SR9 Trigger

[goodewalker]

Just bought an SR9 and took it to the range. Really nice pistol, I did notice the trigger seemed to drag a little. I had nice shot patterns at 10 and 15 yards. Just couldn't understand the trigger. Felt like it was scratching as I squeezed it.

Also, this is my first pistol so go easy on me.

 

[edteach]

Did you try cleaning it before you shot it? Try washing it out with WD or what ever spray lub you like. There may be some manufacture left overs in the trigger sear or links or in the striker.

 

[Scott]

Clean it good, shoot it a lot, repeat! Mine smoothed out quite a bit after a few hundred rounds. And welcome to the forum - a great place to hang out.

 

[jhearne]

Welcome to RF goodewalker, and congrats on the SR9 and first pistol as well!

There's a couple things you can try, first is easiest to give it a good cleaning and make sure everything's lubed well.

Josh

 

[goodewalker]

I took it apart and sprayed a light coat of Remington oil on the slide and inside the receiver before I shot it. I may add a drop of oil in the right spot before I shoot it this weekend.

I'm extremely pleased with it. My son and I warmed up with a 100 rounds with the Mark III 22/45 then shot the SR9.

I was looking at the Cabelas catalog and noticed a 22 conversion for Glocks and XDM's. Does Ruger make anything like that for the SR9?

Thanks

 

[Sal1950]

I was looking at the Cabelas catalog and noticed a 22 conversion for Glocks and XDM's. Does Ruger make anything like that for the SR9?

Thanks

Nope, sorry to say.
Sal

 

[Yawn]

goode, my trigger was gritty and scratchy at first too. I, field stripped the gun and put some All Temp Tactical Lube in the trigger movement contact points and worked trigger with the gun field stripped to work the lube through. Then I spent sometime dry firing the gun with an empty mag in. As the others have said, the grittiness will get worked out. I found that mine got worked out very quickly through this process and when I went to shoot it for the first time, my trigger broke very very well. My springs had also already lossened a bit and I really got the feel for the gun broken in on my first shots. The SR9 is an excellent gun and I think you will be happy with it! Most will tell you it fires everytime and eats all ammo! and You yourself have found how accurate it can be. Congrats!

 

[jhearne]

The SR9 will wear in, but after about 500 rounds or so, I'd say it should be good. After that, if you still have some grit or stacky feeling trigger, you can polish the contact points. I have a how-to in my signature, along with videos to help disassemble the pistol.

Josh

 

[goodewalker]

I'll do that tonight. My wife thinks I'm crazy when I dry fire and practice aiming. I've also been using the loading tool the break-in the magazines also.

I may purchase the Lee Classic Loader for 9mm and start reloading after I accumulate some brass. I can reload for .10 to .12 cents if I buy in bulk. Does anybody beat Walmart's pricing on ammo. Online ammo cost the same as Walmarts once shipping is added to the order.

Thanks

 

[jhearne]

I'll do that tonight. My wife thinks I'm crazy when I dry fire and practice aiming. I've also been using the loading tool the break-in the magazines also.

I may purchase the Lee Classic Loader for 9mm and start reloading after I accumulate some brass. I can reload for .10 to .12 cents if I buy in bulk. Does anybody beat Walmart's pricing on ammo. Online ammo cost the same as Walmarts once shipping is added to the order.

Thanks

Not really, WM and Academy generally have some of the best prices on ammo around. If you can beat that by reloading, knock yourself out, I don't shoot often enough to bother.

Josh

 

[Sal1950]

I may purchase the Lee Classic Loader for 9mm and start reloading after I accumulate some brass. I can reload for .10 to .12 cents if I buy in bulk. Does anybody beat Walmart's pricing on ammo. Online ammo cost the same as Walmarts once shipping is added to the order.

Thanks

Be sure to take a look at the Dillon line also, the SquareDeal press is very competitive. Do some online research on both and see which you prefer.
Sal

 

[dacaur]

I'll do that tonight. My wife thinks I'm crazy when I dry fire and practice aiming. I've also been using the loading tool the break-in the magazines also.

I may purchase the Lee Classic Loader for 9mm and start reloading after I accumulate some brass. I can reload for .10 to .12 cents if I buy in bulk. Does anybody beat Walmart's pricing on ammo. Online ammo cost the same as Walmarts once shipping is added to the order.

Thanks

Congrats on the first pistol. Keep in mind the trigger pull is double action, its cocking the striker as well as releasing it, so its going to feel different from a rifle trigger...

