How to Disassemble Sharps Trigger Assbly.

[Mr AR15]

I was wondering where one might find a "how to" on the disassembly and of course re-assembly of the Sharps trigger. I want to smooth things down a touch on the innards of this new 45-70 Cavalry Carbine repro I just got (Chapparell Arms). I've done trigger jobs on Rugers (10/22 and Mrk III) and some 1911's but I'm afraid I've never seen the inside of the Sharps. So, I'm somewhat reluctant on charging head first into this with a just a big honkin screw driver, a DREMEL and a hammer. I've googled till I'm blue and have found nothing but a crappy exploded drawing that could barely be read.

I sure would like some help if there's help to be had out there.

 

[Mr AR15]

You mean to say that no one has taken their Sharps apart even for a cleaning?

 

[mooncoon]

You mean to say that no one has taken their Sharps apart even for a cleaning?

I am inclined to say that a person who is competant to work on the trigger assembly of a Sharps should not have to ask. The schematic should show you all you need to know. The disassembly is very basic and similar to stripping the lock on most muzzle loaders.

cheers mooncoon

 

[Mr AR15]

Who said anything about competent. I want to learn!

I have some experience in modern firearms but mostly semi's and bolts. Revolvers are a complete mystery to me at the moment but I have vowed to solve their mystery and master their mechanism as well as the locks on my blackpowder collection. The Sharps mechanism is much different than modern and the exploded diagrams that I have found are so poor that they are for the most part, useless. And besides, most modern firearms have step by step dis-assembly and re-assembly instructions on the internet to get a novice through the process without ending up with three or four parts that you didn't start out with. I don't want to just leap in with a screw driver and see what does what and what springs start shooting everywhere without first knowing what to expect.

I guess not many people work on their Sharps short of doing a basic field strip. Oh well. Thanks anyways and good shooting to all.

 

[trevj]

I guess not many people work on their Sharps short of doing a basic field strip. Oh well. Thanks anyways and good shooting to all.

I'd say otherwise. The guys that are digging in to their Sharps rifles are like any other guy that's comfortable ripping something apart and putting it back together. They look at how it works, work out how it functions, and carry on like they were normal.

It's not like it's an automatic transmission, or the inner workings of a complicated watch. You're dealing with a total of less than a dozen parts, and if you cannot work out how they work together, maybe you have no business in there in the first place, let alone trying to "improve" anything with abrasives.

Or, as a friend of mine told me, "Nobody ever learned anything useful, sitting on their hands!"

It's just a double set trigger.

Cheers
Trev

 

[mooncoon]

The gun sounds like it has a single trigger which means that any mucking around is going to be with the sear/tumbler notch. One warning re this; if the gun is Italian, the parts are probably case hardened mild steel and after a small amount of stoning you will wear through the case hardening and be left with soft metal that needs to be recased or it will wear quickly. If the gun is a Shilo Sharps or C Sharps, that should not be a problem.

cheers mooncoon

 

[Mr AR15]

The one rifle, my cavalry carbine with a single trigger, is made by Chapparel Arms and the other Sharps is the Sniper 45-70 with a double set trigger made by Pedersoli.

I know that after breaking the surface of the sear I will have to re-case harden whatever it is that I modify. But should I just heat it to a cherry red and dunk it oil or do I need to use that powder (not sure what its called) that you dip the part into after heating.

Regarding your comment:

if you cannot work out how they work together, maybe you have no business in there in the first place

Its called "trying to learn how" and is it not the purpose of this forum to draw upon the knowledge of others more experienced than you to help point you in the right direction. I know a fair amount about the workings of the AR15 and never have I suggested to the novice I meet at the range that they should do as you have suggested I do. I have always spent time explaining what I could and help to solve whatever their issue was regardeless how simple a problem might be. Hopefully they will have learned something more about their firearm after we're done. Thats what this community is suppose to be all about.

