How often trigger jobs really needed?

[harlow]

This was asked on another forum but didn't get any replies, should get some here

I'm no gunsmith, seems in just about every topic asking for rifle advice someone says "...but needs a trigger job".

Every rifle seems to need a trigger job if you ask the right people.

How bad can they be and how good do they really get? Surely some factory triggers are good enough for tonnes of people?

[Chronos]

Firstly it totally depends what the of shooting you're doing. Fast paced if shooting at close range, long range varminting or target shooting etc. like many things it's horses for courses.

The reality is you'll never know how bad a trigger is until you shoot a rifle with a good one, Then anything else feels terrible and leaves you guessing as to when the trigger will break. I've had the pleasure of shooting some rifles with beautifully crisp light triggers (under 2oz) where you put your finger onto the trigger and just at the moment when the shot feels good, you just need to think about it and the shots away. No fuss, no sensation of the trigger moving rearward just Bang. The expression that's often used is it breaks like a glass rod

No obviously that's fine for target shooting off a bench, probably not great on a walk around rifle you're probably going to shoot leaning on a tree. Something that breaks crisply without creep at around 2lb is about perfect In that situation. Problem is a lot of American rifles arrive with a trigger that's more like 5-6lb because they're terrified of being sued because someone shot their mate.

It's usually the gritty, creepy feeling between when you start to squeeze and when the rifle fires that's the worst. A heavy trigger can be shot well, but only if its consistent.

But like I said, once you get used to a good trigger everything else fees like second best.

Chronos

[yoshie]

It's a personal thing and varies from shooter to shooter. Some guns are known for crap triggers, some of the American products have what's known as a lawyer trigger. More emphasis is on a safe trigger than quality. No factory trigger will ever be good enough For a target shooter

[Lorgar]

My experiences with rifles I've used enough to say I'm familiar with them...

Ruger - Clean break, but quite heavy. Could do with some work.

Tikka - Clean break, modest pull weight but easily adjustable with a single turn screw.

Anschütz - Terrible out of the box (obvious example of the "lawyer trigger") but easily adjustable for both pull weight and break. Excellent trigger once adjusted and no gunsmith required.

Remington - Similar to Ruger, bit lighter out of the box though. Maybe work beneficial depending on shooters taste.

On top of that you'd be less fussy for hunting, more fussy for target shooting.

It's very subjective...

I use my Tikka for hunting and range fun would never bother getting it worked on beyond what the factory trigger offers.