Ruger MKIII Stuck

[rhtwist]

Thanks for the help, Gentlemen!! New sear pivot spring and mag disconnect replacement bushing and all is back together. Wished I'd had the funds for the full upgrade kits....
Regards,
rhtwist

 

[Bullseye57]

All you really need is a target sear and adjustable target trigger. You can always pick those up later as funds become available. The whole upgrade it is unnecessary for a nice trigger pull, with several redundant parts included to boost the unit price.

R,
Bullseye

 

[rhtwist]

All you really need is a target sear and adjustable target trigger. You can always pick those up later as funds become available. The whole upgrade it is unnecessary for a nice trigger pull, with several redundant parts included to boost the unit price.

R,
Bullseye

Howdy Bullseye,
The kits seem to contain a trigger with a better return plunger and spring, a lightened hammer and a sear. All possibly better finished and possibly crafted (probably)! I have seen a video on polishing certain parts with flitz paste polish. Like the plunger and sear. The video concluded that it dropped the pull weight by like 50%. You've previously, IIRC counseled against this. Just wondering your experienced reasoning, if you don't mind!

Best,
rhtwist

 

[Bullseye57]

I'll start with the trigger. The factory trigger can be modified to perform the same level as an aftermarket adjustable one. I open up the trigger plunger hole a slight bit to reduce friction on the plunger. The key is not to drill the hole any deeper, all you do is ream it slightly larger. The hole is just there to capture the plunger and guide it. The problem is where the hole is positioned on this model of pistol. Being located on the top of the trigger all the blow-back residue is funneled right down inside it causing drag on the plunger if the clearance is too tight. This means it is necessary to clean this component more frequently to maintain a consistent trigger pull if the trigger is unmodified. A lighter plunger spring at best will produce only 4-6 ounces of reduced pull weight over the factory plunger spring. Polishing the external surface of the plunger is not necessary with the hole opened up but it doesn't hurt anything either.

Next is adding a pretravel screw to the trigger. That modification allows for adjusting out some of the extra movement of the trigger's operation. Here is where the aftermarket VQ has a slight advantage because more material has been added to the underside of this trigger for a more solid mounting of an externally adjustable Allen screw. The factory one can be modified but typically this is an internal location that takes more involvement to adjust properly.

Hammer and sear polishing. The angles of engagement are very sensitive and easy to over polish out of tolerance. An aftermarket VQ target sear is already micro-polished with a slightly less engagement angle for lighter, crisper let-off. The sear is the main component as far as a lighter trigger weight and using one of these VQ replacements with the factory hammer produces a lighter pull weight comparable to replacing both the factory hammer and sear with new ones. I have done random tests where Some of the pistols are modified with both and some just the sear and I cannot tell the difference by simply doing a blind functional test of the trigger pull on these firearms. I will also add that by being a double distinguished pistol and rifle marksman I have hundreds of thousands of rounds under my belt in both competition and practice, so I know my way around a good trigger pull. I've been doing this for over thirty-five years and seen a lot of folks go overboard and create a dangerous situation by not having the proper gigs, stones, and skills to perform a proper trigger job. These Ruger .22 pistols have some of the most consistent user installed aftermarket parts available.

Hope this helps.

R,
Bullseye

 

[rhtwist]

I'll start with the trigger. The factory trigger can be modified to perform the same level as an aftermarket adjustable one. I open up the trigger plunger hole a slight bit to reduce friction on the plunger. The key is not to drill the hole any deeper, all you do is ream it slightly larger. The hole is just there to capture the plunger and guide it. The problem is where the hole is positioned on this model of pistol. Being located on the top of the trigger all the blow-back residue is funneled right down inside it causing drag on the plunger if the clearance is too tight. This means it is necessary to clean this component more frequently to maintain a consistent trigger pull if the trigger is unmodified. A lighter plunger spring at best will produce only 4-6 ounces of reduced pull weight over the factory plunger spring. Polishing the external surface of the plunger is not necessary with the hole opened up but it doesn't hurt anything either.

Next is adding a pretravel screw to the trigger. That modification allows for adjusting out some of the extra movement of the trigger's operation. Here is where the aftermarket VQ has a slight advantage because more material has been added to the underside of this trigger for a more solid mounting of an externally adjustable Allen screw. The factory one can be modified but typically this is an internal location that takes more involvement to adjust properly.

