Polymer80, Spectre Frame

[MosinVirus]

Has anyone tried putting aN original Glock frame into the jig to see if the holes match up while the rails are perfectly horizontal

The more I see people post pics, and then say they had to use shims, the more it looks like the trigger housing is not set down deep enough on their builds.

It looks nothing like it does when a trigger housing gets to sit down into the glock frame.

Has anyone confirmed hole position using a Glock frame?

[Nelson_2016]

I tried that a while ago. IIRC the Glock frame wasn't compatible with the jig.

I semi-carefully measured the vertical distance between the surface where the ejector sits and the trigger housing pin hole center, and they were very close, i.e., within a few mils, IIRC, yet the trigger housing was still loose and needed a 0.020" shim (probably 0.025" would have been a little better).

Also, as I mentioned earlier, when I seat a trigger housing into the Spectre frame, it's canted forward a little bit; it doesn't sit exactly flat/parallel as it does in my Glock frame.

All things considered, I concluded that the locating hole in the jig was probably correct, but the front wall of the trigger housing pocket in the frame was off a little bit.

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Edit: From fooling around with it a little bit, I should say that I think if the trigger housing pin holes were offset by about 0.010" lower, it would probably tighten up the trigger housing.

However, because of the forces exerted on the ejector and trigger housing, I think I would rather use a shim than try to compensate by moving the hole.

(BTW at one point I asked Polymer80 for the coordinates of the holes - as I was considering offsetting the holes a little bit - but they wouldn't tell me).

Has anyone tried putting aN original Glock frame into the jig to see if the holes match up while the rails are perfectly horizontal

The more I see people post pics, and then say they had to use shims, the more it looks like the trigger housing is not set down deep enough on their builds.

It looks nothing like it does when a trigger housing gets to sit down into the glock frame.

Has anyone confirmed hole position using a Glock frame?

[Awesomesauce]

From fooling around with it a little bit, I should say that I think if the trigger housing pin holes were offset by about 0.010" lower, it would probably tighten up the trigger housing.

that seems to agree with what Cuda440 had mentioned earlier.

[MosinVirus]

I'm fairly certain that 90% of the problems people experience with the current frame come from a variance in the location of the trigger housing in relation to the frame rails.

If the trigger housing is not deep enough in the frame, you end up with the gap that everyone shims with a credit card, but you also end up with a trigger bar that's too high in relation to the rails and it engages the sticker too much making for a long trigger pull or even a trigger that won't fire

Had that same thought. Looking at all the pics it seems the trigger housings are sitting higher.

[Nelson_2016]

that seems to agree with what Cuda440 had mentioned earlier.

It could be made "tight" by offsetting the holes, but it still won't be "right", IMO.

Cuda said:

"If the trigger housing is not deep enough in the frame, you end up with the gap that everyone shims with a credit card, but you also end up with a trigger bar that's too high in relation to the rails and it engages the sticker too much making for a long trigger pull or even a trigger that won't fire"

I see it differently. In my view, the "gap" occurs because the front wall of the pocket is wrong.

In order for the gap to appear at the top, it seems that the trigger housing pin hole has to be approximately where it's supposed to be, or a little higher. If the hole ends up a little lower than where it's supposed to be, the trigger housing is canted forward, the gap at the top is gone, and it will be tighter.

(BTW I think earlier in the thread I mentioned my belief that the apparent variability in "looseness" of the trigger housing, as reported by different people, probably has to do with random variability in the placement of the trigger housing pin holes).

But offsetting the holes doesn't actually "fix" the problem because although tighter, the fact that the trigger housing is now tilted slightly forward means it will not have the same mechanical support as if the front wall was moved to the rear by 0.025" or something like that.

(This is one of those things where a picture/cutaway view would really help).

Anyway, as a practical matter: Without a modified jig and without knowing the coordinates of the holes (from known reference points), how would someone be able to accurately move the trigger housing pin hole locations downward by a certain amount, say 0.010" or whatever?

To sum it all up, this is all just my opinion, which could be wrong.

[Cuda440]

I agree with above as well ^

There is an issue with the trigger housing pocket being too big, but there's also an issue with the trigger housing location as determined by the drilled pin hole.

The trigger housing has a protruding part on the left rear area behind the ejector arm, it is designed to sit flush on the pistol frame. Take a peek at yours and see if it's tight or up out of position.

On my project, I have the trigger housing down tight against the frame, and I have it working without any issues. There is room in front of the trigger housing for a shim but I have not had any malfunctions. I cut a shim to fit the gap but I haven't function tested it yet so I can't say that it's necessary.

All I can say after building a couple of these with my brother and myself, is that they take some finesse and fitment along with a good understanding of mechanical issues. They're not Legos, you need to understand and identify any problems you encounter. It's a builders frame, not a stick together testors model kit

[Nelson_2016]

When I first got my "80%" m1911 together, I had some trouble with the ejector.

First time to the range the gun worked flawlessly, but the ejector kept coming loose. I think it's okay now, but I ended up having to bend the legs a little bit and peen the ends of the legs - gunsmith tricks I found out about - to get it to stay put. It was a serious learning experience.

