Just for information purposes.
Yesterday I picked up a Tula made SKS,1952 production, FTR.
Like any of the FTRs it looks new. It has the buffed finish and black bolt, all matching numbers and original birch stock, slathered in varnish.
I originally tried the trigger pull in the store and noticed that the hammer didn't release. As the rifle had a lot of cosmo in it, I wasn't to concerned.
After cleaning it up and reassembly, I again tried to release the hammer tension. Extremely rough and creepy as normal, but still no click.
OK, time for a good look at the trigger group. What I found, was the normal extremely heavy spring group. Changed the springs out for weaker models and reassembled. Still no click. Stripped down the trigger group again and honed the sear and guide rails. Better but no click again.
Observed the action of the trigger bar against the sear. The problem was obvious then. Either the sear was to long or the trigger bar was to short. The sear wasn't being pushed far enough ahead to clear the indent on the hammer. OK. It's more difficult to add material to the trigger bar so removeing some material from the sear was the next option. After very carefully stoneing the sear, and several disassemblies reassemblies, the trigger operation became functional and reliable
Upon inspection of the trigger bar, it was obvious the tech that assembled the trigger group had gotten to aggressive while fitting and trimming the face.
The trigger is also a lot more user friendly. All of the stoneing and polishing really paid off there. I probably wouldn't have bothered to do the stoneing and spring job if the trigger group had funtioned properly in the first place. There's a good reason why the Russians made the SKS triggers as heavy as they are. It definitely stops a lot of accidental discharges while under stress or whatever.
The SKS is one of my favorites. It was designed for the lowest common denominators in the world to use and keep functional.
I've seen SKS rifles that were so abused and rusty that I thought there was no way on earth that the rifles would function. Some of them had been buried in the muck of a pond for months, uncovered and sloshed around in the water until the muck was sluiced off. loaded and fired. I couldn't believe it, but developed a new respect for its designers.
bearhunter
Yesterday I picked up a Tula made SKS,1952 production, FTR.
Like any of the FTRs it looks new. It has the buffed finish and black bolt, all matching numbers and original birch stock, slathered in varnish.
I originally tried the trigger pull in the store and noticed that the hammer didn't release. As the rifle had a lot of cosmo in it, I wasn't to concerned.
After cleaning it up and reassembly, I again tried to release the hammer tension. Extremely rough and creepy as normal, but still no click.
OK, time for a good look at the trigger group. What I found, was the normal extremely heavy spring group. Changed the springs out for weaker models and reassembled. Still no click. Stripped down the trigger group again and honed the sear and guide rails. Better but no click again.
Observed the action of the trigger bar against the sear. The problem was obvious then. Either the sear was to long or the trigger bar was to short. The sear wasn't being pushed far enough ahead to clear the indent on the hammer. OK. It's more difficult to add material to the trigger bar so removeing some material from the sear was the next option. After very carefully stoneing the sear, and several disassemblies reassemblies, the trigger operation became functional and reliable
Upon inspection of the trigger bar, it was obvious the tech that assembled the trigger group had gotten to aggressive while fitting and trimming the face.
The trigger is also a lot more user friendly. All of the stoneing and polishing really paid off there. I probably wouldn't have bothered to do the stoneing and spring job if the trigger group had funtioned properly in the first place. There's a good reason why the Russians made the SKS triggers as heavy as they are. It definitely stops a lot of accidental discharges while under stress or whatever.
The SKS is one of my favorites. It was designed for the lowest common denominators in the world to use and keep functional.
I've seen SKS rifles that were so abused and rusty that I thought there was no way on earth that the rifles would function. Some of them had been buried in the muck of a pond for months, uncovered and sloshed around in the water until the muck was sluiced off. loaded and fired. I couldn't believe it, but developed a new respect for its designers.
bearhunter
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