How to improve the 10/22 trigger?

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Balrog

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OK, so I am sure this topic has been discussed before. I have a fairly new model 10/22 with one of the worst triggers I have ever felt on a rifle. I measured the trigger pull at a crunchy, creep 7.5 pounds.

What can be done to improve this, short of buying a Volquartsent trigger?

Are there any parts I can replace to improve not on the weight of the pull, but also get rid of the creepy crunch?
 
How to improve? Let me count the ways. How much money do you want to spend?
 
Well I can buy a new Volquartsen trigger assembly for a little over $200, so I was hoping I could do it for considerably less than that.
 
Take the whole trigger assembly apart. Buy a ScotchBrite wheel for the bench grinder. Polish every part that rubs any other part, CAREFULLY! Do not round edges. Get a Bulleye spring kit. The most important spring to get right is the trigger return spring located behind the trigger in the trigger guard. Cut that sucker down to where it will just reset the trigger. Buy a small allen head set screw. Take the trigger and drill a hole in the face just smaller than the set screw and let the screw cut threads in the trigger hole for an overtravel stop.

With very carefull trial fitting and spring trimming you can give the 10/22 an excellent trigger. In the early 90s I built quite a few 10/22s for a school shooting team and had no trouble hitting the demanded target of just over 3 lbs. Rules were for the trigger to be no less than 3 lbs. I have also done quite a few for people that said take it as low as you can, SAFELY. My personal 10/22s are right at 1.25 lbs with no overtravel.
Do it right and it will function 100%. Mess up a part and just buy another stock part and have at it again.
 
First buy an adjustable sear. If you can do the "stoning" you can achieve a 2.5# trigger with no creep. If you are not comfortable with the stoning, buy a hammer/sear combo.
http://www.rimfiretechnologies.com/Hammer_Sear_Kit_p/rt-hskit.htm
Spend time here:
http://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=220
This the home page.
http://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/index.php
Wanna see a trick to smooth out your trigger?
Torsionspring.gif
Study this before you start on your trigger. That "torsion bar" replaces the plunger behind the trigger. I use a piece of a safety pin.
triggerreturnspring004-2.gif
Enjoy, good luck, and watch your credit cards. :) Need help, post or pm.
 
An adjustable sear is the most important thing you can do for the 10/22. I've build bench gun trigger groups that had a trigger pull of 8oz with oem parts. Rimfirecental has all the info you need.
 
Balrog,

thanks for asking the question I wanted to. I've bought several voltquatsen hammer, spring and sear kits and they work pretty dern good, but I think it is time to do my next 10/22 by hand. Several of the above links my just be the ticket.
 
You absolutely don't need to replace the whole trigger assembly. At a minimum, just replace the trigger. The aftermarket units (Volquartsen, etc.) are designed to reduce trigger pull out of the box. An aftermarket trigger with usually have an overall adjustment as well.
 
I installed a PowerCustom hammer, no shims, no fancy springs, very simple drop-in part and reduced my trigger pull down to around 3lbs. I bought mine from some vendor over at RimfireCentral and it came with an extended mag release and bolt buffer for around $45. Works great.
 
The trigger on my 10/22 was the same way. I contemplated my options and installed a Power Custom competition hammer. It was a $35 part, and the father of a friend of mine in college showed me how to take apart the trigger assembly and install it myself. I won't say it is a target grade trigger now, but it certainly qualifies as a shooter grade trigger. That one modification reduced the trigger pull by at least half and made it considerably less gritty as well. That's the only thing I've changed on my Ruger. With the exception of the Leupold scope base and the Weaver rimfire scope, everything else on it is factory. It does everything I need of a rimfire rifle now, and is plenty accurate for anything I could think of using it for. I know it easy to keep spent shotgun hulls bouncing with it at 50 yards, supported offhand, just leaning over the roof of a friend's car, with Federal bulk. Squirrels, rabbits, and the occasional grouse don't stand a chance.
 
Shear Stress, may be semantics but to clear it up, the trigger itself will not address the creep, pull weight, or pre travel. The adjustable sear will adjust 95% of the gritty creep and the hammer will take care of 4% (maybe more). The torsion bar trick will take an ounce or two off and make the trigger pull smooth. Polishing (not metal removal) of all parts will further smooth out the trigger.
As long as the rifle gets through the "good trigger" test. JD is right. It is simple as long as you maintain a negative or flat angle on the hammer hook. Make the angle positive and you could have a full auto.
JD, do you harden the hammer after filing?
 
JD, do you harden the hammer after filing?
Click to expand...

No.....I figure if it doesn't last, I'd be forced into buying a new target hammer to fix it:) You definately want to load only a few rounds at a time in your magazine to test it out.
 
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