At Home Trigger Job vs. New Trigger

TheBig1

TheBig1

New member
I was thinking about changing out my Mil-Spec trigger with something along the lines of the RRA Varmint trigger which is reasonably priced. But then after reading some threads on here and Googling it all, I saw that you could potentially make your Mil-Spec trigger almost as good with some yellow JP springs as well as a pistol grip screw that also has a set screw in it to reduce/eliminate trigger creep. Both the JP springs and the set screw together are below $15.

I was thinking about giving this a try prior to purchasing a new trigger. Has anyone else gone this route? If so, how did it work out for you?

Chad
 
I would be VERY cautious trying trigger work at home. The angles on the trigger and hammer are CRITICAL to get right. Without the right jigs it can be very dicey to get them right without having a run away. Even with the right jig it can still result in a run away. Set screws seem ok, but again it has more to do with the angles. I have seen "adjustable" triggers out on the market that were dangerous because they set the trigger too lightly and the gun can discharge.

Personally, spend the money and buy a high quality trigger set like a Geissele, RRA, Hyperfire or a one piece drop in like the Velocity, POF, etc. Less headaches and more reliable.
 
Thanks Snow, I appreciate it. Could changing the springs on your trigger group really that be that detrimental to the functionality of the rifle?
 
the part where doing a home trigger job gets sketchy is when the instructions include taking an abrasive (stone, sandpaper, etc) to the engagement surfaces. those are hardened for durability against wear, but the hardened surface is very thin. couple passes with a stone can damage that and cause problems for you...


doing a spring swap and the set screw in the pistol grip is the safe way to go about it. it does require proper safety checks when doing so (bump the stock down hard on stuff, etc) but it should be fine.

like snow said - if you dont try to push things too far those kind of mods are just fine - and safe.

if you're gonna use the JP yellow spring for the hammer, make sure you bob the hammer too. that yellow spring + a unmodified hammer may not have the UNF to set off nato (hard cup) primers effectively.

you could also get the kit that has the red hammer spring and the yellow trigger spring.

https://www.joeboboutfitters.com/JP_Enterprises_AR_15_RELIABILITY_ENHANCED_REDUCED_p/jp-jps3.5t.htm

i would still probably recomend that you bob the hammer too.



i just had to put a red hammer spring in my timney that rides in my LR308 for the same reason - light nato primer strikes when shooting some LC ammo i picked up
 
Originally Posted By: Plant.One..doing a spring swap and the set screw in the pistol grip is the safe way to go about it.
...if you're gonna use the JP yellow spring for the hammer, make sure you bob the hammer too. ....
+1
Have one AR with the yellow spring, bob hammer, handle screw for trigger stop in an otherwise stock lower.
It helped a lot, but not near as good as a 3 lbs drop in trigger group.
The lighter spring emphasized the military trigger creep & grit (didn't polish anything).
The handle stop screw reduces overall travel, so there seems to be less creep, but the grit is still there.
If budget is a major concern, then the spring/screw/bobbed hammer is worth the effort, imo.
 
I was looking at Joe Bob's prior to all of this and was thinking about getting the combo springs and screw with set screw.

And I have no clue what you're talking about when you say to "Bob" the hammer. As far as ammo, yes I shoot stock ammo from time to time, but this is for hunting so I'm looking to develop reloads for better accuracy.
 
this should help

W6_kpj4gQCm90wyfral9WQ.png


the other option besides using the red hammer spring would be to just leave the factory hammer spring in play and only change the trigger spring to the yellow.


by reducing the weight of the hammer like this, in effect you increase the speed of said hammer with the same spring. so when you switch to a lower power spring, dropping the weight essentially allows you to keep the same impact force as the heavier hammer with a heavier spring.

newtons law and all that

force = mass x acceleration
 
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That doesn't look too awful hard. Heck, I was in the infantry. We were excellent at breaking stuff. That's why a chem light was our best tool, you had to break it to get it to work.

I have a Dremel and could just saw that right off.
 
It is lightening the hammer to make a faster lock time. Usually by cutting off some of the "hook".
Would add that: decreasing the hammer spring force is also decreasing total energy to whack the firing pin (Newton et al).
A few have reported light strikes with yellow spring, even with a bobbed hammer, ymmv. No problems with mine.
Here's a pic of one from www with yellow spring, hope it still shows up :
IMG_9752.jpg
 
Thanks Bob! Like I said, that doesn't seem like a terribly hard modification to complete. I think that I'm going to order a set of springs and the grip screw with set screw and see how it comes out. Can't hurt to try it for $20. If it doesn't work then I'll spend $80 on the RRA Varmint trigger.
 
Ok, seriously.

When I go home tonight, should I be concerned about "bobbing" my trigger or just go ahead and do it? It looks pretty straight forward. I honestly don't see how I could screw it up. You're just removing the "hook" from the hammer.
 
The trigger & hammer sear travel of a self loading rifle is deliberately long to prevent unintended discharges from rough handling. Rough handling can cause sear bounce and sear bounce coupled with a short sear engagement will cause the rifle to fire. The set screw modification works by taking up most of the sear engagement (reducing creep) which makes the trigger less safe. It's dangerous enough on a bolt action rifle where only one round can be fired if the sear slips, but on a self loading rifle, there is potential for multiple shots. Using a set screw with a lighter trigger and/or hammer spring will only make the problem worse.

Another problem with lighter hammer springs is you can run into problems with ignition. You could use softer primers to compensate, but there will be a risk of slam fire.

The best way to get a crisp AR trigger pull, fast lock time and 100% ignition without compromising safety, reliability, or durability, is to install a Geissele SSA or SSA-E trigger. It's not cheap, but for peace of mind, they are well worth the investment.

Before doing anything, remove your fire control group and thoroughly clean the parts. Grease all the sears, pin holes and the bottom of the hammer before reinstalling. In fact, all AR triggers should be cleaned & greased. More often than not, you'll see a marked improvement
 
I can't go with a set screw. I took my trigger assembly out and found that my lower isn't tapped.

Wolf, what kind of grease do I use and where do I put it?
 
Originally Posted By: MistWolf In fact, all AR triggers should be cleaned & greased.

DO NOT grease or oil a Timney... or those like it, it WILL double and triple on you. I know this to be a fact, observed it in class. IIRC the instructions even say so.
 
Any grease will do. I used high pressure Aeroshell that's red in color. I forget what number. Grease the sears, the pin holes and the bottom of the hammer
 
Snow, I just want you to know that it's not that I'm disregarding what you're saying. I'd love to be able to buy a new trigger assembly but at this time it's just not feasible.

Up until 2 days ago I never even thought about swapping out the springs to make my stock trigger better. Now that I realize that I cannot utilize the set screw, for $10 I can swap out the springs and grease the trigger to hopefully give it a little better feel.

And now a question for all, should I still Bob the HAMMER? That's for Slick. :)
 
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