Glock trigger pull

tangolima, "You really did that?"

no, actually closer to over 400,000 rounds thru various Glocks since 1992 for carry and competition. I don't dry fire, except to show clear and empty after a stage. My oldest 2 pin G17 has over 180,000 rounds and an early G21 I had went to over 120,000 rounds. The rest were thru other Glock models. My setup for any Glock is the minus connector and stock reset spring. It's interesting that the 9 small frame full size Glocks I have today are all the same setup but each has a very slightly different trigger feel.
 
I've had that setup for a while in my Glock 19. I actually love / loved it. May do it again.. I switched away cause...Well... I don't know actually. I have it still, may go for it again today.
 
I don't own a Glock but I think I would like the trigger if smoothed up, it's the roughness that bothers me whether it's a revolver or a semi.
 
There are a few widgets that can be yanked on to change the feel of a Glock trigger. Name, these are the connector (.) (-) (+), and the trigger return spring (standard, NY, NY+).

Glockmeister has a great spreadsheet breakdown of what various combinations of these (and other) widgets do to the trigger pull by weight.

There are a few other places where the trigger system interacts with the user/break: the safety plunger spring, the striker spring, and the trigger roll pin.

The trigger bar acts against the connector, and the combined effort has to lift the plunger to allow the sear to release the striker. So, the more polished your plunger, and the lighter the spring keeping it in place, the less force is required to move the plunger.

Similarly, the striker firing pin is held in check by the coiled firing pin spring acting against the safety, so a lighter striker spring can reduce the force required to release the trigger.

Finally, the trigger roll pin is the fulcrum around which your trigger is levering, and getting that as smooth and firm (ie polished steel over polymer) as possible reduces the friction wasted in acting on the trigger parts.

So, the main areas are the connector and trigger spring. The NY spring and a (-) connector give a crisp break and a very positive reset.

My Glock is setup with an extra power return spring (for the reset, and specifically NOT a NY spring) with a (-) connector and a reduced power safety plunger spring. I chose not to swap the striker firing pin spring because I wanted to be able to load up cheap NATO spec ammo with notoriously hard primers and not worry about light strikes.

The result is a very crisp trigger, with little pre-travel, and a clear, very tactile reset.

I like it a lot.
 
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I cannot disagree with the idea of a heavier, longer trigger pull for carry purposes. My nineteen is almost too easy for my comfort in a carry situation. Many, many people carry da ccw. If they can make it work, most people could with effort. It is worth sacrificing a sweet trigger pull good enough for target use for a less than great, but possibly safer decision.

I mainly shoot da revolvers. Every time I fire my glock, the first one is a bit of a surprise.
 
Thanks gentlemen for your inputs.

I have order the ny1 trigger spring and the ghost 3.5lb defense kit. Together with the stock springs and connector, I will have quite some numbers of combinations to try on. The stock trigger is not bad at all as it is. This is solely for educational purposes only.

It is a glock 23. It is meant to be a home defense pistol, not for competition or extreme accuracy. Safety and reliability are the priorities. So a light trigger doesn't really interest me. I actually don't mind getting a longer, heavier but smooth DA-revolver-like trigger pull for the first shot, followed by short and crisp SA-like breaks. I may find the one I like the best among those combinations.

-TL
 
You will not get what you want with any spring set up you put in a Glock Tangolima, all you will get is a constant break every time,not anything like a DA/SA trigger, if you want that feel and action look to Sig, Hk USP,Berreta......
the glock trigger will be the same weight/break every shot no matter, irregardless of your spring combos, it may be heavy&long or Short&light but it will be constant.
 
I understand glock is not a sa/da design. What I said has to do the way I shoot. The first shot is long, no question about that. The subsequent shots, I reset the trigger. I don't let go the trigger all the way, but stop when it reconnects, and start pulling back. It is not quite SA in normal sense, but it will be short and almost like SA.

The stock trigger can do that, except the first shot is light and has a few bumps along the way. I hope the new combination can improve that.

-TL
 
skans: said:
So, I'm on a quest for a light weight polymer framed Hi-Cap, 9mm that is hammer fired; traditional safety or decocker, no trigger dingus, no stupid grip safety, is as durable and reliable as Glock and for which parts are easy to find. I'm eyeballing the Grand Power K100, but I'm not sure about parts and magazine availability. And, it's too soon to know if they are as tough as a Glock. I'm not asking too much, am I?
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You can try an HK P30 or P2000, there are DA/SA or LEM trigger variants, there are "SK" subcompact versions of each. Then there is the CZ P-07.
 
Tangolima..

The 3.5# (-) connector and the NY spring will give you the result youre after. The spring affects the pull weight from start to finish and the connector determines the stiffness after the "wall".

A heavy spring (NY) and a lighter connector combine to ALMOST mask the wall and allow you to press the trigger from start to finish without the bump in the middle. More like a DA trigger.

I like that wall. Take out the slack...hit the wall...break the shot like a SA trigger...reset and break again...

Different strokes, for different folks. I started shooting a 1911 and like that trigger feel
 
This thread is interesting. I remember when Sigmas and SD's were sent through the wringer because of it's "crappy" trigger (aka heavy).

Personally, I would say yes to the 3.5/8 for a SD piece. IMO, SD pieces should not have a trigger less than 8 lbs. Of course, I grew up on revolvers though . . .
 
The sigma trigger is not only heavy but also gritty. Some polishing will make it acceptable, still as heavy though.

In a glock, a stronger striker spring can also make the trigger heavier. Different from a NY trigger spring, it also stiffens the "wall".

