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Marlin Bolt Action Trigger Modification Reference

146K views 65 replies 42 participants last post by  1Rudedawg 
#1 · (Edited)
These are a few of the most helpful threads that I found that tell you what you can do to improve the trigger on your Marlin bolt action rifle.

Once you have read through these threads you will see that most of the information comes from our RFC member, DKemper.

Trigger Work - Tincody

Marlin Trigger Trick - cz452shooter

The Ultimate Trigger Fix - Dave B

Marlin 917V Trigger Job Help Please - ss monte

Rifle Basix Trigger / 925 - jonnybegood

Marlin Rimfire Bolt Rifle, Parts List; Schematic (900 Series)


If you find another helpful thread that I omitted, please include it in this thread.
 
#11 · (Edited)
Thanks!!

Installed a ball point pen spring in my old 25N - even trimmed it down a bit -- and it works GREAT!!:D

A lot lighter. Crisp. Smooth!

Also interesting in that I hadn't had the action out of the stock in many years and was impressed with how tight and well-made the trigger mechanism is in general. For an inexpensive gun, the sheet metal assemblies and their fitment is excellent and robust.

Very eager to take it out now and see how much better I can shoot with it. The old spring was quite a bit stronger and made for a hard pull.

Thx again - appreciate the sticky!
 
#12 · (Edited)
Installed a ball point pen spring in my old 25N - even trimmed it down a bit -- and it works GREAT!!:D

A lot lighter. Crisp. Smooth!

Also interesting in that I hadn't had the action out of the stock in many years and was impressed with how tight and well-made the trigger mechanism is in general. For an inexpensive gun, the sheet metal assemblies and their fitment is excellent and robust.

Very eager to take it out now and see how much better I can shoot with it. The old spring was quite a bit stronger and made for a hard pull.

Thx again - appreciate the sticky!
I used the pen spring mod on my 982 VS, it is great. Thanks:yeahthat:
 
#13 ·
917 trigger job

Just a brief line to say thanks to everyone who has posted advice and guidance on modding the 900 series triggers and the paper mate spring trick.

I have just done my 917 following all the instructions and the result is excellent :bthumb:

Initially I tried making a shim to fit under the sear spring - however with shim in place the sear did not move sufficiently when pulling the trigger to be able to get the bolt in and out easily. (the shim was 2.2mm)

I then removed the shim and replaced the trigger spring with a paper mate spring.
One thing I must emphasise - that little circlip on the trigger retaining pin really takes off :eek: After 10 minutes of searching the floor I resumed work :p
I found there was some lateral play after I had done this, so a gentle squeeze with some pliers on the alloy housing got rid of any play.

The pull is now around 2lbs - no noticeable creep and a crisp let off.
What more could you ask for. :D

Cheers
Steve
 
#14 ·
firing pin modifications Marlin 917

I recently purchased a Marlin 917 in .17 HM2 calibre, and it had a fairly heavy trigger pull in the 5 pound range. Following the sticky, I located a pen that had a spring the same length as the Marlin spring.

I then disassembled the trigger mechanism, CAREFULLY stoned the engagement surfaces to get rid of the roughness, and took a small nail that fit inside the sear spring, filed down the head to fit inside the recess hole, and cut it to approximately 1/4 inch long shank with about 1/32 thick head inside the hole. This improved the trigger pull to about 3 pounds....not bad for a hunting rifle but still a bit heavy for my personal taste.

Next, I thought about lightening the firing pin assembly, to create a faster ignition time. I had previously lightened a Savage Mark II firing pin and shield and it worked well....no misfires, etc.

So I disassembled the firing pin assembly from the bolt, chucked it into the lathe, center drilled it, and drilled it with a 7/16 inch drill, approximately 9/32 inch deep. I then used a 7/16 flat end mill to square the bottom of the recess.

The lighter firing pin assembly should give faster ignition time. It also brought the trigger pull down to about 2 1/2 pounds. I can live with that on a rifle used primarily for hunting gophers. Yes, I know all about warranty on altered rifles, but this rifle, bought a month ago, although NIB, was over four years old. I bought it over the internet, on a Canadian Gun Website.

This weekend, I put 600 rounds through it, without a misfire or failure to fire of a single cartridge. I used Hornady ammunition. Shots were taken out to 200 yards, and a very high percentage of hit obtained at extended ranges. A mildot scope helped figure out the trajectory, and the trigger system was a vast improvement compared to the original one. I am not advocating that everyone do this, but for me, it worked well.

My next project with this rifle is an overtravel adjustment for the trigger. As I have a good workshop, and metal working machinery, I am considering a couple of designs right now.

.
 
#15 ·
917 Marlin trigger overtravel

Well, as mentioned in a previous post, I was looking into a way to cut down on the overtravel of the Marlin 917. Although the T-900 Marlin trigger is an improvement over their previous offerings, it still leaves much to be desired. (I sometimes think the 900 stands for trigger pull....9 pounds and 00 ounces).

