AR trigger upgrade..?

Your question is a TALL order.

There are a gazillion triggers out there and ask 10 people you will get 20 answers. Endless options!

How much you want to spend?
Do you want a "drop" in complete trigger or one that you put the pins in yourself.?

You can get a decent trigger pull just by changing the springs or pay 100s of dollars.

I was happy with the plain old ALG ACT trigger. But others may want a lighter competition trigger.

https://www.pewpewtactical.com/best-ar-15-triggers/

https://algdefense.com/alg-defense-purple-spring.html

Shanghai McCoy said:

Yeah, I know this can be the proverbial "can of worms" type of question.
I guess I'm looking for the best/effective, simple and not expensive solution.
If there is one...?

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Watch the video I posted. For what you said you were using it for The ALG ACT works just fine. Heck just getting different springs wii make a difference, I don;t imagine you want a feather trigger for hunting??

One trigger in the comparison is a PSA.

I never thought it was enough of a problem to spend hundreds of dollars, I started with a Bill Springfield trigger job, about $50, you mail you trigger to him and he does his thing and mails it back. I used that trigger for several years and I liked it. Then I found the LaRue MBT, I paid less than $100 for mine. It is a great trigger and no regrets. I see lots of trigger options out there, but for me the MBT worked.

I am a fan of two stage triggers in my AR. Geissele is very nice if you have the money or are willing to wait for a deal. The LaRue MBT @chickasaw_hunter mentioned is nearly as nice and a lot more affordable. The Rock River two stage is probably between those two in price and performance.

If you want to stick with a "Mil-spec" style single stage trigger then it is hard to be the ALG ACT trigger @Rule3 mentioned up thread. (That is Bill Geissele's wife's company IIRC).

You can always spend crazy money on some of the complete unit drop in packages that are amazing triggers but are spendy. Don't be afraid to look around on the web there are many dozens of difference AR fire-controls out there. If something catches you eye asked here I am sure one of us has probably played with it and can give you some feed back.

Geissele G2S or Larue MBT

I have the G2S on my AR, I take it for granted until I end up shoot someone else's that has a milspec, haha. The G2S is very similar to their more expensive SSA series, but uses a different method of retainment that is cheaper to produce.

I've got 3 Geiselle SSA-Es (2 stage enhanced) and I'm about to shop for a 4th as I'm a huge fan of the 2 stage trigger and the SSA-E has a short enough reset to make a good all-around trigger.

2 Stage for me allows me to use a lighter trigger as I've got the 1st stage take-up to let me know I'm on it. The 2nd stage breaks like glass. I've got an SSA-E 2-stage on my 3Gun rig. Don't even notice it on the close it targets as I'm pulling straight through on my 1st shot, then shooting to reset on my subsequent shots. I really, really, appreciate it on the long targets, especially when moving and getting my heart rate up. The 1st stage lets me bear down when breaking the shot.

Having said that, I've also got a Larue MBT-2S and it 's a great trigger for the money. IMHO at $80 prior to shipping it's a bargain.

https://www.larue.com/products/larue-tactical-mbt-2s-trigger/

Shanghai McCoy said:

I've seen the LaRue MBT mentioned before here and I know Gunny likes them but I wasn't sure on the 2 stage vs single stage advantages.
That ALG ACT trigger is new to me but might be a way to go as well.

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Two-stage for single-stage is completely personally preference. Both function as reliably with the AR platform

Two-stages are typical favored for long range shooting and single-stage for close range faster shooting but that is very much a generalization that is frequently broken by each shooter's preference.

I really like my Rock River 2-stage triggers. I have almost completely swapped everything over to either the varmint or the NM, the only difference being pull weight. After hearing everyone rave about the LaRue I think I am going to give one (or two..) a try. I went down the whole spring-kit path at first and was never satisfied. YMMV.

brasscollector said:

I really like my Rock River 2-stage triggers. I have almost completely swapped everything over to either the varmint or the NM, the only difference being pull weight. After hearing everyone rave about the LaRue I think I am going to give one (or two..) a try. I went down the whole spring-kit path at first and was never satisfied. YMMV.

