q&A: Do I need a gunsmith?

One of our readers has dropped his gun, causing damage to the grip and trigger. Mike Morton is on hand to help!

A small mishap can put paid to your shooting – but you can have a go at fixing it

Q. I’ve dropped my Umarex Beretta 92 FS pellet pistol. The grip came off along with the black bar from the trigger and some other bits. Can you tell me how to repair it or do I need to take it to a gunsmith?

A. It’s good to have a friendly gun shop as a fallback, but there are many minor repairs you can do yourself if your gun is out of warranty. I recently bought a Beretta 92 in nickel, which had a duff trigger that had come adrift. The trigger link bar was out, and so too was a tiny piece with a separate micro-spring.

To fix your pistol, first make sure it’s empty of gas and pellets, then locate the small cast part that’s moulded on one side that hooks onto a lip on the frame, and with the small compression spring that slides down into a vertical slot. Look for the slot, fit the spring onto the part and offer both up, hooking them over the exposed lip. Although loose when installed, they cannot fall out to the side. The spring’s purpose is to push this part up under the trigger linkage bar. As for the long bar itself, the end with the protruding rod needs to be worked first.

The trigger components are just visible through the kidney-shaped cut-out

If it came out one way, the theory is it should go back in! With a sealed frame, you can peer into the hole and see the end of the trigger return spring and the trigger components – the main widget with two silver-coloured arms that cradles the trigger blade is the trigger assembly. Peering down into the magazine well, you should see the black trigger blade sat cosily between the arms of the cradle.

You will need to insert the trigger bar rod through the side hole in the frame, then through the spring and three further surfaces. In the factory, I am sure the bar is fitted through the frame first followed by the spring, then each component piece is attached over the end from the inside. From the outside, however, you’ll need to place the bar onto the frame, insert the long rod end through the pistol’s outer casing and try to catch the open loop on the end of the trigger spring. You will feel tension when it’s on the rod.

This is the view into the magazine well with the slide open and the mag removed

Now gently push the trigger bar forwards towards the muzzle, using the rod to stretch the spring – but not too much or you may damage it. This will align it with the other components. Wiggle the rod in gently. It helps if you lock the trigger blade forward with your finger so the locating hole is at the furthest point to the rear, because the spring is short and does not stretch by much. You’ll be working blind – it really is a case of jiggling everything into place. But after many failed attempts you’ll get there as the rod enters through all components.

The other end of the bar will now want to drop into the sear mechanism. Use any tool or your thumbnail to depress that small alloy block down its channel down on its micro-spring –  the end of the bar will now drop in and lie flat. That’s it!

This part needs refitting first, along with its spring, into the recess

It’s a fiddle, and takes forever the first time. The only problem you may encounter is the return spring could be broken or stretched, in which case unfortunately get your screwdriver out!

The Beretta 92 is, like many really good replicas, very authentic. The price for authentic detailing is that sometimes small moving parts that don’t exist on the powder-burning original can get damaged or lost. But we can’t really complain, because we don’t want solid replicas with few moving parts!

It’s now safely home and hooked into place

Get ready to refit the trigger bar rod

With the trigger bar fitted at the front, let’s return to the back end

Depress the cast part and drop the trigger bar into its slot

All done – and without the expense of taking it to a gunsmith


This article originally appeared in the issue 109 of Airgun Shooter magazine. For more great content like this, subscribe today at our secure online store: www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk

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