After using the 917 Mach 2 on Gophers this weekend, I was a bit annoyed with the overtravel once the trigger was pulled. Being an Amateur Gunsmith, and old target shooter, I appreciate a good trigger and not too much overtravel. I also thought the pen spring was a bit light, so I got out the files, stones, and ceramic rods, and started to work on the sear and trigger mechanism. It now breaks nicely at a hair over 2 pounds, with the original spring in it.

But that overtravel.....it was almost enough to make me tear out what hair I have left, and at 69 years old, that is not a lot of hair.

In looking at a way to put an overtravel adjustment screw into this rifle, it suddenly dawned on me that THE TRIGGER GUARD COULD BE REVERSED. I took the screws out of it, reversed it, and it came within 3/16 of an inch of lining up the holes.

Thinking, "O.K. A trigger guard can't cost all that much if I screw one up.", I got out the Dremel tool with a 1/16 inch diameter x 3/8 inch long burr, and VERY SLOWLY AND CAREFULLY started to cut out the trigger slot in the cast trigger guard. Trial and error. Cut a bit, then fit. Finally the trigger started to move slightly, and a few more minutes with the Dremel and some small files to square up the slot, the trigger had enough clearance to fire the rifle, and about 1/16 inch overtravel. I can live with that.

An unexpected bonus is that I think the rifle looks a bit more pleasing. The trigger is now situated within 3/8 of an inch of the rear of the trigger bow, not in the middle of it, and the slightly larger end of the trigger guard bow is now in the back end, giving a bit of an upward sweep of the trigger guard bow towards the front. You also do not have to reach so far forward with your trigger finger, as your middle finger is positioned less distance from the trigger to the back of the trigger guard.

The DOWNSIDE.....because of the close fitting, to get this minimum overtravel, if you want to remove the bolt, you will have to take the trigger guard off so that the trigger will be able to be pulled fully back.

I can live with that. Particularly because of the enormous improvement of the trigger pull and reduction of overtravel.
.
 
#16 ·
well, as mentioned in a previous post, i was looking into a way to cut down on the overtravel of the marlin 917. Although the t-900 marlin trigger is an improvement over their previous offerings, it still leaves much to be desired. (i sometimes think the 900 stands for trigger pull....9 pounds and 00 ounces).

After using the 917 mach 2 on gophers this weekend, i was a bit annoyed with the overtravel once the trigger was pulled. Being an amateur gunsmith, and old target shooter, i appreciate a good trigger and not too much overtravel. I also thought the pen spring was a bit light, so i got out the files, stones, and ceramic rods, and started to work on the sear and trigger mechanism. It now breaks nicely at a hair over 2 pounds, with the original spring in it.

But that overtravel.....it was almost enough to make me tear out what hair i have left, and at 69 years old, that is not a lot of hair.

In looking at a way to put an overtravel adjustment screw into this rifle, it suddenly dawned on me that the trigger guard could be reversed. I took the screws out of it, reversed it, and it came within 3/16 of an inch of lining up the holes.

Thinking, "o.k. A trigger guard can't cost all that much if i screw one up.", i got out the dremel tool with a 1/16 inch diameter x 3/8 inch long burr, and very slowly and carefully started to cut out the trigger slot in the cast trigger guard. Trial and error. Cut a bit, then fit. Finally the trigger started to move slightly, and a few more minutes with the dremel and some small files to square up the slot, the trigger had enough clearance to fire the rifle, and about 1/16 inch overtravel. I can live with that.

An unexpected bonus is that i think the rifle looks a bit more pleasing. The trigger is now situated within 3/8 of an inch of the rear of the trigger bow, not in the middle of it, and the slightly larger end of the trigger guard bow is now in the back end, giving a bit of an upward sweep of the trigger guard bow towards the front. You also do not have to reach so far forward with your trigger finger, as your middle finger is positioned less distance from the trigger to the back of the trigger guard.

The downside.....because of the close fitting, to get this minimum overtravel, if you want to remove the bolt, you will have to take the trigger guard off so that the trigger will be able to be pulled fully back.

I can live with that. Particularly because of the enormous improvement of the trigger pull and reduction of overtravel.
.
Pics!!!!!
 
#17 ·
Great thread...I have done the pen spring installation on

both my Marlin rimfire rifles - an old M25 Glenfield and my prize Marlin782 .22 Magnum. The Glenfield has been my squirrel rifle for years, but I now have the much improved trigger, heavy Weaver steel rings and an old Tasco 4x deer scope on it. The Magnum has a 3x9 Simmons deer scope and Weaver steel see-thru mounts that I may yet change for the heavy duty models - they are very STABLE!

Both rifles are well over 30 years old, both more accurate than I can shoot.

mark
 
#18 ·
Hello, I'm brand new to this forum but I'm glad I found it. Thanks for the tips on Marlin .22 bolt action trigger work! I just bought a Marlin 925M...I've wanted a bolt action .22magnum for years and finally got around to buying one but the trigger is a little too heavy. I'll give these suggestions a try. Thanks!
 
#19 · (Edited)
T-900 Trigger Mod ******* Style

Well I tried the pen spring trick today on my 983 since I didn't have anything else better to do.

