Now I see why trigger jobs are expensive

[Black Snowman]

OK, just finished up smoothing the double action trigger on Kamicosmos' CZ-97B. Exactly the same action as my CZ-40B and CZ-75B I have done previously. 1st one took an hour because it was the 1st time I had completely detail stripped the sear components. The CZ-75B took only a half an hour since I had the hang of it.

The 97B? Two and a half hours of taking it apart, examining, stoning, reassembling, testing enough to show the wear that was causing it to bind, repeat until acceptable. All it took was one little out-of spec cut from the factory to cause 2 surfaces that should never touch under normal circumstances to hang up on each other. It wasn't horrible, but it was noticable. That almost made it worse since it was trickier to diagnose.

It's by no means a "real" trigger job either. No geometry changes, no real lightening just a "buff and fluff" with a twist. I wasn't even risking ruining any parts. One to two hundrad dollars for a "real" trigger job is seeming much more reasonable.

Now, to find what's making my Delta Elite bind . . .

 

[Jim K]

Any time work is based on "cut and try", the labor cost goes up astronomically. Gunsmiths who work on specific guns (e.g., 1911 types) have jigs and guides that make things easier, plus experience, but there is still cut and try. Every gunsmith learns to assemble and test parts without doing a complete reassembly, but there are times when that is the only alternative. And time, and the customer's money, flies away.

Jim

 

[Sunray]

"...One to two hundrad dollars for a "real" trigger job..." Any smithy who is charging that kind of money for a trigger job is a crook. Unless he's changing a lot of parts. $60 tops.

 

[HSMITH]

I got a cheap trigger job one time on a 1911. Hack loser worthless POS cut my disconnector channel deep and forward enough it would fire with the barrel halfway locked, put a half mile of creep in the trigger, mushy vague sear break and enough overtravel to make factory most guns look good.

By the way, if you read that above and know a little something you know the slide was RUINED, the sear was RUINED, the hammer was RUINED and I was out $55 for the priveledge of having my gun trashed to the point it needed over $300 in repairs.

Funny part is this guy came highly recommended in the area, area that I was new to. I went to pick the gun up knew the second it was in my hand that things were bad. I stripped it right there in the shop and saw the carnage. Good thing for him he was getting aged, I confronted him and he got beligerent in a HURRY. I left with a new Wilson hammer and sear, ate the cost of the slide, and he had leaked a little in his trousers. Good thing he was over 60, that is all I can say. He knew it too.

You get what you pay for at 99% of the gunsmiths out there. The guys with the long waits and the premium prices didn't get that way by accident. There are some good smiths without the recognition but VERY few. Most local area smiths are overly taxed for talent mounting a scope right, and 90% or more of the scopes mounted are hack jobs.

Be VERY careful who you let work on your guns.

 

[Black Snowman]

I'd have to tear apart someones previous work and check it out throughly before trusting them with one of my guns or have some other concrete example of their experiance. For instance I would have not problem letting 1911Tuner work on my Delta Elite. However, then I wouldn't have the chance to learn how to do it myself

For $60 I don't expect someone to be able to do anything I can't accomplish eventually with a few inexpensive tools, good research, and refrence material. If I get a trigger job I expect someone to need to break out a jig, at least 3 differant stones, and their stash of replacement parts in order to get the desired results.

However my desire for a good trigger is overshadowed by my learned distrust of the average craftsman. I now do all of my gun, vehicle, and home repair myself even if it's more expensive because I just don't KNOW it's been done right unless I've done it myself.

 

[Wildalaska]

Any smithy who is charging that kind of money for a trigger job is a crook. Unless he's changing a lot of parts. $60 tops.

We charge $110 without parts. We do a good job and its time consuming.

But then again, since we are crooks we wont be doing one for you. Bet you have done a whole bunch yourself and have a good reputation for doing them

WildahthethingsIhavetoputupwithAlaska

 

[Bill Z]

Sunray said:

Any smithy who is charging that kind of money for a trigger job is a crook. Unless he's changing a lot of parts. $60 tops.

