drop in trigger jobs by Dale Rhea

[Nik Habicht]

Shot my first match today with the Rhea gun unlimited trigger. The first stage was 26 rounds......................14 light strikes with Federal small rifle primers. I don't get it, Vanek triggers @ 1.5 lbs will set off Federal small rifle primers all day long. 2.3 lb Rhea trigger and can't even get through one stage. And yes, the firing pin tunnel was cleaned prior to installation. My homebrew trigger job @ 2.8 lbs will pop small rifle no problem. Anybody got any ideas?

DaG

I'd say the best approach would be to call Dale Rhea or whomever you may have bought the trigger from to resolve the issue. I did find the following tidbit in Dale's post above:

For best results I recommend Federal pistol primers.

That may explain matters.....

[Detlef]

DaG,

can you explain why you use small rifle primers? Is this a Glock converted to 38sup or another high-pressure cartridge where pressure containment plays a role? If not, why would you compromise safe ignition using rifle primers (with thicker cups)????

--D.

[Flexmoney]

I used to run Federal 200's (SPM...supposed to be the same as Federal SR?). I ran them because that is what Chuck Bradley had in stock when I bought my first batch of reloading supplies for our game.

I stayed with them for a long while after that. They worked. I only switched to Federal SP when they were easier to get on the "next big order".

Anyway, I ran with a Wolff Reduced Power Striker Spring. No problems.

I don't know what striker spring Dale uses with his kits (?). But I would look at the firing pin tip of the striker to see if it is chipped or broken...and I would check the ammo. Many merely seat the primers to "flush". They need to be set to "below flush"...seated so that they fully bottom out.

With 14 out of 26 not firing...that's not the trigger job. Something is broke. I'd suspect the ammo.

Once that was addressed, it is easy enough to start swapping parts to see where the problem is (especially with an over 50% failure rate).

[Flashooter]

With 14 out of 26 not firing...that's not the trigger job. Something is broke. I'd suspect the ammo.

Flexmoney, you're correct. My problem of light strikes with Dale's trigger turned out to be a defective ISMI 15 spring. I installed a new spring and fired about 400 - 500 rounds. Upon removing the spring for cleaning, I noticed that the spring had compressed, losing about 20 - 30% or more of its original length. It was several inches shorter than my buddy's identical 15 lb spring.

I contacted ISMI via telephone, and learned that ISMI thinks that one batch of springs (mostly 13, 15, and 17 lb) was not properly heat treated. The fellow I talked with was quite helpful. He instructed me to send him the defective springs for immediate replacement.

With a good spring, the Dale trigger now runs fine, so there is nothing wrong with the Dale's drop-in trigger that I installed in my G-35.

BTW, Flexmoney, I've learned a lot from your posts! I printed and put your recent post "Kyle's Flinch Breaker - 101" into my range bag. I've read these same concepts in BE's book, but it helps me to see them again....and again....and again ...Duh!?

Flashooter

[Flexmoney]

Flashooter,

Interesting fix. Your recoil spring must not have been allowing 100% full lock-up.

I could see that (also) happening with light recoil springs and strong trigger return springs...since these work against each other as the trigger is pulled. (yep...with some 'custom setups' you can start to pull the slide/barrel out of lockup by pulling the trigger )

Cool beans on the Flinch Breaker 101.

[ryucasta]

Maybe DAG is using a small frame Glock configured for a 9x19 major load. I find FLAshooters spring problem to be rather interesting since none of my Glock's will fire if the slide hasnt gone into full battery.

[DaG]

Detlef

I use small rifle for 40 since I primarily load super....easier to stock one primer.

Flexmoney

Nothing broke on the gun. My trigger pops SR no problem. Took the Vanek setup out of a friends gun and had NO trouble at all with SR. As far as Rhea's striker spring, I have no idea.......the spring is flat like a Glock recoil spring.

[Kevin Kline]

So, what's the turn around on a Vanek trigger? Also, where do you get the Dale Rhea triggers?

[eric nielsen]

Kevin - what's up?

Charlie Vanek put my gun back in the mail the same day he got it. And it fires WSR primers fine, but I switched to FSP just in case.

For what it's worth, the Vanek trigger job parts bear NO resemblance to the photos in Dale Rhea's "Dremelling the Glock" article. They seem to have almost no techniques in common for how they lighten your trigger. I haven't seen Dale's drop in units, maybe they're different from his home-made job.

[Kevin Kline]

Hey Eric, how have you been?

I've been shooting the past several months and havent seen ya. Hope everything is going well and I might want to get with you to see your trigger job. Ive been looking into getting one done.

[Chuck Anderson]

Dale's triggers are available from this site.

http://bb-enterprise.biz/index2.ivnu

[TDean]

DaG, I assume you've contacted Dale about this. Any fixes?

So the striker spring is flat-wound like the stock Glock recoil spring?

I've never seen one of those before.

Dale, long time no see. It's about time you "found" these forums

Tom

[DaG]

TDean,

Sorry ,I should have explained a little better. If you hold a Glock recoil spring in front of you, the "flat winds" are vertical. On the Rhea trigger I was sent, the "flat winds" on the striker spring are horizontal. I remember reading an article one time about "dremeling the glock" and he talked about putting the recoil spring in a 1/2 in. drill and spinning while holding an abrasive to it. Maybe this is what has been done to my striker spring? I know there is no problem with the ammo, I tried the Vanek set-up in my gun with 0 light strikes and the Vanek is ALOT lighter and smoother. I did try his trigger and my striker and spring..............doubles and triples, but boy howdy was it fun! good hits too!

DaG

[jcmios]

The Reah dosn't even compare to the Vanek trigger job.

[scooterj]

I hope to be able to compare my Rhea trigger to a friend's Vanek trigger soon. Will report back. BTW I have no complaints with the Rhea

[SRT Driver]

7.5 K through a Vanek. No hitches. Still breaks at 1.5 lb.

[Desert_MP]

I just recently picked up the Dale Rhea "drop-in trigger" and I have to say that I love it. I put it in my G35 and I have to say it made a huge difference, however I put a trigger pull tester on it and it came back as a 3lb trigger not a 2lb trigger. But considering what it was before I very pleased, I only wish I could afford to put that trigger in all 3 of my Glocks!

I'm now looking for the perfect load recipe to keep Major PF, but only just. Any suggestions would be great. Thanks.

[chp5]

I just recently picked up the Dale Rhea "drop-in trigger" and I have to say that I love it. I put it in my G35 and I have to say it made a huge difference, however I put a trigger pull tester on it and it came back as a 3lb trigger not a 2lb trigger. But considering what it was before I very pleased, I only wish I could afford to put that trigger in all 3 of my Glocks!

I'm now looking for the perfect load recipe to keep Major PF, but only just. Any suggestions would be great. Thanks.

The Glock trigger is harder to gauge then, say, a 1911 trigger. The poundage will vary depending on when you place the bar on the trigger face. If you like the trigger and it works for you, then that's the correct gauge.

Do a search on major PF loads and you'll find lots of info. I personally use 4.7 grains of Titegroup under a 180 Zero JHP. Start at about 4.4 grains and work up if necessary.

[Flexmoney]

Lot of load data found on other threads...(Cy's starting load is too hot in my G35)...but, those discussions can be found in the load threads.