BTW

It's not like it's an automatic transmission

I beg to differ. My Sig P220 is complicated enough in function and layout that most people could not just dive in and start dismantling it without some kind of a primer to get you off on the right foot so to speak. SIG put out a DVD manual on detailed stripping just for that very purpose. I bought it, reviewed it and then stripped my SIG down to little parts. Then, with the help of this DVD, I reassembled it and low and behold I didn;t have any extra parts left over when all was said and done. (thank Goodness) In the end it was an excellent learning experience.

 

[trevj]

The stuff you are looking for is Kasenite. You may be able to get it from the local Acklands Grainger, or similar supply outfit, or from a welding supplies place. You can get a pretty decent case with it, if you follow the directions and repeat a time or two or three. Red hot and dipped in oil works well if the steel has enough carbon in it to harden it that way, Kasenit puts carbon into the surface, so it will harden when quenched, if the steel does not contain enough. Using Kasenite on high or medium carbon steel is asking for issues, like cracks and brittle parts. Chances are really low that they would have case hardened a high or medium carbon steel though. If they are case hardened, then Kasenite is the way to go. Poor boy/ old school version is to pack it into an airtight box crammed full of charred leather, cow hooves, etc, as a source of carbon, and cooking it all at red heat for an hour or three. You can either dump it directly from the container, into the quench medium, or allow it to cool slowly, file and adjust as required, then heat to red, and quench to harden the surface.

I learned how to strip and re-assemble a trigger on a C7 without any help except knowing that I had not lost any parts, and that it had passed the function tests before I started. I'd recommend that method to a newbie. It ain't rocket science, and it's not like telling them to go ahead and file off the locking lugs, or something as foolish as that.

It'd soon enough sort out whether he should be mucking about inside a gun, or paying someone else to.

Different strokes though.

Re: the comments on the SIG. The triggers on the Sharps ain't that. Probably why they didn't send a DVD along. As per mooncoon's suggestion, the triggers have a lot more in common with an old school muzzle loader trigger and lock, than with your Sig. Minimum number of moving parts, between the triggers and the locks.

Now, I still stand by the idea that if you NEED to ask, you shouldn't be muckin' with it. Wanting to ask, that's a different kettle o' fish, innit?

Cheers
Trev

 

[mooncoon]

If I might make a general comment on the subject of gunsmithing, I often read enquiries by those starting out, asking either can I or how do I do a variety of gunsmithing jobs. I think there are a couple of thoughts that come to mind. The first is; if it ain't broke --- don't fix it. In other words, be sure that you have a problem before you start improving things.
The second is to read up on the subject; there are a number of good books available on the merits/demerits of various guns; Frank de Haas in particular has several books out on single shot rifles, bolt action rifles, and pistols (I think). Curiously the first two editions of single shot rifles do not include the Sharps 1974. There is also a much older book still available secondhand by Clyde Baker ---"Modern Gunsmithing" which is still well worth reading.
Admittedly you cannot learn everything from reading but you can build up a considerable background knowledge from reading and that is a continuous and ongoing activity

cheers mooncoon

 

[Conan_568]

We have to replace firing pins and lever springs and that's about it.
With that said, if you'd bought a Shiloh, or a Ped you wouldn't be asking this question.
I'd take it back, and get a Ped.

 

[mooncoon]

We have to replace firing pins and lever springs and that's about it.
.

Actually those are two parts that I actually saved on this one :>) :>)

cheers mooncoon

 

[Conan_568]

Actually those are two parts that I actually saved on this one :>) :>)

cheers mooncoon

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v506/mooncoon
/Sharpsprofile2b.jpg

I've got a spare pin in my shooting box, and when I hunt with my Shiloh's I take my 40-90 and my 45-110, just in case something screws up.

What is that Mooncoon, a 50-70??

 

[mooncoon]

It is now; I had to sleeve the barrel. The original was some sort of 45 cal but the inside was so corroded that I can only guess which one. The one screw that absolutely defies me is the one that secures the firing pin and until the pin breaks I don't want to much with it for fear of creating more problems.

cheers mooncoon