A22 Trigger mods ? ?

[Fasteddie01]

SEE SOLUTIONS on POST ON 01/21/2022 ** I just wanted to ask if anyone has found 'good' DIY mods for the 5# A22 trigger? I've found the 'Cut the Spring' mod and vague references to replacing the T-spring with a weaker one, and a couple others. But nothing else in the last couple years and nothing (except for 2 pics) with pics or vids. And if I wanted to spend another $3-400 on a jard or timney I'd just buy a CZ or something. I just bought an A22 after getting a 1/2" B22 and wasn't expecting a Tupperware trigger assy. that couldn't keep under 1". I got frustrated after about 75 rounds and switched to another gun for the afternoon.
Anyway, I'll be tearing the assy apart and polishing, but I can't find anything for other suggestions. I'll be contacting Savage about getting a Varmint spring, which is the only 'good' idea I've found. Maybe they'll send me one out of pity.
PS - I'm posting this on other forums too. I've spent lots of time searching inet for answers.

[HogKiller]

JARD, period end of discussion. Spend the money and try to wipe the big grin off of your face afterwards. I found that the 'accutrigger' was anything but with a minimum pull of 5.5#. Spent the bucks and got a JARD at 2.5# and problem solved. They are a bit of a fit so take your time, voice of experience here.

[Fasteddie01]

Well, like I said if I wanted to have $5-600 in a rifle I'd just go with a CZ or something. Thanks for the suggestion, tho. I got tired of waiting to see if anyone had any 'new fixes' so I went ahead with some of the suggestions I'd found on other forums. Mine is the 'Standard' barrel and I have a Limbsaver rubber 'harmonic reducer' to put on after I get a better feel for the gun's potential. At 25yds I got it zeroed - within 1/2" using Fed Champion 40g, but at 50 I only got a couple groups under 1". Most were 1.5-2" or worse.
So last nite I took the trigger assy out and switched springs a bit. I'd read on some forum that you could take the 'Safety spring' and put that in place of the Trigger spring with a bit of stretching, then I put part (3/4) of a 'clik-pen' spring on the Safety. I did that and dry fires are down around 2-2.5# with a crisp break. I plan to go out Monday to test fire, cause earlier with 'no-spring' on the safety it wouldn't reset consistently. Only 1-2 shots then I had to manually rack the bolt to reset the trigger. I'll post my results later in the week, with notes and pics.
PS - I just wanted to add : I have NOT fired the gun yet with these mods, so I cannot guarantee they work properly. I DON'T KNOW for sure . . . so be advised.

[HogKiller]

I wasn’t planning going there either BUT ont thing led to another and here I am. The Boyd stock wasn’t necessary but. WTH. Got a cheap BSA Sweet 17 that works well. I’m getting ground squirrels out about 175 yards so yeah it’s fun.

[Fasteddie01]

Well, I've experimented with the trigger set-up and found on RimfireCentral an 'old post' describing a relatively simple mod that may work. I've tried a few others (see my thread on RFC) so I won't go into the details here, but this one seems to be good. I still haven't fired this mod so it may not be the answer. I posted this "new - old" mod on RFC tonite and will update this thread when I test fire.

[Fasteddie01]

UPDATE - I was out y-day and got the 'RFC mod by nebbiolo' working right. I had to increase the trigger-pull a bit, to around 2.5# (guess-no gage) but it cycled and re-set properly and was shooting under 1" @ 50yds with a 3-9x42 scope. Good enough for the first 30-40 shots, it was windy so I didn't shoot a lot. Can't waste that grey-gold ;-O
Here's what the mod looks like - I think it's a #4x28 3/4" bolt & nuts to lock place. Need to adjust it for correct depth, sorta fussy, then adjusted the trigger-thing a bit heavier with that 'tool' they included. I may fiddle with that some more later.
Here's my RFC post :
" ... I got frustrated with searching for another 'fix' and did the mods that Nebbiolo had posted on the link in my previous post, his is at Post #10 and includes pics. The hardest part was finding a bolt small enough to fit into the "reset bar" hole, along with a couple nuts to lock it in place. I have lots of 'odds 'n ends' of that sort and finally found what I needed. It was like a #4-28 x 3/4", I think, my stuff isn't all categorized and id'd The locking nut that fit on the end measured 0.10" thick and when tightened onto the bolt with the 'upper' was slightly ( ca. 0.01-0.02" ) so there was a bit of 'free-play' for the reset. I've tested the trigger-pull and it's about 1.5-2#, like Nebbiolo's so that's promising. It works fine with dry-fire (as have the other 'solutions') but still needs to be fired. That comes in a few days, barring remnants of Ida coming here. My pics are similar to his, except I didn't have room for a 'lower' washer. BTW, I also have detailed the steps on reducing the tension on the mags, to facilitate loading. Pretty simple but always helps to have instructions. I'll post that in another thread, with several pics.

[IMG][/IMG]

[Fasteddie01]

Well, I was able to go out on the 5th, winds and rain died down just cloudy and 12*C. I put on a 'better' scope - Marcool 6-18x50 so had to re-zero. I shot about 75 rounds @ 50yds and was pleasantly Dis-appointed. Pleasant in that the FedChampion 40gSV cycled just fine and I got some groups around 1" - one at ca. 0.5 with a flier that made it 1.064" ! DIS because there were some "Groups" ca 2-3" - Very inconsistent groups. That 1.064" one, then 2.230" next group. As I said, I got the trigger around 2-3# but now have to find a better ammo to use. Maybe SV is not the best for this gun?? Lucky I bought a lot of diff brands last Spring b4 the 'shortage' hit.
I also took out my Savage-64 and got more consistent and 'better' groups with it, using a cheap Reflex-Red dot. One for 0.809", the rest ca. 1-1.5". I found that Herters .22 LR-HP won't load from the mag to the chamber, maybe HP is N/G for that gun? More testing . . .

