How do you get a "crisp" glass rod type trigger break?

[fecmech]

I,ve done a number of triggers over the years in single action style pistols, lever guns like the 92 and 94 Winchesters and the Rossi clones. I understand minimizing creep and contact area and I have very good triggers with minimal to no creep but all the triggers I have done I would call "soft" triggers. That is light but not crisp. My sear angles are generally 90 deg. or that is what I strive for. To make a trigger more crisp does the sear angle need to be slightly less than 90, greater pressure on the hammer with heavier mainsprings or what?? I like my triggers in the 2-3 lb. range. Any input would be appreciated.

[Ballistics in Scotland]

Well it sounds like we are talking non-set triggers, which don't have multiple levers...

You minimize creep on such a trigger by minimizing the width of the sear and hammer engagement, and doing this to excess means a dangerous trigger. To do it at all means you have to get everything else right.

Some old guns have case-hardened parts, and if so, you must beware of stoning or filing your way into the softer steel beneath. This would require new case-hardening, as the inner steel isn't hardenable. But modern compounds like Kasenite, though not cheap, are easy to use.

The sear and hammer should meet with flat surfaces, not an edge to a surface, or friction and wear will be increased. Now imagine if you could extend that surface. It should run through the centre of the hammer axis, or very near it. If that line passes appreciably above the hammer axis, the trigger will be heavy. If it passes appreciably below, the trigger could jar off if the gun is dropped.

Then examine just what happens after the sear and hammer disengage. Do these parts meet and hurl the sear away from the hammer? Even with a fairly heavy trigger or sear spring, that will produce a greater feeling of creep. But removing more metal than you must, to remedy this, will weaken the engagement points.

[DerekP Houston]

I must've gotten lucky, I followed stevegunz video for modifying the trigger pull on my rossi 92 and it is quite light, breaks at about 2 1/2 lb according to my redneck fish scale measurement. I am not a gunsmith so that is as far as I've taken it. All of my AR triggers are gritty and spongy even after cleaning I assume they will need an upgrade if I ever decide to take them seriously. The only *crisp* glass rod type triggers I have experienced have been on s&w revolvers shot in single action. I enjoyed it so much I started collecting them.

[KCSO]

This answer requires a book with pages for each gun. Yu need stones of various angles and grits, you need a trigger sear block so you can see what you are doing outside the gun, you need a good magnifying setup and an 18 power or more inspection scope doesn't hurt. The sear and hammer must be full contact and the engagement should be full width of the sear if possible. When you are done and this is the part most home shops can,t do is the engagement surfaces must be HARD.

I learned 1811 from an expert with a big mustache and I'll bet I ruined a dozen hammer sear units before I got a good safe one. The instructions for a 1911 alone would take 5 pages and a dozen illustrations alone. And each hammer sear unit is a piece of work unto itself, a M92 Winchester is nothing like a Beretta92, or a 1911 or ect.

[fecmech]

Since I posted this question I have done more research on line and have come to KCSO's conclusion that there is way more to this than I thought. I think this is a case of "I can't get there from here", without more training and equipment. Thanks to all who responded, I should have dug deeper before asking the question.

[Artful]

Ah, but the next person who inquires (with a search) will have the many good answers posted here.

[John Taylor]

Many time I have had to build up triggers and or hammer notch with weld. I found that if I use a hard rod with the tig torch I can get very good trigger pulls. Sometimes setting the hammer or trigger in the mill and using a fine grinding stone to get a smooth surface works good.

[crazybushman]

il start off with that im no expert , the triggers ive used that felt soft were ones that have been stoned incorrectly or worn out to a point where they are dangerous and the hammer creeps forward as the trigger is pulled . if im trying to make a trigger feel nice and crisp i try to reduce takeup , regulate travel and remove over-travel ( as best i can ) , i like to use setscrews if possible and locitite them in place after setting them how i want but ive heard of people using jb weld to takeup space around a trigger or sear as well , also some triggers have excessive sideways movement that feels horrible so small shims or thin brass washers can be used to help with that.for the sear i use a triangle and square hard Arkansas stone , i would be better off making an accurate guide like they sell ( i guide the stones with my bench-vice jaw ) . actual trigger pull weight can be adjusted through trigger and or sear springs as well as the hammer spring although i dont like messing with hammer springs for reliability's sake . personally i like a trigger around 4 lbs or a little more with very little movement . just feels better to me than a really light trigger .

[44man]

Depends. On a Ruger or BFR I get to 19 oz. Have to make a new transfer bar. A Colt should NEVER have metal removed or the trigger can fall into a notch and break. Build up to reduce creep. Only so much to do so the hammer flows past the trigger.
Never change angles.