Lightening 686 DA Pull

[Z-Max]

Hey guys, have had a newer 686 for a little while now, the one with the lock. Like it very much, fire it when I can (when I can afford it) and dry fire for practice with caps. I'm quite happy with the single action pull aside from a bit of over-travel and the DA pull is nice and smooth. However the DA is also quite heavy. I'm wondering if there's any relatively easy way for the end user to lighten the DA pull without having to mess with the SA and without compromising reliability? I'm mechanically competent and have worked on various firearms before but never a Smith revolver.

 

[snowman]

Sir,

There are several ways of doing it; I installed a reduced-power spring kit from Wolff along with an extended firing pin from Cylinder & Slide. Presto -light trigger and no FTFs.

Andy

 

[Jayhawkhuntclub]

The easy way is to get a lighter trigger rebound spring. I'd recommend getting the kit (Midway carries them). I was able to take my new 617 down from 12 lbs to about 10.5 with it. It now has a great trigger. Dryfiring will help smooth it some.

 

[growr]

I never lighten a S&W revolver action...however, I have had the internals smoothed out by a local revolver wizard which has the same effect without reducing reliability. He only warranties his work for 100,000 rounds though!

Randy

 

[JFootin]

I have hands that are substantially paralyzed by a hereditary atrophy of the motor nerves. So when I got my new 638 I had to use BOTH index fingers to pull the DA trigger. I expected this and had already planned to get a trigger job done on it.

I sent it to a well known gunsmith shop in MN for some custom work. They lowered the shield a bit so I could cock the hammer easier, ported it and Duracoated it Gloss Black. They did fine work on these mods...

But communication once my gun was in their hands was very frustrating and they demonstrated an uncaring attitude. I explained how I needed the DA pull radically lightened. They polished the parts, then took a spring kit and started replacing springs. But they got misfires. Did they contact me and discuss other options such as putting a longer firing pin in? No! They put the original springs back in, told me it was done, charged me $65 for the trigger job and $9.95 for the spring kit, and sent it back to me!

When I unpacked the gun and tried the trigger, you wouldn't have wanted to be there! It was stiff as ever! Not only so, but they didn't reassemble the gun correctly and I couldn't hardly pop the cylinder out. I called and got the owner, Mike Ahlman, on the phone to complain about this. He said, "Well, we can try putting a longer firing pin in it." Yeah, like I wanted to pay for round trip shipping again! And he didn't offer to pay for it, either, even though they were in the wrong. He finally agreed to refund the money for the trigger job, but he didn't include the unused spring kit. So, I say emphatically: DO NOT send your gun to Ahlman's for custom work!

This renewed my determination to find a qualified and trustworthy gunsmith in my area. And I found him! He said the screw that holds the cylinder in wasn't tight. He fixed it and Locktited it. He said the polish on the trigger parts was fine. He didn't use a spring kit. He started gradually cutting a little off of the hammer spring and the trigger return spring, test firing it and examining the primer strikes, and measuring it with a guage. He got it dow to about 7.2 lb, which would be fine for most people. But I told him I needed it lighter, so I left it with him. When I went to pick up my gun, I was amazed! He got it down to 4.25 lb with BANG every time and primer strikes as strong as ever!

So that's my advice. Find a competent local gunsmith or good reputation.

 

[snubbyfan]

With my degenerative motor nerve neuropathy, I also had to "adjust" my 442 to compensate for weakness in my hands and wrists.
I smoothed the innards with an extra fine Arkansas oil stone, put in an eleven pound rebound spring, an eight pound mainspring and a Pachmayr Compact grip trimmed for speedloaders. The trigger pull was substantially smoother, lighter and the new grip helped to position my finger in correct relation to the trigger. The trigger pull isn't as light as JFootin's 638 but for now it's light enough and goes bang every time. As my condition continues to degenerate I may have to lighten it further. I'd really like to know what the gunsmith did to get yours down to 4.25, I may need it one day.

 

[Z-Max]

Hmm. I might just give it to the smith and have him throw some lighter springs in there. Have enough projects on the table at the moment. Love the 686, drives tacks and the SA is more than acceptable for me, but the DA is kind of "SHTF heavy" if you follow. In other words, I'd only ever use the DA on this revolver if I had to, aside from some dry firing. More than 12 or so DA pulls and my trigger muscle (whatever that might be) starts getting fatigued, and I'm in good shape (work out, etc).

 

[JFootin]

With my degenerative motor nerve neuropathy, I also had to "adjust" my 442 to compensate for weakness in my hands and wrists.
I smoothed the innards with an extra fine Arkansas oil stone, put in an eleven pound rebound spring, an eight pound mainspring and a Pachmayr Compact grip trimmed for speedloaders. The trigger pull was substantially smoother, lighter and the new grip helped to position my finger in correct relation to the trigger. The trigger pull isn't as light as JFootin's 638 but for now it's light enough and goes bang every time. As my condition continues to degenerate I may have to lighten it further. I'd really like to know what the gunsmith did to get yours down to 4.25, I may need it one day.

I think the secret is that he stuck with the high quality S&W springs and trimmed coils off until he got it there. He told me this was the best trigger job he had ever done! When Ahlman's tried lighter springs out of a spring kit, the results were not successful.

 

[andyo5]

Go to Jerry Miculek's website, click on 'videos', and watch the video on installig his trigger pull kit. You can buy his parts, or just get a selection of Wolfe rebound springs and do it with the stock mainspring. I personally use either 12 or 13 lb Wolfe rebound springs.
Jerry also has a trigger job video that you can buy, cheaper on his site than on Amazon.