Installed a New hinged trigger design for the 1911

I just finished putting together this new Wad Gun for myself. Its a Caspian frame, STI slide and Kart barrel. Im not a professional gunsmith, just a hobby for me, but Im pleased with the results. Had an unexpected day off today, so took it to the range, Just got home from Ransom Rest testing at 50 yards, and the gun is holding 10 shot groups under 1.75".

 The big difference, as you can see from the pictures, is the trigger. I learned about this trigger from a post on another gun forum. Its an X-Line trigger.

Here is a link...http://www.xline-geppert.de/x-line%20trigger.htm

 I contacted the manufacturer in Germany. He is a Bianchi Cup Shooter,  and was very pleasant and helpful in Emails, So I placed an order. If you are familiar with the operation of the fire control group of a 1911, the pics on the X-Line site will answer a lot of questions. Its adjustable in almost every way (so much so, you can go a little crazy playing with all the adjustments). The spring loaded plunger behind the lower part of the trigger can be moved in and out for a long smooth single stage roll, or set up like a two stage feeling trigger, which is how I have it set up. I have a sear cut on a True Radius jig, with a Wilson hammer that has long-ish hooks. The body of the trigger doesn't move, it is secured in the frame with a set screw through the trigger guard.

 There is basically no take up, as you begin to pull the trigger, you start rolling the sear off the hammer hooks (movement is amplified by the hinged design). Just before the sear releases the hammer, the trigger hits the adjustable plunger. It has an internal spring that you can vary the weight of. Continued pressure will release the hammer with very little further movement. Initial pull of mine is 2 pounds for the first "stage", and 1.5 more for the second.

 With a properly polished and mated sear and hammer, the pull is very consistent. Because of the leverage gained by the hinged trigger, the sear spring is set up for a trigger pull more like 4.5-5 lbs. Results in a pull just a hair over 3.5

 I thought it was a pretty neat idea, and well executed, So I figured Id share it with you guys. Gives the old 1911 a "euro-gun" feel.  Ive only used the frame for a 22 match at this point, so the jury is still out, but so far so good.

 Its not a cure for poor trigger control, its just something different to try. If you like the feel of a two stage trigger in your .22, you might just like it in your .45.
 What I like about it, is it gives you a chance to experiment with different types of trigger pulls with just a few adjustments! cool.  If anyone has any questions, Ill do my best to answer them. Here are a few pictures...

Beautiful gun and super accuracy. I love the 2 stage trigger on my Hammerli 208s Was the trigger a drop-in part?

Thanks Mike. I don't think I would go so far as to say it was "drop in" but it wasn't difficult. You have to drill and tap a small hole in the bottom side of the trigger guard to lock the body of the trigger in place. Other than that, you fit it like any other oversize 1911 trigger.

That trigger needs a target style trigger, something wider and smoother like a S&W M41 or Steyr LP10 trigger. Otherwise it felt great when markj let us dry fire it as a 22 conversion. It felt like it would be harder to move a shot left or right during trigger pull.

Froneck, on deck.

Agreed. My first thought was to mill off the aggressive serrations. They are a little extreme. But after shooting it, it doesn't seem that bad. I may still mill it down flat and make a shoe for it, going to give it a few matches and see how I do with it.
 It feels nice... its very different... but at this point, I have no idea if it is going to help or hurt my scores.  I think the primary benefit will be during slow fire, but we shall see. If I was a Master working on HM, I probably wouldn't mess around with something like this, but as Im working to consistently break 2400, figure what the heck, Ill give it a try.

I can't remember if it was Guncrafter who originally made these triggers back in the 80's minus the adjustable plunger. They are also popular on PPC pistols.
Jon

Thanks Jon, that's good to know. I googled as hard as I could but couldn't find anything similar. I know of several Bianchi Cup shooters using them, but It makes sense that the PPC guys would as well. Is there a useful place for something like this in Bullseye? I have no idea.

Definitely looks promising keep us posted. Nice work BTW. Looks great for a 22 but kinda defeats the point of a 1911 22lr.

Be-aware-this-is-$143.25-delivered!
Not-in-my-lifetime!

BTW-Very-Nice-Gun-!!!

Hmmm. Where would you hang the scales? With leverage like that would create it should probably be measured at the very tip. Anywhere else would give a higher reading but you would have no more weight then the lowest part touching your finger. I wonder what the rules would say?

Bubba Blaster wrote:Be-aware-this-is-$143.25-delivered!
Not-in-my-lifetime!

BTW-Very-Nice-Gun-!!!

The price is not bad at all for all the engineering that went into this design, Ive seen it and its impressive and being there is nothing out there even close to it id even say its a bargain.

I believe rules state center of trigger.
Jon

Oldmaster65, the question of where to hang the weight is a good one, and one Ive been pondering myself. Currently, Im operating under the assumption it would be treated like any other hinged trigger, and the weight would be placed in the middle of the trigger, getting an average.

Bubba, I know when you are used to spending $25 for a basic 1911 trigger, the price seems high, however, I agree with  DavidR, there is a good bit of design, engineering and low-volume production cost that goes into something like this. While the price is a little high, I don't think its THAT out of line for everything you get.

NRA Pistol Book 9.8 Weighing Triggers:

...While trigger pull is being weighed, the pistol shall be held with the barrel perpendicular to the horizontal surface on which test weight is supported.  The rod or hook of test weight shall rest on lowest point of the curve in curved triggers, or on a point approximately one quarter of an inch from lower end of straight triggers...

I don't think the writers of the rules ever thought about a trigger like this. On a curved trigger you put the weight in the center of the curve. On a straight trigger you place it 1/4" from the end. Where do you place it on a straight trigger that has hooks (for lack of a better word) on both ends? Did I mention that I like that trigger an I am asking these questions so I can adjust mine when I get one?

Len

Thanks Wile E. That's only about 1/8- 3/16" below where I measured it from. This trigger muddies the water a little because its not truly "flat" with the flare at the top and bottom. For now, Ill play it on the safe side and treat it like its flat. There is enough metal that it could be re contoured into a curved trigger, but Im going to hold off on that for now.

 Len beat me to it while I was typing.

The lowest point of the curved trigger changes as it moves through it's arc. The NRA weight set has a wheel that allows the hook to automatically find the lowest point and moves as the lowest point changes. It usually isn't much unless you have an extremely long first stage on a two stage trigger. If you pull a trigger correctly (ie. straight back) your finger will be in the same place as described in the test spec. and you will be pulling with the same weight as measured.

I had the trigger on my revolver weighted Tuesday at Camp Perry and the official made a point of saying he always places the weight at the center of the trigger.

who sells them state side?

rich.tullo wrote:who sells them state side?

no one, order direct from Germany

I don't think $143 is out of line if it works great. Sure a good trigger will cost 20 to 40 but this is like a Larry's drop in trigger for a 1911 I actually don't see how they will make money off of it to pay for the machining and design. 

Is the width the regular width or is it wide like a gold cup?

Fwiw, even coming from Germany, shipping was less than $10, and it got here in about 7 business days.

It is the same width as a regular trigger. It's a little oversized so it can be fit tightly.

THX

How "tactile" is the trigger reset on it? Do you feel this is something that would work well for fast shooting (USPSA, Speed Steel)? It definitely has my interest.