Adjusting the Trigger Pull on a AR-15

[Renegade19sc]

I am new to the AR can someone tell me how to adjust the trigger pull on a AR so that it does not have such a long pull.

[hodaka]

Best thing to do is spend $200 on an aftermarket one. There are a number of good ones and it will be well spend money. You can mess with the springs but will probably not be satisfied.

[rebs]

I put a Rock River 2 stage in mine and love it. Just put it in, no adjusting or anything. Great trigger right out of the box. I paid 99.00 at a local gun show

[Ifishsum]

The GI trigger is not adjustable as-is but I did improve my GI trigger significantly with the set screw trick (also called .50 trigger job), it did improve the creep and travel and it never gave me a problem for the time I used it. It's not going to compare to a real trigger upgrade though, and I have since put in a RR 2-stage which is a nice upgrade.

[madmo44mag]

I have aftermarket triggers and I have done these two modes.
For the money and if you have some basic skills the home brew trigger jobs are great.
Actually if you have some advanced skills you can stone and polish the sear and re-harden and have a very slick trigger.

http://www.junkyardgenius.com/firearms/ar-15/ar08.html

http://www.sargenthome.com/15_Minute_AR_Trigger_Job.htm

Disclaimer: If you are not mechanically inclined or have no practical experience I do not suggest you attempt any type of gun repair or trigger work.

[Palmetto-Pride]

I am new to the AR can someone tell me how to adjust the trigger pull on a AR so that it does not have such a long pull.

http://www.ar15triggeradjusters.com/

This is the best way to adjust over travel on a stock AR trigger it will not do any thing for trigger pull weight, but you can take out some of the over travel.

[5whiskey]

Funny thing is, I don't particularly care for the hammer-spring clipping mod. I tried it and the trigger pull feels kinda fake now... almost like an airsoft gun. I'll let it ride for a little while to see if it grows on me, but if I will be ordering another spring set anyway.

[James K]

I know I will get flak, but be careful messing with the trigger pull on an AR-15 (or some other rifles). If you get the trigger just right (or wrong) the gun can go full auto and you could have a problem convincing the cops or BATFE that the result was accidental, especially with file marks all over the trigger group.

Jim

[Sarge]

Just for the record, PATC Armorer School recommends strongly against stoning GI triggers and/or fiddling with GI springs. I would imagine they are not the only ones. If you want a better trigger, replace the GI unit with something purpose-built to provide a better pull.

[BWM]

I put a Timney 3 Lb in my new AR like it.

[Unlicensed Dremel]

Well, if you get a JP Enterprises "4.5 lb" spring kit, AND do a little polishing etc. yourself (be careful and go slowly as always), for under $15 you can get it down to around 6-6.5 lbs, give or take, which is pretty decent, assuming you already have the tools. You will not get a standard AR15 trigger to sub-6 lbs, so don't try. Too risky.

Don't get the "3.5 lb" spring kit - it is said to not be reliable *enough* for a serious rifle.

Youtube vids will guide the way.

But if you can spend more than $15, then yeah, just buy a whole drop-in trigger - but they're pricey - then you can get a beautiful 3 pounder. I personally don't like less than 3.5 or 3.0 lbs on an AR - that's too light for a rifle of that type, seems to me.

[Palmetto-Pride]

But if you can spend more than $15, then yeah, just buy a whole drop-in trigger - but they're pricey - then you can get a beautiful 3 pounder. I personally don't like less than 3.5 or 3.0 lbs on an AR - that's too light for a rifle of that type, seems to me

IMO it depends on what you are using the rifle for. For a SD rifle I agree might as well leave it stock, but if you are using it for a precision target rifle then go as light as you want.

[kutz]

Timney 3# = Best.

[zukiphile]

I am new to the AR can someone tell me how to adjust the trigger pull on a AR so that it does not have such a long pull.

None of the response above are bad, but they reflect different sorts of trigger preferences. Others will have a hard time knowing what sort of trigger you like.

I like cheap ($100) two stage triggers, and dislike triggers without discernible pretravel or take up. Other people live them and call them "crisp". If you are new to ARs, I would suggest putting some wear on the stock trigger before replacing or ruining it. Your idea of what you like may change.

[tirod]

If it's a field use or tactical rifle, then light springs or clipping them introduces a couple of unintended consequences. First, the pressure on the hammer is what we feel at the trigger, drop that weight and the hammer loses force. Hard GI primers start needing another tap to go off. Second, stumbling over rough terrain in combat means you very well may have your finger where it should not be, and negligent discharges are very much likely. Note carefully that the manual action guns that invite cycling all the ammo thru the chamber to clear are the ones with a reputation for going off, and they tend to have lighter triggers or are set up that way by the owners.

So, a light trigger is best left to static firing ranges where you aren't moving around with a lot of trip hazards. And the military has made that a standard for decades, around the world. They know better.

