"Shining Up" trigger & hammer surfaces

[Usmc0844spare]

Can someone confirm (or refute) my suspicion that lightly hand-polishing (i.e. q-tip and flitz or something) sear and hammer interface surfaces probably is not going to do anything that some grease won't?

If the surfaces are rough to whatever degree, all you'll end up with is shiny rough surfaces and at best you'll pretty much accomplish nothing. At worst you are risking dangerous dimensional changes. While it seems unlikely a few minutes with a Qtip and some polishing compound is actually gonna change things dimensionally, it's not like a Qtip is a precision instrument, so, who knows.

Thoughts?

[SVT-40]

I polish the contact surfaces on the triggers and hammers on all the AK rifles that I build and shoot. The work results in a much better (non stagy), lighter and consistent trigger pull.

I also use grease on the polished surfaces. I use a Dremel, a felt polishing wheel and some polishing medium.

But depending on what firearm you are considering that may not work. I don't do anything to any of my AR types.

Glock types some areas get polished...

Again it all depends on what platform you are considering doing the work on.

[Supersapper]

Given the choice between confirm and refute, I choose refute.

You need not mirror finish the part to obtain some improvement. The anodized/parkerized/cerakotedwhatever coating on the metal parts are in many cases a bit gritty. While grease can help, you still have grittiness in the trigger.

I simply use a dremel and a buffing wheel with red jeweler's rouge followed by white compound to polish. This takes down the grittiness without actually having to shiny up the metal. I've taken down a few pounds on triggers on several of my pistols. I inadvertently got a chance to test the difference when a guy with a P226 that was unmolested and of similar vintage to mine was next to me on a range. We traded pistols and there was a distinct difference. The untouched one was still gritty and mine had a smooth, almost slick, trigger pull.

That said, if the trigger is already down to 3-4 pounds, I typically won't mess with it. Last thing I need is some sort of 1# trigger that starts slam firing itself into full auto mode because it's too light.

[ar15barrels]

Can someone confirm (or refute) my suspicion that lightly hand-polishing (i.e. q-tip and flitz or something) sear and hammer interface surfaces probably is not going to do anything that some grease won't?

If the surfaces are rough to whatever degree, all you'll end up with is shiny rough surfaces and at best you'll pretty much accomplish nothing. At worst you are risking dangerous dimensional changes. While it seems unlikely a few minutes with a Qtip and some polishing compound is actually gonna change things dimensionally, it's not like a Qtip is a precision instrument, so, who knows.

Thoughts?

Rough vs smooth matters.
Shiney vs dull does not matter until AFTER you get rid of rough.

So stone away the rough to get rid of the rough and don't worry much about them being shiney.

[Usmc0844spare]

Rough vs smooth matters.
Shiney vs dull does not matter until AFTER you get rid of rough.

So stone away the rough to get rid of the rough and don't worry much about them being shiney.

Yeah, this and the post above got me to thinking. I only have had the gun down to parts once and I don't recall what the hammer surface looked like... but looked at some parts pics online and the hammer is definitely parked, likely to include the sear interface as well... I don't feel confident in doing [whatever] to remove the parkerizing without changing a dimension.

Will just shoot it and hopefully that will take the trigger the last couple miles towards where I want it to be.

[ar15barrels]

Will just shoot it and hopefully that will take the trigger the last couple miles towards where I want it to be.

Read up on trigger boosting.

[Supersapper]

Yeah, this and the post above got me to thinking. I only have had the gun down to parts once and I don't recall what the hammer surface looked like... but looked at some parts pics online and the hammer is definitely parked, likely to include the sear interface as well... I don't feel confident in doing [whatever] to remove the parkerizing without changing a dimension.

Will just shoot it and hopefully that will take the trigger the last couple miles towards where I want it to be.

You won't change any geometry if you limit yourself to either a very light stoning as Randall mentioned or buffing compound and a slow speed dremel with rouge and compound.

Where you start having issues is if you start grinding, heavy grit sanding, or filing. Even if you buffed the finish down to a shiny mirror finish using a very fine stone or just too much buffing, things will be fine. You just don't need to shiny it up to get improvement but if that's all you did, you won't have safety issues.

What pistol is it?

[Usmc0844spare]

You won't change any geometry if you limit yourself to either a very light stoning as Randall mentioned or buffing compound and a slow speed dremel with rouge and compound.

Where you start having issues is if you start grinding, heavy grit sanding, or filing. Even if you buffed the finish down to a shiny mirror finish using a very fine stone or just too much buffing, things will be fine. You just don't need to shiny it up to get improvement but if that's all you did, you won't have safety issues.

What pistol is it?

Buckmark.

[Supersapper]

Buckmark.

Interesting. Is the trigger really that bad? It's a .22 and I've never known a 22 pistol to have really rotten triggers.

In any event, you can polish up the contact/mating surfaces without an issue. Again, as long as you don't grind, heavy stone or file, you shouldn't have an issue. But I can't imagine a Buckmark needs it.

[Usmc0844spare]

Interesting. Is the trigger really that bad? It's a .22 and I've never known a 22 pistol to have really rotten triggers.

In any event, you can polish up the contact/mating surfaces without an issue. Again, as long as you don't grind, heavy stone or file, you shouldn't have an issue. But I can't imagine a Buckmark needs it.

