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Gunsmithing AR Trigger issues

TraumaControl

Private
Minuteman
Dec 7, 2018
19
4
https://youtu.be/zm0Lr49IqCI



I hope the videos work. A family member that is a gunsmith made this custom AR for me about 2 years ago. It has a FailZero trigger in it. It worked fine throughout the past 2 years with very few issues with trigger reset. Over the past 2 months taking it out to range I have had these dead triggers with every other round. So last night I kept trying to trouble shoot it, and recreate the problem with dry fire. It seems to happen if I hold the trigger while the bolt is moving forward. When I release the trigger it feels and sounds as if the hammer is flying forward. On the range it doesn't feel like that and chambered round doesn't fire. I took the upper off and reset the hammer with my hand while holding the trigger. Once I released the trigger the hammer flew forward and didn't reset. I sent the above videos to my family member who promptly called me after I described above and he told me to not to try to shoot it anymore and he will contact FailZero as the drop in trigger is under warranty. I asked around and some local "gunsmiths" were telling me that it sounds like your rifle will be full auto and if you don't want to get arrested I should remedy that right away.

So it is being remedied but I want to understand what happened? Any ideas?
 
No problems with G triggers but for single stage the Wilson TTU cannot be beat.

I like that one too, but I feel for the price the Geissele single stage is a better buy and it's also a crisper trigger. The 2 stage design is for safety since it has such a short pull. It's not like the 3G trigger, where the hammer is bumped by the second stage/disconnector in order to accelerate firing.

For a drop in 2 stage, you can't beat the SSA-E. It's a precision trigger and it's simple with no gimmicks and it's a solid piece. These triggers are all similar to the full auto one they sell to the military, just not full auto compatible. Well built and cant take a lot of use and some abuse. It's a trigger you can bet your life on.

For the best trigger, period, the Geissele Hi-Speed is impossible to beat. Fully adjustable, there simply is no better trigger and it's a work of art. I'm seriously contemplating swapping the factory KAC trigger in an SR25 with one I have in an AR lower. That's not a rifle generally improved by aftermarket parts, save maybe your favorite grip and other KAC parts.

I'd return the trigger you have if I could. Just say it doesn't work and you already found a suitable replacement. If they won't, then yeah, get it unfucked by the factory, TEST IT OUT YOURSELF, then sell it on barfcom. Don't burn a member here with it. Or if they sell something else that's quality and you can use it, maybe see if they'll trade it on credit.

You can find Geissele triggers on sale for 20-30% off, so be patient and watch Brownells, Geissele and a few others. Brownells also sells 2 triggers they have Geissele make for them that are pretty nice and lower priced (really as good as a regular Geissele?). I use those cheaper rapid fire triggers in rack M4's. WAY better than stock and when on sale, they're a really good deal. I've tried all the triggers at Rainier, they have/had test lowers with most of the popular triggers installed. Some were nice but Geissele still stood out from the pack.
 
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"For a drop in 2 stage, you can't beat the SSA-E. It's a precision trigger and it's simple with no gimmicks and it's a solid piece "

I had a SD-E in a run around rifle. Same as the SSA-E but straight bow trigger. It was too edgy for me. Like you said.. It is a precision rifle trigger. IMO, the "E" triggers have no place in anything else!
 
https://youtu.be/zm0Lr49IqCI



I hope the videos work. A family member that is a gunsmith made this custom AR for me about 2 years ago. It has a FailZero trigger in it. It worked fine throughout the past 2 years with very few issues with trigger reset. Over the past 2 months taking it out to range I have had these dead triggers with every other round. So last night I kept trying to trouble shoot it, and recreate the problem with dry fire. It seems to happen if I hold the trigger while the bolt is moving forward. When I release the trigger it feels and sounds as if the hammer is flying forward. On the range it doesn't feel like that and chambered round doesn't fire. I took the upper off and reset the hammer with my hand while holding the trigger. Once I released the trigger the hammer flew forward and didn't reset. I sent the above videos to my family member who promptly called me after I described above and he told me to not to try to shoot it anymore and he will contact FailZero as the drop in trigger is under warranty. I asked around and some local "gunsmiths" were telling me that it sounds like your rifle will be full auto and if you don't want to get arrested I should remedy that right away.

So it is being remedied but I want to understand what happened? Any ideas?

The disconnect arm is not "handing off" the hammer consistently. A function test should be with the weapon on "fire" and the hammer down, the rifle should not go on safe. Cock the weapon and put it on "Safe". The weapon should not fire. Place the weapon on fire and pull the trigger. The hammer should drop. Now, cock the weapon, holding the trigger back. Upon full return of the bolt, release the trigger. The hammer should engage the sear. You will note this as a loud "click". You should then be able to pull the trigger and hear the hammer drop.

Exactly why your relative (and others) have advised you not to shoot it until it gets changed. There is a possibility that the disconnect could have a slightly delayed release and not "hand off" the hammer to the sear and go full auto.
 
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This happened to me with a RRA NM trigger many moons ago. I replaced the disconnector and went back to shooting.

Same thing happened to my brother, and we did the same thing to fix it. Odd thing though, we went through 3-4 disconnectors before we found one that worked properly. My guess is that there was a lot of tolerance stacking going on, and we had to find a disco that was on the “+” side to get everything running right.