Hammer and sear polishing. The angles of engagement are very sensitive and easy to over polish out of tolerance. An aftermarket VQ target sear is already micro-polished with a slightly less engagement angle for lighter, crisper let-off. The sear is the main component as far as a lighter trigger weight and using one of these VQ replacements with the factory hammer produces a lighter pull weight comparable to replacing both the factory hammer and sear with new ones. I have done random tests where Some of the pistols are modified with both and some just the sear and I cannot tell the difference by simply doing a blind functional test of the trigger pull on these firearms. I will also add that by being a double distinguished pistol and rifle marksman I have hundreds of thousands of rounds under my belt in both competition and practice, so I know my way around a good trigger pull. I've been doing this for over thirty-five years and seen a lot of folks go overboard and create a dangerous situation by not having the proper gigs, stones, and skills to perform a proper trigger job. These Ruger .22 pistols have some of the most consistent user installed aftermarket parts available.

Hope this helps.

R,
Bullseye

Thanks for the IMHO very comprehensive explanation. If I followed, a good aftermarket sear would be the most beneficial change!??!!! Not being a marksman, I don't know if I would need the pretravel, although the overtravel seems to me of benefit. The trigger plunger and spring don't bottom out before sear release or do they? I am afraid of messing with the angles of the sear/hammer engagement! The aftermarket sear and hammer might be a better choice.. That may be my next upgrade. Wouldn't mind some aftermarket checkered kingwood grips without the thumbrest {)!
Again thanks for your highly experienced help.

Regards again,
rhtwist

 

[Bullseye57]

The factory trigger already has an overtravel adjustment screw in it. If you look at this picture;

The lower trigger is for a Mark II and a Mark III has the same screw in it. Near the top, by the disconnector pivot pin hole, you will see an Allen screw. This screw is for adjusting trigger overtravel. Problem is you have to partially remove the trigger to adjust it. The same for the lower screw in the picture, it is a modification for a pretravel screw, again one has to partially remove the trigger to adjust it. Typically you cannot see the overtravel screw without taking off the receiver and squeezing the trigger. An aftermarket target trigger, like the one VQ offers, has both these adjustment screws located externally.

The sear is the one that provides the most beneficial change and the biggest difference in overall trigger pull weight. A VQ sear will get you close to a two pound pull, even with the factory hammer still installed. Some folks find that if they install the lighter weight trigger plunger spring, their pistol's trigger pull is under two pounds.

Having a pretravel screw just limits the amount of slack movement in the trigger, If you like a longer take-up, then not having one is of no concern.

For a very reasonable price, adding the target sear and target trigger make for a pretty nice trigger.

Hope this helps.

R,
Bullseye

 

[rhtwist]

The factory trigger already has an overtravel adjustment screw in it. If you look at this picture;

The lower trigger is for a Mark II and a Mark III has the same screw in it. Near the top, by the disconnector pivot pin hole, you will see an Allen screw. This screw is for adjusting trigger overtravel. Problem is you have to partially remove the trigger to adjust it. The same for the lower screw in the picture, it is a modification for a pretravel screw, again one has to partially remove the trigger to adjust it. Typically you cannot see the overtravel screw without taking off the receiver and squeezing the trigger. An aftermarket target trigger, like the one VQ offers, has both these adjustment screws located externally.

The sear is the one that provides the most beneficial change and the biggest difference in overall trigger pull weight. A VQ sear will get you close to a two pound pull, even with the factory hammer still installed. Some folks find that if they install the lighter weight trigger plunger spring, their pistol's trigger pull is under two pounds.

Having a pretravel screw just limits the amount of slack movement in the trigger, If you like a longer take-up, then not having one is of no concern.

For a very reasonable price, adding the target sear and target trigger make for a pretty nice trigger.

Hope this helps.

R,
Bullseye

Your assistance has been of great help! I can now understand the interactions, especially after my fiasco on how it works. Never notice the factory overtravel screw, wasn't wearing my glasses....
Definitely will change out the sear. Darn thing is still so tight.
Thank you kind Sir!

Best,
rhtwist