# Loose Trigger



## Chaser (Sep 28, 2007)

Hey this question is for all you gunsmiths. I have an older winchester 94 that has a loose trigger. It is not loose side to side, but rather it has about 1/4 inch of play when I wiggle it front to back. Is this normal? If not how would I go about tightening it up? How much would it cost to have a gunsmith look at it?


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## Loke (Sep 7, 2007)

Does it have the play when the hammer is ****ed? But *UNLOAD* the gun before you check.


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## Chaser (Sep 28, 2007)

yes. it doesn't matter where the hammer is, its loose


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## Loke (Sep 7, 2007)

Hmmmmm.


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## Chaser (Sep 28, 2007)

the time when there is the least amount of play is when the hammer is at half-****. Don't know if that helps.


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## Loke (Sep 7, 2007)

Do you have an idea how old the rifle is? I'm not sure if Winchester has a web site or if that info would be there.


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## Chaser (Sep 28, 2007)

its OLD. My grandpa has had it since he was a teenager or at least in his 20's. He is now 68. So i'm thinking 50 years give or take a few.


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## Loke (Sep 7, 2007)

Try this. Type in the serial number and see what they tell you. If it is old enough, you might be better off retiring it and cherish it for the heirloom that it is.
http://armscollectors.com/sn/winlookup. ... in1894.dat


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## Chaser (Sep 28, 2007)

it said 1953.


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## Chaser (Sep 28, 2007)

So is 1953 too old to bother with?


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## Loke (Sep 7, 2007)

You might try the Gunsmith company on state street and about 33rd south. I haven't been there for years, and I don't know if it is still open. The proprietor seemed to know his stuff back then.


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## SingleShot man (Dec 24, 2007)

The loose trigger, in all probability, is due to the trigger-block safety that pokes out of the bottom of the lower tang. This safety prevents the gun from being fired when the action isn't closed tightly.
Grip the lever tightly to the lower tang- ensuring this safety is depressed. If the trigger still has a great deal of lateral play, it's probably a sheared trigger-group pin. Easily fixed. Take the stock off, locate the culprit pin and replace it.
If this problem doesn't seem to affect the hammer drop tension 
( causing misfires), then you should be fine. Just don't walk around with a ****ed hammer-which you shouldn't be doing anyway. Keep an eye on your muzzle, and lower the hammer if you don't intend to fire it immediately after cycling the action. If you remove the possibility of an accidental discharge, then the rifle is not unsafe. 
One other possibility may be due to excessive headspace caused by shooting too-hot reloads. Since these rifles lock up at the rear of the action, hot loads tend to cause 'stretching' of the bolt mechanism, from hammering against the cam bar (The 'H' shaped vertical bar at the far rear of the action).
If this is the case, loose lockup will cause excessive play in the trigger group, because everything is tied together by the cam bar and the lever pin.
Excessive headspace is NO BUENO, and the rifle should be retired.
Check the cam bar face for tell-tale signs of 'peening'; or being battered by the bolt slamming back against it during firing. If it wiggles back and forth (front to back) when the action is locked up; the gun is a wall hanger. If there is little or no evidence of either of these symptoms, then the rifle is probably okay to shoot.


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## Chaser (Sep 28, 2007)

Thanks for the suggestions. I pulled the stock off, and removed the hammer, so I can see inside. Everything seems to look okay. In fact, when the hammer is out, the trigger has no play in it at all. The one thing I do notice though, is there is about 1/16 of an inch of metal missing for approximately 3/4 of the way across the first little ridge on the hammer. And the exact opposite is missing from the trigger mechanism where it meets the hammer. Is this normal? It seems to me that it's either a design feature, or wear from use. My guess would be wear, as there seems to be no need for such a design.


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## Chaser (Sep 28, 2007)

Ok! I think I may have the problem isolated. There is a contact point between the hammer, and the trigger mechanism. When the hammer is removed from the assembly, there is no play in the trigger at all. But when it is in place, it seems to push down on the trigger mechanism, and allow the movement of the trigger. This movement is only front to back. There is no side to side play. Does this sound like a sheared off pin in the trigger group?


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## SingleShot man (Dec 24, 2007)

Nope- just a little manufacturing tolerance dicrepancy. It happens- it's probably always been that way. Try using a thin piece of leather to shim the two bearing surfaces between the stock and the trigger group. Be sure to trim it so that it won't interfere with any moving parts. Another possibility is that the hammer spring is wearing out. Use a nut on the hammer spring retention rod to restore the lost tension. 1/4x20 thread should be a good size, they're usually about a 1/4" thick. If it's really loose, use two of them. Good luck.


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