Polymer80, Spectre Frame

[atlastrekker]

I'm not having any issues with mine, it went together well and didn't need a shim.

[Nelson_2016]

Hello atlastrekker,

Thanks for your reply. When you say that it "didn't need a shim", do you mean that the trigger housing fits tightly into the pocket and doesn't move at all, or does it move a little bit, but you found that the slight movement has no apparent negative effect on the functioning of the pistol?

[incredablehefey]

I did a second frame and I did not need to shim it at all. One thing I have found is oem glock parts fit and work more reliably than lone wolf parts. I just wish midway had some black spectre kits in stock

[Nelson_2016]

Mine may not "need" a shim either (for proper functioning), but the trigger housing is a little loose in the pocket and has some freedom to pivot on the pin. (And btw I'm using Glock parts).

Is your trigger housing tight, or does it rock back and forth a little bit if you apply a little force to the end of the ejector?

[atlastrekker]

Hello atlastrekker,

Thanks for your reply. When you say that it "didn't need a shim", do you mean that the trigger housing fits tightly into the pocket and doesn't move at all, or does it move a little bit, but you found that the slight movement has no apparent negative effect on the functioning of the pistol?

I used a lone wolf parts kit and it fits tightly and functions properly.

[SkyHawk]

I had one frame that needed a shim and one that did not. I also had to make mods to fit my .22 caliber upper for the legal single shot build before I started experimenting with other types of uppers. And on both frames I had to tune the opening for the mag catch with a small file and final polish with 1500 sandpaper, so it would not drag, and the slot for the slide lock also needed similar tuning just to get the slide lock installed.

Mine run good. I keep my frame rails lubed with TW25B, and I also polished the rear (plastic) rails so we'll see how they hold up, but really wish they were metal rear rails.

I rounded off some of the weird angles on the trigger guard and beavertail before cerakoting.

[incredablehefey]

Midway has black, tan and green kits in stock for $99 each (limit 1 of each color) keep a spare in case your rails crack.

[Nelson_2016]

I'm irritated that I paid $140 for a frame that's apparently out-of-spec.
And what makes it more irritating is the fact I spent several hours working on it before I discovered that it's out-of-spec.

Lastly, this is an issue that Polymer80 has apparently known about for many months, yet they don't mention it on their web site; nor have they apparently tried to do anything about it, e.g., weed out the bad frames, make up some custom shims (and give them to affected customers), etc.

Polymer80 isn't going to like it, but I'm going to keep asking for another frame until I get one that doesn't have to be shimmed.

[Kayo Kelly]

I'm irritated that I paid $140 for a frame that's apparently out-of-spec.
And what makes it more irritating is the fact I spent several hours working on it before I discovered that it's out-of-spec.

Lastly, this is an issue that Polymer80 has apparently known about for many months, yet they don't mention it on their web site; nor have they apparently tried to do anything about it, e.g., weed out the bad frames, make up some custom shims (and give them to affected customers), etc.

Polymer80 isn't going to like it, but I'm going to keep asking for another frame until I get one that doesn't have to be shimmed.

I called them months ago. I told them it was out of spec. That consumers shouldnt need to put a stupid shim in it. I told them I would be looking forward to receiving a free replacement. They were dicks. BUYER BEWARE.
Build metal guns. I recommend Stealth if you want a light handle. Try 1911 Builders or Matrix.



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[fixitsteve]

OEM Glock Parts

I used all OEM parts from a Glock 22 and never have had any issues or need to shim. I never even considered Lone Wolf or other aftermarket parts and am glad that I didn't after reading all this. I used Lone Wolf parts to upgrade a previous Glock of mine and never had a single part go in cleanly. Just my experience...

[Nelson_2016]

I've completed a "1911Builders" 80% steel frame (and their frames are excellent, IMO); I've built a few Ruger Mark 3 clones (from 3/4" aluminum 6061 alloy pipe), and a few AR15s of course, but then one day a few months after I first saw the Polymer80 frame, the urge to do a Glock clone came over me.

If I had known about the trigger housing issue however, I most likely would have suppressed the urge and moved on to something else. Unfortunately I now have money invested in parts, so I'm stuck

As I see it, Polymer80 is basically selling a "prototype", and we - the customers - are involuntarily made a part of their development team.

