How to lighten trigger pull?

C

ChrisG164

Inactive
I know this is a very general newbie question, but I'm aware that there are replacement parts from the trigger to the sear to multiple springs, and in addition you can polish the sear and/or file it.. when it comes down to it, if you want a 3.5, or 3, or 2.5 lbs. trigger pull from a stock trigger, what would your main modification be? Or are there multiple ways to obtain this?
 
Chris, 2/26/12

Whether you could or should lighten a trigger pull depends on many factors, the make and model of the pistol especially. Also depends on the actual trigger pull weight now (you need to measure it, not guess at it) and what the pistol is to be used for (ie- defense, range use or competition, etc.). In general the proper tools you need to buy and techniques to learn make it best to have the trigger work done by a gunsmith. If you are going to work on a number of pistols then it might be worth while to spend the money on tools and training. I am able to do it myself but have spent quite a lot of money on acquiring the stuff I need to do a safe job. Good luck.

best wishes- oldandslow
 
After reading this http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/lid=10297/guntechdetail/2___lb__Trigger_Pull I think I highly agree. Most of it was Greek to me, and that was supposed to be a DIY user friendly article. My question was more to fill my curiosity rather than a source for a means to a lightened trigger pull. I'll soon be buying a pistol (probably a Single Stack STI, trojan) for competition and for fun at the range and wondered why I've never come across a thread stating, "Hey, replace this spring and you'll get a ** lbs. trigger". Now I know why.. so many parts dedicated to the trigger's characteristics.
 
This may be the best piece of advice you will ever get.

Don't buy a generic gun for $500, and spend another $500 tuning it. You will never get your money back out of it when you sell.

If you spend $300 more up front, you can get a target grade model with better trigger, barrel, and other parts, fully integrated, and still have better resale/trade value in the end.

Others will disagree. You, however, are a self declared noob, and this is the path that I think you should follow.
 
ChrisG164 said:
if you want a 3.5, or 3, or 2.5 lbs. trigger pull from a stock trigger, what would your main modification be? Or are there multiple ways to obtain this?
Click to expand...
It depends on the type of firearm -- and there are probably multiple approaches for each firearm. Your question is too general to be answered.
 
Don't buy a generic gun for $500, and spend another $500 tuning it. You will never get your money back out of it when you sell.

If you spend $300 more up front, you can get a target grade model with better trigger, barrel, and other parts, fully integrated, and still have better resale/trade value in the end.
Click to expand...

The first sentence is probably correct, the money you put into a gun in accessories, sold with the gun, usually are worth $.50 on the $1, because we have no idea what kind of gun mechanic you are. Installed by a name smith with receipts, I would guess you could get $.75 on the $1.

The second sentence is an interesting question. Can you name what models you speak of? I'm asking because I know Kimber makes $700 and $1200 1911's, but as far as I know, the fitting is not much different. This is just based on guns I have tried in the gun store.

As far as lightening the trigger, all guns are different. Some kind of spring kit will usually make it lighter, but that will often cause creep. Too light of springs and ignition becomes less reliable. It can also change slide velocities and make the gun less reliable.

Polishing can make creep go away and also give the trigger an overall smoother feeling.

Recutting angles is usually the most risky, but can make the trigger feel more crisp. . .the proverbial breaking an icicle feel. Doing this wrong can make your parts junk.

In general, these processes of smoothing require stones and sometimes a carefully applied mill file. A jig is required for recutting sears and hammers.
 
Did you ever consider that the gun isnt the issue?

If you make your trigger finger stronger, the weight will seem lighter.

It seems that many want an easy "fix" for something they lack and arent willing to rectify.
 
Better questions are what gun and what do you want to use it for. For a pure bench rifle or target rifle, trigger pulls can go down to a couple of ounces, but such a light pull on a defense gun would be insane.

When you might need the gun in a situation where you are scared and nervous, you need a heavier pull, not a light one unless you want to blow away an innocent person or shoot off your own toes. FWIW, I measured the pull on one of my favorite carry guns, a Colt GM in .45. It was 7 pounds. I am not going to change it.

