Handgun Forum banner

Browning 1911 22 trigger

9K views 4 replies 5 participants last post by  plp 
#1 ·
Has anyone had work done to improve trigger pull on 1911 22? If so, can you elaborate on difficulty, expense, etc?
 
#2 ·
Generally speaking, improving a 1911's, or any gun's, trigger pull involves more polishing than cutting or grinding. It is a job for fine-cut files and fine-grit stones, and it is a finicky job that must be done carefully and exactly right.
The first step is to true-up the mating surfaces of sear and hammer. The hammer-notch's surface must be set exactly upon a radial line that originates at the center of the hammer's pivot point. The sear's face must be exactly tangential to the sear's pivot. Both surfaces must be dead flat.
The final step is to polish both of these surfaces until they are both absolutely smooth and slick, while at the same time maintaining the angles you have so carefully already trued-up.
A possible further step might be to also polish the contact surfaces of the trigger's and sear's spring leaves, part of the three-leaf flat spring within most 1911's handles.

As you might be able to understand from this description, this is a job best left to an experienced pistolsmith.
I suggest that, when interviewing a prospective pistolsmith, you ask whether he cuts, grinds, or otherwise alters any spring, particularly the hammer's mainspring. If the 'smith admits to cutting or grinding 1911 mainsprings, go somewhere else.

I have no idea what this work costs nowadays. However, good work is not cheap.
 
#3 ·
Yes,it's not something you can just do,and the low end of jigs and stomes will cost you what a smith will.Reworking the original parts can be as little as $50 to over $100,it depends on exactly what you want and the individual gun's fit and finish inside.Going beyond a polishing and adjusting the sear spring,your thumb safety now will need refit by welding and recutting or replaced.You have to discuss the project with a smith because the price varies.

Looking at how the trigger system works seems pretty simple,and it is,but there's more going on that is not noticed on the surface.If you don't know,what seems fine can actually be for now,but all of a sudden she goes full auto on you.This is the most dangerous area of working on a gun,people can get hurt or die if someone that doesn't know what they're doing starts playing around.Even something as simple as swapping out a trigger to change the shoe length can cause big problems,and has.Nothing is drop in on 1911s,sometimes it just works out that way.

If you just want to lighten the pull,that you can do with a little research from good sources,but if you want to lose any creep and clean up the feel,that's where it gets sticky.
 
#5 ·
Just for kicks, try a drop or two of lubricant on the end of the trigger while holding it upside down and let it migrate down the trigger to the action. Sometimes the manufacturer gets a bit happy with the thick grease they use on internal parts, and while you don't want to flush it out, if that is the problem thinning it a bit will smooth it out.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top