I put a Wolff reduced power mainspring in my 638 & 442. I also polished the rebound slide and put in a 15# rebound spring. Both were over 12 pounds to start with. Now they are around 10.5#, but feel very smooth. Have fired hundreds of rounds from each since swapping springs and have had no ignition problems
J-frame trigger improvement
- Thread starter viking499
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.38 Special
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- Sep 15, 2006
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I'm the snobbiest of trigger snobs but have had mostly bad results from spring kits on J frames. Bad results are not guaranteed, of course - I have had passable results as well, and heard of more from others - but it has happened enough to put me off of fiddling with life-and-death J frames.
"Anyone ever swapped out springs on a J-frame? Worth the time and money?"
Yes, and yes.
I've done it to all three of mine.
Don't mess with the sear.
I generally set the single action trigger pull to about 1.5 pounds and let the double action pull be whatever it winds up being.
Yes, and yes.
I've done it to all three of mine.
Don't mess with the sear.
I generally set the single action trigger pull to about 1.5 pounds and let the double action pull be whatever it winds up being.
trackskippy
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- Oct 2, 2010
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As long as what you do doesnt give you light strikes, especially in DA, knock yourself out I guess.
Pretty much any used Smith Ive bought, that the previous owner had done trigger work or fooled with them, I had to restore them to factory to get them to be reliable. More often than not, I just had to tighten the strain screw down, but on a couple, I had to replace the mainsprings.
As nice as the factory Smith triggers are, I never understood the need to fiddle with them. But, whatever.
Pretty much any used Smith Ive bought, that the previous owner had done trigger work or fooled with them, I had to restore them to factory to get them to be reliable. More often than not, I just had to tighten the strain screw down, but on a couple, I had to replace the mainsprings.
As nice as the factory Smith triggers are, I never understood the need to fiddle with them. But, whatever.
driz
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I saw that someplace and did it with my 642. It actually worked quite well and cleaned mine up a lot.
halfmoonclip
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- Feb 4, 2011
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Listen to PapaG.
I hesitate to reduce the coil mainspring in J guns, and especially .22 rfs.
The rebound slide spring is where you can make improvements. I've an assortment of Wolf springs, in weights from 11 to 15 pounds.
After polishing the rebound slide (be gentle with the current, Teflon coated MIM ones; the coating is pretty slippery), and where the slide runs, in the frame as well as the sideplate. The hand needs a polish too; use fine, India stones for everything.
It helps to attend to the ratchets as well, but I usually avoid that, for fear of losing timing.
I'll often use a 12 lb spring, but will drop down to an 11. Test hop it; does the trigger always come back, even if released slowly? If not, go up a pound.
I'm usually concerned about DA, especially since I like Centennials.
In some ways, the older, forged parts give a somewhat crisper feel, but the new, MIM stuff works pretty well.
When you're done, check you haven't created a 'push off' problem with your changes in single action, and, again make sure the trigger always comes back smoothly.
I mark what weight spring installed under the grips with permanent marker, in case it acts up later. It is really hard to establish the weight of an unknown spring.
Moon
Last edited:
velocette
Member
Things to consider with J frame trigger improvement. All in agreement with Halfmoonclip above.
1, To begin, S&W springs the revolvers to function in any and all circumstances, with poor or no maintenance, cold like Alaska and a few dust bunnies from your pockets.
2, Wolff spring kits will have a rebound spring of 11 to 16 lbs and a mainspring of 8 lbs replacing the S&W mainspring which is 8 1/2 lbs.
3, Careful polishing / smoothing of all surfaces that slide, rotate or otherwise interact inside the revolver EXCEPT the SA sear & DA ledge. DO NOT stone or otherwise change them. A LITTLE gentle polishing is acceptable but remember that the case hardening is VERY thin & you don't want to break through it. The inside of the frame and side cover can be smoothed to remove or at least remove heavy roughness is helpful.
4, Using a suitable tool smoothing & removal of the very common roughness inside the rebound slide is helpful in gaining a smooth trigger.
5, Rounding & smoothing the sharp edges of the hammer strut where it slides within the mainspring and through the retaining piece in the frame helps a lot. Polish the rounded mainspring retaining ball shaped piece so it moves smoothly through its travel.
6, Use of high quality light bodied grease like Brownell's Action Lube inside and outside the rebound slide, on the sear and DA lifting ledge, on the pivot / axle of the hammer & trigger will help, also on the mainspring retaining ball. Light high quality oil elsewhere.
7, When you're done with all the above, re-assemble your revolver and dry fire it a couple of hundred times to allow the new surfaces to become sociable. You will have a reliable easy shooting "best friend".
1, To begin, S&W springs the revolvers to function in any and all circumstances, with poor or no maintenance, cold like Alaska and a few dust bunnies from your pockets.
2, Wolff spring kits will have a rebound spring of 11 to 16 lbs and a mainspring of 8 lbs replacing the S&W mainspring which is 8 1/2 lbs.
3, Careful polishing / smoothing of all surfaces that slide, rotate or otherwise interact inside the revolver EXCEPT the SA sear & DA ledge. DO NOT stone or otherwise change them. A LITTLE gentle polishing is acceptable but remember that the case hardening is VERY thin & you don't want to break through it. The inside of the frame and side cover can be smoothed to remove or at least remove heavy roughness is helpful.
4, Using a suitable tool smoothing & removal of the very common roughness inside the rebound slide is helpful in gaining a smooth trigger.
5, Rounding & smoothing the sharp edges of the hammer strut where it slides within the mainspring and through the retaining piece in the frame helps a lot. Polish the rounded mainspring retaining ball shaped piece so it moves smoothly through its travel.
6, Use of high quality light bodied grease like Brownell's Action Lube inside and outside the rebound slide, on the sear and DA lifting ledge, on the pivot / axle of the hammer & trigger will help, also on the mainspring retaining ball. Light high quality oil elsewhere.
7, When you're done with all the above, re-assemble your revolver and dry fire it a couple of hundred times to allow the new surfaces to become sociable. You will have a reliable easy shooting "best friend".
fireman 9731
Member
Another vote for the Apex kit. I have installed them on my 442 and 642 with great success. Also a very light smoothing out of any rough edges on any parts that ride together and a small amount of quality lube in the right places makes a big improvement over factory.
IWAC
Member
O.k., Grease seems to be a commonly recommended lube with Revolver actions, and I've heard lots of ststements that grease will attract dust, grit,and other nasties, increasing wear. I use a good dry lube on all my guns, just to avoid the probability of abrasive build-up. Am I correct, or do I have an incorrect idea? Thanx.
ArchAngelCD
Member.
Speaking of which, spray a light gun oil into the works (like Rem oil) and dry fire the revolver 500+ times. Not only does the trigger smooth out you greatly improved your trigger control. (use snap caps) Since there is no recoil you can easily see any flaws in your trigger pull and fix it.
J-Bar
Member
For what it's worth...black powder shooters must deal with a lot more fouling than smokeless powder shooters. Many BP shooters use Mobil 1 (red) grease liberally to keep their revolvers going. At least one prominent BP gunsmith recommends packing the revolver's action with Mobil 1 to act as a barrier to fouling. So, if you decide to use a grease, in my opinion Mobil 1 should be on your list. I have used it and like it.