Jim
 
For sure, good technique can overcome lots of equipment deficiencies, many of which are largely imaginary.
The better you get as a shooter, the better your gun will get, also.
 
I count two replies wondering what the firearm i'd be referring to is.. if you read my first post, you might see that I mentioned the exact model in fact.... not to mention, this is the handgun forum, so that's the first clue to what the firearm type is.


STI Trojan.
 
I agree with Oldandslow in what is the reason for wanting to lighten the pull?


What handgun do you have? Semi - auto? For the pulls you have stated, I would assume you are talking single action pull. What is your current double action pull vs your single action pull?

You are asking for some very light trigger pulls in your post. One general rule of thumb is 4 - 6lbs for service weapons. When you get lighter than that, you are in a danger zone. Light pulls under 4lbs are common pulls for people with hand or wrist injuries that effect their ability to achieve a proper grip and pull a standard trigger pull.

Most trigger pull issues can be fixed with, #1 proper cleaning, then adjustments in your grip, and finally your trigger pull mechanics. I would suggest working with your shooting habits rather than making changes to the weapon.
 
Yup...you did. My bad. I took that as you are getting another and you were talking about one you already had.
Still you are talking very light. I would still suggest staying around 4lbs.
 
Ok, once again I'll bring up things that I spoke about already in earlier posts. I wasn't so curious as the techniques for lightening as a means to reduce my trigger pull. Only, I am more interested in the different ways to or the parts involved out of curiosity. Therefore you can pick any firing weight, it's really not the concern.
 
As far as lightening the trigger, all guns are different. Some kind of spring kit will usually make it lighter, but that will often cause creep. Too light of springs and ignition becomes less reliable. It can also change slide velocities and make the gun less reliable.

Polishing can make creep go away and also give the trigger an overall smoother feeling.

Recutting angles is usually the most risky, but can make the trigger feel more crisp. . .the proverbial breaking an icicle feel. Doing this wrong can make your parts junk.

In general, these processes of smoothing require stones and sometimes a carefully applied mill file. A jig is required for recutting sears and hammers.
Click to expand...

This answer still applies. A trigger change can improve pre travel and over travel. A sear/ hammer combo properly cut can improve crispness. Polishing the frame and other internals will reduce creep. Adjusting the sear spring will reduce pull weight.

Last, 100's of dry fires with focus on finding the speed of pull and best hand to gun alignment will give you more than a $250 full house trigger job.
 
A light, crisp, consistent trigger without creep or over-travel is a thing of great joy. The way to it is sometimes as straight and short as replacing a spring or two, sometimes impossible no matter what you do and how much you spend. If there were an easy generic way, I'd have found it years ago.
 
ChrisG164 said:
I count two replies wondering what the firearm i'd be referring to is.. if you read my first post, you might see that I mentioned the exact model in fact.... not to mention, this is the handgun forum, so that's the first clue to what the firearm type is.
Click to expand...
I did read your first post, and it said nothing about what type of firearm. Here it is:

ChrisG164 said:
I know this is a very general newbie question, but I'm aware that there are replacement parts from the trigger to the sear to multiple springs, and in addition you can polish the sear and/or file it.. when it comes down to it, if you want a 3.5, or 3, or 2.5 lbs. trigger pull from a stock trigger, what would your main modification be? Or are there multiple ways to obtain this?
Click to expand...
You then followed up with a second post that mentioned a firearm you might be buying:

ChrisG164 said:
After reading this http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/lid=1...__Trigger_Pull I think I highly agree. Most of it was Greek to me, and that was supposed to be a DIY user friendly article. My question was more to fill my curiosity rather than a source for a means to a lightened trigger pull. I'll soon be buying a pistol (probably a Single Stack STI, trojan) for competition and for fun at the range and wondered why I've never come across a thread stating, "Hey, replace this spring and you'll get a ** lbs. trigger". Now I know why.. so many parts dedicated to the trigger's characteristics.
Click to expand...
So you're still asking a question that's too general to be answered with any specificity. Since you seem to want to be argumentative, I'll refrain from continuing in this discussion.
 
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