Second, travel take up is the #1 thing you see the expensive trigger makers use - because it cuts down the creep, and that means it doesn't have to travel over a perfectly polished sear. It can be adjusted for the last little bit, and it reduces the amount of work needed to get the trigger out the door.

Install the set screw on a GI trigger and expect to get 80% of what another $100 would provide - with it's set screw. The sear doesn't have to travel over the rough gritty surface as much, which means you get a radically improved trigger. Stoning it is less needed, or even desireable, because military triggers are soft materials suited for casting then case hardened for surface toughness. It's literally skin deep - a few thousandths -and GI triggers that have been worked over are known to go soft and fail in as few as 5,000 rounds. It's mostly a matter of luck of the draw, but why risk it?

If it's a static position precision rifle, a light crisp expensive trigger is fine, but it's not for self defense, hunting, or use by the inexperienced in shoot-move competition. Pay careful attention to that reality - competition triggers are sold in light "Target" and heavier "Tactical" versions for a reason. And the recommendations by owners are often more an invite to genuflection because they own one than because the extra money got them $200 more accurate or faster. They geometrically increase in price for rapidly diminishing returns.

[TATER]

+1 on Palmetto-Pride
The trigger adjuster is a Great $15 dollar fix.. I have a couple.
Once the over travel is gone, You have pretty much won the battle.
Here is another place.

http://www.joeboboutfitters.com/JoeB...eradjuster.htm

[Fishbed77]

+1 on Palmetto-Pride
The trigger adjuster is a Great $15 dollar fix.. I have a couple.
Once the over travel is gone, You have pretty much won the battle.
Here is another place.

http://www.joeboboutfitters.com/JoeB...eradjuster.htm

I've used this trigger adjustor with the JP Enterprises springs, and the result has been a very nice, light (about 4 lbs), and crisp trigger pull, with reliable ignition of every ammo I've tried.

Still, I would not use them on a defensive rifle. For a defensive rifle, a Geissele SSA (for defensive carbine) or SSA-E (for a precision rifle) is what you want.

[Brotherbadger]

http://www.ar15triggeradjusters.com/

This is the best way to adjust over travel on a stock AR trigger it will not do any thing for trigger pull weight, but you can take out some of the over travel.

Well, that seems like a really easy fix. I'll have to pick one of those up. Thanks for the heads up.

[zukiphile]

Originally Posted by fishbed77

I've used this trigger adjustor with the JP Enterprises springs, and the result has been a very nice, light (about 4 lbs), and crisp trigger pull, with reliable ignition of every ammo I've tried.

Still, I would not use them on a defensive rifle. For a defensive rifle, a Geissele SSA (for defensive carbine) or SSA-E (for a precision rifle) is what you want.

Though I've never used one, the idea behind the way the trigger screw adjustment seems to work bothers me.

A standard AR trigger has a large engagement surface that in some ways mimics the function of a two stage trigger, i.e. one has to drag the two surfaces over one another for a while before it releases. That's the drag so many of you dislike, especially if it is heavy and rough.

Decreasing the length and area of that engagement surface enough would certainly make the trigger unsafe or less safe. As with anything moderation must be the key, but with inexpensive two-stage triggers coming in at $100, taking the original trigger to the edge of its limits sounds like a fun experiment, but not an ideal solution.

[TATER]

zukiphile,
I don’t think it is as bad as that, there is still a lot of travel left.
The slop that is in play when the safety is engaged, is the travel that is being taken up.
The amount of slack that is taken out, is what has been built in to the safety already.
(I'm try'en to say it both ways)

[Fishbed77]

Decreasing the length and area of that engagement surface enough would certainly make the trigger unsafe or less safe. As with anything moderation must be the key, but with inexpensive two-stage triggers coming in at $100, taking the original trigger to the edge of its limits sounds like a fun experiment, but not an ideal solution.

That's not what these adjustment screws do.

[zukiphile]

Originally Posted by F77

That's not what these adjustment screws do.

My error then. What do they do?

Originally Posted by Tater

The slop that is in play when the safety is engaged, is the travel that is being taken up.

I thought the screw decreases the length of pre-travel prior to release.

If it just eliminates the loose movement present when the safety is on, that sounds very safe, but doesn't sound as if it would prevent the long and rough travel of sear surface before release.

From the praise the screw adjustment gets, I thought it would be doing more.

[Fishbed77]

If it just eliminates the loose movement present when the safety is on, that sounds very safe, but doesn't sound as if it would prevent the long and rough travel of sear surface before release.

It just eliminates excess loose pre-travel prior to engagement. If the sear surface is rough, it won't change that.

If the safety works prior to use of the screw, it will work afterward. Tightening the screw too much means the trigger will fail to reset after firing.

The use of the screw is perfectly safe, but as I said before, it's not something I'd use on a duty rifle.

.