I was hoping someone could recommend a professional Gunsmith who can handle my Hi-Standard Model 103 Supermatic Citation

 

Back in the day my Grandfather really loved pistol shooting and bought this beauty right from the factory and took extensive care of it because I see very little wear and tear on the gun

 

My father inherited it and has passed it to me after I got my PID, but as it hasn't been used in 20+ years I'm a little iffy on using it

 

I'm kind of equating it to cleaning a car (bad example but still) it is a heck of a lot easier maintaining an already clean car after detailing then starting from ground up cleaning all the nooks and crannies

 

What I'm hoping for is a really good Gunsmith to disassemble, clean, oil, check/replace springs and replace the grips (too small for my hands); basically get the gun into pristine shooting condition so going forward I can maintain it

 

I'm willing to drive to the best so any suggestions?

 

Also just to let you know the picture does it no justice

That's quite a unique designed pistol there! I've never seen that before, it's neat. Probably an accurate gun too.

 

It's all up to you of course but I would suggest cleaning it yourself. It's really not hard to do, and many new shooters who feel incompetent about stripping their gun end up doing it and then realizing how easy it is! I only suggest this because 1 - you can see how your pistol works 2- it's fun cleaning and fondling your gun and 3 - it will save you lots of money.

 

Now in regards to grips, I would search the internet and see if you can find grips you like that you can order and put on yourself. If not, a gunsmith will be able to find grips for you and if he can't find them for you some may even custom make them for you.

 

And the springs, I wouldn't worry about them but that's just me. Maybe someone else can comment more on it but if the pistol was shot very infrequently and then stored, the springs should be fine. If you plan on shooting thousands of rounds out of it now and really shooting it a lot, then maybe, but if not, I wouldn't bother.

From what my father tells me, who shot it with my grandfather, it is an amazingly accurate gun (one of the best of the era for target shooting)

 

I've heard family stories that since this chambers .22LR that even out to 50 yards you can accurately hit dead center of a bullseye

 

What helps are the adjustable weights forward of the trigger on the barrel that prevents the gun from rising after firing, so you can send round after round without the sights leaving the target

What you have there is a bullseye gun (NRA 2700) from the 60's - 70's. Once Hi-Standard introduced the models with the same grip angle as a 1911, these kind of fell out of favor. Here's my Model 102 - which was my father's bullseye gun in the 60's...

 

 

These came in 6", 8" and 10" barrels. It appears that both you and I have the 8" version.

 

By all means, clean it yourself. The barrel comes off easily by pushing the button at the front of the frame (under the barrel) to the rear. Since it has been a long time, it may be stiff - use a countertop with the barrel hanging over the edge and the button on the counter and put your weight on it. There is a mushroom shaped post on the underside of the barrel - the button is the release for that. Just be careful when you remove the grips and note (maybe diagram) the position of the springs. Remove the muzzle brake - there are two allen screws (3 & 9 o'clock) facing rearward, that screw into detents in the end of the barrel. Clean the lead out of the brake - be careful using chemicals on the blued finish. Remove the slide and thoroughly scrub everywhere you can reach. Gun Scrubber is your friend. Lube it and re-assemble and it will be fine.

 

Enjoy.

 

Adios,

 

Pizza Bob

Wow, very nice. Haven't seen one in decades...

 

 

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Snip

 

Pizza Bob thank you so much for the infomation I have been searching the web for a while now on possibly doing it myself and recently found what I think to be the schematic, my concern is that when I go to actually break it down that something goes wrong which is why I wanted a Gunsmith in the wings so to speak

 

I'm in the process of tracking down grips but the problem is most places I can find have no pictures of what they look like or list in a different sku from what is on the schematic, currently looking through: Brownells, Sarco, Inc., and Numrich Gun Parts Corp.

 

Would Gun Scrubber harm the blue? Normally when you spray down the barrel wouldn't that cause splatter? Or will it be a simple matter of wiping the splatter off then oiling?

Read the can, but I believe that Gun Scrubber is fine for blued finish guns. Take the grips off before cleaning (and watch those springs.

 

Speaking of grips...

