Let’s talk trigger pull gauges

[Shoebox1.1]

So I’m wanting to know what my 686 is pulling at and am looking at digital pull gauges from wheeler and Lyman. Looks like they max out at 12lbs. What if you have a Ruger or something that’s 14.00? You’d never know what it is! What is your brand you use? And what’s a reliable ignition number I should strive for on my 4 inch 686 no dash? 10lbs? Thank you

 

[Shoebox1.1]

I don’t want it to be ammo picky

 

[jem102]

I have the official NRA weight set with the rod and roller. You cock the revolver and very carefully lift the stack of weights straight up with the revolver itself. I run the factory weight 17 coil/17 lb. rebound springs and factory flat hammer springs and find the pull weight to be 4-4.5 Lbs. depending on the revolver in question in SA. I tried the 14 lb. rebound spring and the SA pull went under 4 lbs. which is too light for my older hands unless it was to be a range paper puncher only.

 

[Protocall_Design]

If you have 10 lbs., it will probably fire anything. You have to test it with your ammo, though. Some of the foreign primers are pretty hard, as are CCI. Once you find where it will set off anything YOU use, you can experiment with lighter rebound springs and may be able to lighten up the trigger pull a pound or 2 that way. You can get a set of different rebound springs from Wolff Spring pretty cheap.

 

[TheTinMan]

If you are asking about double action trigger pull, there are multiple factors at play. Yes the mainspring, but the rebound spring is also getting compressed. Then there are mechanical factors. Finally, all mainsprings are not created equal. It’s possible to have a heavier trigger pull with less energy applied to striking the primer, and vice versa.

 

[OKFC05]

I have an RCBS Tru-weight trigger scale that records up to 25#.
That's been enough range for any double action handgun I've used.
I've had it since 1993, bought it from Cabelas. Good luck!

 

[jculloden]

Installed the main spring from a 1985 model 19 in a new 686-6 seems to work fine and reduced the trigger pull, now to see if it works with different primers, Anyone see a problem with this?

 

[TheTinMan]

Installed the main spring from a 1985 model 19 in a new 686-6 seems to work fine and reduced the trigger pull, now to see if it works with different primers, Anyone see a problem with this?

Not at all

(Forum wouldn’t let me post just “nope” lol)

 

[Protocall_Design]

No problem with the spring. You may need to adjust the length of the strain screw. For that, I use a #8-32 x 3/8" long socket head set screw with #222 Loctite. With that setup, you can adjust it to whatever you want, or change it whenever you want, and it stays where you put it.

You will get better information by pulling the hammer with the trigger pull gage. That isolates the amount of force the mainspring is exerting on the hammer from the rest of the action. Any regular trigger pull gage will go that high. The most you'd be looking at is 5 pounds, you probably can be fine with 3.5 to 4 pounds of hammer pull. You need to hold the trigger all the way back for this and take the reading just as the hammer/gage lift off the frame.

 

[Gamecock]

I use an RCBS High Range Trigger Tension Scale. Ranges up to #25.

Works great. Not digital. I suspect readings on a digital scale will display false precision. Manual cheaper, readings just as useful.

 

[stansdds]

Manual gauges, like balance scales, do not require batteries.

 

[ameridaddy]

Total spring stack load doesn't predict reliable ignition. It's the hammer fall; IOW, the mainspring that supplies ignition force. See attached diagram for how to measure this. It shows weights, but with care you can get very close with a trigger pull gauge.

 

[Rpg]

When I was on my high school rifle team in the ‘60s, we used a lead weight that weighed 3 lbs.

we’d hang it on the trigger, carefully lift the gun to vertical and if the cocked action stayed cocked, it was legal for indoor, 22 target matches.

Our guns all had great adjustable triggers ( Winchester 52C and Remington 40X) so in practice we’d hang the weight then adjust the trigger until the weight discharged the action. We wanted the lightest legal trigger we could get.

That’s the only time I cared about the actual weight of a trigger except in some competitions.

Since then, I’ve developed a pretty good idea about the trigger weight I want in various guns mostly by the feel and shooting performance. This isn’t by weight, it’s by performance.

 

[scooter123]

I have a real simple answer for you. First, unlike what you may read on the Net the primers used in Remington UMC ammunition is the hardest primer commonly available in the USA. If you want reliable ignition in Double Action with Remington UMC ammo you will need a Double Action Trigger Pull of 9 lbs. even.

 

[chief38]

I’ve used an RCBS spring type trigger pull gauge since I can remember (40+ years). I compared it to my friend digital gauge and it was very close! I prefer the manual spring type as there is nothing to break and no batteries to worry about. It only goes up to 8 pounds but that’s fine with me. After being at this for many years I can feel what is right, safe and reliable. I got pretty good at it too!

 

[jem102]

The "official" NRA weight set I spoke of is depicted in post #12. Its what was used in my match shooting days so its what I have. No electronics or springs and the roller eliminates drag and twist concerns.

 

[steelslaver]

I am so crude. I have always used a loop of cord over the trigger with the ends attached to a small coffee can. Add lead till the trigger goes. Weight cord, lead and can.

 

[mike campbell]

I am so crude. I have always used a loop of cord over the trigger with the ends attached to a small coffee can. Add lead till the trigger goes. Weight cord, lead and can.

There is iron in those words.

Any dead weight system is vastly superior to any gauge; manual, digital, whatever.

The precision of dead weights is limited only by the slop in the gun mechanics. With the right gun, pull weights can be measured repeatedly to +/_ one ounce. Gauges are too technique dependent to equal that.

 

[chief38]

I am so crude. I have always used a loop of cord over the trigger with the ends attached to a small coffee can. Add lead till the trigger goes. Weight cord, lead and can.

At the end of the day your method is no less accurate (probably more) than a gauge. Simple works!

 

[stansdds]

I am so crude. I have always used a loop of cord over the trigger with the ends attached to a small coffee can. Add lead till the trigger goes. Weight cord, lead and can.

That's my manual trigger pull gauge system too!