My S&W Victory is a nice piece of engineering in every way, except that the trigger pull has a lot of creep. Neither my 22A, Ruger Mk III or Browning Buckmark Hunter were as bad. All broke crisply and clean. Not my Victory. After many years of shooting i've learned not to get too excited about the hype, but every review about the Victory has been glowing. Unfortunately, this trigger most definitely needs work. So, back to the factory, or too a gunsmith. Your thoughts?

Interesting first post. So what is the measurement of the trigger pull, weight wise?


By contrast, Gunsamerica quote......"The trigger is excellent, with a short take-up and crisp break. The pull weight is right at three pounds as measured by my Timney Triggers scale. As a result of the light weight and crisp operation, you’ll shoot this gun accurately with ease. The flat face of the trigger is serrated vertically and has an overtravel adjustment screw set into the face."

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Ret. LE, FA Instr, S&W Armorer

I'm not sure, as I don't have a gauge. I tried to compare the trigger weight between the Victory and the Buckmark Hunter, just by feel, but it's really not possible since the Buckmark breaks like glass and the Victory has so much creep.

My Victory also has some creep, but after shooting it a bit I have gotten used to it and it is one of the most accurate handguns I have. I'm very pleased with it.

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Lost in Penn's Woods

It's accurate when rested on the bench. Off hand is another story. We all know how important a light *crisp* trigger is to accuracy. I want to get the best that I can out of the pistol. I haven't dealt with S&W public relations before, so i'm not sure if they would see this as a problem.

Volquartsen is working on a trigger and he told me it should be ready this fall. I have his trigger in my Mark III and it is really nice but I have learned to like the trigger in my Victory. My Victory trigger is at 3lb 12oz and I have ran 1600+ rounds and it feels better then when it was new. I doth i will replace it.

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USN Retired/VN VET
M&P X5

Was there any creep?

Not that I can feel. I take up the slack till I hit the wall then apply pressure and it breaks. The gun Victory and the Mark III have the same optic on them, MatchDot II and I will score higher with the Victory every time. There are several of use old guys that shoot 10yd bench rest at the 50yd National Rimfire targets. They are like the air rifle targets that the 10 ring is 1/8" with a dot for the X. 10 targets one round a target so you can really see that your trigger is doing for you. I had to get the guys to switch to these targets as the Victory will shoot 10 rounds through the first bullet hole.

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USN Retired/VN VET
M&P X5

Ok then. If there is no creep in yours then mine has a problem.

But nobody has answered my question yet. Back to S&W, or to a gunsmith?

If your hoping S&W would improve the trigger on their dime, I would doubt it. Likely it's in spec and you need to remember this is their inexpensive model. If you want to pay their custom shop then that might work but could get expensive. I'd vote taking a look yourself ( if you inclined) or takeing it to a local smith . That said, I've never been a fan of putting $100+ into any $300 gun. You just never get it back.
PS if the trigger is anything like the 22A, it's not going to be cake walk. Hopefully these get popular enough where somebody comes up with an inexpensive drop in kit.

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Dave

I think S&W will just tell you it is in specs. This is only a $360 gun and not a custom target gun. I would think a gun smith could work on it but i would just wait for a after market trigger that is going to give you a lighter trigger and adjustments.

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USN Retired/VN VET
M&P X5

I have put $450 into this $350 gun so far and a trigger assy would add another $150 but I don't plan on selling it and and it has become the target pistol I hoped it would. Still think I will stick with the trigger it has as long as I keep winning with it.

The range master who is a Bullseye shooter tried my trigger and said the only thing wrong was too much over travel. There is a adjustment for that but it hasn't bothered me so I haven't adjusted it.

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USN Retired/VN VET
M&P X5

I'll give S&W a call and see what they say. I don't mind spending an additional $150.00 if that's what it takes, as I think the pistol's ease of take down and versatility are worth it. Still, we should note that the great reviews don't necessarily reflect the reality of *all* of the Victory pistols.

I also do not like the Victory trigger. Mine is about 3 1/2 lbs, but way to long of a pull. I shoot one handed, and do not like it. I have the VC Carbon barrel, and some new custom target grips coming this week, just need a trigger! Both VC and TandenKross say they are working on one.

