Trigger job

[MoreIsLess]

I am thinking of having a trigger job done on my Ruger Security Six revolver. The double action trigger is about 14lbs I am told and I want to have it lightened so it can be be effective for home defense but still safe from accidental discharge. How light do you think I can get the double action trigger "without crossing the line". I don't plan on doing anything to the single action part if it, it's light enough.

 

[basicblur]

First, best trigger job is the 1,000 round one you can put on it yourself (probably don't need that many if you dry-fire practice a bit).

Unless you have some physical limitation that prevents you from using DA as is, I'd put quite a few rounds through it before I considered trigger modifications, 'specially for a SD gun.

 

[MoreIsLess]

First, best trigger job is the 1,000 round one you can put on it yourself (probably don't need that many if you dry-fire practice a bit).

Unless you have some physical limitation that prevents you from using DA as is, I'd put quite a few rounds through it before I considered trigger modifications, 'specially for a SD gun.

My wife would be the one using it for self defense. She is more comfortable with a revolver. My SD gun is an M&P 45. I am concerned about her being able to shoot it accurately with a 14lb trigger, but, as I mentioned, I wouldn't want to lighten it enough to make it a safety concern only enough to be able to shoot it accurately and still be safe.

 

[David E]

Order a new spring kit for it. They run about $15.

If the action is gritty, squeeze some toothpaste (a very mild abrasive) into the action and do a few thousand trigger pulls, adding toothpaste as needed.

Clean, oil, shoot.

 

[jungle]

Almost any modern DA revolver can easily and safely be altered to an 8-9lb DA and a 3lb SA with complete reliability by altering spring weights and a little internal smoothing.

Many used to come from the factory that way, but not lately.

Dry firing a thousand times may help-to strengthen your finger.

 

[CraigC]

Have the action reworked. No amount of shooting or toothpaste will take the place of a professional action job.

 

[Jim Watson]

I can just see getting your wife to click that thing a thousand times with black toothpaste oozing out of every gap. Not.

You can get a minor improvement with a LITTLE lighter spring set, but great reduction in spring load can get you misfires.

Clark is one of the few shops doing real hone, adjust, and then respring action jobs on Security Six. http://www.clarkcustomguns.com/revserv.htm#action

 

[marv]

Make SURE gun is unloaded and remove grips. Put a gallon or so of #2 Diesel fuel in a bucket. Submerge gun in fuel and dryfire 2-400 times. The gun will be flushed and lubed during the dryfire. Then install a spring kit.

 

[basicblur]

I am concerned about her being able to shoot it accurately with a 14lb trigger...

Understood - she may not have the hand strength for a heavy trigger pull.

I'll allow it...

 

[highlander 5]

Ruger revolvers generally have awful DA/SA trigger pulls. I had my GP 100 reworked by a local smith best $100 I ever spent. Amount of force to pull the trigger was easily cut in half.

 

[Girodin]

First, best trigger job is the 1,000 round one you can put on it yourself (probably don't need that many if you dry-fire practice a bit).

In my experience with multiple Ruger revolvers, a 1000 trigger pulls wont smooth things up as nicely as one can do with a stone, a little know how, and a free evening. Further, with the trigger job one can put in lighter springs which makes a significant difference in how the trigger feels.

Lighter springs with out polishing can lead to a trigger that while lighter is still gritty. Also smoothing things up reduces the friction and makes the gun function better with lighter springs, less chance of light strikes and trigger reset issues.

I would either polish the internals or have it done and go with a lighter trigger return spring. If you still desired a lighter trigger pull than that I would then start experimenting with lighter main springs. The concern with the lighter mainsprings is light strikes. Thus, if you go with a lighter spring, and many do with no problems, you want to thoroughly test it afterwards with your intended defensive ammunition.

 

[basicblur]

In my experience with multiple Ruger revolvers, a 1000 trigger pulls wont smooth things up as nicely as one can do with a stone...

Smoothing things up is only one reason for the 1,000 round trigger job.
The other (and maybe most important?) is to get folks proficient with a heavier trigger pull, as most new shooters these days didn't cut their teeth on DA revolvers.

 

[glassman]

I asked this question on another forum and the answer I got was that lighter springs may only serve to accentuate problems if you have any roughnes/hitch in the existing trigger. It was recommended, as girodin did here, that I get an action job (stoning mating surfaces) before experimenting with lighter springs.

 

[earplug]

Get it done

Find a competent smith that has a sample of his work or someone who has a sample.
A Ruger of that vintage is not a new gun and most likely has been dry fired or fired quite a bit already. More dry firing isn't going to make it better.
A home gun can be made with a rather light DA pull as the chance of it ending up in a sand box or mud puddle are remote.
It will be keep clean and dirt free.
A carry gun is a different animal depending on who and where its carried.

 

[BYJO4]

I would take it to a good gunsmith and ask what he suggests. My smith always has several revolvers on had that he has reduced the DA pull. There is nothing better than trying several to see what you prefer.

 

[David E]

If one has the $100-$200 for a professional action job, great!

They'll rework or replace the springs, too.

Or make a serious improvement yourself with the $15 spring kit, toothpaste and some time if you don't have the extra money laying around.

If you go the toothpaste route, make sure you clean out the black paste afterwards. I mentioned that originally, but apparently some folks missed that part.

 

[Jaymo]

http://www.gunsprings.com/Revolvers/RUGER/DOUBLE ACTION SERIES/cID3/mID52/dID230


$9.00 for the spring kit from Wolff Gunsprings' website.
20 years ago, I owned a Speed Six .357. I bought it used, and the previous owner had had a trigger job done on it.
It was amazingly light and smooth. If you twirled it like a single action, it would cycle/dry fire.
It was very light and very smooth. The kicker is that it NEVER misfired. Ever.
I don't know how that could be the case, but I put a lot of rounds through that gun and nary a hiccup.
I still kick myself for selling it.
One problem with the Ruger Six Series revolvers is that the factory trigger return spring is SO heavy. It feels like a rat trap spring.