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/JAY-SCOTT-HIGH-STANDARD-22-AUTO-PISTOL-GUN-RIGHT-HAND-TARGET-FAUX-STAG-GRIPS-/161009580795?pt=Vintage_Hunting&hash=item257ceb3afb

 

Certainly not what one would expect to find on a bullseye gun - but kinda' neat.

 

Here are the grips you want...

 

http://www.brownells.com/handgun-parts/grip-parts/grips/grips-right-hand-thumbrest-walnut-sku430000177-7320-18357.aspx

 

These appear to be the same as I have on my gun (which are aftermarket - I have the OE plastic ones, as well as the box).

 

This may also help...

 

http://stevespages.com/pdf/histandard_parts_list.pdf

 

Same as the ones from Brownells, I believe...

 

http://highstandardpartsonline.com/high-standard-walnut-grips-right-hand-p-1.html

 

Hope this helps.

 

Adios,

 

Pizza Bob

If I recall about Gun Scrubber years ago, they said test it on inconspicuous surfaces first. It's pretty strong. I'd be leery on older gun finishes without testing it first. Might cause discoloring.

 

 

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Hello All,

 

Update since last time, I bought the grips suggested and fit like a glove after drilling out  the screw holes a little

 

I'm trying to clean up the carbon build up and have made good progress in the barrel but running into issues with the muzzle break

 

I removed the allen screws at 3 and 9 o'clock and the larger allen screw on the sight but having difficulty removing the break, it slides about a 1/4" before seemingly catches on something

 

I'm unsure if there is some type of locking mechanism but I am unable to remove the muzzle break to clean the heavy carbon deposits

 

Anyone have an idea why the break will not "break" free?

If you are talking about the screw at 12 o'clock, that has nothing to do with the brake - that holds on the sight.

 

Completely remove the two brake allen screws (3 & 9 o'clock) and then try again. There is probably a lot of crud accumulated and it may be difficult to remove, but my guess is that you just haven't backed out the allen screws far enough.

Pizza Bob I completly removed the screws and they do not appear to be damaged so I'm still unsure what is holding the break on the barrel. Possible that the build up is extream and I need some type of chemical or solvent, I've already poured a lot of Hoppe's bore cleaner and oiled the hell out of it. Is there some type of chemical 'bath' I can use to soak it like overnight that will eat all the caked on deposits but leave the bluing unharmed?

White vinegar will help get rid of the lead deposits (which is normally what the build-up consists of in the compensator), but it can damage the finish. Vinegar is acetic acid and reacts with the lead. Do not let it soak in vinegar long term. If you try this, make sure that you flush everything the vinegar touched completely. Probably better off doing what you have been doing, but letting it soak a while.

 

Adios,

 

Pizza Bob

Final update - Success!

 

I was finally able to get the brake off of the barrel, basically what happened is my grandfather tightened the screws so much a that the screws bit into the metal causing the hole in the barrel to slighty deform

 

This was what I was catching so as soon as I removed and cleaned up the end I took a diamond dremel and slightly shaved down the deformed area so flush with the rest of the barrel

 

It now slips on and off like a charm!

 

So I finished cleaning up the brake (had to remove a ton of lead!) put it together and hopefully soon I'll take this down to the range

 

Thanks for all the help!

Final update - Success!

 

I was finally able to get the brake off of the barrel, basically what happened is my grandfather tightened the screws so much a that the screws bit into the metal causing the hole in the barrel to slighty deform

 

This was what I was catching so as soon as I removed and cleaned up the end I took a diamond dremel and slightly shaved down the deformed area so flush with the rest of the barrel

 

It now slips on and off like a charm!

 

So I finished cleaning up the brake (had to remove a ton of lead!) put it together and hopefully soon I'll take this down to the range

 

Thanks for all the help!

Glad to see you were able to get it apart.  they are superb Pistols, and surprisingly simple to take down as compared to say a Ruger Mk-1.  I have a Mitchell Arms copy of the Victor model HS that is scary accurate.  Id love to use it for steel, but magazines are hard to find, and $40-50 when you do