Too heavy or too long? By long, assume that you mean that from the time that you feel the wall, to the time it let's off, it creeps. There should be a little leeway, for safety, from the time you squeeze the trigger until the time you feel the wall. Just like a military rifle. There should be *no* movement of the trigger at all between the time you hit the wall and the hammer drops. You apply pressure and it should break like glass. *All* of my .22 semiautomatic pistols have been like that. In any case, i'm glad to read that i'm not the only one with a Victory that needs trigger work.

I guess a bit of both travel and creep. In all fairness, I do target shooting only, and my other pistols either have modified triggers or were much better stock ( and much more expensive as well). Right now, the Victory is one of my least favorites, but with grips and a trigger I think it will be pretty good. Perhaps if I only shot the Victory I would just get used to it, but I normally shoot more than one gun at any outing, and the Victory is always a challenge to shoot one handed.

Maybe be that is why I get along with my Victory so well as I can't shoot worth a darn one handed. I didn't have all this wobble when I was a younger man. I say younger as I am still young and will only be 70 in December. Indoors at 50 feet I am lucky to score a 84 with any gun But mt Victory beats my tricked out Mark III any day. I have become a benchrest pistol shooter. Two handed I am petty good and guess I could shoot steel but the ranges here are not set up for pistol steel.

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USN Retired/VN VET
M&P X5

ML, I didn't mean to suggest I shoot "worth a darn" one handed, only that I so I'm only a year behind you, and the wobble is a bich. Box stock the Victory is an excellent excellent pistol for the money. Had my Mark 2 at the smith last Monday. After all the instruction he has given me, i still managed to jam the damm hammer swinging gizmo against the stupid sear pin (or whatever it is called) during attempted reassembly.

Hey don't feel bad I spent all day and part of that night getting my Mark III to work again after installing and removing and reinstalling all the received parts 12 time when i put the VQ trigger assy in. If it wasn't for a good You Tube that covered a step that VQ didn't explain well and Ruger's video forgot to mention it was off to a smith for me also. I hit one point at the 12 hour mark where I was ready to just throw the brand new gun away.

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USN Retired/VN VET
M&P X5

I don't want to thread drift too much, but i just hit 70 myself. I can still shoot one handed fairly well, as long as i'm using a red dot and the trigger does it's job. My Mk III was a pain in the posterior to assemble, so I dumped it thinking that the Victory would take it's place, but the trigger on the Victory doesn't hold a candle to my old Mk III. I like to compete, so the Victory is going to need work, as I guess it's not the bright shining star that it's cracked up to be.

Yes but it was only $350 a lot less then my Mark III Competition that still needed a VQ trigger.

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USN Retired/VN VET
M&P X5

I have to admit that my Victory is a terrific very accurate shooter. I checked my trigger pull and it's only 3 lb dead on. I have a very short smooth take up with a crisp release of the hammer. Maybe I was lucky with the one I purchased. I don't know. All I can say is it's a keeper for sure.

I bought a new MKIII 22/45 target and I thought the trigger sucked. Lots of pre travel and then It got crunchy and had quite a bit of over travel as well. The VQ trigger and TK hammer bushing along with polishing all the other trigger components, made it very nice. I have about 1000 rounds through it without a malfunction.
Peace,
Gordon

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better have that checked

What do you mean by a "short smooth take up"? Are you saying that it creeps before it breaks?

My Victory has a very good trigger. S&W are known for this, whereby, Ruger's are known for requiring automatic trigger jobs. Actually, compared to my top of line M41, it's quite good.

Give it several thousand rounds to set in before final judgement.

I dry-fired one in a shop. It's a different trigger than the Ruger is all. The Ruger tends to have a very slack take-up, and then a crisp-to-spongey break. The Victory had a firmer take-up, a bit like you'd find on a lot of striker-fired pistols, and then an okay let-off.

Neither is like what you'd find on a 41 or a 1911, but neither costs anywhere near as much as those guns.

I sincerely doubt that *any* number of rounds fired will remove the creep.

Just a very short smooth creep before the break and I really like that.

If the one I tried is representative, it's really not bad at all, especially for new shooters. The break on a Ruger is a lot more springy and much heavier than the take-up. The Victory, for all its apparent other faults, is a lot easier to emphasize "keep the trigger moving" with.