Anyway, after that experience, when I came to the trigger housing/ejector part of putting the Spectre/Glock together, two things really caught my attention: (1) the trigger housing pin is small and made out of plastic; and (2) the pin diameter is rather small compared to the hole in the body of the trigger housing, i.e., it seemed like a rather loose fit, compared to everything else in my experience.

I put the pistol together and of course I found that the trigger housing was somewhat loose, i.e., that it had freedom to rock back and forth a little bit.

So one of the things I did was to take the Glock pistol apart and look at how the trigger housing sits in the frame.

I found that with only light finger pressure holding it in, it was rock solid against the substantial back-and-forth force I was applying with my other hand.

Apparently the geometry of the trigger housing vis-a-vis the complementary geometry of the pocket it sits in, holds it tightly against the forces exerted by the reciprocating upper assembly.

So now I could see how the pin can be not only small, but relatively small compared to the corresponding hole in the trigger housing, and why it might even be preferable to make it out of plastic: because all it needs to do is to exert a small downward force, and the trigger housing/ejector assembly is rock solid.

I'm guessing that the pin hole in the factory Glock frame is probably located a few mils below where the hole in the trigger housing would nominally be, and the plastic takes up the slack, thereby applying the little bit of downward force needed to keep it tight.

So then I dropped the trigger housing into the Spectre frame and applied a little downward pressure, but in this case I was still able able to move the trigger housing a little bit. It was close, but not quite the same kind of solid feeling - until I folded a piece of paper and stuck it in there as a shim. After I did that, the fit seemed to be just like that of the Glock frame.

It's almost like the the taper that you find on the spindles of machine tools, IMO. If the taper of the collet (for example) matches the taper of the spindle, only a relatively small amount of axial force makes everything rock solid, but if you were to put something in there with a slightly different taper, you could probably still apply enough force to make it "tight" but it wouldn't be quite "right".

This is my present view of the situation in boring detail, but I could be wrong about it.

[Kayo Kelly]

Had that same thought. Looking at all the pics it seems the trigger housings are sitting higher.

I believe the trigger housing is sufficient in size. The trigger will not sit lower in the pocket than the trigger allows.
The front of the trigger pocket is too thin allowing flex and movement of the trigger position. Polymer 80 recommends the credit card shim to correct or reduce movement.
The location of the pin which holds the trigger also is not precise as the jig is plastic allowing for movement of the drill bit changing the positioning of the pin.
Most of the issues I have read about are battery and eject failures.
My Spectre operates fine now and Im curious to see the v1.5 frame but I still prefer steel! The final cost of my build with the upgrades is about the same as my stainless 1911.

Sent from my SM-N910P using Tapatalk

[MosinVirus]

I believe the trigger housing is sufficient in size. The trigger will not sit lower in the pocket than the trigger allows.
The front of the trigger pocket is too thin allowing flex and movement of the trigger position. Polymer 80 recommends the credit card shim to correct or reduce movement.
The location of the pin which holds the trigger also is not precise as the jig is plastic allowing for movement of the drill bit changing the positioning of the pin.
Most of the issues I have read about are battery and eject failures.
My Spectre operates fine now and Im curious to see the v1.5 frame but I still prefer steel! The final cost of my build with the upgrades is about the same as my stainless 1911.

Sent from my SM-N910P using Tapatalk

I will likely be waiting for the new frames to come out with the metal inserts in the rear.

[Kayo Kelly]

I will likely be waiting for the new frames to come out with the metal inserts in the rear.

I think it will solve a lot of their problems.
I was angry when they told me about the credit card shim. I have since calmed down about it. Its too bsd they fidnt offer those of us who purchased v1 something in return for being their Gunnea Pigs.

Sent from my SM-N910P using Tapatalk

[Nelson_2016]

I'm wondering, has anyone fired any hot loads out of their Spectre-framed pistol yet, either hot hand-loads or +p or +p+ factory ammo?

Also, has anyone hosted a suppressor with it yet? If so how did it work?

[justanalog]

Consider the Matrix Precision Sig Kit. Aluminum frame and reconditioned upper. Easy with their jig and and you have a metal frame.

[TaylorNight]

Just got back from the range... sheered my sight off, but do not think that has anything to do with the build. Attached are pics from build after range.

I was shooting reloads; 124gr and 146gr. I probably shot 100 to 150 rds and only had a could minor issues. Found one of my after market Glock mags has challenges, so I placed it to the side and only ised it on my G17.

I like the Ghost better than my G17 except for the mag release. I have big hands and I still have challenges pressing it quickly, like the G17. But I like the feel in my hand better than my G17.

I still cannot pass Vertical test; still need to mill even though it is shooting good.

[Nelson_2016]

Do you know have any idea what was the velocity of your 147 grain bullets?

[TaylorNight]

Do you know have any idea what was the velocity of your 147 grain bullets?

Try this chart: http://www.ballistics101.com/9mm.php

I found the issue with the one mag and fixed it.
Also had my Slide Stop Lever installed wrong, fixed. In the image above (...549) the spring is above the trigger pin (DOH), should be below.