I charge along the same lines as Wild Alaska, I try to flat rate things since people want to know what something is going to cost, but even if you can reuse all of the parts, 60.00 wouldn't get much of a job done, I wouldn't even touch a trigger job for that.
If your satisfied with what a hack could do for 60.00, your standards are pretty low

 

[Jim K]

Well, I have been a gunsmith and been there and done that on many trigger jobs. With current prices, I don't know if you would get a tremendous amount of work or skill in a $60 trigger job. $200 is probably above average, but if it is done right, I don't think I would complain.

Granted, I don't have jobs like that done; I do them myself. But from a non gunsmith viewpoint, I think I would rather pay $200 and have a good job, done right, that will last, than pay $60 for a hack job that I would have to have redone and may even be unsafe.

One guy I knew of (didn't actually know him) did "low cost" super light 1911 trigger jobs. His problem was that the hammers kept falling if the shooter dropped the slide. The "smith" claimed that this destroyed his "fine" sear adjustment, so he solved the problem by simply grinding the half cock notch off the hammer and telling his customers not to drop the slide.

Needless to say, some of his customers did drop the slides, and the guns fired. Some went full auto, spraying bullets all over. No one was hurt, but the "low price" trigger expert was "persuaded" by his attorney to refund money and then go out of business.

Jim

 

[Bill Z]

Well, there are so many things that affect the pull of a trigger, and the safety. I worked a couple of hours on one today that I'm having trouble getting under 7lbs even though I have the break as crisp as can be. My shop got up to 100 degrees so I threw the towel in for the day, I'll get back to it tonite tough. Now, for a 60.00 man, hell, he'd loosen the sear spring, maybe throw a weak mainspring in and call it good, heck, it made it out of the shop, right? Sorry, I set my standards a lot higher than that, and it won't leave the shop until I'd be willing to put in on my nightstand before I went to bed. If it doesn't pass that test, it doesn't leave the shop.

 

[Dave Sample]

1911 Trigger jobs are from two hours to two days. I charged $75.00 plus the cost of the new parts , if needed. I never made any money doing that kind of work and I passed on 10 jobs for everyone I did. My trigger work has never been in style because I do not do 2lb triggers. All I want is a clean break at 4-5lbs and we call that good. I know several men who do wonderful trigger jobs and I am their greatest fan, but it's just not my thing. Trigger jobs can make you invent new cuss words and they also make your hair fall out! No thanks.

 

[Walt Sherrill]

Trigger jobs can make you invent new cuss words and they also make your hair fall out! No thanks.

There are a lot of things that make ME invent cuss words, and my wife says my hair's going, too.

Politics immediately comes to mind...

 

[bountyhunter]

Trigger jobs on wheelguns follow the 90-10 rule. You can get about 90% of the total benefit in about 10% of the time it takes to do the full banana. Polish the rebound slide and frame seat area, lube and install new springs and most people are thrilled with the result. The truly discerning finger will want the rest which requires slow hand polishing of the sides of the trigger and hammer, boss pins, DA sear face, and some other spots. A lot more time to get a little more smoothness. You get what you pay for.

 

[bountyhunter]

Needless to say, some of his customers did drop the slides, and the guns fired. Some went full auto, spraying bullets all over. No one was hurt, but the "low price" trigger expert was "persuaded" by his attorney to refund money and then go out of business.

Jim

Full auto conversions for $60? tell him to move to Idaho and he will make a fortune. And the best thing is it will all be tax free because it's all illegal income!

 

[Clark]

Funny part is this guy came highly recommended in the area,

I bought a gun from a guy who said he had just had it rebarrelled by "The best gunsmith in Western Washington"
The .308 Sav 99 had .035" too much headspace.

The seller offered to take it back to the smith.
I said, "That guy is never touching this gun again."