After closely examining the way the trigger was put together I popped the two pins out, trigger first then the sear and disassembled it.

I didn't have any of the materials suggested to do this on hand...so I did it ******* style.

I found one of those green scotch brite pads and some comet and buffed up the sear where it and the trigger meet...crazy as it sounds after about 30 min of working on it she was as smooth as glass! It really works!

Then I wanted to make a shim for that top spring so what I did was cut the head off one of those little white aluminum nails that are about an inch long then got a hammer and tapped it a few times to mash down the cut part of the nail to form a little puck to fit down in the hole of the sear...worked perfect.

Then I wanted to take out the side to side wobble of the trigger. And of course I didn't have brass shims or anything like that so I got an aluminum can (Mt. Dew) and cut some metal from it. I slowly cut an out line of how the shim had to be and cut two little pieces with scissors to fit on each side of the trigger then bored holes in them with a nail so the pin would fit through. I thought it would bind up but it works perfect....it only takes a little piece on each side.

It was a little challenging getting the pin back in while holding the shims in place but after only one maybe two curse words I got it.:)

Easiest part was finding a pen spring that fit, popped that baby in and got it all back together.

This ******* trigger job did far better than I expected, I am very impressed! I don't have a scale to measure it but I'm SURE it's less than half of what it was.

No more wobble in the trigger and it breaks clean, safety works perfect nothing goes off premature when shutting the bolt, I love it!

I always heard dry firing your gun can damage it but that trigger feels so nice now I know I dry fired it like 10 times in a row!:eek:

Just thought I'd share my experience and hopefully help someone like me who had nothing on hand. It's really not that hard, just pay attention to what you're doing and don't lose any parts and you'll be o.k.:bthumb:
 
#20 ·
Can someone give me the dimensions of the replacement spring that needs to be used in a Marlin 22 Magnums rifle (specifically for a model 982SSV, if the model makes any difference) that would give the best trigger weight but yet be safe ?

Please include length of spring at rest.

Please include diameter of spring.

Thanks.
 
#21 · (Edited)
For anyone who might be interested, I called the Papermate pen company today and Lola was kind enough to find a Papermate Flexgrip Ultra Medium ball point retractable and measured its spring for me.

The spring measured 9/16" (that's just a hair over 1/2 inch for you non-math majors) and the diameter was approx. 1/8".

If you use this info to do a spring fix on your Marlin bolt action rifle, give Lola at Papermate a call at 800-323-0749 and say thanks.

I did could not find a Papermate Flexgrip at home or at work but I found a Parker retractable which had a spring of these exact dimensions.

I will also post this info onto the sticky description of the Marlin spring fix.

BE CAREFULLY.

Thanks.
 
#24 · (Edited)
Papermate Flexgrip Ultra Medium ball point retractable

The spring measured 9/16" (that's just a hair over 1/2 inch for you non-math majors) and the diameter was approx. 1/8".
....I found one of these pens this morning at the bottom of my desk drawer. I'll be installing it tonight in my recently acquired 981T.

Update:
The trigger spring mod took less than 10mins to complete...thanks to the info here and on Youtube.
I ruined a perfectly good pen but the end result was more than worth it! While I only dry fired it (with snapcaps) the trigger felt nice and light. A huged improvement over the stock pull weight (which I didn't think was too bad to begin with).
I'll be taking the 981T to the range tomorrow and hopefully the spring will last a long time.
 
#22 · (Edited)
For the Machinist-Challenged

Marlin 925 LR: I have removed the trigger guard screws and the takedown screw and had a long look at the trigger group itself. In the great pictures from the "Trigger Work" post by Tincody, the trigger is held by screws. But this was an Aug. 2003 post. The trigger on my new 925 is held together by pins (I guess). This may seem painfully obvious to guys who mess around with their guns a lot or those who work machining jobs. For me it's not at all.

Can someone describe in some detail how to remove these pins without breaking small delicate parts and what to do and how to get it all together again?

Much appreciated.
 
#23 ·
did the pen spring trick yesterday.....the pen spring was too long so i cut some off and put it in without doing anything to the sear spring...it worked great...next i'm going to try and shim the sear spring with a piece of #6 shot like i read here and see how much better it get's...:bthumb:...thank's to all that contributed to this thread
 
#25 ·
I did the trigger mod tonight. Pen spring and a stub of welding rod were used. The result is satisfactory. Much lighter and less creep but far from Timney or Jewel quality. It's better enough that the gun can now be shot well without the prior distraction of concentrating on the let-off.

Strangely, I now have a "TWANG" that can be heard and felt. I think it's the sear spring. I may hit it with a dab of silicone caulk to dampen the vibrations.

Now I need to shim the lateral play out of the trigger.
 
#27 ·
917

Pen spring upgrade done. 10 minutes start to finish. That included going out to the garage to find a pair of wire cutters. Dry fired twice (I know), noticably lighter. Going to spend some time at the range, then consider shimming the sear spring and polishing the sear.

Thanks RFC!
 
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