Go easy on the oil.... give it a light coating then gently wipe it off, some will remain, and thats the perfect amount. I put a few drops of oil on a claining patch and use that to oil my guns when I am done cleaning. 3-4 drops is more than enough for the entire gun. If you have too much oil on the gun, its just going to attract dirt and dust, which will prematurly wear the moving parts....

Im sure you know this, but make sure the (empty) mag is in the gun when dry firing, or the gun will be damaged.... not all guns are that way, but the SR9 is....

 

[FergusonTO35]

Goodewalker, if you use cast bullets you can reload for around .09 a round. It gets even cheaper if you cast your own bullets. If you insist on jacketed bullets its almost as cheap to buy Federals at WM.

 

[goodewalker]

Thanks, I think the double action and rifle mentality is getting the better part of me. I just need to get use to it and break it in. I'm shooting tomorrow (Saturday) and will put 200 rounds in it. My son is already wanting me to buy the SR9C (can't he wait until Christmas).

I cast .38 sp bullets in the early 80's with my dad. That was lots of fun. He would send me to gas stations to pick up the lead, that brings back memories.

I have reviewed jhearne's video's the last couple of nights. I may try some polishing in a few weeks if I get brave enough.

In the mean time I'm collecting brass.

 

[goodewalker]

Well I did it. I made some modifications after reading several forums and now have an SR9 with a slightly less than 3lb trigger pull. I cut 1.75 turns off the striker spring with a pair of Klein Diagonal Cutters and also polished certain points. Can't wait to put another 200 rounds through it. The travel is really smooth and linear and breaks really clean.

I took it to a gun smith and had him measure the pull of my MKIII 22/45, then compare it to the modified SR9, it's within a .5lb.

Before anyone gets legal I'm doing this to improve my shooting since I'm primarily a rifle, shotgun and bow hunter. (Imagine trying to sell a trigger release for a bow with a 7lb pull - LOL)

 

[Sal1950]

Let us know if you have any issues with it at the range.
Sal

 

[Cheesewhiz]

Well I did it. I made some modifications after reading several forums and now have an SR9 with a slightly less than 3lb trigger pull. I cut 1.75 turns off the striker spring with a pair of Klein Diagonal Cutters and also polished certain points. Can't wait to put another 200 rounds through it. The travel is really smooth and linear and breaks really clean.

I took it to a gun smith and had him measure the pull of my MKIII 22/45, then compare it to the modified SR9, it's within a .5lb.

Before anyone gets legal I'm doing this to improve my shooting since I'm primarily a rifle, shotgun and bow hunter. (Imagine trying to sell a trigger release for a bow with a 7lb pull - LOL)

This spring cutting modification has been talked about on this forum in the past and it will lessen the trigger pull, it will also fail over a rather short period of time. I'm sure yours will not because you know better and read all about it on the internet. I'm only posting this for all the others that may read your post and think it's a good idea, it's not. The striker assembly will fail and the pistol will no longer function but on the plus side, your trigger pull will be less. :shock:

 

[goodewalker]

100 rounds during lunch at the indoor shooting range. No issues other than Winchester Ammo. First time I've shot it and it's really dirty ammo.

I must have missed the forums that stated the premature spring failure. I may have reconsidered.

So how long do I have ...... should I go ahead and order another spring?

 

[Big Stu]

I would definitely order a new spring and go back to the original. Give it some time to break-in and you may indeed get used to the trigger pull. Be sure to clean out the striker channel. There is usually junk in there that takes away from the smooth pull. Be very careful not to over lube it! If after a few hundred rounds you are still not happy, I would reccommend installing the "Ghost Rocket" It will reduce your pull, and eliminate any overtravel you might have. I have one in my SR9c and I LOVE it!

 

[tcanthonyii]

Glad to hear you like the ghost. I was planning on buying one but there isn't much info out there that I've seen. Is the trigger still fairly snappy?

 

[Big Stu]

It is one of the nicest feeling triggers I have ever used!

 

[Cheesewhiz]

Last I saw, Ruger doesn't sell the spring, they sell the striker assembly complete for around $25 - $30. The failure is in the cups of the assembly, the shortened spring just causes it.