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Same here...bottom line is; a bad trigger is still a bad trigger, even when it's lighter......

chickasaw_hunter said:

I never thought it was enough of a problem to spend hundreds of dollars, I started with a Bill Springfield trigger job, about $50, you mail you trigger to him and he does his thing and mails it back. I used that trigger for several years and I liked it. Then I found the LaRue MBT, I paid less than $100 for mine. It is a great trigger and no regrets. I see lots of trigger options out there, but for me the MBT worked.

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I used the LaRue MBT on two of my AR's. They aren't too light for hunting but they aren't exactly a bench rest trigger either.

ALG seem to be the best bargain low cost. I have one in a build of mine. It’s much nicer than the PDA milspec one.

So far I am using three ALG Defense ACT trigger groups. I am well satisfied with them because a) my AR’s are intended for self-defense and range shooting, b) I like single stage triggers and c) my LGS has them in stock for $70.00.

I have in my parts box a PSA trigger. I have “upgraded” it with J P Spring Kit but to be honest I am not happy with the result. Ths ACT has a very much nicer trigger pull. I may reinstall the original springs to use it in a future el cheapo build.

I have a Hiperfire Sharp Shooter trigger and hammer waiting to go in my next build but I can not comment on my results with it. Again this AR is being build for self-defense and range use.

I am considering building a AR with a 20” barrel which will move it into the hunting and long range (200 yards) shooting so I plan on using a two stage trigger.

My PSA AR 9mm pistol's trigger was at 7&1/2# from the factory. I installed this $11 spring kit and trigger is now 4& 1/2#.

https://www.jprifles.com/buy.php?item=JPS3.5

I like the Larue MBT 2 stage trigger. I have several of them. It's hard to beat at $80. Yes there are better triggers out there, but you are going to pay more for them. It's all what you want in your rifle. Larue also makes a single stage trigger. I haven't tried their single stage trigger yet.

Shanghai McCoy said:

Yesterday the wife and I were out back shooting a couple of the AR's and I got to thinking about the trigger on my PSA A-2(ish) that I put together last year. It has the stock trigger and,with the scope on it now, I really notice the trigger pull. And not in a good way...
So, I know there are options but was wondering what the best limited budget trigger upgrade would be for this? Mostly I'll be using it for precision plinking and some hunting.
Recommendations/options and opinions appreciated.

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Best option on a super skinny budget is to stone the contact surfaces(both hammer and trigger). If your trigger has a few hundred rounds on it you can probably see the friction marks at the contact points. Stone those much like you would stone a knife blade to sharpen the knife, but be aware that you are removing metal and reducing the service life of the trigger. One thing that is very noteworthy is that you need to purposefully avoid stoning the contact points which hold the hammer while the trigger is all the way back. That could be misconstrued by those inspecting the rifle as an attempt to make it F-A instead of S-A

My black rifle triggers have all been satisfactory enough, from RRA 2-stage to ALG QMS, PSA EPT, and JP $10 spring kit. They each have their differences, but if you can hold steady enough and don’t need to spend a c-note or 3, I’d say go spring kit or jump straight to the RRA Varmint (3 1/2 lbs, 2-stage). Inbetweeners don’t provide as much value since you already have triggers to work with, the next tier gets you to, well, the next tier.

I know firsthand once you shoot an Elf or nice Geissele it’s hard to go back, but for your purposes they aren’t really needed or budget friendly.

The Rock River Varmint and National Match triggers with JP yellow springs, and the Geissele G2S-E (through Brownells) are the two/three I use for most of my “budget friendly” builds.

What ever trigger you decide I recommend Brownells if they have it) Wait for a sale or discount. If you don't like it they are very easy (no cost) to return stuff for refund or replacement forever!

LaRue buy 3 save 5 bucks a trigger and shipping. You will have two for your next builds!!!!

The Larue MBT is hard to beat. I believe they are still less than $100. I have them in several of my rifles.