Marlin 60/795 Trigger Tuning Question

azredhawk44 · July 3, 2009, 06:03 PM

I just did some stock channel relieving on my new synthetic stocked 795 and it was such a dramatic improvement in accuracy! Holy smokes. That barrel was getting whacked about something fierce by the sides of the stock. Groups shrunk to 1/4 of their former size horizontally.

Trigger on it is absolutely brutal, though. I'd spitball and say 7-8 pounds. I'm thinking about stoning down the engagement surface on the hammer and corresponding mating sear surface. Never done this before and don't want to inadvertently create a machine gun though. I was thinking of using the nice clean corner of an Arkansas whetstone. Would that be an appropriate tool to use, or is it too abrasive and I should use something softer?

azredhawk44 · July 7, 2009, 10:52 PM

Well, I went and did it anyways... talk about a silent thread.

The sear and engagement notch on the hammer were awful on this gun. Stoning them with a whetstone revealed exactly how NOT smooth they were.

I got them to slide across one another nicely, and then I did a couple other things. I replaced the trigger return spring with the spring from a floppy disk shutter. I also replaced the sear spring with the same type of floppy spring.

One very interesting sidenote about the sear spring: It also controls the magazine trigger disconnector. With this weaker spring in place, the disconnector stays in the fire position. That is 100% A-OK to me... it was an eventual goal of mine to find some way to disable the disconnector anyways.

I think my spitball estimate was too generous to this rifle though. I didn't measure trigger pull prior to beginning, but afterwards I used a shopping bag and piece of string on the trigger, supporting unopened coke cans. I got six cans in before the trigger broke. Assuming each can weighs about 3/4 of a pound, that gives me about a 4-5 pound trigger pull afterwards.

The feeling of it is much better though. If it's 4-5 pounds now, it must have been in the double digits before.

I still need to install a trigger stop screw on it, and I'm also going to build up the trigger lever material so the free play is eliminated between the trigger lever and disconnector.

Really looking forward to shooting this thing this weekend, though. It's coming along nicely.

tmd11111 · July 7, 2009, 11:19 PM

I cant even add up how much I have in my 10/22. Last year I bought a 795SS for my wife because she liked how light it felt. Well I have to say I hate that gun. Spent $175 for it and right out of the box it outshoots my 10/22, 20 pound trigger and all. I'm afraid to do any trigger work on it because then my wife might actually outshoot me. Lord have mercy, I would never hear the end of it then.

azredhawk44 · July 10, 2009, 03:03 PM

OK, this trigger is freakin' sweet now.

Built up the upper trigger lever with some JB Weld to take out a bunch of the excess play, and put a set-screw through the trigger guard to eliminate overtravel after the sear snaps.

I still have the ~5 pound trigger on it but eliminating the trigger finger unnecessary movement, it feels just amazing.

I'll admit I don't own a nice tune-able bolt action trigger and all my other rifles are military variety (AR, M14)... but this just feels amazing.

Gonna have some fun with this at the range tomorrow.

cerberus65 · July 10, 2009, 03:38 PM

Somewhere else recently I was reading about someone swapping out the trigger spring with a spring from a ball-point pen. I haven't tried it yet but it looks very interesting.

http://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums...d.php?t=197546

azredhawk44 · July 12, 2009, 02:52 PM

Sigh... I need to put the original sear spring back in. Dang it.

Got a failure to engage the hammer/sear notch a couple of times yesterday, so the trigger didn't reset after cycling.

I REALLY liked how that disabled the magazine disconnector.

Anyone got another way to disable the magazine disconnector on a 795?

Aside from that, I love the built-up trigger lever and set screw to eliminate overtravel. The trigger is smooth and breaks consistently. It "could" stand to be lighter, but I'm not likely to go lighter.