Applicable to most striker fire pistols for bullseye accuracy, I found the major problem is the over-travel. But for defense it is insignificant.

-TL
 
Personally I'd limit Glock trigger work to a Glock minus connector and a little polishing of the cruciform. An undercut trigger guard and a Gen4 large beavertail backstrap are the only other Glock mods that I think are good to have.
 
I understand it is subjective.
Click to expand...

Well, there ya go. My personal opinion is that for 'defense and carry' it makes no darn difference whatsoever what the trigger is. My experience is only in IDPA matches--I've never had to defend myself nor have I ever been in combat. In the stress and adrenaline of a match, I never actually noticed the trigger on any gun I've ever used.

Sometimes I never even notice the sights, either. :)

I'm not a competitive shooter--my last was Sharpshooter in ESP division. But still, I experience sufficient stress and adrenaline at a stupid local match that I could have a 5 lb Sig P220 trigger (and I have) and it would be my last concern.

I have 3.5 lb connectors on both my G20 and G29 and like them. To say that setup is ideal is a bit presumptuous...anything you do with a Glock trigger is going to be an engineering compromise: weight vs length of pull vs how hard the striker hits vs I'm sure a few other things. This probably applies to many striker guns, but I think it applies to Glock a bit more than M&P because with the M&P there is no loading of the striker at all with the trigger pull-it's a pure single action gun (Smith & Wesson marketing department would beg to differ).
 
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I agree the actually pull makes no difference after the first shot is fired. It makes difference before though. A heavier trigger raises the bar a little.

M&P doesn't compress the striker spring with the trigger. It is SA action, at least it appears so to me.

The glock trigger is a result of promise all right. Different balance of compromise gives different perceived trigger pull. Some exploration is what I want to do. Perhaps I will go back the stock configuration when I am done. It isn't bad at all.

-TL
 
I bought a Glock 19 in 1998.
The case support was good, so no welding or barrel swap before hot load work up.

The recoil was painful. I built a 48 pound triple recoil spring assembly with a Wolf pak gunsmith kit.

The slide went forward so fast with that spring that:
1) the chamber came up empty
2) the trigger did not reset

My fixes:
1) two magazine springs in parallel to push the next round up faster. [now hard on the thumb to load]
2) get a NY trigger that will reset faster.

Years went by.
I pulled out some wimpy factory ammo that cannot cycle that spring.
Only I have enough grip to chamber a round, no one else that has tried succeeded.
I put in the wimpy stock Glock helical spring.
I grabbed a different magazine.

But that NY trigger is still in there.
 
I'm a target shooter, so naturally, I hate heavy trigger pulls.
The Glock 17 was the first 9mm I ever shot at the range, and I was like "ugh... that trigger is horrible!".
I've never been in a self-defense situation, and hopefully, I never will, but I wonder how a heavy trigger pull could actually be a good thing in this (or any) situation.
If my life is on the line, I want to be able to acquire and shoot my target as fast as possible, right?
 
+1 to show monkey,

Just higher trigger spring, lighter safety plunger spring, but still stock connector.

Very nice to me as is, but might throw in - connector to see.

Much better than my other stock g21c.
 
There is no right or wrong way, but way that you feel comfortable with. I like the trigger pull of a DA revolver. I haven't been in a real defense situation either. But I don't think I will cock the revolver to go SA, if that's the weapon I have, even the trigger is much lighter in SA.

Without external safety, a glock is similar to a DA revolver for the first shot, except that the trigger pull is a bit too light.

-TL
 
The amount of ignorance about how a pre-set striker works is kind of surprising. If you want to use a tool well, know how it works.

There is ZERO difference in overall pull weight on a Glock trigger, regardless if it is fired from a neutral starting position, or from the reset. The overall travel of the trigger will be different, but the break at the sear is the same every single time. This consistency is one of the greatest draws of the pre-set striker system.

The trigger is the main interface point between your meat body and the firearm. The firearm is a machine, and it does what it does: in this case, throw a bullet out the barrel to the exact place the barrel is pointed at. The heavier the trigger pull, the more impetus the shooter has to place on the weapon, and the greater the chance that the barrel will be moved off of the intended target. This is why competition gun-golfers love SAO triggers like the 1911: the overall trigger travel and the weight of the break are so low that there is minimum interference from the user on the point of impact vs point of aim.

There is absolutely no correlation between heavier trigger pulls and safety, up until the point that the trigger is so light that it becomes a liability, and that number is rather low, and has as much to do with the total trigger throw than the weight. IE the longer the trigger pull, the less likely the shooter is to accidentally complete the evolution. I am not advocating 2lb triggers on a carry piece, but the idea that an 8 or 9lb trigger is somehow 'more safe' and in some way preferable, especially on a pre-set striker like a Glock where you don't get to transition to a lighter SA pull like you do on a DA/SA firearm, is just absurd. If anything, that consistently heavy trigger just makes hitting your intended target harder, which can be a liability if anything else.

I carry a NY trigger on my issue Glock (policy), and I've learned to shoot it well. Headshots at 25 yards all day. That doesn't mean that it is a good trigger setup. It just means that I am good at using that trigger setup because I trained it. My personal Glock has a much lighter pull, and I can pick an eyeball from across the room.

The main point of safety on any firearm, in any context, is to keep your booger-picker off the trigger until you are ready to shoot. A light, short pull can be dangerous if it is too light or too short, but light and short are vastly preferable to long and heavy in most any situation.
 
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