How hard is it to do a trigger job?

[zfields]

A trigger job is easy... the downside is that screwing it up is even easier.
Hint... don't use a dremel.
take care
Mike

Piece of glass and some ultra fine sandpapers is the way I do a majority it.

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[Rorge Retson]

You can't protect people from themselves.

You can encourage some people to take risks who should not be taking them. Unless you know exactly how mechanically inclined someone is, especially when it comes to something as seriously life-and-death as affecting the operation of a firearm, then it is best to err on the side of caution.

Individuals competent and confident enough to do something of this nature themselves don't come to internet forums asking for input...they simply do it. If someone needs to ask, again, it is best to be conservative.

With no automotive mechanical experience, I changed a cam in my vehicle, but had a veteran with me who had done three cam swaps himself. I felt confident that if an issue came up, we could handle it together. Could I do one myself now? You betcha. But there is no way I would have tried that on my own the first time.

[pdude]

Piece of glass and some ultra fine sandpapers is the way I do a majority it.

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Piece of glass?

[cannon]

If you do it yourself. DO NOT USE A DREMEL!!!!!!!

Smooth very very little with a stone and test fire. Rinse and repeat. Just remember when you take too much off bad things will happen.

If I may suggest. Get a $50-100 cheap arse piece of junk pistol and practice first. Take your time and have fun.

[zfields]

Piece of glass?

To keep your sandpaper perfectly flat.

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[pdude]

Okay that makes sense! That's an idea.

[JTROKS]

There seems to be an anti Dremmel/rotary tool group popping up here. Lots of gunsmiths use rotary tools to polish up small parts. It's quicker and it's not a grinding bit or sand paper disk you'll be using. If you use light passes you won't be taking off metal, just using as a small buffer for small parts. Just my 2bits.

[Mikeb]

There seems to be an anti Dremmel/rotary tool group popping up here. Lots of gunsmiths use rotary tools to polish up small parts. It's quicker and it's not a grinding bit or sand paper disk you'll be using. If you use light passes you won't be taking off metal, just using as a small buffer for small parts. Just my 2bits.

Yeah I am anti Dremmel/rotory tool. That's not to say they don't have there place. Personally I have 1/2x1/2x4 ceramic sharpening stones, course and fine, that I use for sears. Sear engagements are pretty complex. I don't recomend taking a rotory tool to any of the surfaces.
Mike

[zfields]

Yeah I am anti Dremmel/rotory tool. That's not to say they don't have there place. Personally I have 1/2x1/2x4 ceramic sharpening stones, course and fine, that I use for sears. Sear engagements are pretty complex. I don't recomend taking a rotory tool to any of the surfaces.
Mike

Agreed, I use dremels for the trigger bars, of the sides of internals that move with direct contact to the frame.

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[Oneaudiopro]

Hmmmm

You're in WAY over your head. Take it to a competent gunsmith and have it done right and don't listen to these idiots in here that are telling you to DIY.

[JTROKS]

Yeah personally I have a Ron Power series I jig and some India and Ceramic stones too, but the rotary tool is used for most of the other parts except for sear tip and hammer hooks. And if someone here thinks they can polish hammer hooks and angled sears with flat glass and 1000 and up grit emery cloth then I bow to you.

[BigRich]

Find out what the S&W Performance Center wants for a full action job on your gun before you get into it yourself. I have done a few S&W Autos and they are tricky. If you just want a lighter pull weight change the hammer spring to an established "safe" lower weight. Remember that camming the hammer back is part of the slide balance in the recoil cycle so if you go too low on that spring you will speed up your slide opening.

[gemini1]

Thank you all for the advice.
Well if I were to do it myself, I'm not going to be that brave to file or dremel parts here and there. I'm simply gonna try to change the spring/s that may help lighten the pull. And if need be, maybe most I'll do is just clean the rest of the internals.

What I wanted the most is to find a detailed "how to" dis-assemble, and I found it. So hopefully just by changing a lower weight hammer spring, fixes the problem.

Hey BigRich, thanks for the advice. I'll probably get a Wolff spring pak, to see which spring does the job well. The S&W Performance Center online site says around $135.

[BigRich]

You're welcome. That is a sound plan. Stay with the heaviest weight that you are ok with. I have found that S&W autos don't like being altered. The Performance Center manufacturers oversized parts so they can be fitted where applicable without changing the timing on the rest of the levers in the action design. They also don't accommodate overtravel stops well without causing strange functioning or even non-functioning. $135 is not a bad price for the work. Especially for a big outfit that will stand behind their work if something isn't right.

[Grayguns]

DA pull weights

Since he specifically wants to change the DA pull weight, the hammer / sear engagement doesn't need to be messed with. A spring swap with a cleanup would do what he needs.

Hi! As a point of reference, in SIG pistols we change the leverage between the trigger and trigger bar to effect a great degree of DA pull reduction while maintaining fully reliable ignition, rather than depending upon highly reduced springs. When we attempt to reduce DA pull weights with light or (God forbid) modified mainsprings, we inevitably invite trouble. The worst thing I can imagine is the combination of a too-light mainspring and a reduced or clipped firing pin return spring. Such a setup is potentially hazardous. I urge caution, and am always happy to help DIY types get reasonable results while staying safe.

I'd add one other point: A light trigger isn't necessarily a good thing. ANY trigger can be shot accurately by the shooter who is simply willing press it straight to the rear until the shot breaks. Beyond making really awful triggers more usable, what we do is enhance consistency and make training easier and more enjoyable. But to be honest, no one needs a 2X SA pull, and everyone can learn to run a 9-pound DA to a high order if they want to. Perhaps excepting the rarefied realm of maniac USPSA hosing where fast splits on easy targets are the rule, I no longer believe there is any real advantage to an SA pull lighter than 3 3/4 pounds; in support, I might humbly reference the new National records I set with a 4-pound SA and 9-pound DA at the Bianchi Cup last year, shooting the X-5 All Around.

Thanks for indulging my thinking.

-Bruce