I currently have a Speed Six .38 Special and it really needs a trigger job. The DA pull is almost as heavy as the DA pull on an EAA Windicator I looked at.
I bought it mainly for my wife to use for HD. I knew it needed a trigger job when I bought it. She can't pull the DA trigger without using both index fingers.

 

[skt239]

Has the wife even fired the gun yet? From the way you worded your post, it doesn't sound like it. If that's the case, get her to the range before you do anything.

 

[CraigC]

Problem with toothpaste is that it will affect every surface and edge it encounters. When doing an action job, only certain areas are identified and stoned. Yes, you can make improvements yourself, I do most of my own action jobs on SA's but there is NO substitute for a professional job. Especially on a double action.

 

[David E]

Problem with toothpaste is that it will affect every surface and edge it encounters.

So? It can only affect the areas where there is friction.

If you over-do the toothpaste action job, then you weren't paying attention for quite a few hours.

 

[TreeDoc]

Have had several rugers and their actions are usually heavy and gritty. It suprizes me that youe security six is so heavy. The 'six' series is usually the smooth one of the bunch. They are quite easy to take apart, polish any part that has a rub contact point. Replace return spring with a #9 or #10 and the hammer spring with a # 12. Radius the trigger if not already done. This will improve the trigger a great deal. Light trigger OK, smooth trigger Good.

 

[MoreIsLess]

Ruger revolvers generally have awful DA/SA trigger pulls. I had my GP 100 reworked by a local smith best $100 I ever spent. Amount of force to pull the trigger was easily cut in half.

It's not so light as to pose a safety concern is it? That's my biggest concern against a trigger job.......accidental discharge

 

[Sam1911]

It's not so light as to pose a safety concern is it? That's my biggest concern against a trigger job.......accidental discharge

Very highly unlikely on a double-action revolver.

The concern about accidental discharges stems from triggers that are very light and short/crisp, like SA revolvers or auto pistols. Those can be set to have very little take-up and and to break at 2 or 3 lbs. of pressure. There is some non-zero chance that the shooter may jar that trigger or accidentally press it enough to fire when startled or when shaking due to a stressful confrontation. A double-action revolver just isn't going to be close to that light. Maybe 6-8 lbs. And it will still require a full trigger stroke of something around a half-inch of travel. It is practically impossible (o.k, o.k., never say "never") to accidentally pull through the full travel arc of a double-action trigger.

As an aside, if this is truly going to be a defense gun, you might as well have the 'smith remove the single-action notch rendering the gun "double-action only." There is no really plausible need to cock a defensive DA revolver for a single-action shot*. And many DA revolvers have VERY light and short SA trigger pulls -- like 1-2 lbs. Your wife really doesn't need to be facing a terrifying defensive situation with her revolver cocked back to single-action. That certainly would be a recipe for an accidental shot.

I'd not even mention the possibility, and would remove the notch if I was sending in the gun for trigger work.


...

* - Unless you are a true pistolero with a lot of practice and experience and you just know for sure you might need to take that one-in-a-million precision SA shot.

 

[MoreIsLess]

Very highly unlikely on a double-action revolver.

The concern about accidental discharges stems from triggers that are very light and short/crisp, like SA revolvers or auto pistols. Those can be set to have very little take-up and and to break at 2 or 3 lbs. of pressure. There is some non-zero chance that the shooter may jar that trigger or accidentally press it enough to fire when startled or when shaking due to a stressful confrontation. A double-action revolver just isn't going to be close to that light. Maybe 6-8 lbs. And it will still require a full trigger stroke of something around a half-inch of travel. It is practically impossible (o.k, o.k., never say "never") to accidentally pull through the full travel arc of a double-action trigger.

As an aside, if this is truly going to be a defense gun, you might as well have the 'smith remove the single-action notch rendering the gun "double-action only." There is no really plausible need to cock a defensive DA revolver for a single-action shot*. And many DA revolvers have VERY light and short SA trigger pulls -- like 1-2 lbs. Your wife really doesn't need to be facing a terrifying defensive situation with her revolver cocked back to single-action. That certainly would be a recipe for an accidental shot.

I'd not even mention the possibility, and would remove the notch if I was sending in the gun for trigger work.


...

* - Unless you are a true pistolero with a lot of practice and experience and you just know for sure you might need to take that one-in-a-million precision SA shot.

I actually currently use it in single action mode for some target shooting competition at the range I go to, so I definitely don't want to disable the single action capability. I just want to start letting my wife useing it for home protection so I want to lighten the double action so it is easier to pull the trigger in double action but not too easy. I would definitely teach her to use it in double action mode only and not single action.

How light should I make the DA trigger and still maitain a level of safety

 

[Sam1911]

Honestly, I don't think you're going to go "too light" for safety if you keep it reliable.

There's a built-in safety factor of sorts here. The springs you are pulling against are directly responsible for the gun having the power to light off the primers in your ammo. At some point as you make those springs lighter the momentum imparted by the springs moving the hammer just isn't enough to make every round go bang, every time. The smoother you can get the internal wear surfaces -- the more friction you can remove -- the lighter you can make the mainspring and still have the hammer develop enough speed. But even with very slicked-up internals I doubt it would be practically possible for you to get much lighter than something around 7 lbs total pull weight and still have the gun perfectly reliable. And 7 lbs+ is PLENTY firm to prevent any accidental discharge.

(You're also pulling against the trigger return spring. That can be lightened as well, to great effect, but again, if you get too light the gun stops working.)