Which parts on trigger to you smooth out to get rid of grit?

[blasternank]

Is there another post that walks you through this? I have a little grit on a couple of triggers and want to get rid of it. I have fine india stones that will be used. I'd like to see pictures or a video if possible.

Thanks.

[leadsender]

Just search AR trigger job on YouTube

[polymorpheous]

Shoot them.

[seb5]

The only thing I ever did to factory triggers other than shoot them was to lightly polish the flat contact surfaces with 600 grit sand paper.

[blasternank]

thanks for the replies.

[MistWolf]

Be very careful polishing the sear surfaces of an AR trigger. They are case hardened and sometimes not very deep. Get some heavy bearing grease and apply it to the sears. My trigger went from gritty to smooth simply by greasing it with no polishing at all

[mkmckinley]

I've read enough reports of AR trigger jobs going south to recommend doing any stoning unless you really know what you're doing. Even the pros seem to have a relatively high failure rate. I must admit to screwing up a sear myself trying to do what you're considering. What Mistwolf said is correct, you don't want to grind through the thin case hardening. There's also th risk of changing the angles. The most I would do is maybe accelerate wear a little by wiping some polishing compound onto the bearing surfaces and dry firing a few dozen times before rinsing it out. Or just get used to the crappy AR trigger. If you need a really nice trigger get a Geissele.

[polymorpheous]

Be very careful polishing the sear surfaces of an AR trigger. They are case hardened and sometimes not very deep. Get some heavy bearing grease and apply it to the sears. My trigger went from gritty to smooth simply by greasing it with no polishing at all

What he said.
A trigger group should have some sort of grease on the engagement surfaces.

Shooting the hell out of it will smooth out the trigger.

[BufordTJustice]

I've read enough reports of AR trigger jobs going south to recommend doing any stoning unless you really know what you're doing. Even the pros seem to have a relatively high failure rate. I must admit to screwing up a sear myself trying to do what you're considering. What Mistwolf said is correct, you don't want to grind through the thin case hardening. There's also th risk of changing the angles. The most I would do is maybe accelerate wear a little by wiping some polishing compound onto the bearing surfaces and dry firing a few dozen times before rinsing it out. Or just get used to the crappy AR trigger. If you need a really nice trigger get a Geissele.

I ****ed-up a trigger or two by trying to stone them myself.

Worst thing was, I didn't know I ****ed up until a few hundred rounds later when my 2nd stage COMPLETELY DISAPPEARED and pull weight went WAY down. I had polished through the surface hardening down into the soft core metal. I even had an instance of doubling at my agency range ( I was alone THANKGAWD).

I bought a Geissele SD-C and never looked back. It hurt once, but I KNOW it is as reliable (and refined) as any other trigger group out there. YMMV.

[kgj1119]

Alot of ammo works the best. You don't want to go messing with the sear engagement. Run away guns aren't fun when u don't expect it. Want a non gritty trigger go aftermarket. It's your best bet

[Nightvisionary]

A quick and easy improvement is a shot of moly lube on all contact surfaces and pins.

[Tweak]

just shoot it until it's smooth, if you want a better trigger then buy one.

[a0cake]

I'm in the just shoot it until it smooths out or upgrade to a Geissele group. If you're going to grease it, Mobile 28 is the way to go. It is the grease that is supplied with Geissele triggers and works great for this application. Be careful with the Moly greases and lubes. Moly by itself is fine but many contain graphite which is bad for aluminium. Just make sure the Moly stuff you're using does not contain any graphite if you want to go that route.

[blasternank]

I'm in the just shoot it until it smooths out or upgrade to a Geissele group. If you're going to grease it, Mobile 28 is the way to go. It is the grease that is supplied with Geissele triggers and works great for this application. Be careful with the Moly greases and lubes. Moly by itself is fine but many contain graphite which is bad for aluminium. Just make sure the Moly stuff you're using does not contain any graphite if you want to go that route.

Thanks! Good to know. I'll check out my greases.

[devinsdad]

There is a fine line between polishing/stoning and sanding, when you cross it...you will have destroyed the part. Most are surface hardened only, when you sand thru that, toss it in the trash. Your best bet is to buy a quality trigger or have a gunsmith do it correctly.

[og556]

Grease always helped triggers for me. I have a S&W MP 15-22 which had an awful trigger when I first got it. After the first range trip I took it apart and greased the trigger engagement surfaces with weaponshield grease. After this was done it smoothed up quite a bit but is still heavy like a USGI trigger which is fine for this rifle.

[The_War_Wagon]

I run Geissele Triggers now. They come pre-smoothed. :cool:

[robm]

I have seen a trigger group with a VERY small defect (very hard to notice with a visual inspection) that caused the weapon to double, the AR-15 trigger system is machined to fairly high tolerances and it doesnt take much alteration to produce a dangerous situation.

[seb5]

I agree that it's problematic to take off too much or change any angles. I've also tried a few GI triggers with the big unnamed guy working them over and they all went tits up. I've also lightly polished the flats like I described above and never had an issue. I've tried replacement springs, never again. For me the goal was never to make a match or light trigger, but just to smooth it up a bit. That goal is attainable. FWIW currently every lower I own has some sort of Giesselle in it. You can't make silk from a sows ear so don't try.

[DasBulk]

My Colt has quite a few rounds through it and never got any better.

Twenty minutes and a few dabs of Flitz took the grit out of mine. I polished the bright/sear areas..

I did not polish it to a solid mirror shine though. There is still machine marks. Really shiny machine marks. :p

Its so much nicer now. Still a long single stage and slightly creepy trigger. But no more grit.

I shot an SD-C. I will be ordering one soon.

[WS6]

Geissel SSA is a product that I have found to fix poor trigger feel in the AR platform.

[MistWolf]

...I did not polish it to a solid mirror shine though. There is still machine marks...

This is the correct way to polish trigger sears. Polishing until the marks are gone increases the surface area of contact increasing friction. Polishing without removing the machine marks means contact is only along the now smooth peaks with less friction and the valleys will hold the grease better. This also prevents cutting away the case hardening