July 3, 2009, 06:03 PM	#1
azredhawk44 Junior member Join Date: September 28, 2005 Location: Mesa, AZ Posts: 6,465	Marlin 60/795 Trigger Tuning Question I just did some stock channel relieving on my new synthetic stocked 795 and it was such a dramatic improvement in accuracy! Holy smokes. That barrel was getting whacked about something fierce by the sides of the stock. Groups shrunk to 1/4 of their former size horizontally. Trigger on it is absolutely brutal, though. I'd spitball and say 7-8 pounds. I'm thinking about stoning down the engagement surface on the hammer and corresponding mating sear surface. Never done this before and don't want to inadvertently create a machine gun though. I was thinking of using the nice clean corner of an Arkansas whetstone. Would that be an appropriate tool to use, or is it too abrasive and I should use something softer?

July 7, 2009, 10:52 PM	#2
azredhawk44 Junior member Join Date: September 28, 2005 Location: Mesa, AZ Posts: 6,465	Well, I went and did it anyways... talk about a silent thread. The sear and engagement notch on the hammer were awful on this gun. Stoning them with a whetstone revealed exactly how NOT smooth they were. I got them to slide across one another nicely, and then I did a couple other things. I replaced the trigger return spring with the spring from a floppy disk shutter. I also replaced the sear spring with the same type of floppy spring. One very interesting sidenote about the sear spring: It also controls the magazine trigger disconnector. With this weaker spring in place, the disconnector stays in the fire position. That is 100% A-OK to me... it was an eventual goal of mine to find some way to disable the disconnector anyways. I think my spitball estimate was too generous to this rifle though. I didn't measure trigger pull prior to beginning, but afterwards I used a shopping bag and piece of string on the trigger, supporting unopened coke cans. I got six cans in before the trigger broke. Assuming each can weighs about 3/4 of a pound, that gives me about a 4-5 pound trigger pull afterwards. The feeling of it is much better though. If it's 4-5 pounds now, it must have been in the double digits before. I still need to install a trigger stop screw on it, and I'm also going to build up the trigger lever material so the free play is eliminated between the trigger lever and disconnector. Really looking forward to shooting this thing this weekend, though. It's coming along nicely. Last edited by azredhawk44; July 7, 2009 at 11:45 PM.

July 7, 2009, 11:19 PM	#3
tmd11111 Junior member Join Date: January 26, 2009 Location: San Angelo, Tx Posts: 275	I cant even add up how much I have in my 10/22. Last year I bought a 795SS for my wife because she liked how light it felt. Well I have to say I hate that gun. Spent $175 for it and right out of the box it outshoots my 10/22, 20 pound trigger and all. I'm afraid to do any trigger work on it because then my wife might actually outshoot me. Lord have mercy, I would never hear the end of it then.

July 10, 2009, 03:03 PM	#4
azredhawk44 Junior member Join Date: September 28, 2005 Location: Mesa, AZ Posts: 6,465	OK, this trigger is freakin' sweet now. Built up the upper trigger lever with some JB Weld to take out a bunch of the excess play, and put a set-screw through the trigger guard to eliminate overtravel after the sear snaps. I still have the ~5 pound trigger on it but eliminating the trigger finger unnecessary movement, it feels just amazing. I'll admit I don't own a nice tune-able bolt action trigger and all my other rifles are military variety (AR, M14)... but this just feels amazing. Gonna have some fun with this at the range tomorrow.

July 10, 2009, 03:38 PM	#5
cerberus65 Senior Member Join Date: April 30, 2008 Posts: 384	Somewhere else recently I was reading about someone swapping out the trigger spring with a spring from a ball-point pen. I haven't tried it yet but it looks very interesting. http://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums...d.php?t=197546

July 12, 2009, 02:52 PM	#6
azredhawk44 Junior member Join Date: September 28, 2005 Location: Mesa, AZ Posts: 6,465	Sigh... I need to put the original sear spring back in. Dang it. Got a failure to engage the hammer/sear notch a couple of times yesterday, so the trigger didn't reset after cycling. I REALLY liked how that disabled the magazine disconnector. Anyone got another way to disable the magazine disconnector on a 795? Aside from that, I love the built-up trigger lever and set screw to eliminate overtravel. The trigger is smooth and breaks consistently. It "could" stand to be lighter, but I'm not likely to go lighter.