Benelli MP90s Disassembly question

[Rudi]

Hi folks. I have an older (1991) mp90s, its working great. Its a model without the long disconnector I've seen in other posts.
When I remove the trigger unit, I've always had to cock it first otherwise there is a loud click when I remove it, which might be the hammer? When you remove your trigger unit do you cock first?
Second question. On Friday I will go to look at a 2003 MP95 for a friend. I want to do a quick disassembly and would like to know the same, should it be cocked first, or does it matter? I don't know if this one has the long disconnector. I just want to be sure since I've never seen these being cocked before disassembly.


Thanks!

Rudi

[-TT-]

It's best to cock the hammer, yes. If the bolt is in place, the hammer is pressing forward on it, which makes it very awkward to remove, and the hammer will "snap" when it drops.To reassemble, it must be cocked, otherwise the bolt will interfere since the hammer will be in the way.

You don't truly need to remove the trigger to get a good look - with the bolt back you can see quite a bit from the top, and of course the spring and sear can always be seen from the bottom. But it's easy enough to do! On the MP95, inspect the plastic carefully for cracks or distortion. Do NOT drop the hammer when the module is out of the gun, since it will hit the crosspin, hard.

I believe a 2003-era MP95 will have the short disconnector, but there are three possibilities. Short, longer and bird's head shapes.

[Gwhite]

As TT said, cock the hammer. If you want to be super careful, set the safety on. That way, even if you accidentally bump the trigger while handling it, no damage will be done.

I have seen a couple MP95's where the pistol was stored fully cocked. Over time, the force on the bottom of the plastic trigger housing was too much, and the hammer spring broke out the bottom of the housing. Check for ANY signs of cracks in the plastic just behind the bottom of the magazine well.

[Rudi]

Thanks to you guys again!
I'll be sure to check the housing of the trigger unit carefully.
In Europe the Benellis don't have a safety, but I'm always careful with my own not to pull the trigger with the unit off, and took previous advise of a piece of leather to catch the hammer when I was first adjusting my trigger.
The reason I wanted to take of the trigger and slide was to check the buffer. The gun is in fabulous condition from my first inspection, breech is like new, and the barrel looks like it was ever shot, I checked it in the store on Monday when I was buying ammunition. But Friday I'll go with the chap who wants to buy it. He has two months to wait before he gets his licence, and want to be prepared with any bits and pieces he needs.
The previous owner sold all his weapons to the store when he got too old to shoot and there is a good chance it was hardly shot, the grip is also like new.

[-TT-]

Inspecting the buffer is trivial, just pop out the rear stop piece. Do you mean the recoil spring and tube? That might be worth a look, but judging by the appearance in the photo, I'd know what to expect.

Maybe treat it like an Internet sale and ask for more pictures! ;)

[Rudi]

I had it in my hands Monday when I was buying ammo, but will go tomorrow with the guy who would love to buy it. Was really just a post about cocking this model before removing the trigger unit. In the end he still has to wait 3 months, so a full strip will be easy to do and he can order what he needs, but I think it will be a clean check list and he'll have nothing to do to it. Wanted to check the buffer now since deliveries in Europe are hit and miss at times at the moment at best. It also has a Nil medium grip, which even for me (I shoot Walther 5D grip and a medium Rink), the Nil seems to size smaller than the rest, so he wants to check my old Large grip of 30 years on it.

[Rudi]

Final Question, From my first look, I think it's the model with the disconnector that removed dry fire capability (doesn't fire with holding the slide back a few mm. Can the disconnector be changed to the bird head one which reinstated the functionality?

[Gwhite]

It can be done. It requires very careful fitting to ensure that it operates properly. I did it on one of my Benellis, and it works fine. The new levers aren't exactly cheap, but I'd recommend getting a spare just in case.

If you want to tackle this yourself, PM me and I can send you my notes. Because safety is involved, it's not something I would recommend for anyone without a lot of experience in precision fitting of parts. Finding a gunsmith who's actually done it before is unlikely. The process is straightforward, but fussy.

[-TT-]

... with the disconnector that removed dry fire capability (doesn't fire with holding the slide back a few mm.

How many mm was "a few"? The dryfire bridge on my MP95 measures just under 14mm long, and the function is very sensitive to length. A mm or two longer or shorter disables it. I have the plug-type for my MP90S, and it's similarly sensitive. Before you consider a very tricky retrofit, it's worth some more investigation.

Regarding the buffer, I would not expect the Benelli buffer to survive for many years, and your friend will want to replace it in any event. They are (IMO) too soft originally, and when they harden with age, they crack and fall apart. Folks here in the US have found that a wide range of plastic material works very well, and can be cut to fit in the rear gate piece. Here, we often use promotional key fobs, described here: https://www.bullseyeforum.net/t1453-ben ... uffer-free

[Gwhite]

The most important thing with the disconnector is that the hammer can't fall when the slide is between ~ 1 mm open and ~ 7 mm open. That's the range where a case can rupture. The > 7 mm open is in case a fire case gets trapped sideways and holds the bolt open. Further back than that (for example, if a case is caught lengthwise), it's unlikely that the hammer will strike the firing pin hard enough to fire the primer. The dry fire plug holds it back further still to minimize the travel of the hammer and save wear on things.

[Gwhite]

The most important thing with the disconnector is that the hammer can't fall when the slide is between ~ 1 mm open and ~ 7 mm open. That's the range where a case can rupture. The > 7 mm open is in case a fire case gets trapped sideways and holds the bolt open. Further back than that (for example, if a case is caught lengthwise), it's unlikely that the hammer will strike the firing pin hard enough to fire the primer. The dry fire plug holds it back as far as it does to minimize the travel of the hammer and save wear on things.

[Rudi]

Great information and as always, useful extra valuable advice.
He loved the benelli today, he has of Course shot mine but this one was too good to pass up also since it’s one of only three benelli pistols available in the Netherlands for the last year (I bought one of the others)
Indeed the Buffer was showing first stages of deterioration (crumbling) so it’s on the list to order.
He’ll shortly join the forums and take advantage of the great knowledge here when my limited help runs out.