Installing an After Market Slide Stop

I received my Pistol Gear Extended Slide Stop this week. I decided to wait till this weekend to write a range report so that I would have some time with it at the weekly steel shoot. So I spent a few hours shooting steel and doing reloads while shooting the Texas star and some poppers, and I was impressed with how easy it was to release the slide without having to shift my gun as much as usual.

The slide stop sticks out a bit farther back than the OEM version and this allows you to engage the slide stop and drop the slide without having to shift your grip as much as with the shorter OEM stop. Since the Pistol Gear slide stop also sticks out to the side a bit more it's also easier to engage and push down and seems to require a bit less effort to drop the slide. All the edges are rounded so there is nothing to snag on as you draw and nothing to dig into your thumb, which is also nice.

Another neat feature this slide stop has is how it sits higher up on the frame close to the slide; this comes in handy for those that keep engaging the slide lock while shooting. The slide stop has a thinner profile, which allows your thumbs to sit under where the OEM slide stop would normally be without actually touching the new slide stop and accidentally locking the slide.

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After Market

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1.Unload you gun in a safe manner, remove all brass and ammo from the room, and check that it is clear both visually and physically.

Next, field strip your gun. Follow the manual to do this you haven't done so yet or use the instruction on this forums main page.

You'll need two tools for this project. A small hammer, and a 3/16 punch.

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You need to drive out the pin marked with the red arrow. Don't drive it all the way out. All you need is to drive it out about 1/4 inch just enough to allow you to remove the old slide stop.

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Below is a picture showing you about how much you need to drive the pin out. From the picture below you can see how much of the pin needs to be driven out.

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Once you've driven out the pin. You can remove the punch and remove the old slide stop. Pull up and back on the slide release it should come out with very little effort. As you pull up you'll feel a bit of resistance from the spring that holds the slide release in place and you pull back you shouldn't feel resistance.

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Once you've remove the old slide stop take some time to look at the area it was removed from. The slide release sits under the spring (red arrow). When you install the new one you will need to push it under this spring.

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Installing the Pistol Gear slide stop is basically doing the opposite of the uninstall. Angle the slide top so that it fits under the spring (red arrow) and push forward and down.

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Once you pushed the slide stop under the spring you will feel a slight push from the spring allow it to go down against the frame. Now adjust the slide stop so that it sits in it's regular position. Notice how it is under the spring (red arrow). It is also sitting in it's normal position slightly back (red arrow).

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Now insert the punch from the left side while wiggling pistol gear slide stop so that you can position it. You will feel the punch go in and contact the pin. If you push a bit the pin should come out a bit further. Now push the pin to the left until the punch comes out. You might have to wiggle the punch a bit to align thing as you push. Once the punch is out you can give the pin a slight tap on the right side to seat it and you are done just re-assemble the slide to the frame.

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