N-Frame Exorcisms

I spent the morning doing exorcisms on a couple of my N-Frames, including the hapless 329PD with the Amazing Self-Engaging Lock. While I would never recommend that you do this yourself...in fact, I would GET DOWN ON MY HANDS AND KNEES and BEG YOU not to ...there's a great YouTube video that shows you how to go about it. Keep in mind that should you remove the locking mechanism, you must not sell the gun until it is replaced, so save the little LOCKED flag or add the gun to your permanent collection. And remember, a "lock" is not a "safety device." All locks can be compromised...how do I know this? Meet Mr. Sledgehammer. That's why I keep my guns in a great big heavy steel box anchored in concrete.

The problem, as I've stated before, is the tiny spring that supposedly tensions the "LOADED" flag and keeps it from riding up is insufficient in handling the recoil of a heavy bullet hot load in a lightweight frame. The flag bounces under recoil, and in the worst case the bouncing flag catches the hammer as it falls, jamming the revolver. This creates a VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION — the hammer is under spring tension and there's a live round underneath it. I've cleared this jam a couple of times, and I'd prefer not to do it again. I suggest backing off the strain screw and release the mainspring tension WHILE KEEPING THE GUN POINTED DOWNRANGE and your hands out from in front of the barrel before addressing the jam.

Speaking of things that occasionally don't work, Brigid at Home on the Range has had some problems with her Blackhawk Sherpa holster:

I've worn this holster for over a couple of years, not daily certainly, but on regular weekends out in the city, drawing from it enough for practice until I found it easy to use. The SERPA button is very lightly sprung, I'm guessing by known weights of single action trigger pulls it's probably just a little over a pound. Point being, it's light, and doesn't require must of a conscious effort to operate it, no tugging or strength of hand, so I never noticed any impediment to a natural, instinctive draw stroke.

The holster has not been exposed to any heat or conditions that would warp it. It's not dirty. I wasn't doing a one-handed reload where I might have inadvertently inserted the gun in the holster facing backwards (when you do that I understand the tension device in the holster can lock behind the front sight, locking the gun in the holster.) I don't pull up on the weapon at all before or while pressing the button. I drew exactly as I've drawn it hundreds of times, having bought a couple of these over the years.

The SERPA button just stuck.

Because I'm not an LEO and don't have a specific need for a retention holster, I don't particularly like mechanical retention devices...it adds one more little thing that can break. For a regular carry holster I like some kind of tensioning screw I can adjust. For a field holster, I'm not adverse to a retention strap...I have one on the FA crossdraw I use for my packing Super Blackhawk .44.