Also posting this on Rimfire Central but some local 1911-22 owners may not frequent that site.
Was tired of waiting for the what felt like 15 pound trigger on my Chiappa 1911-22 to break in so decided to see if I could do anything to help it along. Disclaimer: I am not a gun smith, just a guy with a fair mechanical aptitude. Proceed at your own risk, bla bla bla... Also I neglected to take photos throughout the whole procedure so will try to explain as much as possible in the text. I will use the part descriptions per the parts break down in the 1911-22 manual. If you don't have a manual or can't read the one that came with the gun a .PDF version is available for download on Chiappa's web site.
First photo is after I managed to get the gun completely apart without screwing up anything. Couple of surprises during the disassembly. First when you remove the Back Strap the Safety Transfer Bar will fall out and you will say to yourself "Now where in the heck does that thing go". I'll address reinstalling it later. Second if you want to remove the trigger you will need to remove the Magazine Release. The screw isn't a screw but a cam lock. Don't try to turn it like you would a normal screw thinking it will come out. Push the Thumb Release and turn the screw 1/4 turn to the left. This will unlock it from the frame and the whole assembly can then be pushed out. The Hammer Group Cover simply lifts off after the assembly is removed from the frame.
Yes there are some AK-47 parts from another project in the photo, just ignore anything that isn't in your gun.
Once I had the gun disassembled I started studying the mechanics of how the trigger released the hammer. Second picture is the Hammer Group with the cover removed. First thought was the Sear Spring (red arrow) sure didn't need to be that strong. It basically functions as the trigger return spring and didn't see any down side to installing a lighter spring. My solution was to bend a new spring out of .025 piano wire. It only took me 5 tries to get one that I was happy with. First one I made the coil too large, the next three went flying off to parts unknown when I tested them in the gun. Last one I put an extra coil in, instead of two coils like the stock spring I made one with three. The trick to having it stay in place with the Hammer Group Cover off is the angle of the leg that rides on the Sear. Try to duplicate the stock spring with the smaller wire but just add an extra turn. The extra turn also helps take up the space on the sear pin and keeps the Sear in proper alignment.
0.025 piano wire can be purchased at most RC model airplane hobby shops. Might get away with something slightly smaller but .025 is what I had on hand at the time. If you do go smaller might want to add turns to the coils as appropriate to make it at least the same width as the stock spring. I used round nosed pliers to form the coils but a punch or drill bit should work to wind the coils around. Just make sure they are tight together and the ends end up in the same location as the stock spring. leave the ends long till you have the coils wound, make the bend for the Sear engagement then cut to size.
Next operation was to polish all mating surfaces and the sides of the three moving parts in the Hammer Group. The Sear and Sear Disconnect are either cast aluminum or Chiappalloy and I wouldn't get too crazy with removing metal on these two parts. I cleaned up the sides with a couple strokes on 1200 grit sandpaper and lightly polished the mating surfaces with a buffing wheel on my Dremel. If you simulate a trigger press (push lightly on the front of the Sear) you will see the engagement between the Sear and The Sear Disconnect wouldn't be very forgiving if any metal is removed.
Some guns have what seems to be a half cock hammer position. Chiappa has a bulletin on the web site explaining that this isn't really a half cock safety but a result of the sear engagement. What really happens is the hammer notch engages the Sear as the gun is cocked (green arrow). Out of the box, my gun would not stay at half cock, I think the Sear to Sear Disconnect engagement surface might be shorter than the ones that will and the reason I didn't want to remove any metal from the Sear.
After deciding not much could be done with Sear and Sear Disconnect I started looking at the hammer. I would not do anything with the hammer spring or the Sear Disconnect spring. I highly suspect if these two springs are messed with you will create a problem. The Hammer notch on my gun was pretty rough and deep. The roughness made for a gritty trigger and the depth made for a long trigger pull. I started by filing the top inside (engagement surface) smooth without changing the angle. I then buffed the surface to slick it up. I then started filing down the front outside of the notch to shorten the notch. I stopped just when I could barely feel a tick as the hammer passed the sear. This eliminated any false sense of a half cock position and made the trigger pull as short as I felt comfortable with. I then cleaned up and polished the surfaces and the sides of the hammer.
Time to reassemble the gun and see what we have. With the trigger in place the Back Strap/Hammer Group can be installed. Remember that darn Safety Transfer Bar, well wished I had taken a photo when I was putting it back in. The big problem is it needs to be sat on the Back Strap with the hole toward the top and the little half round protrusion facing forward. The little bend is normal, don't straighten it thinking it got bent during disassembly. Place the hole on top of the pin (not down over it) shown in the photo under the green arrow with the bottom tip down between the sear stop pin and the front of the frame. I put the bottom pin in the Back Strap, laid the Transfer Bar in the proper location then rocked the top of back strap into position. The Thumb Safety is what holds the top of the back strap and the forward pin is what ends up engaging the hole in the Transfer Bar. You are working blind because as soon as you start installing the Thumb Safety you can no longer see the transfer bar. You can look down from the top but if you pick the gun up the transfer bar will fall out of position and you'll have to start all over. Only took me a couple of tries to get it, if anyone knows a trick I'm sure we would love to hear about it.
After the gun was completely assembled I loaded up a magazine and stepped out back. Wow what a difference! It may not be a target trigger but it's allot lighter, clean and crisp. A real gun smith can probably make it better still but I'm more than satisfied with the results I achieved. May seem a little complicated but once you get the Hammer Group out and analyze it most of this should make sense (I hope).
