Remington 700 Trigger Job - hummm wonder why question...

[flyingfrog509]

I've done several Remington 700 trigger jobs over time and find it to be fairly easy. Every so often there is a gotcha here or there but nothing crazy. So my son decides he wants to try his hand on his SPS Tactical. We cheated and bought a trigger spring from "Ernie the gunsmith" and I recommend using them http://erniethegunsmith.com/catalog/c1_p1.html

THE QUESTION:
Why would a trigger adjusted to 1.75 pounds in one REM700 (.243) change the pull weight when put into another REM700 (SPS Tactical .308) with no changes.

THE ACTIONS TAKEN on a REM700 SPS Tactical .308
1) w/Stock X-Mark Pro trigger out of the box off the trigger scale > 5 pounds.
2) w/Stock X-Mark Pro trigger best pull weight 4.5 pounds with the adjustment all the way out.
3) w/X-Mark Pro w/"Ernie" trigger spring in it, no other adjustments 3.25 pounds.
4) extra trigger off an older 700P put on the spare .243 for testing no pull weight taken
5) 700P trigger w/"Ernie" varmint trigger spring in it 3.75 pounds no other adjustments (in .243)
6) 700P trigger w/"Ernie" varmint trigger spring w/sear and over travel adjusted 1.75 pounds (in .243)
a little light but what the heck
7) 700P as adjusted in the .243 removed and placed in the SPS Tactical 3.5 pounds
(WHAT THE HECK!!!)
8) Took the bolt out of the .243 and put it in the SPS Tactical trigger pull weight 3.25 pounds
(something is going on here I don't understand)
9) 700P trigger finally adjusted down to just under 2.5 pounds, but we couldn't get it to the
2 pounds that we like.

This is the first time I ever swapped a trigger from one gun to another, but I didn't expect such an extreme change in trigger pull weight from swapping the trigger from one receiver to another. Anyone have any experience with this?

 

[jglenn]

just proves that even with our modern machinery no two things are the same.


how hard the cocking piece on the bolt pushes down on the trigger sear will vari from rifle to rifle. this will all depend upon how the bolt fits the bolt channel( how loose or tight ). this pressure will affect the pull

BTW don't try and go below 2.5 on a stock Rem trigger.... especially the old style 700 triggers. if you need something lighter go with an aftermarket. MUCH safer.. changing Sear engagement can be very dangerous and generally is not needed to get a good pull

remember the trigger return spring is re-setting the connector & trigger on the Rem trigger.. you have to have enough pressure to be sure it resets fully. especially when the trigger is on safe (old style)

Ernie's spring are the best $7 you can spend on a Rem trigger. never had an issue with one on many makes of rifles or shotguns. we order them by the dozen it seems. cleaning the trigger is very important when you move to a lighter spring...

 

[flyingfrog509]

I emailed the same question to Ernie thinking he probably had run into this before...no go with out seeing all the parts.

However he did mention that on the older style REM700 trigger even with the spring completely removed the sear will take about 24 ounces to trip. (NOT that you'd ever use a rifle that way) So it seems to reason that only an extra 8 ounces of spring pressure is a tad light for the reset bar.