[Fasteddie01]

Well, After using the 'previous' mod with nut&bolt for a while it became a problem keeping it adjusted for re-setting the trigger/sear. So instead of trying to Loktite it correctly I just removed that mod (for now ?) and went to "Plan XX". I pulled the T-spring and 'heated' it with a lighter to 'Red-hot' then allowed it to cool slowly (as suggested by another poster). When re-installed it gives me about 2# or a bit less and resets about 95% of the time - still occasionally won't but not as often as the nut&bolt mod. Only 5-6 time out of about 100 rounds. It needs adjustment of the T-spring but that still has a bit of leeway so I'll fiddle that as time goes on.
Now the main problem I have is fired cases sticking in and blocking the extractor area. The 'empty' case is caught and altho it allows the next round to load it jams the bolt from completely going into battery. Luckily this does NOT allow the firing pin to reach the Live Round and so does NOT Fire Out Of Battery!! I had that happen with a Marlin-60 with a dirty chamber and it's sure a surprise I talked to another fellow at the range y-day and he has the same problem with his A22 so I'm guessing it's an inherent issue as well. Looks to me as if the ejection port is 'too small' and I think I'll "Open it up" a bit at a time with a Dremel. Maybe a small change will be all it needs ? ANYONE else have a solution ???
Just to note again I'm in Canada and Gunshack will NOT ship a Varmint spring to me, so I have to resort to these measures instead of a simple replacement you all can do down in the USA. Someday . . .

[toasty]

I tried several of the mods discussed on this forum and others to improve my trigger. I was able to get my A22 trigger to be decent, but not good. A month ago, I found a good price on a Jard 1lb trigger for my A22 22 WMR and bought it as an early Christmas present to myself. Shot it 2 times in the last 2 days and the Jard is significantly better. Any opinions on if there is demand for a factory Savage A22 trigger? Maybe as an extra to really experiment with and not worry about messing up your factory trigger? I like the accutriggers on my 10-16 rifles and they are easy to tweak, but Savage should be ashamed of putting out this rimfire trigger.

[Fasteddie01]

" ... demand for a factory Savage A22 trigger? " - Anyone you want to 'push over the edge' ? ;-)
Another member took pity on me and sent me a spring from Gunshack. I now have 'adjustable' and light trigger pull.
Big THANKS to member from the SW-USA !!

[Fasteddie01]

Just to make a 'FINAL' update -
I just got a Varmint Spring from Gunshack and installed last nite. The "Narrow end" of the V-spring is about 3 coils longer than the OEM but that just gives you more 'heavier' adjustment. I wasn't sure it would fit but I put my tool thru the guard and was able to 'catch' the spring 'cross-piece' and screw it in.
I was out New Years' Day and found I had to have the pull at about 2-ish# to get the Sear/reset reliably but still better than the OEM of about 4-5# ! I cleaned all the inside of the action just using swabs and picks to get out a lot of the OEM "grease and debris", then re-lubed just 'dabs' at the hammer/sear point and on the recoil spring using silicone grease . That seemed to help - at least I feel better with 'Good Grease'
I'll be Updating my 'other threads' about these Triggers with this new info and some pics. I also made a 'much longer' T-adjustment tool out of a piece of clothes-hanger wire, makes it so much easier with a 5-6" long tool ALSO, un-winding the mag spring makes loading Super easy and still feeds the A22 quick enough. And I have 2x of the 25-round mags and they feed both the A & B reliably !
I have a B22 that I just heated the OEM spring (TAKE out of the action!! ) and it's NOW DOWN TO 1.4# !! so I'm NOT replacing that with the V-spring . . . yet .
A couple side notes - First, many have complained about the barrel touching the Right side of the forearm and some at the bottom of the channel. I took out the "reinforcing piece" and filed off a good bit of the bottom to lower it, then also the Right edge so there is 1/8" clearance. Now the barrel truly 'Floats'.
Second, another user suggested only tightening the action screws to about 14-15# so there is less stress on the action. Since it's a 'flexible plastic case' that makes sense so when I put it back together I did that.
Finally, I had heated the OEM spring and the pull was about 2.5# so this V-spring is an improvement and only cost about $10 incl tax & shpg. The OEM spring was about 4.5# to start so 2-ish# is GREAT !!
YMMV - Good Luck !
Ed
PS - I forgot to say, the V-spring is only like $8 + shipping - Wayyy better than ca. $200 for a Jard

[Don G]

I've taken a lot of interest in this topic because I've been disappointed in one aspect of the trigger, which I haven't liked since the day I purchased the rifle and that's the "gritty" trigger. I purchased the rifle specifically for a tactical match to replace a Mark II BV, which was killing me in time and losing the sight picture as I worked the bolt and transitioned between targets. The A22 has done the job in these matches BUT I HATE the gritty trigger. I switched from the plastic stock, which made the grit sound like a sounding board, to a Boyd and it mitigated the sound somewhat. Shortly after buying the rifle, which I thought had a manufacturing defect, I called Savage. Eventually, I was able to speak to a floor supervisor. I purposely didn't ask his name. After a few minutes he told me that Savage management is aware of the problem and it would be a simple step to clean up the trigger during final assembly but management decided it's a "time & Money" and just skipped that step. Sounded like a stupid decision but that's present day USA.


Then along came this topic. First of all, I'm the shooter that sent fasteddie the spring. I was hoping it would work and it did. The present trigger weight is OK but I'd like it a bit lighter. I've corresponded a number of times with fasteddie and he's explained in detail how I can clean up the gritty trigger. The next time I do a deep cleaning I've going to do the things he's told me about.