Trigger pull nn 317's

[CAJUNLAWYER]

I've got a 317 with it's corresponding HEAVY trigger pull. I'm told it is to ensure proper ignition of the .22 OK
I've also got a 63 with a very sweet trigger pull (out of the box) that has never failed to ignight a .22.
So what gives? Why can't the 317 have the same nice trigger pull as my 63???????

 

[cgt4570]

Do a search of past posts. This has been discussed a million times.
Try a standard mainspring or shave a couple coils off the existing one. If it still goes bang, your problem is solved. Since this obviously isn't a defensive gun, it won't hurt to experiment with springs.

 

[Broker50]

Lighter weight hammer (less mass), maybe?

 

[RichCapeCod]

My six shot model 63 has a much sweeter trigger then my eight shot 317. I suspect there are a number of factors in play here, not the least of which is the requiring a more compressed mechanism in the 317 series due to the increase in the number of rounds in the same diameter cylinder. Just a guess.

Rich

 

[Tom C]

The 317 has the same internals as the 63-4. It also responds the same way. You have to be careful with the mainspring to ensure proper ignition, but you can put in a lighter rebound spring. It will significantly reduce the double action trigger pull. If you know anything about the internals of S&W revos, you can very lightly smooth critical contact surfaces. If you aren't familiar with this, perhaps you should leave it to a professional.

 

[festus1]

K frame hammer

After getting this link I see you were talking about a J frame. Anyway, here is an option for a K frame 22.

APEX Mass Driver .22 Hammer [Apex Mass Driver] - $141.99 : Zen Cart!, The Art of E-commerce

 

[m41]

I had a gunsmith replace the rebound spring on my 317 and it shoots so much better. My wife couldn't even shot it before. I am not sure but it seems he used the 12# spring I could be wrong it has been a couple years ago. I haven'thad any misfires since it has been changed.

 

[Stainz]

I ordered a Wolff J-frame hammer spring kit from Wolff via Brownell's last autumn for my LNIB 5" 63. The kit came with three springs. I believe I used the stoutest one, fully intent on trying a lighter one later. As they purportedly use the same rebound spring, I replaced the OEM with a 13 lb, the lighter of the three Wolff supplies with their K,L,N frame kits. It was a bear to replace - I really wondered if it was the right size, although it really improved the DA trigger, as did the hammer spring. The combo, still not up to a tricked out 617's K-frame innards, is quite an improvement - likely as good or better than a factory rimfire J-frame trigger job. The lockwork's geometry, ie, the moment arms, aren't the same - they are shorter than the cf lockwork's. I cannot speak to the hammer spring, ie, helical vs leaf, other than the rimfire spring is a lot stouter than the cf J-frame's.

BTW, when I contacted S&W last fall re my 63 and an 'action job', I was informed it was only $85 as there was so little they could do - hammer spring change not included! There worries over being PC are well founded - they want your S&W revolver to always go 'bang'! For that reason, if you are mechanically adept at all, consider doing it yourself. Only clean/polish the frame sides - and then lightly so in the 317, The sides of the hammer & trigger where their surfaces rub on the frame sides should be clean/polished, too. The rebound slide's sides and ID should also be polished, as should the seat of the hammer coil spring retainer where it rubs on the hammer - it all helps. Leave the engagement surfaces alone!! They are very uniform, a great attribute of MIM. Any burrs will rub off during the first 500-1,000+ hammer falls - never dry fire a rimfire revolver without snapcaps or live ammo in place, of course. The latter is louder and more fun - at the range. Make sure they are really snapcaps at home before you dryfire it. Periodically, rotate the snapcaps, too - so the fp falls on a fresh area.

Literally, a teeny drop of a good gun oil lubes a lot of the innards - lube - but don't overdo it. If you are all thumbs - and don't have good gunsmith, ie, hollow ground, screwdrivers - and the rebound slide tool - or some bent hemostats or tiny curved needle nose pliers - consider getting someone else to do this. Good luck!

Stainz

 

[wellfedirishman]

If you shoot it a lot (1000-2000 rounds) it smooths out pretty well also. I have a 317 that was very stiff and heavy at the start, is but much better now.

 

[Noah Zark]

I have two prelock 317s and both had horrible trigger pulls until I replaced the factory 12-lb hammer springs with 8 lb springs from Wolff or Brownells, I can't recall. I left the factory rebound slide springs in place. The sights don't shift anymore when I pulls the triggers on those 317s, and accuracy has improved immensely.

BTW, the hammer springs in my oldar J-frames are all 8 lbs from the factory.

Noah

 

[Stainz]

I found my remaining, and still unopened, hammer springs - an 8 and an 8.5 lb - that means I used the 9 lb hammer and 13 lb rebound springs in my 63. I am happy with it!

Stainz

 

[HEADKNOCKER]

That's what I did with the 317 I used to have..
9lb hammer spring & 13lb rebound..
It made it much more shootable..
Gary/Hk

 

[Tom C]

I don't remember which springs I have used on my J frame .22s, but on the centerfires, I have reduced the hammer spring a little more than I am willing to do on the .22s.

 

[stevieboy]

I once spoke to someone at Smith who told me that they deliberately set the trigger pull on their rimfires at a somewhat heavier resistance as compared to their centerfire guns. The explanation was that ignition of rimfire ammunition is inherently less reliable than with centerfire.

That having been said, I can't really explain why the 317 should have a much heavier trigger pull than the 63. They're both Js and what works in one, logically, should work equally well in the other. Is the hammer lighter in the 317 than in the 63? Do they build in a heavier trigger pull in that gun to compensate for lighter lockwork? I dunno.

I do know that .22s are -- as the Smith rep. told me -- pretty sensitive to lightening. Lighten things up even a tad too much and you'll get lots of FTFs. As confirmation of that, a couple of years ago I picked up a 617-1 at a show. It had a wonderful trigger, the smoothest, lightest trigger I'd ever experienced on a revolver. Someone had obviously done a trigger job on the gun. Sadly, it also produced FTFs about every 3 - 5 rounds. I eventually took it to a gunsmith who installed heavier springs, main and rebound, in the gun. That solved the FTF problem although the trigger, while still quite smooth, is now notably heavier than previously.

The moral, of course, is be careful when you try to lighten things up.

 

[Tom C]

The mainspring provides the energy for firing. The rebound spring provides force to return the trigger to the starting position. It is nice when they are harmonized, but you can reduce the rebound spring force without effecting ignition, but you do get a significant reduction in double action trigger pull weight, and a lesser decrease in single action trigger weight. Playing with the springs, plus lightly polishing surfaces and lubrication provide my J frames with very nice trigger pulls; probably not quite as good as my K, L and N frame triggers, but quite good.