 

[Sal1950]

Ruger will sell you springs for just a couple bucks apiece, I bought three of them a few months back for my own experimentation on my SR9C.
If you want to you can take the spring back out and with small needle nose pliers and maybe a stone, square up the end you cut as best you can like the other factory cut&ground end. Then install your cut end into the striker away from the cup.
I don't put too much stock into the report of cup failure due to spring cutting and highly question the methodology of the work performed and the blamed resultant failure. I could go on about what was wrong with the conclusions but there's no need to stir all that up again, make your own decision.
Cheers,
Sal

 

[exavid]

When I first shot my new SR9 I was dismayed by the trigger. Rough, scratchy and oh so long. I installed a Ghost Rocket, the connector that requires hand fitting, cleaned everything up and did a bit of polishing and lubing. I can honestly report that it made a completely different pistol out of it. I couldn't ask for better, the pull is still longish but it's smooth and I can pull it right to the break point. A little more pressure and the trigger breaks crisply with amost undetectable ober travel. Reset is just takes a bit of relaxation on the trigger, takes very little forward travel to reset. That reset is a function of the hand fitting of the connector. I took the pistol apart and reassembled it six times before I got it right. The trick is to file off just a wee bit of the tang on the Rocket at a time, hone it and put it back in and try it out. The whole job took about and hour and a half. I recommend Ghost Inc.'s Rocket model trigger connector kit highly. It was well worth the price and will improve any SR9 that's factory standard.
BTW - I've shot about 200 rounds of Winchester (white box) ammo through this pistol without any problems. I don't find it any dirtier than American Eagle by Federal which also feed well in this gun. The Winchester 380s go through my LCP well too, I haven't had any problems with that pistol either using Winchester. I've put as much as 100 rounds through the LCP using Winchester 95gr. flat nosed ammo without cleaning the pistol.

 

[Yawn]

Todays trigger report... It had been a few weeks since an outing to shoot my SR9. I have been meaning to clean it for a while. I made sure to wipe down the showing portions of the striker channel. I added lube to the trigger mech itself after cleaning it, but did not add any lube to the striker at all. Got everything back together and marveled at how well the slide has broken in... so smooth. Dry fired (with empty mag in) and my trigger was a bit gritty, like it had been when I first got it. Then realized I had not luded my striker channel at all. Pulled it back apart and put a little lube in the channel. Put the gun back together, racked the slide, and then rocked the trigger back and forth to the point just before it releases the striker. I realised that this was a great way to rapidly work the striker/trigger mechanisms. My next full dry fire pull was again super smooth, as I have come to know and love with this gun. I love this gun!!!

 

[exavid]

Yes indeed, I went to the range today to put some more rounds through my LCP. After firing about 50 rounds through it I took out the SR9 and fed it three magazines. The more I shoot this pistol the more I like it. Just a great feeling pistol in the hand with a near perfect fit for me. I had to shoot at the 10 yard line since there were some others set up there in our indoor range when I came in so I used a 2" stick on target. That SR9 really punched out that target, about 85-90% went through those two inches. Hopefully before this pistol wears out I'll be able to group them nearly that well from 50'. The LCP is getting better too, about 30% in the black on a 50' target shot from 30'. Not bad for a short barreled little gun that almost has sights.

 

[Big Stu]

Todays trigger report... It had been a few weeks since an outing to shoot my SR9. I have been meaning to clean it for a while. I made sure to wipe down the showing portions of the striker channel. I added lube to the trigger mech itself after cleaning it, but did not add any lube to the striker at all. Got everything back together and marveled at how well the slide has broken in... so smooth. Dry fired (with empty mag in) and my trigger was a bit gritty, like it had been when I first got it. Then realized I had not luded my striker channel at all. Pulled it back apart and put a little lube in the channel. Put the gun back together, racked the slide, and then rocked the trigger back and forth to the point just before it releases the striker. I realised that this was a great way to rapidly work the striker/trigger mechanisms. My next full dry fire pull was again super smooth, as I have come to know and love with this gun. I love this gun!!!

The problem I had when I lubed the striker channel is after about 150 rounds or so, I was getting light strikes. When I took the slide apart, there was a lot of build-up in the striker channel. The lube seems to attract the powder residue in there and gums up the works. I watched a video of Hickock45 showing how he cleans his guns, and he does not lube the striker or channel. Perhaps a dry lube might work, I don't know, but that's my experience with lubricating the striker/channel.

 

[Sal1950]

No lube+bare steel=rust.
Lube generously+clean often=zero issues
Sal

 

[dacaur]

The secret is lube then wipe. Even after you wipe it, some lube will always remain. In a protected area like a striker, its going to remain for a LONG time. You never want to leave a bunch of liquid oil anywhere inside or outside a gun as it WILL attract crap and speed up wear. All you need to do is lube it up and wipe it clean, and it will be protected.

 

[exavid]

I like to lube and then blow the excess oil off with compressed air. That will leave oil between the wearing surfaces but get rid of the excess that collects dirt.