Tokarev TTC trigger problem

[Caribouriver]

Pretty certain the problem is not the safety. The problem is that the trigger will pull back but not drop the hammer. Today I had the grips off, cleaned thoroughly again and lubed it up. Then I cycled through snap caps, just cocking and recocking the hammer. Sometimes I would go two hammer drops. Sometimes 8. Then the trigger would pull all the way back but fail to drop the hammer. This is the same thing that happened at the range last week with live ammo. After a failure to drop the hammer, I would recock the hammer even though it was already cocked. 1 in 10 times that worked. Racking the slide and ejecting a snap cap would "reset" the trigger and I would get 1-8 hammer drops. It varied all over the place. When I had the grips off, I noticed that the "hoop" that goes around the inside perimeter of the mag well was a little sloppy. It was easy to move it up and down. Since the back of this "hoop" engages the sear in the modular trigger group, I suspect that it drops down just ad tad (3/32") and then misses contacting the sear. That's my guess. Any ideas how to fix it? Maybe a new trigger, trigger pin and "hoop"? Thanks in advance for your help. Heh heh.I have a CZ52 that has feeding issues. I sure would like to get at least one of these eastern bloc pistols to be reliable.
Joe

[C&Rtrader]

I know you say its not the safety.. but did you at least try removing it? I had similar problems until i took it out. It has a silly looking hole but it works perfectly. If you already have then I got nothing for ya. good luck!

FWIW= reliable eastern block pistol = Makarov

[Caribouriver]

Well, C&R, I cannot say FOR SURE that's it's not the safety. I did not take it off. If it could conceivably (and inconsistently) push the yoke behind the trigger down even a teeny bit, that would be enough to make the back of the yoke miss the sear. And then I would have full trigger pull and no hammer drop. Thanks for your reply. Since all the other safety problems I had read about blocked trigger movement completely (ie, safety locked on) and my trigger pulled easily but failed to drop the hammer, I thought my problem was not the safety.

[Scout2Diesel]

I swapped triggers out and fixed a similar sear/trigger engagement issue. It would lock up but fire only with the opposite index finger pushing straight back. IIRC there are guides molded on the inside of the grips too. The problem was just the engagement. The donor pistol worked fine with the swapped trigger too. I had my full service dealer provide the donor without much trouble as they still had the exact model in stock.

[wash]

A friend of mine had a tokarev trigger pack with a broken spring that started going full auto.

He got rid of that pretty quick.

But the way he diagnosed it was swapping trigger packs from another tokarev he has.

If there is another you can borrow, swap it out to see if the problem remains.

[stitchnicklas]

i had the same trigger issue with my yugo and removing the safety fixed the problem,800 rds and no recurrence

[Rekrab]

A friend of mine had a tokarev trigger pack with a broken spring that started going full auto.

He got rid of that pretty quick.

But the way he diagnosed it was swapping trigger packs from another tokarev he has.

If there is another you can borrow, swap it out to see if the problem remains.

If removing the safety doesn't fix the issue, I'd definitely just get a new hammer assembly. I don't think they're THAT expensive. You can probably pick up the individual parts but the assembly isn't really meant to be worked on.

[Caribouriver]

I have not located a new hammer assembly. I can get a new trigger with "hoop" for about $20. I have not removed the safety. Is it hard to reinstall? I'm thinking about liability issues if I go to sell it. It would be great if the new trigger fixed it. Thanks for your help.

[Caribouriver]

I removed the safety. Doing so did not remedy the problem. The Tok would "fire" 2-3 times, then the trigger would pull the full distance but no hammer fall. Racking and chambering another snap cap would allow 2-3 more dry fires then the same malfunction. It does seem like the back side of the "trigger hoop" that is supposed to engage the sear somehow "drops" down a bit and misses the mark. Maybe its bent. The hammer module seems to work flawlessly. From what you say, replacing the trigger assembly may fix it. Sound good?

[mj1]

What is a TTC? Did you think of sending an unsafe gun back to the distributor?

[Caribouriver]

A TTC is a Romanian version of the Tokarev TT-33. I think the "C" stands for Cugir. It was a PPT to me so I am out of luck on returning it. But I do think I know the problem. I found a 2.5 year old posting on surplusrifle that described my problem to a tee. Evidently, the bakelite grips are an essential part of trigger operation. There is a slight recess in them that guides the trigger rails to the sear. If those recesses become worn, chipped or damaged or the trigger rails become bent, the trigger can literally "fall off the rails" and slip down into the grip cavity and miss hitting the sear. I am going to try reforming my trigger rails and/or gluing a thin strip of plastic on the inside of the grips to restore the trigger rail guide. The guy on surplusrifle installed two tiny pins on each grip to remedy the problem.

[mj1]

Good luck then. I had my first Tokarev in '68 and the only problems I ever had was no ammo and rust.

[Fate]

IRacking and chambering another snap cap would allow 2-3 more dry fires then the same malfunction.

Glad to hear you're using snap caps to dry fire. I broke a firing pin once by dry firing one of the GSP imported TT-33s I once owned. Finding a spare firing pin was fun.

My 1940 Tula bringback doesn't get dry fired without snap caps anymore.

[Caribouriver]

Heh heh. When my kids were little and I'd see them fall off a swing or something, I swear that I "felt" the fall. Same thing when I hear someone dry-fire anything (especially something that belongs to me!). It makes me cringe. Anyway, I'll report back if I am successful in fixing this Romy. Thanks again for your help and interest.

[Caribouriver]

I was close but not exactly right on diagnosing the problem of the trigger failing to drop the hammer. The recess at the top of the hand guard is nearly a full 1/8" below where the trigger rails ride. So that was not the problem. The problem is the trigger is VERY sloppy inside the trigger guard. It can travel nearly 1/8" vertically. Is that normal? When the trigger was down and contacted the inside of the trigger guard, it would pull back but not drop the hammer. When it was up leaving about 1/8" of daylight between the bottom of the trigger and the inside of the trigger guard, the trigger dropped the hammer. To test this, I fastened a cable tie tightly around the trigger guard to fill the space and prevent the trigger from dropping down. I got 125 continuous hammer drops. A record! I'd be a little self conscious going to the range with a cable tie hanging off this pistol. And it would be rather disrespectful to Fedor Tokarev as well. So I'm thinking of epoxy gluing a 1/32"x3/32" strip of brass or something like that into the recess in the grips hoping to support the trigger rails internally to prevent the trigger from dropping. I must admit, this seems like a weird repair. But maybe I got a weird pistol. Is there anything I'm missing? This trigger just floats and is rather sloppy. Should I replace the trigger? Am I missing something?