New J Frame Triggers

[Rhetorician]

Hello all:

I was wondering "why" or "if" there is a reason all of the new J Frame triggers are so very difficult to manage?

I have a gently used Model 360PD Scandium 357 I "bought for a song" and the trigger is just terrible. Single action is managble and will do. I have looked at several other brand new J Frames at the LGS here locally and they all seem really, really stiff.

Before you flame me consider;

I am not a newbie.

I know it is not a "range gun."

I am asking for real information.

I am told by the people on the board:

Get a trigger job.

They recommend the trigger job kit I need.

You can do it yourself.

Don't go to a smith it will cost XXXX dollars.

My question is this and meant with no disrespect:

Why would anyone want to purchase a firearm so expensive and then have to work on it to make the trigger "butter smooth?" Seems like a waste of time and money to me for one of the most exclusive and old time gun makers around. Why would they not want to make the best gun they can "right out of the box?"

I do not want this to turn into a rant or a rank on our beloved brand, so help a fellow out here please. :(

Thanks ahead of time for the learned opinions. ;)

rd

 

[66snub]

I believe that the triggers in the J's are made heavy on purpose in the interest of safety. Smith knows that there are many people that pocket carry these and want to help to decrease the chance of accidental discharges. Pulling a 10+lb trigger, you'd have to be pretty sure that you wanted to shoot.

I can tell you that I have put Wolff spring kits in multiple J Frames and it literally transforms the gun from one that you like to one that you love. Buy a set and have them put in, you won't regret it.

 

[ATF]

Go with the Wolff spring kit it's a half hour install. All manufacturers have to comply with regs.

The Wolff springs will make a J frame trigger a lot smoother too.

 

[Electraclyde]

It is a production line gun, combined with the fact that becuse the J-frames are smaller internally and therefore some mechanical advantage is lost as compared to the larger guns, the action will be more difficult to operate.
Smith does offer some models that are better tuned thru the performance center at additional cost. I have 642PC that has a decent trigger.
Learn your trigger and you will not lose accuracy. I do shoot more accurate with my J- Frames than any of my 1911's simply because, over the years I have fired many more rounds thru them.

 

[PR24]

ATF is correct. Wolff does help a lot.

 

[Hopper]

Agreed with some of the other posters on here that for a DAO self-defense gun, the triggers are surely factory-heavy on purpose. And I agree with the OP that to spend good money on a new gun that immediately needs some trigger work isn't a good feeling.

I will say that the Apex J-Frame kit I installed in my 640 made a HUGE difference, I'm very pleased with the result. I do agree that feeling a need to do a trigger job on a brand-new gun is unsettling, but the good news is that it's a simple spring swap, there's truly nothing difficult about it.

 

[shawn mccarver]

Hello all:

I was wondering "why" or "if" there is a reason all of the new J Frame triggers are so very difficult to manage?

The J frame trigger was never that great, in my opinion.

That said, I thought I read some sort of engineer speak in a thread on this forum about how some kind of change was made at or near the time of the change to the frame mounted firing pin, or perhaps after, to make sure the frame mounted firing pin makes the gun go bang.

I really have no idea apart from some memory of a post that talked about that, and I suppose a search might reveal something.

There also could be the issue that most of us have gotten used to the idea of a 5 pound pull on our Glocks, or a 6.5 pound pull on our M&Ps, and so the 12 pound DA pull on the revolver just seems too heavy.

Then again, maybe all of us oldies have carpal tunnel and arthritis from a million cycles of a 12 pound revolver pull over the last 40 to 50 years. Who knows?

 

[MrTrolleyguy]

I have a trigger job and an Apex spring set on my 360j. All of that was done before I got the gun. It is smooth but still a pretty long pull IIRC.

 

[Goblin]

The generally accepted wisdom is that with the lower mass of the J hammer, the spring has to be pretty strong to ensure primer ignition. Couple that with the mechanical advantage lost with the smaller parts, and the general rule is a J will never feel like a K. To your point, though, I agree they should do a little more to make the actions as smooth as should be expected for the price.

 

[oneminute]

I have a 45 year old model 49 and had a new production 442. Aside from the 442 trigger being heavier I had no problem running either one. I don't understand everyone's eagerness to install spring kits in guns just because the trigger is heavy. If it is smooth then it can be used.
I sold the 442 because I just don't care for the lightweight j frames anymore. I can pocket carry a steel j frame just fine. YMMV and all that jazz.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

 

[ATF]

SW could have installed Wolff springs in the first place but most people would want to change them to lighter springs anyway. I use an 11lb and 8lb set. Considered going for the Apex kit but because these were so cheap and I've had great results with Wolff before I gave them a try and couldn't be happier. The Apex kit includes a firing pin and firing pin spring. I really don't know if this has any significant advantage but I'm super happy with the stock pin and the Wolff springs.
No need to buy one of those special spring tools you can change the springs using a small screwdriver and a paperclip.
My revolver is a 60 .38+P DA/SA. SA is just a touch.