Was tired of waiting for the what felt like 15 pound trigger on my Chiappa 1911-22 to break in so decided to see if I could do anything to help it along. Disclaimer: I am not a gun smith, just a guy with a fair mechanical aptitude. Proceed at your own risk, bla bla bla... Also I neglected to take photos throughout the whole procedure so will try to explain as much as possible in the text. I will use the part descriptions per the parts break down in the 1911-22 manual. If you don't have a manual or can't read the one that came with the gun a .PDF version is available for download on Chiappa's web site.
First photo is after I managed to get the gun completely apart without screwing up anything. Couple of surprises during the disassembly. First when you remove the Back Strap the Safety Transfer Bar will fall out and you will say to yourself "Now where in the heck does that thing go". I'll address reinstalling it later. Second if you want to remove the trigger you will need to remove the Magazine Release. The screw isn't a screw but a cam lock. Don't try to turn it like you would a normal screw thinking it will come out. Push the Thumb Release and turn the screw 1/4 turn to the left. This will unlock it from the frame and the whole assembly can then be pushed out. The Hammer Group Cover simply lifts off after the assembly is removed from the frame.
Yes there are some AK-47 parts from another project in the photo, just ignore anything that isn't in your gun.
Once I had the gun disassembled I started studying the mechanics of how the trigger released the hammer. Second picture is the Hammer Group with the cover removed. First thought was the Sear Spring (red arrow) sure didn't need to be that strong. It basically functions as the trigger return spring and didn't see any down side to installing a lighter spring. My solution was to bend a new spring out of .025 piano wire. It only took me 5 tries to get one that I was happy with. First one I made the coil too large, the next three went flying off to parts unknown when I tested them in the gun. Last one I put an extra coil in, instead of two coils like the stock spring I made one with three. The trick to having it stay in place with the Hammer Group Cover off is the angle of the leg that rides on the Sear. Try to duplicate the stock spring with the smaller wire but just add an extra turn. The extra turn also helps take up the space on the sear pin and keeps the Sear in proper alignment.
0.025 piano wire can be purchased at most RC model airplane hobby shops. Might get away with something slightly smaller but .025 is what I had on hand at the time. If you do go smaller might want to add turns to the coils as appropriate to make it at least the same width as the stock spring. I used round nosed pliers to form the coils but a punch or drill bit should work to wind the coils around. Just make sure they are tight together and the ends end up in the same location as the stock spring. leave the ends long till you have the coils wound, make the bend for the Sear engagement then cut to size.
Next operation was to polish all mating surfaces and the sides of the three moving parts in the Hammer Group. The Sear and Sear Disconnect are either cast aluminum or Chiappalloy and I wouldn't get too crazy with removing metal on these two parts. I cleaned up the sides with a couple strokes on 1200 grit sandpaper and lightly polished the mating surfaces with a buffing wheel on my Dremel. If you simulate a trigger press (push lightly on the front of the Sear) you will see the engagement between the Sear and The Sear Disconnect wouldn't be very forgiving if any metal is removed.
Some guns have what seems to be a half cock hammer position. Chiappa has a bulletin on the web site explaining that this isn't really a half cock safety but a result of the sear engagement. What really happens is the hammer notch engages the Sear as the gun is cocked (green arrow). Out of the box, my gun would not stay at half cock, I think the Sear to Sear Disconnect engagement surface might be shorter than the ones that will and the reason I didn't want to remove any metal from the Sear.
After deciding not much could be done with Sear and Sear Disconnect I started looking at the hammer. I would not do anything with the hammer spring or the Sear Disconnect spring. I highly suspect if these two springs are messed with you will create a problem. The Hammer notch on my gun was pretty rough and deep. The roughness made for a gritty trigger and the depth made for a long trigger pull. I started by filing the top inside (engagement surface) smooth without changing the angle. I then buffed the surface to slick it up. I then started filing down the front outside of the notch to shorten the notch. I stopped just when I could barely feel a tick as the hammer passed the sear. This eliminated any false sense of a half cock position and made the trigger pull as short as I felt comfortable with. I then cleaned up and polished the surfaces and the sides of the hammer.
Time to reassemble the gun and see what we have. With the trigger in place the Back Strap/Hammer Group can be installed. Remember that darn Safety Transfer Bar, well wished I had taken a photo when I was putting it back in. The big problem is it needs to be sat on the Back Strap with the hole toward the top and the little half round protrusion facing forward. The little bend is normal, don't straighten it thinking it got bent during disassembly. Place the hole on top of the pin (not down over it) shown in the photo under the green arrow with the bottom tip down between the sear stop pin and the front of the frame. I put the bottom pin in the Back Strap, laid the Transfer Bar in the proper location then rocked the top of back strap into position. The Thumb Safety is what holds the top of the back strap and the forward pin is what ends up engaging the hole in the Transfer Bar. You are working blind because as soon as you start installing the Thumb Safety you can no longer see the transfer bar. You can look down from the top but if you pick the gun up the transfer bar will fall out of position and you'll have to start all over. Only took me a couple of tries to get it, if anyone knows a trick I'm sure we would love to hear about it.
After the gun was completely assembled I loaded up a magazine and stepped out back. Wow what a difference! It may not be a target trigger but it's allot lighter, clean and crisp. A real gun smith can probably make it better still but I'm more than satisfied with the results I achieved. May seem a little complicated but once you get the Hammer Group out and analyze it most of this should make sense (I hope).
