I sold one of my Model 52s to a friend, after he tried it out he said it has a problem, 2 rounds discharging on each trigger pull. I then went onto the range and could not fault the gun, in the hands of my friend it fired 2 shots at a time. I watched him over and over again 2, 2, 1 and again 2, 2, 1.
I suggested his trigger finger was bouncing on recoil, or the way the gun was rolling in his had the trigger was pulled a second time, he believed the gun was faulty.

The gun being faulty was ruled when he borrowed another 52 and it did the same thing for him only.

He is an ISSF shooter and I don’t believe could shoot 2 shots that fast if he tried. Both 52s were fitted with Model 39 pachmayr wraparounds and shot one handed. Removing the rubber from the back-strap he fired about 10 rounds one shot at a time, no doubles.

I have a few walnut 52 stocks and will be giving him a set and we will see how it goes.
Any one seen this type of issue before?
If so how was it solved?

I can honestly say I have had this happen many times, and it is exactly as you say, recoil bounce, even though there is very little felt recoil.
I even have a target weight on mine, and if I'm not careful I can still do that old double tap. Many will tell you it is a difficult gun to master firing.
Also you can make the bullets tumble at close range if your not careful.
You will see a Keyhole in the target.
I cant make this happen, but my friend would keyhole every shot.

When I first got my 52-2, I had this happen a few times. They do indeed have a very light trigger compared to most semi-autos. Does your friend have smaller hands? The grips can affect where and how much the trigger finger rests on the trigger. One could change the grips, adjust the trigger for more pull weight, or just change the grip one holds the pistol with. Another vote for trigger bounce, rather than an issue with the pistol itself.

Howdy,
My Dad had a Gold Cup and it never gave him any trouble. When ever I would shoot it, it would do as you describe. He had the trigger stop set where it stopped as soon as the trigger broke. I made a imperceptible adjustment, just giving it a minute bit of over travel and it functioned well from then on for both of us.
Hope this helps.
Mike

It's a simple matter to adjust the trigger a bit harder to pull. That will stop it.

The last time I went to the range with a couple of my 3rd Gens I noticed I was having to concentrate hard not to get a double tap. It had been quite a while since my last visit, so I believe I was just rusty & misjudging the trigger break. I hope to take a couple of new to me 3rd Gens to the range this week, so I will be concentrating hard on the break!

__________________
Lounge Lizard Extraordinaire

Thanks. I had never seen or heard of this problem before glad to hear others have had the same issue. I was going to adjust the trigger on the day, deciding to change the grips first. If the grips make no difference I will adjust the trigger.
Cheers.

They plain just don't fit many people's hand . They also made 2 weights of sear springs . I've set mine up with a 3 1/2 lb trigger like my 45 & my 22 Marvel is set up the same . Sounds like friend has grip issues & is riding the trigger .

If you are saying the keyholing was with the same ammo between the two of you, I am amazed.
This is an interesting thread! Never heard of the double tap thing, either.

A 52 with an original sear spring should be able to lift a 2.5# trigger weight, that was legal for bullseye. I had the optional sear spring for a 3.25# pull, back when you needed 3# for ISSF.
I'd make sure the trigger stop and reset length screw are turned a little extra for over travel, and if necessary have a minimum of a 2.5# trigger. 2 pounds might be too light.
I know if the trigger screws are adjusted too tight, the gun might not reset, but I can't remember if I ever saw one double.

I thought it was just me on my 52-1. I will double fire at least once in three magazines. I will try turning the trigger travel screw in a half turn. Thanks

Upping your trigger poundage seems like a very simple fix, but I would definitely tear it down and make sure everything looks okay. If your poundage is in the 2lb range as suggested by a previous post, that's almost certainly too light and it does vary from person to person what is enough poundage.

While unlikely, borrowing another gun of the same model does not rule out a problem absolutely, if a systemic problem or weakness exists in a device, another instance of the same model could have the same issue. It's not worth the time you save by not tearing it down to risk a potentially dangerous situation.

Fitting the walnut stocks has reduced the instance dramatically. Test firing 30 rounds it occurred once. He is now working on his trigger control before we go and alter the trigger. Thanks for the assistance.

ISSF shooter . Missed that . Does he shoot a Euro gun with a 2 stage trigger ? If so that might be part of the problem . Subconsiously taking up 1st stage slack when there isn't any on a 52 . Any way glad to hear he's on the right road . On my competition gun I like a roll trigger as I just keep building pressure using the trigger to steer sights to my aiming area . S&W 52 & 41 have a single stage crisp trigger . The trigger doesn't move prior to sear release . Never been able to find or put a roll trigger on a S&W .