[SkyHawk]

The shim is not a big deal - a small cut up piece of gift card or old credit card. I super glued mine in then cerakoted over it. You'd never know it was there.

But I agree these are a little sketchy for the price. Of course Midway did have them on sale for $99 recently. That is getting closer to appropriate. $60 range would be better for what we're getting right now.

Injecting molding with repeatable precision is a lot harder than just squirting some hot plastic into a mold. I have seen this before. It takes a very, very large investment to do it right. The kind of investment Glock has made.

[Nelson_2016]

From a purely mechanical point of view I agree that the shim isn't a show stopper. What makes the loose trigger housing issue a sort of a big deal to me is the fact that Polymer80 obviously knows about it, yet they don't even mention it anywhere on their web site (e.g. in the "Q&A" section).
As I see it, they have an ethical duty to at least mention such known issues; instead they're silent about it. Thus each affected customer has to discover it on their own and then go looking for answers on the internet.

Nor have they apparently done anything about it. If I was selling these things, and some of them were out of spec., I'd probably try to sort them out and sell the defective frames as "blemished" items, at a 20% discount.
Failing that, they could at least buy some cheap plastic or aluminum shim stock and make some custom shims or something like that.

Instead of taking any such remedial action they seem to deflect the blame to the customer. Quoting from David Borges' response to Kayo Kelly:

"My first move to resolve this situation would be to shim you trigger assembly inside the frame and prevent it from rocking in place. Some builds do this more than others I am going to attach a photograph of where that shim should be. Please let me know if this helps any." (http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/s...0&postcount=15)

(Note how the problem isn't attributed the frame itself but to the "build" - and impliedly the builder).

But the loose trigger housing isn't the only issue. Take the screws that secure the locking block to the frame for example. They're 3-48 x 1/4" and they're a little bit too long.

I ask myself, why don't they just ship 3/16" screws with the frame instead of 1/4" screws, or countersink the respective holes a little less? Instead, the prospective builder receives the too-long screws and generally follows the Polymer80 instructions sequentially, finally getting to the end, where he's told that the screws - that he just secured with loctite - are too long and need to be removed and filed down.
Why needlessly do this to their customers?

Being that I'm ranting...I should also mention the too-short slots for the slide lock. I believe that if the slots were just 0.010" longer, the slide lock could be installed sort of like it should be, i.e., without pounding on it. And who knows, that extra 0.010" might even allow for the removal of the slide lock if that should ever be necessary.

Oh well I could go on about other things, e.g., the Polymer80 instructions, but this is getting long so I'll just say one more thing: I appreciate what Polymer80 is doing for the 2nd amendment. The Spectre frame is a great idea. Showing the communist tyrants that there are practical limits to what their unconstitutional gun laws can accomplish is very important, IMO, and the Spectre frame is a big step in that direction.
So I really want Polymer80 to succeed, but this success just shouldn't come with an ethical lapse that results in dissatisfied customers.

[dwalker]

I've completed a "1911Builders" 80% steel frame (and their frames are excellent, IMO); I've built a few Ruger Mark 3 clones (from 3/4" aluminum 6061 alloy pipe), and a few AR15s of course, but then one day a few months after I first saw the Polymer80 frame, the urge to do a Glock clone came over me.

Cool. Now did that 1911 bolt together or did you need to do some "fitting" to make it work?

If I had known about the trigger housing issue however, I most likely would have suppressed the urge and moved on to something else. Unfortunately I now have money invested in parts, so I'm stuck

You are never stuck with gun parts, you can always sell them as there are always buyers. Y U mad bro?

As I see it, Polymer80 is basically selling a "prototype", and we - the customers - are involuntarily made a part of their development team.

No one forced you to buy that fine piece of tactical tupperware. As I see it, Spectre has put together a product that fills a niche and the number of them flying off shelves has shattered expectations. But you knew you were not buying a Glock, that you were buying an 80% some assembly required bit and adding a shim or needing to file down a set of screws or trim out a hole here and there is really not even worth mentioning except as an instructional bit.
I do believe there will be a V2 with some improvements but it might be a while before we see it. While mine sits in its box waiting for me to care about making it into something other than a conversation piece, I know at least two people who dremeled out the receiver, assembled it and shot a pistol match the following day without an issue.

[dwalker]

As far as the rear plastic frame rails, my XDM has the same rear plastic rails, so no reason why they would not work in this application.