Yeah, not "rotten". Did all the usual Buckmark changes (gearbox, TK trigger, remove mag safety), so it's "decent" now. Since I use it for tgt work though, would like to get it slightly lighter and slightly smoother.

Further lightening would probably require a competent gunsmith, and I have no idea if there are any ACTUAL gunsmiths (as opposed to parts assemblers) in the SF Bay Area that do this sort of thing.

Added some pics of the hammer surface. From afar it looks ok but close up, looks a little moonscape-ish. Idaknow.

[Supersapper]

Yeah, not "rotten". Did all the usual Buckmark changes (gearbox, TK trigger, remove mag safety), so it's "decent" now. Since I use it for tgt work though, would like to get it slightly lighter and slightly smoother.

Further lightening would probably require a competent gunsmith, and I have no idea if there are any ACTUAL gunsmiths (as opposed to parts assemblers) in the SF Bay Area that do this sort of thing.

Added some pics of the hammer surface. From afar it looks ok but close up, looks a little moonscape-ish. Idaknow.

Ok, with those, yes the part you circled is a bit rough. But that is not the only part that would need to be examined. Basically, you would need to remove the entire sear engagement system from the trigger to the hammer and simply buff/polish with a dremel, buffing wheel, jeweler's rouge (or equivalent), and then finally with compound. A single pass with a fine file along the sharp edges with take some of the roughness off. Clean all of the parts and reassemble with some Remi oil. That would be the best you can get.

[Usmc0844spare]

Ok, with those, yes the part you circled is a bit rough. But that is not the only part that would need to be examined. Basically, you would need to remove the entire sear engagement system from the trigger to the hammer and simply buff/polish with a dremel, buffing wheel, jeweler's rouge (or equivalent), and then finally with compound. A single pass with a fine file along the sharp edges with take some of the roughness off. Clean all of the parts and reassemble with some Remi oil. That would be the best you can get.

Yeah, I actually ended up paying through the nose for a VQ Buckmark Hammer, which has some different geometry (pic from an old rimfirecentral thread). Coming this week. Not gonna mess with it.

In anticipation of install I gutted the pistol. Here's how the sear looks under magnification.

Honestly, while I think it's within my capabilities to give this a couple perfectly flat passes on a stone before I put it back together... kinda don't feel like tempting fate on this teeny tiny MIM part.

[Supersapper]

Yeah, I actually ended up paying through the nose for a VQ Buckmark Hammer, which has some different geometry (pic from an old rimfirecentral thread). Coming this week. Not gonna mess with it.

In anticipation of install I gutted the pistol. Here's how the sear looks under magnification.

Honestly, while I think it's within my capabilities to give this a couple perfectly flat passes on a stone before I put it back together... kinda don't feel like tempting fate on this teeny tiny MIM part.

No worries there. Don't do it if you're not comfortable with it. Better safe than sorry. Honestly, though...what you've done is fine.

One thing you can do though and test it out. If it does not work well, it's easily correctable. Go get a little bit of high speed bearing grease, the same type one would use to repack your car's wheel bearings.

Take the pistol back apart and using a Q-tip, apply a small amount (a thin sheen, really) of the grease to all the metal surfaces in contact, ie pins and flats that rub together during the trigger pull. That should reduce the metal to metal friction and gain you back a pound or so in the pistols action and will make the trigger pull smoother.

What's more is that if you don't like it, you just take it apart again, clean the parts with a grease cutting agent (naptha, thinner, etc...) and the parts are back to what they were before without any physical changes.

[Usmc0844spare]

No worries there. Don't do it if you're not comfortable with it. Better safe than sorry. Honestly, though...what you've done is fine.

One thing you can do though and test it out. If it does not work well, it's easily correctable. Go get a little bit of high speed bearing grease, the same type one would use to repack your car's wheel bearings.

Take the pistol back apart and using a Q-tip, apply a small amount (a thin sheen, really) of the grease to all the metal surfaces in contact, ie pins and flats that rub together during the trigger pull. That should reduce the metal to metal friction and gain you back a pound or so in the pistols action and will make the trigger pull smoother.

What's more is that if you don't like it, you just take it apart again, clean the parts with a grease cutting agent (naptha, thinner, etc...) and the parts are back to what they were before without any physical changes.

Thanks.

Yeah, I bought some of this awhile back for strategic application to Glock connectors and so forth. Seems to work well. Was planning on using here as well.

https://www.vn750.com/attachments/image_1461693046369-jpg.31345/

Edit: VQ hammer received and installed, smooth as can be, probably dropped about half a pound in pull weight, right around 2lbs near as I can tell.
Glad I didn't mess with the sear, I doubt my finger is smart enough to notice any real difference.

[Supersapper]

Thanks.

Yeah, I bought some of this awhile back for strategic application to Glock connectors and so forth. Seems to work well. Was planning on using here as well.

https://www.vn750.com/attachments/image_1461693046369-jpg.31345/

Edit: VQ hammer received and installed, smooth as can be, probably dropped about half a pound in pull weight, right around 2lbs near as I can tell.
Glad I didn't mess with the sear, I doubt my finger is smart enough to notice any real difference.

Awesome! And at this point, do not mess with it other than standard oil. The trigger is as light as you absolutely dare make it unless you're running it in competition somewhere and even then, any lighter might not be allowed.