Even on custom BE 1911s, a lot of guys select a roll trigger over a crisp break.

Well, you have a point there, for new shooters. I'm not a new shooter. Other faults? I haven't noticed any. My locking screw has been staying tight. It's very well balanced. Easy to break down and clean, then reassemble. I use a red dot, so I can't say anything negative or positive about the iron sights. A very nice pistol other than the trigger.

I find the trigger take up annoying to say the least. Shooting one hand bulls eye it is too distracting. Searching for a way to improve it.

You are 100% correct in stating you'll never get it back, as least as far as resale is concerned. But in usage, it may well be a worthwhile investment. If it turns the gun into a performer you enjoy shooting and you get a lifetime of use out of it, that $100+ is a bargain.

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So many S&W's, so few funds!!

The TK Victory Trigger at $39.99 might be worth looking at. At a glance:

• Flat-faced, skeletonized design for better control and feel
• Textured trigger face offers a no-slip grip in any condition
• 100% adjustable for pre-travel and post-travel
• Can drop trigger pull weight up to ½ a pound

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NRA Benefactor Life Member

Until someone does actually market a new trigger design for the Victory I would have a GOOD Gunsmith does some polishing work on the existing trigger to take all the creep out of it. I just had my 45APC done a few weeks ago and its a whole new gun. NO Creep at all Just the wall and a light pull, about 4.5 lbs at the most down from around 11lbs. It cost me $90.00 to have this work done but is worth every penny when I shoot it now It also now has proper target adjustable sights on it as well as wooden boots as well. For a cheaper 45 I can compete with any make or model as its a sports model Norinco that now shoots as good if not better then a Colt or Kimber. All for under $600.00. I intend to keep it so I will always enjoy it. There are new triggers on the market already. Just read some of the others threads to locate them for as low as $35.95 for a drop-in trigger unit which is gauranted to be much better for the Victory.

The trigger on my Victory is as nice as they come. I had a choice between several, I picked the one with the nicest trigger (none of them were what I would call bad).

I never buy any firearm without dry firing, if the seller does not want me to dry fire I say OK and move on.

Tandemkross does......

I think the majority of S&W's have, very good triggers for the money. On the other hand, for decades, it's been known, if you buy a Ruger, expect the added cost of a trigger job. Period.

It's unfortunate that for the thousands of guns produced, a bad one got through. Send it back to S&W.

End of story.

What is the trigger pull weight on that trigger? I see take up and over travel is adjustable it maybe my next mod.

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USN Retired/VN VET
M&P X5

I should have one in my gun this Saturday morning unless the USPS screws the pooch. I don't have a trigger pull gauge, but lots of other guns to compare it to. The ideal would be the Kidd single stage in my 10/22, but I'll settle for something a little less.

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The triple smoker

On another forum, guys have said 2 1/2 - 2 3/4. Mine is currently 4+, so I have ordered one of the new TandemKross ones. If I can get rid of the take up, as well as lower the pull weight, I think I will be happy.

Their site says the trigger only lowers the p[ull by a 1/2 pound, but the straight faced trigger lets you put your finger lower n the trigger making it feel like less. The pretravel and over travel adjustments are nice. I amging t wait on VQ's trigger as if it is as good as the Rugger Mark III trigger I gt frm them it will be a winner.

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USN Retired/VN VET
M&P X5

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ML, I noticed that as well. A couple guys on the other forum both said 1-1 1/2 pound reductions using gauges......

Hope they're right

Brownells I beleive that lists a new trigger and is selling from Volquartsen for around $34.95. Either them or direct on their own website as I seen the ad the other day already. These were for the Victory model.

Would you have a link? I couldnt locate it on either Brownell's or VC's sites. (Brownell sells a "Victory" trigger for the Ruger and Buckmark guns, but it is made bt Tandemkross??). Couldn't find one made by VC for the SW22

Although I am satisfied with the trigger on my SW22, and have been very proficient with it on the range using my reflex sight, I ordered the Tandemkross trigger this morning. I will post some feedback when I get it and get the install done. I ordered the silver version.

Sorry Gregbenner I can't even find it now for me to look at again. I will have a good look again to see if I can find it and will pass it on to you when I find it.